Violet's POV
Jasper excused himself from the meeting, telling the other fourteen men to continue without him. He asked a cute brown haired guy named Caspian to take notes of the remainder of the meeting for him so that he could read through them later. I assumed that Caspian was his Beta, but I may have been wrong.
Once he had given out all the necessary orders, he took my hand and led me out of the house into a vast open space that looked like a courtyard. It was a beautiful day, the sun high in the sky casting long, dark shadows to our left. Our shadows were intertwined, my hand appearing to be on Jasper's chest when it was in fact firmly tangled in his.
Sparks ran up my fingers where they touched my mate's, and I wasn't quite sure how I felt at the contact. It gave me butterflies, yes, but whenever I tried to think about Jasper in that way (which was way too often for my liking), an image entered my mind. An image that would never leave my mind. Then the doubt would enter. How could I be mates with Alpha Jasper? How could I learn to love him after what he had nearly done to my brother?
A deep sadness filled me, and I pulled my hand out of Jasper's grasp, pretending that I was using it to scratch my head. Then I let it fall down by my side where it stayed.
Jasper sent me a sidelong glance, pursing his lips in a way that told me he wasn't stupid but would let it rest. "Everything alright?"
I nodded, attempting a weak smile. "Just worried. Is Jon..." I struggled to find the right words before realising that I was stalling for time. "How bad is it?"
For a moment, Jasper raised his gaze to the sky before resting it back on me. "You want the truth?"
Shaking slightly, I nodded.
A distressed expression fell onto Jasper's face. "He has a broken leg."
I couldn't help the horrified gasp that left my lips. Jon's leg was broken. Jon's leg was broken by my mate's hand. My lower lip started to tremble, and I looked away. I couldn't bear to look at him. I was afraid of the sweet image that my eyes would show me. He was underserving of it.
Second chances, my wolf reminded me, and I wanted to snap at her. Instead, I remained calm, noting the way that I couldn't do this while looking at Jasper.
"What else?" I said, trying to push back the tears that were threatening to fall from my eyes.
In my peripheral, I saw Jasper nervously run a hand through his hair. Or maybe he ran a hand through his hair out of guilt. I couldn't possibly know. "He has two broken ribs."
I swiped away a tear that had escaped my eye and Jasper suddenly stopped walking. He turned to me, concern in his gaze. Softly, he placed his hands on my shoulders and observed my face. I still couldn't bring myself to look at him.
"Oh no, baby. No, please don't cry."
At this, I couldn't help myself. I burst into tears, sobbing loudly and Jasper pulled me into arms that didn't deserve to make me feel so warm and safe, whispering sweet nothings in my ear that didn't deserve to sound so comforting.
Jon had protected me my whole life... and now he was so weak. I didn't know if I could see him. I didn't know if I was strong enough for that. If Jon was weak, how could I be strong? Jon was my strength. If he wasn't okay... if he didn't survive this...
No, my wolf snarled at me. Do not finish that thought. Yes, Jon provides us with strength, but we are also strong individuals alone.
But...I cried, feeling my heart ache. If he isn't okay...
He will be. That was it. She didn't say anything else, and if nothing else, her conviction reassured me.
I looked up at Jasper, and decided to speak my mind. "I don't know if I can do this."
What? My wolf demanded. What the hell are you talking about?
Jasper ran a hand through his hair, something that I noticed he did a lot when he was nervous.
"Do what?"
I bit my lip. "This. As in you and me."
Jasper's eyes darkened, but this time it wasn't from lust. It was from anger.
"And why the hell not?"
Tears filled my eyes again, and I chastised myself. "Because you are merciless, no matter how much I don't want to believe it."
"Merciless?" Jasper growled, and I flinched. His eyes darkened even more, and he began to pace.
"I am merciless?"
Unintentionally, I wrapped my arms around myself. It made me feel slightly more protected, especially when Jasper was shaking like that.
"If I am merciless, why do you look at me like that?"
I wanted to ask what he meant, but he continued before I could get a word out.
"If I am merciless, why can the mere thought of you stop me from shifting?"
With each question, he took a step closer to me. I looked behind me only to see that Jasper was backing me up against a gate. A spiked gate, no less.
Why does this keep happening? I thought, despite myself.
"If I am merciless, would I be here trying to convince you that I am not merciless?"
Another step. My back was almost brushing the black spiked fence.
"If I am merciless, why did you kiss me?"
Something hard touched my back, and I stopped walking. There was nowhere else to walk... nowhere else to look except the startling depths of my mate's hypnotising blue eyes.
"If I am merciless..." He leaned in, twirling a strand of my hair ever so gently around my finger. "How can I act so caring?"
He leaned even closer. My heart rate picked up, and I wondered absently if he could hear it.
"If I am merciless," Jasper's lips brushed mine so softly I wondered how the gesture could possibly come from him. "How could I kiss you like this?"
He rested his head on my forehead, no longer shaking. "And why would you kiss me back?"
Again, he didn't give me a chance to respond, instead tilting my head to the side to plant a warm, tingling kiss on my neck. I felt it right to my fingertips, and the butterflies shifted inside me excitedly. Damn butterflies.
"Violet, I'm not asking you to love me. Not just yet, anyway. I just want a chance."
He wrapped his arms around me tightly, securely, making me feel light-headed and thrilled.
"Can you give me that?"
Shakily, he breathed beside my ear and an unwilling shiver ran through me.
"Can you give me a chance?"
Say yes, my wolf urged. Her voice was desperate.
I pulled away from my mate, and watched his face drop. Quickly, I placed a hand on his cheek, letting it trace the line of his jaw to his lips. He moaned contentedly, and I realised that I couldn't say no to him. I couldn't cause him pain.
"A chance," I agreed. He threw his head back and let out a loud, joyous laugh and then I was wrapped in my mate's empowering embrace once again.
This isn't half bad, I thought to myself. My wolf agreed, and I relaxed into Jasper's arms with a grin.
******
AN: Hey beautiful readers!
I know that Jasper and Violet's relationship may seem a little rocky right now but trust me... it's gonna get better. You're just gonna have to keep reading to find out ;P
I am so shocked (in a good way) about the positive reaction I've had to this story. I literally cannot believe it. You guys are UH-MAZ-ING!
Make sure that you keep voting and commenting to let me know what you think as you, fellow reader, are what inspires me to keep writing. Beaucoup d'amore! Mwah <3
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