Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 83586 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83586 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
“He loves you. He loves you more than maybe I’ve ever seen someone love another person.”
“I feel the same about him.”
“Then you gotta give him a second chance. Like I said, I don’t know what happened, but whatever it is, Jasper will fix it, and I’m sure it also wasn’t his fault. He made me see…his daddy and me, we did a real number on him. I didn’t know at the time, when he was younger, I didn’t see what we were doin’, and now…hell, I don’t got an excuse now, but I love my son. I don’t wanna lose him. I want him to be happy.” Tears ran down her face, her eyes more pained than I’d ever seen them.
“He ain’t gonna lose me, not ever. I love him too much.” I picked up the box of Kleenex from the end table and handed it over.
“You’ve done a better job at lovin’ him than we have. I see that. And I…” She wiped her eyes, her nose, trying to clean herself up. “I want you to know how much it means to me, the way you’ve always loved him. And I’m sorry I didn’t show you that before, or how much you mean to me too. In some ways, I feel like I had a hand in raising ya. You were family. You’re a good man, Sutton, and I love you too. I think that got lost in all this, and I wanna make sure you know it.”
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. My eyes welled with tears because I’d needed to hear that. “Thank you. Your family means the world to me. You were like a mama to me.”
She nodded and stood, taking one last swipe at her face before clearing her throat. She was done crying. I knew that because Sherry wasn’t the kind of person who showed a lot of emotion that way.
“You take care of him, you hear me? I can’t make any promises about his daddy, but I ain’t goin’ nowhere. I’m gonna fix what I broke.”
Jesus, that felt good to hear. I hoped she stuck with it, but if not, we’d be okay. I’d find a way to make sure Jasper was always okay. “I will. I promise.”
Sherry patted my arm and walked out.
Me? I was going home to get my man.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Jasper
I just ended a call when the familiar sound of Sutton’s truck pulling up had me jumping to my feet. I’d know that rumble anywhere. I ran to the door, pulled it open just as he stopped on the stairs, looking at me like I was the whole damn world, like he was just as broken up as I was, like nothing would ever be right if we weren’t together.
“Jesus, baby. Your face.” Sutton came closer and trailed his finger softly down the bruise on my cheek, making me shiver.
“Did I get ugly overnight?” I teased, but Sutton didn’t laugh. He leaned in and pressed his lips to it gently.
“I think I might kill Clyde.”
“Don’t do that cuz then I’ll have to do somethin’ to get thrown in prison too.”
Sutton smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes.
I said, “We got a lot to talk about.”
“Yeah, your mama came to see me.”
That shook me. “She did?”
“Yep. She said you gave it to them this mornin’…and said she loves you, loves me too, and that she ain’t goin’ nowhere. I told her I wasn’t either, not without you at least.” He stepped inside and froze. “Unless you’re plannin’ on leavin’ without me.”
I could see why he’d think that looking at the living room, at how I’d started packing. “No, you’re stuck with me now. I ain’t letting you get away, but we gotta leave. I can’t stay on this property anymore. I called Sammy and asked him if we can stay with them until the house goes through. If that’s okay with you, of course. I just… I’m not doin’ this anymore, this hangin’ around waitin’ for whatever scraps he throws me, fightin’ for a father who doesn’t deserve my love right now. I wanna focus on the future, with you.”
Sutton turned to me, held my face, careful because of my bruise as he pressed me against the wall. “Christ, Jasper. Do you know what it does to me to hear you say that? You deserve so much more than he gives you. You deserve everything.”
He pressed his mouth to mine, licked the seam of my lips, which made me immediately open for him. Sutton slipped his tongue inside, kissing me with so much want and love, I felt it in my bones.
As much as I needed him, we needed to talk more, so I pulled back. “I got a few things I need to say.”
“Okay, just as long as you know the answer is yes, I’ll go anywhere with you.”