Jasper Vale (The Edens #4)(57)

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN





ELOISE





“You’re kidding.”

Jasper shook his head. “Nope.”

“You have to be kidding.”

He shook his head again.

My jaw hit the sheets.

Oh, how I hated his ex-wife. I hated her for the tension that crept into Jasper’s body when he mentioned her name. For the way his voice changed when he spoke about her. It was rougher, harder, like she was this infected wound oozing puss, and just the thought of her caused him pain. But mostly, my hate was driven from envy.

I hated that he’d loved her for so long. I hated that she’d gotten his firsts, marriage included. I hated that she’d been with him at the Clover Chapel.

The night we’d gotten married wasn’t exactly special. I couldn’t remember the words the officiant had spoken. I hadn’t worn a stunning gown. We hadn’t exchanged vows surrounded by friends and family.

Still, since Vegas, I’d considered that mine. Ours. Even though this marriage was fake, I’d never forget that beautiful chapel.

Now there was a nasty stain splashed across the doors. The stain’s name was Samantha.

She was an ugly horse.

Maybe I should have been more offended that he’d taken me there. But the moment he’d explained why, that he needed a good memory to outshine the bad, well . . . I was honored that Jasper considered me that good. That I was the beauty he’d needed.

But I still hated his ex.

I’d heard of open marriages through celebrity gossip rags and random social media videos. But the concept wasn’t for me. The idea of my husband fucking another woman? No. Hard no. I was too selfish and too territorial to share.

“So was Sam cheating?” I asked.

“She didn’t consider it cheating because it was simply physical. She loved me. She was committed to me.”

I scoffed. “Then her definition of commitment is different than mine.”

Jasper dropped his gaze to the sheet between us and something about the stiffness in his frame made my pulse rocket. Like he was dreading what he was about to tell me.

Oh, hell. Had he gone along with it? Was he okay with an open marriage?

“What did you do?” I asked, not sure I wanted to know the answer.

Jasper looked up and the agony in his gaze cracked my heart. “I took the woman to the guest bedroom. I don’t know why. Shock, maybe. Revenge. I was furious and thought maybe if I fucked another woman, Sam would get jealous.”

No. My stomach dropped.

“The woman started touching me,” he said. “She took off her clothes. Climbed on the bed. And I just stood by the door, staring at her, wondering when the hell my life had turned to such shit. So I left her naked in the guest bedroom and went to mine. Found Sam and that guy in the throes. Sam was on top, riding him like it was her job.”

I cringed, a fresh wave of loathing for his ex-wife coursing through my veins.

“She didn’t even stop when I walked into the room.” He huffed, shaking his head. I wasn’t the only one disgusted. “She just watched me, like it was a turn-on to have her husband see her fuck another man on our bed. So I walked to the closet, packed a bag.”

“You left?”

“Yeah. I drove to a bar. Got sloppy drunk. Slept it off in my car.”

Oh, Jasper. I wasn’t even sure what to say.

“I won’t share, Eloise.” Jasper locked his eyes with mine. “I won’t.”

I lifted my hand to cup his stubbled cheek. “I don’t share either. If another woman touches you, I’ll cut off her fingers and feed them to my dad’s dogs.”

That declaration came out so suddenly, I froze. There was no way he’d miss how much that had sounded like a claim. A commitment longer than two to three more weeks.

But Jasper only chuckled, that low, gravelly rumble. It was second place to that free, boisterous laugh I’d coaxed out of him earlier. Maybe if I was lucky, I’d hear that laugh again before he walked out of my life.

“What happened after the bar?” I asked.

“Went home the next morning. Found the house was clean. Smelled like laundry soap. Sam had washed the bedding. And she just pretended like nothing had happened.”

I blinked. “Seriously?”

Jasper nodded.

“What did you do?”

“Told her to get the fuck out of my house. And that she’d be hearing from my attorney.”

Pride swelled in my chest. Good riddance.

“It got messy after that,” he said. “Sam didn’t want a divorce. She kept trying to convince me this open marriage would be good for us. A chance to explore our base desires but stay together.”

“Of course she did.” I rolled my eyes. Bitch.

“That other woman? She lied. She told Sam and her husband that I fucked her.”

“No,” I gasped.

“Sam believed her. Still thinks it happened. She likes to hold that over my head.”

Because Sam was a spoiled, manipulative twat. No wonder Jasper rarely spoke about his past. Between his parents and his ex, I wouldn’t talk about them either. Assholes.

“Sam wouldn’t actually leave the house,” he said. “Even though it was mine. So I ended up being the one to move. I packed up what was important, it was less than I’d expected it to be, and left the rest behind. I put the house on the market without telling her. She came home from work one day to find a For Sale sign in front.”