jasper
Two and a half years earlier
“C’mon, Jasper, don’t you trust me?” She snipped her scissors at me.
“You literally just threatened my manhood; of course I don’t trust you.”
I was lying, I trusted her with everything I had. I just liked to mess with her.
I still hadn’t figured out why I did this. Hannah always got her way when it came to me. We both knew it, and yet I still dug my toes in and fought her every step of the way.
It usually resulted in her chucking a fit, me laughing and then her getting her way.
It was our thing.
She got wound up and I got turned on.
She acted like I pissed her off to no end, but judging by the fact that she was always here when she wasn’t working or with Lotte, I’d decided she enjoyed my company as much as I did hers.
“It needs a cut. This mop is not sexy… the sides are all grown out… for God’s sake, just let me fix it.”
She was plugging in a set of clippers now, setting herself up a little salon in the middle of my friggin’ kitchen.
She sat a stool down in the middle of the space. “Sit.”
“What are you going to give me if I do?”
“A haircut, Lollipop, a fuckin’ haircut is what I’ll give you,” she snapped.
I grinned. Her patience was wearing thin.
I’d become surprisingly well schooled in knowing just how far I could push her, and more than that, I’d figured out exactly what it took to bring her back from the brink.
It was like a perfectly balanced circus act that I was one hundred percent hooked on performing.
She was sexy as hell when she was mad.
“You know that’s not what I meant, barbie girl.”
She clenched her fists together and closed her eyes while she took a deep breath.
I laughed into my hand while she wasn’t looking.
“Jasper Jones, I swear to the mother of all things holy, if you don’t get over here right now, I’m leaving.”
Her eyes were still closed in frustration.
I sauntered over to where she stood, steam practically coming out her ears.
She didn’t hear me coming; she never did, so when I touched her arm she jumped, her eyes flying open.
“Do you have any idea how pissed off you make me?” she demanded.
“Do you have any idea how much it turns me on when you let rip at me?” I stroked the back of my fingers down the side of her face and she turned into my touch, her lips rubbing against my skin.
“You’re infuriating,” she murmured.
“You’re irresistible.”
“J…” she warned, her voice wavering with uncertainty.
“Cut my hair.” I cupped her chin gently. “Because as soon as that’s done, I’m taking you out.”
“Where to?”
“None of your business.”
She nipped at my finger with her teeth and I pulled my hand back.
“Feisty.” I winked at her.
“You’re such a long day sometimes.” She rolled her eyes and shoved me down onto the stool.
Next thing I knew I had a cape on and she was working away at the sides of my head with a set of clippers.
I’d tried to talk to her, but she shushed me. Apparently, Hannah took haircuts pretty seriously.
“How’s it look?” I probed after about twenty minutes. She’d been working away with a pair of scissors at the longer hair on the top of my head.
I was pretty sure I should have been alarmed by the amount of blond locks I’d witnessed dropping to the ground, but I couldn’t not trust her.
She stood back for a moment, taking stock of her work, her long fingers working through the strands in a way that made my spine tingle.
“It looks really good.” Her voice was husky – she meant what she said.
“Great, book me in for another in six weeks’ time then.”
“Don’t you wanna see for yourself first?”
I shrugged. “Nah… if you like it, then I like it.”
It’s all for you anyway.
* * *
“Just tell me where we’re going?” she begged for the hundredth time.
“Not happening, barbie, just be grateful that we didn’t have to drive in a toy car to get there.”
“Asshole,” she muttered under her breath.
I raised a brow at her and she batted her eyelashes innocently.
“Stop whining and tell me about your week.”
She smiled. “I had a great week actually… we had a music video shoot and they filmed about ten different looks within the one clip, it was so much fun.”
“Whose shoot?” I prompted.
“Echo in the Bone, you know that girl band?”
I nodded casually. I’d slept with one of those girls once, but I sure as hell wasn’t going to bring that up now.
“I wasn’t the only stylist on set, thank god, but the director pulled me aside at the end and personally asked me to work the next shoot. He was really impressed with my work.”
My chest swelled with pride. My barbie girl had skills.
“Congratulations, babe.”
“Thank you.” She beamed before narrowing her eyes at me. “At least some people appreciate my efforts.”
I grinned wide. She was still salty with me after the haircut theatrics today. I was just messing with her, the haircut I was rocking was the best one I’d ever had.
“You know I appreciate you.”
“Wouldn’t kill you to say it every once in a while.” She tsked.
I knew she wasn’t being serious. I could see the smile playing at the corner of her lips.
“This is the best god damn hair cut I’ve ever had. I look fly as hell.” I gestured to myself in a sassy, self appreciating gesture.
She laughed and shook her head at me. “Ain’t that the truth.”
I indicated to turn off, and her focus shifted to what she could see out the window. It wasn’t much, it was dark out and this parking lot didn’t have even a hint of light in it.
It was all done on purpose.
It was meant to look like no one was here and nothing was going on, when really it was quite the opposite.
“Well this looks dodgy,” she deadpanned. “I’m getting an ‘I’m about to get mugged’ kinda vibe from the place.”
I smirked as I pulled the car to a stop. “Let’s go find out.”
I rounded the car and took her hand in mine when I found her in the darkness. “Just stay close and follow me.”
“So mysterious,” she teased.
I couldn’t see her, but I could picture the cheeky expression she’d be wearing.
“They don’t call me ‘the mystifying Jasper’ for nothing.”
“Literally not one single person calls you that.”
I chuckled as I towed her along. She was so fun to be around. This was what we did best…
Talk shit and have fun.
Being with her was as easy as breathing.
I knocked on the door three times.
“If this is a d-low BDSM club or something, I’m going to be seriously impressed.”
“You into that kinky shit, BG?” I asked with an eyebrow raised.
“Wouldn’t knock it until I’d tried it.”
Good to know.
We waited for a moment before the door swung open. “Well god damn… they told me Jasper Jones would be in tonight, but I swore back and blue that you were a grumpy old bastard that stayed home these days.”
“I wish, Bunter, I wish.” I grinned at the man standing in the lit-up entryway.
He ushered us in and shut the door behind us.
“Damn, J… how the hell’d you convince a hotty like this to come out with you?” He held his hand out to Hannah. “Name’s Bunter.”
Hannah shook his hand, “Hannah, and he kidnapped me and brought me here in the boot of his car.”
She said it with such a straight face I think Bunter actually believed her for a minute.
“We’re gonna head in.” I placed my hand on the small of Hannah’s back and led her towards the door that I knew would take us into the main room.
“There’s some serious heat in there tonight,” Bunter called after us.
“Is there ever not?” I chuckled.
I looked down at Han. “You ready for this?”
“If I’m about to get a whole lot of cock and balls in my face then I might go wait in the car… if it’s literally anything else, then sure, why not.”
“Trust me, no cock and balls.”
She gestured for me to go ahead.
I swung the door open and ushered her in. the dimly lit room was humming with energy and the tunes were pumping. The huge room was entirely soundproofed; nothing could be heard from the outside.
“Holy. Shit. Is… is this ‘The Backwards Virtue?” She gaped as she took in the scene in front of us.
I was shocked she knew the place by name. It was obvious she hadn’t been here before, and usually the only people who knew about it were the people who frequented it.
It was the most exclusive scene in town.
“How’d you know that?”
“Oh my god, that’s Miley and Liam,” she hissed. “And, sweet Jesus, is that Jennifer Lawrence?”
She was dancing around on the spot now – her excitement levels were through the roof.
I laughed at her. “You work with celebs every day, babe, calm down.”
“I only get the models most of the time, and no offence, but I don’t rate them the way Leo DiCaprio does… these are like legit celebs… oh my god, I think I’m gonna pass out.”
“Can you handle this, or should we go?” I baited her.
She bit. Hard.
“If you even so much as mention leaving again, so help me God, Jasper Jones, I will end you.”
“You can’t ask for selfies,” I warned her.
She gaped at me in horror. “I would never… I am not an animal.”
I chuckled and pulled her into my side before kissing the top of her head. “You’re such a little fruit cake.”
“I know, right.” She grinned up at me. “I’ve heard whispers about this place, but I’m in no way important enough to know what we’re meant to do here, so you might have to give me a heads up…”
“Well, I’m no Channing Tatum, but I’ll see what I can do.”
“Channing Tatum is here?” she squeaked excitedly.
“Wouldn’t have a clue.”
She rolled her eyes dramatically, and I realised that even though she was super pumped to be here and she was dying to do some famous-people spotting, her eyes had been on nothing but me for the past few minutes, and that was the best feeling I’d had all week.
“You’re looking at me,” I murmured as I brushed her hair behind her ear.
“I like looking at you.”
“More than Miley and Liam?” I leant in closer so our lips were almost touching.
“More than Miley and Liam.”
“More than Magic Mike?” I chuckled.
“More than anyone,” she breathed in a rare moment of unfiltered honesty.
She pushed up on her toes and our lips pressed together.
Hannah had never kissed me in public before.
I knew the reason she was doing it now was probably because she could sense the freedom in the air here more than the fact that our relationship was taking a leap into the next stage, but a guy could dream.
She didn’t know it, but every person in here signed a non-disclosure agreement when they walked out the door and you were only allowed in here in the first place by being on the arm of someone who had full access.
There were all kinds of people that spent time in this room. Models, singers, actors and actresses, businessmen, millionaires, billionaires… this place was an escape for most of these people.
There was only one bona fide rule. No adultery.
This was not a place that people could come to cheat on their spouse.
That one rule was what I respected the most about it.
I slung my arm over her shoulders and kissed her temple. “Come on, let me show you around.”
* * *
“Oh my god, I feel like that chick off Mean Girls,” Hannah gushed.
“You’re going to have to be more specific,” I drawled.
“You know, ‘that’s why her hair’s so big, because it’s full of secrets’…?” She shot me a look that let me know I should have known what she was talking about.
“I can safely say that I do not know.”
She stopped in her tracks and gaped at me. “That is totally unacceptable. You’re lucky I don’t terminate this,” she gestured back and forth between us, “right now.”
“I’m a dude, BG, wouldn’t you be more concerned if I did know what the hell you were talking about.”
She giggled. “Valid point, well made.”
I tugged her along to keep us moving.
“Do I have to keep this a secret from Lotte?”
I shrugged. “I’ll ask Park. He’s got full access, obviously. So he could take her anytime he wanted, but I’m not sure it’s really her scene.”
Han giggled and looped her arm through mine as we strolled back to my car.
“It’s not her scene at all.”
“Did you have a good time?”
“Are you kidding me?” She squeezed my arm. “That food we ate was incredible, and the dancing… the drinks… I had a great time with you, Jasper.”
“We could have done all that anywhere.”
“You’re right.” She rested her head on my shoulder. “And don’t get me wrong, having dinner with Chris Pratt was like a dream come true… and then Rihanna going up to sing… O. M. G.”
I chuckled.
“But it was you that made my night, Lollipop.”
Well damn…