Follow Me (Caged Hearts Book 3) (3 page)

Chapter 7

Kait pushed the metal shopping cart down another aisle. She was already struggling to maneuver its excessive weight. It was packed full of boxes of cereal, tins of soup, and endless packets of frozen vegetables. It was already a much larger haul than her usual weekly grocery shop, but she wasn’t buying goods for herself. These were for Jasper – or more specifically for his bare cupboards. Kait had decided to help him out and fill up all his cupboards for him. She almost giggled with excitement to herself when she imagined his response when he found out.

She was heading down the sweets aisle. Brightly colored packaging called out to her, and her stomach gave a low rumble of approval. Kait loved sweet things. Especially ice cream. But Jasper followed a much more rigid diet than she did. Whilst he could carbo-load, he rarely indulged in sweet treats.

Kait gazed longingly at the packaged candy, wishing there was some way she could condone placing it in her shopping cart. But there wasn’t. She was buying food for Jasper, not herself. Picking up speed she hurried out of the aisle and away from temptation.

It was only when Kait was at the checkout that she realized that she’d most definitely bought too much. Her cart was almost completely full, and she’d foolishly walked over to the supermarket when she should have bought her car.

“Damn it,” Kait chewed her lip nervously as she handed over her bank card to the assistant. There was no way she’d be able to carry all the bags home. She’d need to go and get her car which meant leaving her shopping unattended.

“Damn it,” Kait repeated to herself as she pushed the trolley out in to the cool afternoon air. There was nothing for it; she was going to have to call Jasper. Reaching into her handbag for her cell phone, she called up his details and took a sharp intake of breath.

He answered after several long rings.

“Hey, babe,” he panted. Clearly he was in the middle of working out. Kait inwardly groaned at having to disturb him at such an important time.

“Jasper, hey. Look, I kind of need a favor.”

“Uh huh.”

“I’m over at the supermarket, and I bought way too much stuff,” as she spoke she cast an eye over the dozen shopping bags crammed in to her trolley.

“I really need to go and get my car, but I can’t leave the stuff unattended while I do.”

“Why did you buy so much?”

“Umm,” Kait looked down at her food shopping. She didn’t want to spoil the surprise, not yet. “I just got carried away I guess.”

“Right, okay,” Jasper sighed. “I’ll be there in about twenty minutes, okay?”

“Okay, great. Thanks.”

Twenty minutes later, Jasper jogged over to where Kait was waiting wearing his jogging bottoms and a hooded jumper. The sky overheard was darkening with the promise of rain.

“Hey,” Kait jumped up from the bench she’d been sat on as he came over.

“Hey,” Jasper panted. He’d clearly jogged all the way over from the gym. He glanced down at the contents of her shopping cart.

“Jeez, Kait, you planning on feeding five thousand people?”

“Actually,” Kait tossed her hair over her shoulder and smiled brightly at her boyfriend, “ta-dah!”

She waved a hand across the plastic bags like a glamorous assistant revealing a prize in a television game show. Jasper frowned.

“It’s all for you,” Kait explained with an enthusiastic grin.

“For me?”

“Yes,” Kait nodded. “Your cupboards were so bare that I thought I’d like, you know, stock them up for you.”

She saw Jasper bristle at her words, and she instantly feared that she’d done the wrong thing.

“I don’t need your pity purchases,” he told her coldly through gritted teeth.

“Pity purchases?” Kait didn’t understand what he was getting at. “Jasper. I was just trying to help; I thought you’d be pleased.”

“I don’t need your help.”

“Jasper - ”

“I’m fine, everything is just fine! I sure as hell don’t need you buying
food
for me!” The look of disgust upon his face chilled Kait to her core.

“Jasper - ”

“Sort yourself out,” he pulled his hood up over his head, turned around, and jogged away. Kait stared after him, her mouth gaping. What had just happened? She feebly called after him a few times, but he didn’t look back. Why was he suddenly so mad at her? What had she done wrong?

With no other options left, Kait was forced to call a taxi. She managed to hide her burgeoning tears from the driver as he kindly helped her load her bags in to the boot of the car. But once at her apartment building, he only helped her with them to the door. Kait didn’t mention that the elevators were broken. It took her four journeys in total to carry everything up to her place. With each load, her heart sunk lower in her chest. This food wasn’t meant for her, but Jasper had made it painfully clear that he didn’t want it. But why? Was she becoming too much? Was she smothering him? Kait’s vision became blurred with tears as she wandered up and down the staircase, laden down with shopping bags like a pack horse.

Chapter 8

Jasper didn’t stop running until he was back at the gym. By then, his chest was burning, and he was struggling to catch his breath. Sweat was gathering beneath his jumper so he shoved down the hood to try and cool off.

He kept thinking about how Kait had gone food shopping for him. Did he seem that pitiful that he needed her to buy food for him? He knew things were tight financially, but he’d done his best to conceal such problems from her. It was important to him that Kait saw him as strong and financially stable not weak and in need of assistance. The last thing Jasper ever wanted to be seen as was weak.

Jasper angrily paced outside the gym, not yet ready to go back inside. And all that awaited him in there was the equipment and the punch bag. His trainer was already on a plane headed back to America. There was no one yelling at Jasper, no one demanding he push himself. How was he supposed to win his next fight without a trainer? Jasper felt as though he was standing in quick sand. No matter what he did, he just sunk further in to his problems.

It was imperative that he win his next match in order to keep his sponsors and avoid financial ruin. He hadn’t even asked Carl why he’d sent his trainer away; he didn’t want to hear the reason and have the brutal truth acknowledged. Could Jasper even afford his gym membership these days? The thought made him twitchy. He wished he hadn’t been so harsh with Kait. He’d have to make it up with her, but he couldn’t go sending flowers or taking her out to posh dinners.

“Urgh,” Jasper scraped his hands across his head in frustration and kicked a nearby bin. But as his foot connected with it, he spun awkwardly, and his bad knee clicked loudly. The sound froze Jasper. It was dislocated. Jasper was certain of it even before the pain seared up his leg and brought him to the ground.

The receptionist at the gym saw him go down and instantly ran out to check on him.

“Hey, man, are you okay?”

Jasper was too busy groaning in agony to respond.

“I’m going to call an ambulance, just stay there!” The receptionist darted back inside the glass fronted building. Jasper gripped his knee and grimaced. He didn’t need this, not now. He needed to stay strong; he needed to stay in shape.

Chapter 9

“Well, it’s dislocated,” Carl stood at Jasper’s beside, his arms folded across his chest.

“I figured as much,” Jasper sighed as he leaned back against the pillows gathered behind him.

“What were you thinking putting pressure on it like that?” Carl demanded tersely.

“I wasn’t thinking.”

“Clearly.”

Jasper turned away from his agent, tired of seeing the judgment harshly written upon his face. He’d messed up; he knew that. He didn’t need Carl to remind him.

“The doctor said they’d managed to realign it, but you’re going to need surgery.” Carl said grimly.

“When?” Jasper snapped, still not looking at him.

“You’re booked in for a month from now,” Carl explained. “That buys us enough time for two more fights.”

“And then win or lose, I’ll be out of the game indefinitely,” Jasper sighed.

“Exactly.”

“Dammit,” Jasper closed his eyes and wished things were different. He wished he were stronger, that he wasn’t on a losing streak. He should have stopped when he was on top, and now he couldn’t because if he did he risked ruining the legacy he’d worked so hard to build.

“You’ll be out of here in a few hours,” Carl told him. “Want me to call anyone for you?”

“No,” Jasper replied a little too sharply. “But you don’t going to get me a cup of coffee?”

“Sure,” Carl started walking towards the door but then paused. “It’s on me,” he added with a mean smile. Beneath the sheets, Jasper clenched his hands into fists.

“Thanks,” he managed to respond genially as Carl walked out, still wearing his wicked smile.

With Carl gone, Jasper was able to fumble for his phone which was in the drawer of his bedside table. When he retrieved it, he saw that he had no missed calls or messages from Kait. She must be really pissed at him. Taking a deep breath, Jasper called her.

“Hey,” her tone was icy when she’d answered, but at least she’d picked up.

“Hey, babe. Look, about earlier - ”

“It’s okay,” Kait cut him off. “I overstepped the line, I get it. Our relationship is still relatively new, and I’m acting like I own your place or something. I’m sorry.”

Jasper lowered his head towards his chest. He knew he could easily let Kait think she’d scared him by being too full on, but he didn’t want to do that to her. She deserved better.

“I’m just so tense with training,” he explained, which was true. “I didn’t mean to blow up at you like I did.”

“It’s okay.” Kait sounded more like herself on the other end of the line. “I know things are tough for you at the moment. I was just trying to help in some small way. Want me to come over?”

“No,” Jasper coughed.

“Oh.”

“I mean, I’m still at the gym.”

“You are?”

“Yep.” Jasper wriggled in his hospital bed to sit up straighter. A door opened, and a uniformed nurse walked in holding a clipboard to her chest which meant it was time to check his vitals.

“Look, babe, I’ve got to go. My trainer is forcing me to do another ten reps before we take a break, okay?”

“Okay…” Kait sounded confused. Why was he calling her unless he was already on a break?

“I’ll call you later when I’m home,” Jasper promised before hastily hanging up just as the nurse reached him.

“Okay, Mr. Duboix, how are you feeling?” She asked in a forced cheerful voice.

“Sore,” Jasper replied with a sad smile.

“I bet,” the nurse started placing a cuff around his arm. “We’re just going to do your blood pressure, okay?”

Jasper nodded. He hated lying to Kait. There was so much he wasn’t telling her – like about his bad knee and losing his trainer. What would she think of him if he wasn’t the hardened fighter she’d originally met? Jasper wasn’t even sure what he thought of himself if he lost his identity. Fighting was all he’d known for so long. It was hard to tell where the fighting ended and he began. His time in the ring had become interwoven with who he was. Jasper Duboix was a fighter. How was he supposed to function without that label?

Carl came back in with a plastic cup of coffee as the nurse was finishing up. He smiled thinly at his client before handing him the caffeine beverage.

“We can’t let anyone know you’re here,” he said sternly. “We can’t risk the negative media attention.”

“I know,” Jasper sighed. But he feared that soon the whole world would know how weak and broken he was no matter how many lies he told to convince them otherwise.