Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

A s the two of them dressed again, Jumper tried to keep his back to her so she couldn't see how hard his cock still was. He hadn't faked an orgasm, per se. He'd honestly thought he'd been about to come when she had. His balls had tightened and he'd gotten that tingle at the base of his spine like he normally did…except nothing had happened. He'd continued on after her orgasm, thinking that perhaps he could get himself to come, but still nothing. Not wanting to cause her pain, he'd withdrawn.

He should have known he couldn't hide his lack of orgasm from her. Not only was she a doctor, but she wasn't a fool. As Jasmine came out of the bathroom, fully dressed now, she walked right up to him. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she gave him an understanding look. It made him feel…scrutinized, like she was looking at him under a microscope.

"You didn't orgasm."

Jumper swallowed, staring over the top of her head at nothing.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Her big blue eyes were so innocent that Jumper nearly snorted. "Because it's embarrassing. What man wants to admit that his dick doesn't work right half the time?"

The look of sympathy Jasmine gave him was the exact reason why he hadn't wanted to tell her. He tried to step back but she tightened her grip on him. She was stronger than she looked.

"Jumper, it's nothing to feel bad about. I assume Dr. Rutenberg knows about this?"

He nodded but didn't say anything.

"I wish you'd told me before. Is that what happened last week? We were talking about our fantasies and you couldn't get an erection?"

Jumper's cheeks burned. "Lost it actually," he mumbled under his breath.

She nodded to herself. He could see the cogs working in her brain. "And with your history of drug abuse, a prescription solution isn't an option for you."

Like he said, his girl wasn't a fool.

"Have you considered a holistic approach?"

Jumper's eyes went down to hers in shock. "What?"

Her arms squeezed him. "You and I are going to get through this," she said in lieu of an answer. "We're going to find a way so you can enjoy our sex life as much as I just did."

His hands reached up to cup her face. "Baby, if you think I didn't just enjoy what we did, you're clinically insane."

She grinned up at him. "Fine, enjoy our sex life more ."

He wiped the pad of his thumb under her eye. "How did I get so lucky? You'd really do that for me?"

Jasmine gave him an admonishing scowl. "Jumper, you just said you're falling in love with me. What makes you think I'm not falling for you just as hard and just as fast?"

He turned his head away in shame. "I walked out on you."

She nodded sternly. "You did, which we are still going to talk about, and we're also going to talk about you keeping secrets from me." She drew his face down so he would look at her. "Jumper, if we're going to do this, I need to know that you're going to fight for us. I'm okay with setbacks. I'm not okay with coldshoulders, ignored messages, and walking out on me. Got it?"

Fuck, what had he ever done to deserve such a strong woman? Jumper nodded.

The whining of hungry puppies interrupted whatever Jasmine was going to stay next. As she went to heat the formula, Jumper pulled his phone out of his pocket. He'd told Bulldog he would let him know when Jumper had gotten to the clinic, which he hadn't done.

He had several missed texts and a couple of missed phone calls from Bulldog.

Bulldog: You there yet?

Bulldog: Jumper, what's going on?

Bulldog: If you don't call me in five minutes, I'm coming over there.

In another thread, there were several missed texts from Bulldog's brother.

Carlos: Call me.

Carlos: If you're at the clinic with Jazz, STAY THERE! I'll be there as soon as I can get out of here.

Carlos: I can't get ahold of Sophia, is she with you?

Carlos: Answer me, damnit! I can't get ahold of either Sophia or Jazz. Are you okay?

Carlos: Jumper, don't make me call your brother.

Fuck. He did not want to explain to either brother what had kept both Jasmine and him from answering their phones. What had just happened between them was private and no one else's business.

He called Carlos first.

"Fuck, man! Are you okay? Is Jazz?"

"We're fine," Jumper told him. "We're at the clinic with the puppies. Sophia left before I got here. What's going on?"

"The McCrery brothers were gone by the time I got there. They'd put gasoline in the barn but hadn't lit it up before they left."

Jumper's eyebrows scrunched down. Gasoline? Carlos hadn't told him about that on their earlier phone call. All Jumper knew was that Jasmine and Sophia had spent the day investigating who could have killed those two Pitbulls and then they'd broken into a barn and stolen some abandoned puppies that were near death.

Jasmine walked back into the room with her arms full of baby bottles. He rushed over to help her. She smiled at him, raised up on her tiptoes, and gave him a quick kiss. Damn if his cock didn't twitch.

Carlos continued, "Sophia said they saw her car as they were leaving with the puppies. I don't know if that's enough for them to identify either of them. There was also a very Sophia-like crime done to their truck."

Jasmine handed Jumper a puppy. He put the phone down and pressed Speaker so he had both hands to help her. The puppy latched onto the nipple as soon as he offered it to him or her. A peek underneath told him it was a her.

"There's more," Carlos went on. "We found a body."

Jasmine's eyes went to the phone. "There should have been four bodies."

Bodies? Jumper rounded on Jasmine. What the fuck had she gotten herself into?

"Four?" Carlos demanded harshly.

"In the barn," she told him. "There were three bodies in the main area when you first walked in and then one in the back middle stall with the two puppies that didn't make it."

There was a pause before Carlos growled out in frustration, "Are you talking about dog bodies, Jazz?"

She looked confused. "Of course. What are you talking about?"

"An actual human body. Jazz, did you look in the last stall when you were on your puppy heist?"

Banging on the front doors of the clinic made Jasmine jump. Jumper stiffened. Puppy in hand, he headed towards the main area of the clinic to see who was at the front doors. The sun was starting to set outside, so it was easy for him to identify Bulldog. Jumper opened the clinic doors one handed and hurried back to Jasmine.

"…heard the puppies whimpering. I never even looked in the other stall."

Bulldog followed Jumper into the back room. He paused, probably remembering the last time he'd been in this room with Abby but snapped out of it when Jasmine handed him a puppy and a bottle without even a greeting of hello . The puppy was miniscule in Bulldog's huge hands.

Jasmine turned to Jumper. "Carlos says the fire department found a human body in the barn when they went to neutralize the gasoline."

Anger flooded Jumper. From what he gathered so far, Jasmine had been in that barn.

"Carlos, what's going on?" Bulldog demanded.

While the brothers weren't on the greatest of terms at the moment, they were still brothers and trusted the other. Jumper could relate to that sort of bond. He'd done a lot of shit things while he'd been under the influence, and still he knew he could always count on Gus to be there for him. He hoped Gus felt the same way about him.

"Before I get into it, has anyone heard from Sophia?" Carlos asked.

Jasmine's eyes went wide. "Sophia? No, not since she left," she looked over at the clock on the wall, "about an hour and a half ago. Why?"

"She didn't answer when I called her. I texted her to call me back, but I haven't heard from her. I sent Danny over to her apartment, but she wasn't there."

"The puppies were filthy. Sophia went to the car wash in Boones to clean it." Mount Grove was big enough to have two gas stations on either side of town, but they didn't have a car wash. Boones or Cottonville were the closest ones or one could take their car to Grumpy's garage for a quick vacuuming, but that was closed on a Sunday. Sophia hadn't said which car wash she was headed to, but Jasmine knew her bestie. She'd head in the direction away from the horror barn.

"I'll text Danny to head there and look for her." Danny was one of Carlos's deputies and a friend. "Can you call her too, Jazz? She'd ignore my texts out of spite, but she won't ignore you."

Jasmine nodded even though Carlos couldn't see it. Balancing the puppy in her arms, she patted her pockets for her phone. When she came up empty, she started to look around the area for it.

Jumper picked up the other bottle and started to feed the last puppy still in the dog bed.

"She's calling her now," Bulldog told his brother. "Now tell me what's going on."

"Two Pitbull dogs were found dead over the last two weeks. One was hit by a car and the other was shot. No identification on either and both were turned in to Jasmine's clinic by civilians. Jasmine gave me the bullet to run ballistics on. I told her that there might not be much that I could do. The law doesn't have capital punishment for dog murders." Jumper glared at the phone on the counter. That was a stupid thing to say to Jasmine. No wonder she'd been so hellbent on finding out who killed the dogs. "Sophia and Jasmine started investigating on their own. Somehow it led them to the McCrery Farm just outside of town limits. Since the dog and the bullet were found inside town limits, I was able to go and talk with them when the bullet came back to belonging to Doug McCrery."

Jasmine walked back up to them. "Carlos, I have Sophia on the phone. She's headed back to town now."

"Tell her to keep going and not to stop for anything," Carlos instructed. "I'm texting Danny now. He'll meet her on the road and escort her to the clinic."

Jasmine nodded and stepped away again to speak into the phone.

"The girls went out to the McCrery Farm, didn't they?" Jumper demanded. "That's where these puppies are from."

"I know nothing about puppies and I will continue to know nothing about puppies," Carlos told them. "But yes. From what I got from the girls, the McCrery brothers came back onto property and started dousing the barn in gasoline as they were leaving."

"And saw Sophia's Beetle," Bulldog concluded.

"Most likely," Carlos corrected. "They couldn't follow the girls because their truck had been vandalized in typical Sophia fashion."

"What did she do?" Jumper grumbled.

Jasmine walked back up to them. "She let the air out of all four tires and keyed Dog Murderers into the side of the truck." To Carlos, she said, "Sophia said she'd call me back when she met up with Danny on the road. Do you really think she's in danger?"

"Do you really think you should have been investigating on your own and potentially put not only yourself, but also Sophia, in danger?" Carlos shot back at her. "You're supposed to be the levelheaded one of the two of you, Jazz."

Jasmine winced but squared her shoulders. "These puppies would be dead if we hadn't! You wouldn't have gotten there in time to save them even if you hadn't stopped on the road to speak with us."

Carlos let out a frustrated sigh; Jumper echoed the sentiment. "Bulldog, I need a safe place to store Jazz, Sophia, and their loot. Can they stay with Via Daemonia please?" It sounded like Carlos was asking through gritted teeth.

"Of course," Bulldog answered.

"Thank you. I'm going to be stuck here a little longer. The investigation isn't mine since it crosses jurisdictions, but I'm trying to convince Hannigan to push this to be a collaborative effort. Jasmine, say absolutely nothing about the puppies to anyone. I'm going to try to keep the two of you out of this, but you might need to come forward and say you saw the McCrerys trying to destroy evidence."

"They can charge me for stealing the puppies all they want," Jasmine snapped. "I stand by what I did."

Jumper glared at her from his position on the floor.

"I'm going to hang up now before I end up with a migraine," Carlos said dryly. "Just…don't do anything else stupid. Please ."

Bulldog pressed the end button on Jumper's phone. "I understand now why you didn't answer your phone earlier." Jumper and Jasmine's eyes met and then they turned their faces away to hide their smiles. "What do you need to take with us so we can get you and these pups to the clubhouse?"

About three months ago, two additional structures had been set up on club property to house those in need. This was to prevent members from having to give up their own apartments within the clubhouse or having to open their homes to potential strangers. Nearly a year ago in August, two such strangers had arrived at Via Daemonia seeking shelter. Clara and her son, Kyle, had been living in Jenna and Steel's house under the guise that Clara was Jenna's widowed niece. With the two modular trailers now set up, Clara and Kyle had their own space.

The trailers were set back further on club property, hidden from public view. As far as anyone, including Carlos and the family of VDMC members, knew, the club had built a walking path for the kids and ol' ladies to safely wander the property. The path was made of pavers that allowed the strollers and Bree's wheelchair to easily travel on. However, there was a secret trail off that walking path that led to the trailers.

As the club's SAA, the trailers fell under Bulldog's domain. He was in charge of who stayed in them and their security. Jumper knew that as soon as Carlos had asked Bulldog if Sophia and Jasmine could stay on club property, that Bulldog had been planning on giving them the second trailer.

Jumper had no intention of Jasmine staying so far away from him. He sure as hell wasn't dropping Jasmine and Sophia off at a trailer or clubhouse and then leaving for his own apartment in town.

The club's property used to be owned by a distillery. The building the VDMC used as their clubhouse had been where most of the distillery's events and tours took place. There were fifteen small and private rooms on the first floor that the club turned into studio apartments for members who needed a place to stay. Technically, Jumper had claim to one of those apartments. However, he'd never used his before tonight. Now that Bulldog, Bear, Lucky, and Angel had houses on property, they'd given up their claim to their rooms and Steel had never had one.

Jumper's room was still set up exactly as it had been when they'd assigned rooms six years ago. There was a single twin and a small dresser for furniture. The kitchenette housed no food or supplies, and the bathroom had a single bath towel, hand towel, washcloth, and a bar of unused soap. If the Honeys didn't go in to clean weekly, it would have been dusty and filled with cobwebs.

Jumper told Bulldog Cassie could keep Aerial for the night as they watched Jasmine get the puppies out of the carrier she'd put them in for the drive over and back into the dog bed now set up on the floor. One of the prospects, Sara, was scrounging around for a newspaper for the puppies to do their business on.

Bulldog's phone beeped. He pulled it out and said, "It's Will. Danny's bringing Sophia through." Will was the prospect assigned to the gate to the club's property that evening.

A few minutes later, Sophia came bursting through the clubhouse doors. "Where is she?!"

Jumper pointed down the hall to where his open door was. Sophia walked right by him without another word. At Bulldog's raised eyebrow, Jumper said, "I deserved that."

Danny came into the clubhouse much slower. "Sophia wanted to go to her apartment to get some of her things, but Carlos told me to bring her straight here."

"We'll make sure she has what she needs," Bulldog assured the young deputy. "Thank you for getting her here safely."

"Pretty sure someone would have to be insane to go after her." Danny hesitated before looking to Bulldog. "How's Abby and the kids?"

It wasn't common knowledge how Abby and the kids had come into Bulldog's life. Many around town remembered Bulldog and Abby from their teen years. They assumed Cassie and Lila were Abby's biological children as well as Caleb and Georgie. No one corrected that assumption, not wanting anyone to look into the situation further.

However, Danny knew, or suspected, that there was more to the story. He had been the one to discover the stolen minivan Abby and the kids had used to get away from the community. Danny had called Carlos, who had been the other cop on duty that night, and it had been Carlos who had recognized Abby, even though he'd been thirteen the last time he'd seen her.

"They're doing really well," Bulldog said with a look of pride. "Lila and Scotty are probably at the playground if you want to go see her."

Danny put on his wide brimmed hat with a smile. Scotty could introduce Lila to Danny officially if no adults were around. "Yeah, I'd like that."

"Thanks again," Jumper called after him. Danny waved on his way out the door. Jumper turned to Bulldog and let his rage finally show. "They went to an unknown farm to search for someone who killed a dog ?"

"Your girl's got balls," Bulldog commented. There was admiration in his voice that only pissed Jumper further off.

"They could have been shot or killed! What if they'd been caught and those bastards had burned down the barn with them inside!"

Bulldog just stared him down. "Are you pissed she went and did what she did, admittedly putting herself in danger, or are you pissed you walked out on her and ignored her messages for days, meaning she wouldn't have let you know before she left and you couldn't stop her from putting herself in danger in the first place?"

Jumper opened his mouth to answer and then snapped it shut. Fuck, Bulldog had a point. "Both," he admitted.

Jasmine looked up as Sophia stormed into the small apartment space and let out a sigh of relief. Before she could say anything, though, Sophia spoke.

"What the fuck is going on? Danny wouldn't tell me anything."

Despite being a deputy, and a good one too, most of the town still referred to him as ‘Danny'. His mom, Mabel, owned Loafin' Around , the local bakery and a Mount Grove staple. Everyone knew Danny as the little boy who used to sit on the counter and help his mom bag up bread or would go to school with flour in his hair from getting up before dawn to help his mom get the bread started. At twenty-three, he was the youngest deputy on the MGPD force, but it was difficult to grow up in small towns. People had long memories. Even Jasmine had trouble with some of her older clientele taking her seriously as the town's veterinarian because they remembered the trouble she and Sophia had gotten into in high school.

As Sophia sat on the floor next to Jasmine, she explained, "Carlos said the fire department found a body in the barn. Like, a human one ."

"Jesus. You didn't see it?"

Jasmine shook her head. "It was in the last stall. I never checked it."

"Does he know who it is?"

"Carlos didn't say. Depending on how long it's been there, they might not be able to tell by the person's face and have to wait for dental records."

Sophia made a gross face. "So how exactly did you end up here? Did Carlos call Bulldog to get you from the clinic like he sent Danny after me?"

Jasmine's cheeks flushed at the memory of Jumper pressing her up against the wall as he thrust inside her.

Sophia's eyes went wide. "That's your sex face!" she exclaimed loudly while pointing a finger at Jasmine.

Jazz quickly tried to shush her. "Lower your voice, damnit!"

"I know your sex face, Jasmine Rose. You had sex. With who? Jumper?"

"Of course, it was Jumper," she snapped, still blushing.

"I don't get it. When I left you earlier, the two of you were still broken up. You were alone at the clinic. How do you go from being broken up to having satisfied sex face in the span of two hours?"

Very aware of the open door, Jasmine lowered her voice to a whisper. "He came to the clinic. I don't know how he knew what we'd been up to, but he was furious. I'd just gotten out of the shower and was only in my bra and jeans." Jasmine shrugged. "I'm not even sure who initiated it."

"So, details!" Sophia demanded. She slapped Jasmine's knee. "Where were you two? How many times? And what positions?"

Jasmine rolled her eyes. As much as she and Sophia swore they didn't keep secrets from each other, Jasmine was not about to divulge what she'd discovered about Jumper that afternoon. That was private and something for just them. It felt weird to keep something from Sophia, but she also knew it was the right decision. "It was just once and against the wall in the back room."

"Wait, you had wall sex?"

Jasmine nodded, unable to keep the smile off her face. "He just," she indicated with her hands picking something up, "and he didn't even break a sweat. It was so hot."

"Does this mean you two are back together?"

Jasmine nodded. "We have a lot to talk about, but yeah. He told me he was falling for me and begged me not to give up on him."

Sophia swooned. "Aw! That's so sweet." Then she looked around the room they were in. "Where are we exactly? Did you know the clubhouse had bedrooms back here?"

Jasmine shook her head. "No, but Jumper had a key to it. Maybe it's like a guest room?"

"What happens now?"

Jasmine shrugged. "I don't know. Carlos sounded really worried though." She indicated to the bed behind Sophia. "I guess we stay here tonight. The McCrery brothers wouldn't dare come after us with the MC around us."

"Why would they come after us at all? For the puppies?"

Jasmine shook her head. "I don't even know if they would know that I took them. They were going to burn them alive. The one even questioned whether the mom had had the puppies yet, so I don't think they knew there'd been six of them. Carlos did mention, though, that they might need me to testify that I saw the brothers pouring the gasoline to destroy evidence."

"And they don't know you didn't see the body," Sophia pointed out. "They might think you took something that could incriminate them."

"Good point." Jasmine cringed. "I'm sorry I got you mixed up in this."

Sophia snorted. "Oh please . If you hadn't taken me with you, I'd have been royally insulted." She held up her pinkie finger. "Partners in crime," she started.

"To the bitter end," Jasmine finished, looping her pinkie through Sophia's.

Jenna, Steel's ol' lady, brought Sophia and Jasmine dinner plates. She'd offered for them to come to her house to eat, but Jasmine hadn't wanted to leave the puppies. This first night was crucial to their survival. Jasmine didn't know Jenna very well, but had seen her around town frequently enough. She'd always gotten a pang of longing whenever she passed by Jenna's consignment shop for kids, knowing she was still years away from walking in that store with her own baby.

Jumper had gotten Sophia set up in the room across the hall from, as Jasmine and Sophia had discovered, his clubhouse apartment. Jasmine planned to ask Jumper why he had an apartment at the clubhouse and one in town.

Carlos had finally been able to leave the McCrery Farm and said he'd be by in the morning to talk to Jazz and Sophia.

Angel, the only female club member, and Sara, the only female prospect, had gone to Sophia's and Jasmine's apartments to grab them changes of clothes, toiletries, and anything else they wanted. They'd reported back that neither apartment looked touched nor did they spot anyone watching their place.

It was now a little before midnight. Jumper was on the floor with his back against the wall and Jasmine was on the twin bed. Each was feeding two puppies. Jasmine had set up a food station on the kitchen counter so they could make the next batch of milk or broth quickly. With how young Jasmine was guessing they were and underweight, she wanted them fed every two to three hours instead of every three to four, which was average for their size. They'd been talking quietly since Sophia had left for bed, but not about the elephant in the room.

"I know you don't want to talk about it," Jasmine said when there was a lull in their conversation, "but we're going to need to. I can go with you to your next appointment with Dr. Rutenberg if you want."

Jumper looked confused at that offer. "You would do that?"

"Of course. And not just to talk about your ED, but about anything. Anytime you need me to go with you, I'll be there."

"Really wish we didn't have puppies in our arms so I could kiss you right now."

She sent a smile down towards him. "Raincheck."

Jumper was silent for a moment before saying, "I told you about Molly. When… There was an explosion. Four of my teammates died. Smeagol and I were the only ones who made it out. We were in a hospital in Germany for weeks. I was discharged before Smeagol was, but still hung around to make sure he was okay. My parents came, Gus even came, but Molly didn't. She said she couldn't get off work, but I know now that was bullshit.

"I had my first psychotic break when I found her in bed with that guy. I'm not really sure what happened, but my parents had to call for help to sedate me. Things went downhill from there. The divorce, being discharged from the Navy, the nightmares… That's when the drinking and substance abuse started. It's a common misconception that you can only get addicted to painkillers, but that's not true. As I'm sure you know, too much of anything isn't good for you. I used Molly's weight loss pills she'd left behind, my dad's cholesterol medication, even muscle relaxers. Mixed with the alcohol, it mainly had a numbing effect. The nightmares were…hazy when I was drunk. Like I could remove myself." His face scrunched up. "Almost like watching a movie. They didn't seem real."

He cleared his throat, adjusting his hold on one of the puppies. "When I got sober, I realized I was…struggling." His cheeks reddened as he clarified, "I couldn't get hard. And, on the rare occasions that I could, I failed to orgasm. The therapist I was seeing at the time told me it was a symptom of my PTSD. I needed to calm my head before I could…perform. That's actually how I ended up in Mount Grove.

"About six years ago, I bought my Indian Chief. A neighbor of my parents was selling it, and it just seemed so freeing. I packed up what I had in the saddlebags and hit the road. A month later, I stopped into the diner on Main for lunch while I was passing through." Jumper raised his right shoulder. "Steel and his family were in there having lunch. He saw my Trident tattoo and invited me to sit with him. That was how I joined the VDMC."

"But you still have episodes. Your PTSD is still present," Jasmine argued carefully. "Did it really help you, coming here?"

"You have no idea how much. As…traumatized as I might seem now," he hedged, "it was so much worse before. Joining the VDMC saved my life. Getting Aerial helped even more. And then…" He looked up at her. "I met you."

"Me?"

Jumper nodded. "Please don't freak out." Jasmine stiffened at those words. "When things got… bad , when I felt myself craving a drink, I'd find you. Sometimes it was just sitting outside your clinic watching through the glass doors for a glimpse of you. Occasionally I'd follow you home, just to make sure you got there okay. Sometimes I'd sit outside Demon's while you were inside with Sophia. It was like you were a block for me, something to concentrate on other than the desire to drink."

Jasmine sat quiet for several minutes, processing that. "Okay, creepy-stalker part aside, I don't mind being the thing you need to concentrate on so you stay sober."

Jumper snorted. "Dr. Rutenberg said I should try talking to you instead of stalking you."

She grinned. "He wasn't wrong."

Both of her puppies were done and had fallen back to sleep. Jasmine scooted off the bed to stand up. She placed both in the dog bed and placed the bottles in the small sink for washing. She reached down for Jumper's two bottles, noticing his were done too.

The two washed up together before heading to the twin bed. Jumper indicated for Jasmine to get under the covers. Then he arranged himself at the foot of the bed with his back up against the wall. Jasmine didn't like it, but he didn't want to risk falling asleep while holding her.

"Please don't get embarrassed," she started once they were comfortable. "Based on what you said at the clinic and what you just said now, I have to ask. Have you been unable to orgasm since the explosion?"

Jumper was studying the very plain comforter like it held the answers to the universe as he nodded. "You're also the first person I've had sex with since Molly."

Jasmine tried not to let her shock show, but also knew she had no poker face whatsoever. He likely saw it. "That's…a long time."

"Ten years," he said offhandedly. "Rubbed myself raw quite a few times, but still nothing."

"I'm sorry." She wasn't sure what else to say. "It had been over three years for me. I was tired of feeling like a stranger to my partner, even if we were actively dating. When I met you, well, everyone else just seemed…lacking."

"And now that you know I'm lacking?"

She kicked him with her blanketed foot. "You are not lacking," she sneered. "Jumper, you have a condition. One that is completely understandable and not unexpected with a case of PTSD as severe as yours. Honestly, I'm a bit ashamed of myself that I hadn't figured it out on my own." She used the same foot she'd just kicked him with to nudge his shoulder so he'd look at her. "You're not less or lacking , Jumper. And we'll figure this out together, okay?"

He held her gaze as he said, "I meant what I said at the clinic, Jazz. I'm falling for you. I know I'm a lot to handle, but please don't give up on me."

"You were the one who gave up on us," she reminded him sternly. "You were the one who walked out."

He hung his head, ashamed. "I know. I'm sorry."

"Don't do it again," she warned him. "I'll fight for you, I will, but I need to know you're fighting back just as hard. Walking out on me tells me you have no fight left."

"Never again," Jumper vowed. "I was miserable without you."

Jasmine shrugged. "I may have preoccupied my time with becoming obsessed with a dog murder case and accidently put my best friend and I into danger while simultaneously committing the crime of puppy-napping." She gave him a sheepish smile. "I may not have handled the breakup very well either."

Unfortunately, he didn't smile back. "Are we done talking about my dick and can now move onto what a stupid thing you did today?"

Jasmine's hackles rose. "Other than putting Sophia and I in danger, I stand by what I did, Jumper. Those puppies would have died otherwise."

"Their lives aren't worth yours!" he snapped. He clutched the sides of his head like he had a headache. "Jesus, Jazz, what if Carlos had called me up and it had been your dead body he'd found? Do you have any idea what that… What that…" Jumper shook his head back and forth.

Jasmine's eyes narrowed. "Jumper, are you okay?"

"Headache," he moaned pitifully.

"Do you need anything?" Could he even take an Aspirin with his addiction?

"Need to," he groaned, slamming his eyes closed, "lay down."

Her heart broke at the pain in his voice at the same time she leapt into action. Quickly, she scrambled out of the small bed and went over to him. She guided him off the mattress. He stumbled, almost like he was drunk. Jasmine nearly fell over with how much weight he put on her. It took several long minutes, despite how little distance they had to go, because she kept losing her footing.

Jasmine got him to sit on the mattress and then gently pushed him down so he was lying supine. She worked to get the covers over him. He worked the covers over his face, curling in so he was nearly on his stomach. Jasmine stood there watching him for an unknown number of minutes.

Then she worked, as quietly as she could, to move the puppy supplies and puppies out of the room. Sophia was sprawled on the bed in the room she was given. Which was a queen bed, Jasmine took note of. Why would Jumper's room only have a twin when this room that wasn't even claimed have a queen?

Pushing that thought aside, knowing she had more pressing issues, she moved herself and the puppies into Sophia's room.

It took some time to find his phone. She didn't want to leave him without a way to call for help but also didn't want it disturbing him. If it rang or he got a text, she didn't want the noise to wake him or cause him more pain. She found a sticky notepad in her purse and scrawled a quick note that she was across the hall in Sophia's room. She debated on closing the bedroom door, but decided to leave her door open so she could hear him easier and close his door so the noises from outside his room were muffled.

As she crawled into the bed beside Sophia, Sophia cracked an eye open. "I've often had dreams start like this but you're wearing less clothes. What's up?"

Any other time and Jasmine would have snorted. Sophia wasn't bisexual, but she also didn't shy away from making such jokes or advances when the mood struck her. "Jumper's got a headache. I moved us in here so we didn't disturb him."

Sophia raised her head off the pillow to study Jasmine closer. "A headache wouldn't have you looking so worried."

"It was just so sudden," she explained. "One second we were talking and the next he was grabbing his head. I don't really know what happened."

"Well, it's been a stressful day," Sophia offered. "And it sounds like a migraine, not a headache, if it was that debilitating."

"True," Jasmine agreed. "He called it a headache and I repeated it."

"Probably didn't want to worry you. That guy's kinda in love with you, if you haven't realized."

Jasmine wanted to smile at those words but instead stared worriedly at the closed door across the hall. "I'm going to text Pirate just in case."

Sophia snuggled back into her pillow. "Tell the pirate he better bring some good rum if he's coming over this late."