Page 3 of Caligo

He tossed the used condom into the garbage can before turning around in the bed and holding me tightly to his chest. I felt him kiss the back of my head, and I immediately knew he was wrong about it not being safe for me to be here. I had never felt so warm and safe in my life.

He was right about one thing, though. There were no doubts in my mind about how good he could make me feel.

* * *

Jasper had to go out of town for a few days for another job. I threw myself into work, trying to avoid the fact that I missed him. It felt like there was an invisible tether pulling me back to him, and the best way to ignore it was to push myself even harder at the gym. I felt myself getting stronger. More capable. I just needed Jasper to come home so I could learn the details of what my new life required of me. I didn’t think running on treadmills and lifting weights would be helpful in the Venator world.

Friday night came, and I had just settled into bed when my doorbell rang.What the hell?I thought. It was almost midnight so I turned over in bed, and ignored the ringing. Whoever was there could come back in the morning.

“Ava! Open up!” Jasper’s voice echoed down my hallway.

Jasper? I jumped out of bed wearing my oversized T-shirt and headed to the door, unlocking it to Jasper’s smiling face.

“Jasper!” I kissed him. “I thought you weren’t back until tomorrow! What are you doing here?” Grabbing his hand, I pulled him into the apartment.

“Change of plans,” he said, casting a hungry gaze towards my bare legs under my makeshift nightshirt.

“Oh?” I felt my body flush under the heat of his gaze as I waited for him to explain. It was a cool night, but he was dressed in only jeans and a T-shirt, his delicious tattoos on full display. He wasn’t even taking his shoes off, and I wondered what his plans were now.

He reached towards my coat rack and tossed me a sweater. “I thought we should start your training tonight. I really hate to say this, but you should get dressed.”

I caught the sweater and took a step back. He must be kidding. I had been waiting for him to train me, but at midnight? I could think of other things I would rather be doing. The main one being him. “What, now? It’s late, Jasper. I thought we would train in the day. You know, when it’s light out?”

Jasper ignored me and pushed past me towards my bedroom. “Come on, lazy butt. You got better things to do on a Friday night? You need to learn how to protect yourself from this thing, in case I’m not around.”

It was clear he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. I dragged my feet behind him into the room and pulled on the jeans he threw at me. “Where are we going to go?”

Jasper paused and considered this. “It’s pretty dark tonight. I think the edges of your yard would be fine. I haven’t noticed any activity in that area of the woods.”

I pulled my shoes on and he grabbed my hand, leading me out the front door. I locked my door and slid my keys into my back pocket like I was sleepwalking. Jasper pulled me close and gave me a gentle kiss on the forehead. “Perk up, Green. I promise this will be good for you.”

I groaned. “Just tell me I get to have some semblance of sleep afterwards.”

He grinned darkly, dragging his fingertip down my neck and across my collarbone. “I was thinking of other activities we could do afterwards. But if you want to sleep, that’s fine.”

Oh.He didn’t really leave any room for interpretation there, but the bribe definitely woke me up. I was instantly wide awake and practically sprinted from the parking lot to the field.

Jasper jogged easily to keep up with my newfound energy. “If I had known sex worked so well as a reward system for you, I would have tried seducing you much sooner.” He laughed, and I joined in. I didn’t even care that the laugh was at my expense. It was infectious.

Until his laugh caught in his throat, and he stopped running. I kept going, thinking he was playing a joke on me by slowing down. “What’s your problem now? Hurry up!”

“Ava.” I didn’t recognize Jasper’s commanding tone, and his severity froze me in place. When I turned around to look at his face, I realized this was no joke.

“What’s wrong?”

Jasper wasn’t moving and the silence was making me nervous. His gaze was fixed onto the forest, every muscle was tensed. When he didn’t respond, I darted closer to him. He reached out with one strong arm and pulled me behind his body.

I was frozen with fear, and we both stood like that for what felt like years. The wind rustled through the trees, and the night air was cool around us. I was about to suggest he was simply being paranoid when Jasper dropped into a protective stance, growling. He hadn’t shifted, but he was all wolf. I strained my eyes to follow his gaze and faintly saw a pair of eyes. They were the same ones I had seen before from my window. The same eyes I had convinced myself I had imagined. My scream caught in my throat when Jasper spoke in the same low tone as before. “Stay back, Ava. And for God’s sakes, when I tell you to run, you run.”

* * *

I closed my eyes and hoped when I opened them again this would all be a bad dream. But when I finally talked myself into looking again, the eyes had moved even closer towards the fringe of the woods. Towards us.

“Jasper.Jasper!” I whispered harshly to him, unable to keep a slight note of panic out of my voice. I willed the nerves to go away. We had bigger problems to deal with.

I felt his chest rise and fall in a measured breath as we watched the woods. “I know, Ava, I see him. I’m going to count to three, and then you run. You get inside. For once, don’t argue. Do you hear me?” Jasper’s voice was slow, making sure I picked up on each word.

I nodded, forgetting he couldn’t see me. “Yes.”

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