Page 11 of Spark

As soon as Jaden fully healed, she’d kick up her own ashes and give blaze to the buried embers still glowing beneath. This was just a minor setback for her, only temporary, or as temporary as I would allow it. I had to create a way for that spark to ignite those flames again, and it would start with her mental health first.

“So what do we do?” I asked with irritation.

“Well, I can tell, she is very lonely. We cou—”

“What the hell do you mean she’s lonely?” I cut in. “She’s surrounded by people twenty-four-seven.”

“But no one who’s allowed to converse with her casually,” Sid responded cautiously. He did have a point. I didn’t allow casual conversation with Jaden because not only did I not trust her, but I didn’t trust my staff with her either.

“What about the damn nurse?” I ask Sid.

“Ginsby? No way. She’d bore Jaden to death.”

I groaned in frustration. This was not how I planned this conversation to go.

“So what do you suggest? I find her a temporary island BFF?”

Hank scoffed with amusement but quickly retracted his response when I glared at him from across my desk.

“Actually, that’s not a bad idea. Jaden could use a personal trainer to get her going again. Maybe we could find one who’s friendly enough to get Jaden back into shape. Maybe someone around her own age?”

I looked away from Sid, considering the idea. Maybe finding her a temporary friend was a good idea. Jaden wouldn’t like it, and she’d refuse it all, but then again, it wasn’t really her choice anymore. Maybe this “friend” could give her something else to focus on, like herself. She’d have to have the right personality, someone who could really encourage her to get better. She’d also have to have skin thicker and tougher than a crocodile. Or possibly just someone almost annoying enough to motivate Jaden to get rid of her, and to do that, she’d have to push herself to get better.

“All right, fine,” I finally agreed. “Start looking for a personal trainer. Let me know when you have it down to a final three, and I’ll make my decision. I’ll discuss it with Jaden after we choose a trainer. And I want good credentials, Sid, the absolute best. Until then, not a word of this to anyone,” I said, eyeing Sid and Hank.

“You got it, boss,” Hank said with a nod.

“I’ll get started right away,” Sid said, getting up and heading for the door.

“Oh, and Sid,” I added as he stopped at the doorway. “Find someone… annoyingly happy.”

He smirked. “I’ll have your candidates by the end of the week.”

I nodded while both left my office without another word. I worried about bringing another person onto the island to be with Jaden, but it couldn’t cause any more harm than I’d already done. Maybe this person could give Jaden something else to focus on besides her misery and determination to try to kill me. I rolled my eyes at the thought. She needed to get over herself and stop denying the truth. You’d think she would have learned by now she wouldn’t win against me. Ever.

Thinking about all the times she’d fought me before had me itching to have a go at her again. It’d been so long since I’d last had her squirming and moaning beneath me. Just the thought had me reaching to adjust the hardening length in my pants. I didn’t trust myself with her, though. Not in her fragile state. If I had my way with her now, I’d set her back weeks of recovery, and I couldn’t afford to wait any longer than I already had to. I already wanted her too much as it was, and it only got harder every day. Literally.

The sounds of banging and yelling from the hallway cut my thoughts short. The sounds were faint, but I could hear someone calling out Jaden’s name in anger.

Fuck, what had she done now…

I left my office and followed the source of the chaos to the parlor, finding Hank banging on the door, and Benito screaming Jaden’s name, along with some very unsettling threats that made me see red.

I stormed over to Hank and Benito, who upon observing me, immediately ceased their failed forced entry.

“What the fuck happened now?” I growled. I could hear loud rap music coming from the other side of the doors.

“The stupid bitch locked herself in the parlor!” shouted Benito.

Without thinking, my fist instantly collided with his jaw, knocking him right to the floor. Wrapping my hand around his throat, I swiftly hauled him up to standing and slammed his head into the hanging glass picture behind him, hoping the glass would dig into his skull.

“And how the fuck did my stupid bitch manage to do that?” I asked, my voice laced with venom as I stared him down.

“She… snuck out,” he tried to say when I came to realize I was squeezing too hard.

“Obviously,” I said, dropping his useless weight to the floor. Marching my way toward the locked door, I lifted my knee and kicked the handles of the double doors in, splintering the wood and knocking one of the doors completely off its hinges.

I stormed inside, my eyes immediately scanning for Jaden and any possible threats, even though I knew there were none. Ludacris boomed through the stereo system overhead, drowning out the chance of hearing any other sounds in the room, but that was okay. My hearing wasn’t totally necessary for the interesting sight before me.

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