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 79
"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.
Chapter 80
Kait hated arguing with Jasper. Their earlier encounter outside the supermarket was still troubling her. Even though he'd apologized, she couldn't help fearing that the situation wasn't resolved. Perched on her sofa, she nervously chewed her fingernails. She'd worked so hard to be in a relationship with Jasper, she wasn't prepared to let anything jeopardize what they had.
After a few more minutes of deliberation, Kait reached a decision. She stood up and hastily pulled on her coat.
It was dark by the time she reached the gym. The car park was relatively empty as she hurried across it, her head bent low against the cool evening wind. Glass doors silently parted to let her in. Kait gave the waiting receptionist her brightest smile.
"Hi," she greeted them. "I was just wondering if my boyfriend is still in the gym. I need to get a message to him so I just wanted to quickly pop inside."
"Sure," the short blonde haired receptionist gave her a sympathetic smile. "What's his name?"
"Jasper Duboix." Kait felt a tingle of pride saying Jasper's name.
"Hmm," the receptionist pursed her lips together thoughtfully. "I'm pretty sure Mr. Duboix signed out earlier this afternoon, but let me double check."
Kait waited patiently as the receptionist checked the records. Jasper had signed out earlier – when he'd come to meet Kait at the supermarket but then he'd surely signed back in.
"Yeah," the receptionist nodded at her computer screen. "Mr. Duboix signed out this afternoon but didn't sign back in today."
"Oh," Kait suddenly felt deflated and also embarrassed. "Are you sure he's not in there?" She countered hopefully, her cheeks starting to burn.
"He called me less than an hour ago to stay he was still at the gym."
The receptionist gave Kait a sad smile and shook her head. Clearly this was a situation she'd encountered before.
"He has to sign in to enter the gym, and I'm afraid the records show that he's not done so since he left this afternoon. I'm sorry."
Kait waved a dismissive hand and forced herself to smile as though she were unaffected.
"We must have just got our wires crossed," she declared breezily. "Thanks so much for your help."
Kait couldn't run out of the gym fast enough. Her heart was pounding hard in her chest. If Jasper wasn't at the gym, then where the hell was he? And more distressingly, why was he lying? Was he cheating on her?
With her mind dizzy with panic and confusion, Kait did the only thing she could think to do – she called Anna.
Chapter 81
"Discharge papers," Carl waved the document in front of Jasper's face. "Let's get you home then before anyone has a chance to see you here."