The Monster at My Feet novel Chapter 18

"You're pushing your luck, Sylvie," Jasper snapped, his patience officially exhausted. He turned to Lawrence. "Mr. Lawson, your daughter has quite the attitude."

Lawrence shot Sylvie a murderous glare. But he quickly caught the underlying threat in Jasper's eyes and forced a laugh. "Yes, she's a bit naive. Actually, I have some business to attend to. Would you mind teaching my ignorant daughter some manners for me?"

With that, he turned on his heel and abandoned her.

Jasper looked back at Sylvie, his eyes filled with a predatory mix of lust and cruel amusement. "So, why play hard to get? If you don't get how this works, I don't mind spelling it out for you. No one is protecting you. Your dad needs a favor from me. Pleasing me is the only option you have left."

Sylvie's smile grew even sweeter. Lawrence leaving was exactly what she wanted. There was no need to put on a show anymore.

"Mr. Zimmer, did you know?" she asked, her voice soft and airy. "You look utterly foul, you smell like garbage, and you probably have a disease. A cheap piece of trash like you is worth less than a stray dog on the street."

Jasper froze, going perfectly rigid. For a second, he thought he was hallucinating.

"You... say that again?!" His face turned an ugly shade of purple, his usually narrow eyes bulging out of his head.

The young girl took a step back, looking thoroughly spooked, and blinked with wide, tearful eyes. "Is your brain so full of grease that it's clogging your ears?"

A rush of boiling rage shot straight to Jasper's head. "You little bitch, you asked for this!"

He lunged forward, grabbing Sylvie's wrist, and yanked her violently toward the hotel suites!

A fully grown man overpowering a slender girl was entirely too easy. Sylvie let out a tiny gasp, her eyes turning red. "Mr. Zimmer, please stop!"

Heads turned in their direction. Guests exchanged looks of disgust and pity, but not a single person stepped forward to intervene.

Jasper felt a surge of twisted satisfaction as he felt her weak, useless struggles. "You've got a smart mouth, huh? Let's see if you can still talk in a minute!"

Sylvie stumbled as he dragged her, keeping her head down, a tiny smirk playing on her lips.

Suddenly, a hoarse, gravelly voice cut through the air. It wasn't loud, but it somehow pierced through the noise, reaching everyone's ears.

"I'll give you two choices. In one month, our legal team will compile the evidence, sue you, and obliviate your entire company. Or—" Caspian raised his chilling, bloodshot eyes and gave a subtle hand signal.

Jasper shook like a leaf, denied even the chance to beg for mercy.

The two bodyguards moved in, slamming him brutally onto the floor.

The guests broke into a cold sweat, paralyzed in silence. Someone in the back gagged, while a few others stumbled toward the exit.

Caspian kept his head lowered, his dark eyes fixed on Jasper's unconscious body. "Throw him out," he rasped.

His fingernails dug ruthlessly into his palms. He was using every ounce of willpower to hold back the psychotic, violent urges raging inside him. It wasn't that he didn't want to look up.

He didn't dare.