JAKE'S UNDOING (18+) ✔ (LOVE AND OBSESSION SERIES) BOOK 2

Part 2

"I'm alone now," whispered 8-year-old Cassandra, her innocent eyes bloodshot and swollen from relentless tears. Her heart felt so heavy. The anguish within her wouldn't stop, and her heart-wrenching sobs echoed through the emptiness that surrounded her. A seemingly endless week had crawled by since the moment her foster parents were tragically laid to rest; stranding her in a world that suddenly felt lonely and cold. "No one loves me. What should I do now?"

Her foster parents unfortunately died in a car accident on the way home one evening, leaving Cassandra with everything. She couldn't forget them, not when they showed her love no one had ever shown to her before. At six, they were her light in her very dark life, but now, her light was taken, and her life was in darkness again.

A soft knock on the door made her wipe her tears and compose herself.

"You should sleep, Cassie; I'll stay here with you. Come here," he opened his arms, inviting her onto his lap.

She hesitated for a moment before climbing onto Jake's lap, seeking solace in the warmth of his arms. The floodgates of her emotions opened once again, and she cried, her tears soaking into the fabric of Jake's shirt. His hand gently rubbed her back.

"I don't want to go back there, Jake," she sobbed painfully. "I don't want other... foster parents." She pulled back and watched Jake's face in the dimly lit room. "Why does everyone leave me?"

Jake's heart tightened at the sight of her tear-stricken face. He too lost his loved ones, and it was painful, but he felt her pain more. It hurt him. "You don't have to go back if you don't want to. You're not alone, Cassie, and I'm not going anywhere."

"You're lying!" she burst out, angry. Her green eyes darkened in the shade. "I heard them! No one loves me here! Mommy and Daddy... they're gone. You just say that because...because you pity me, but you too...you want me gone."

"Cassandra, that's not true," Jake, using her real name, emphasized his words so that her young mind would understand. "I care about you. I want to be here for you. It's not pity." And even Jake didn't know what it was.

Her lips churned into a beautiful pout, her tears still flowing. "Why? Why would you care about me?"

Jake took a deep breath, choosing his words carefully. "Because you matter, little mouse."

TEN YEARS LATER

JAKE

"Dammit!" I chugged down the whiskey, feeling it burn my throat down to my stomach. Ryker and Harper's wedding turned out magical, but one thing was un-magical about it, Cassie. The tease enjoyed herself so much that she seemed to forget she was just eighteen.

Slamming the empty glass on the bar, the loud thud echoed my frustration. The dancing lights matched the fury raging inside me as I watched Cassie, and with her coy smiles and playful glances, she managed to provoke me. And I knew it was her intention.

I couldn't shake the image of her dancing provocatively on the edge of the dance floor, her eyes watching as if challenging me to join her. The whiskey did little to drown out the image, and if anything, it only fueled the fire of frustration burning within me.

I signaled the bartender for another round, needing something stronger to numb my frustration. As the amber liquid was poured into the glass, I couldn't help but wonder how I had let myself become affected by this bitch. Yeah, she was a bitch. A weak bitch! And dammit! I shouldn't be affected.

Ryker and Harper's celebration should have been about their love, but Cassandra had turned it into a personal battleground. I took a deep breath, trying to regain control of my emotions, but the sight of her dancing on the dance floor made it nearly impossible.