Bonding With The Enemy (BxB)✔

Chapter 19 - Doing Better

"You're doing the right thing." Gerrit was saying.

Jasper eyed the folder in his hands. "Yeah, I think so too."

"And what would that be?" Darren asked, his interest peaked.

The two turned towards the rogue as he entered the dining room. Liam was not present and it looked like Mary was just setting out some food.

Jasper hesitated before explaining. "I changed my schedule for today. Instead of following up on my usual route, I'm..." He glanced towards Gerrit who gave him an encouraging smile. "I'm going to look for all the people I picked on and talk to them."

"Oh..." Darren didn't know what to think of that. The amount of effort he was putting in after realizing how much of an ass he was really surprised him. Jasper honestly didn't seem like the type to do something like that. "Wait..." The rogue suddenly thought of something. "You're not just doing this so you can find your mate, are you?"

It didn't seem like Gerrit had considered that, and his eyes flew to to Jasper for answers. The Alpha sighed dramatically. "No, I'm not. I mean, yeah I'm curious about who she is, and I'd like to apologize for whatever I did if I'm ever given the chance, but no. I'm not doing this just for her. If I'm going to be a better Alpha than Liam, then I need to own up to my mistakes, starting with fixing things with the people I hurt."

"Damn man." Gerrit whistled. "That's the first time I ever heard you consider being BETTER than Liam." He then turned to Darren with a grin. "It seems like you've been quite a positive influence on our future Alpha."

Darren was caught off guard by the compliment and he turned away to hide his embarrassment. "It's just common sense."

Gerrit slapped Jasper on the shoulder. "Maybe, maybe not. All I know is that this guy has always been too stubborn to think of anything other than impressing my dad. Then you come to town and suddenly he's thinking for himself."

"Thanks a lot." Jasper rolled his eyes. "I just want to do the right thing."

"Well, it shouldn't be that hard." Darren jabbed in an attempt to keep his cool. "If you're legit about feeling bad, you're off to a good start. Just one thing though...What about the investigation?"

"We have to wait for the lab to come back with results on the fingerprints." Jasper explained as he made his way to the front door.

"You're not having breakfast?" Gerrit asked.

"We're eating out." The Alpha motioned for Darren to follow.

Darren tagged along obediently, knowing that they were both avoiding Liam at this point.

"Pancakes?"

"What?"

"I was asking if you want pancakes?" Jasper explained. "There's a place I know that has the best breakfast menu."

"Sure?" Darren agreed halfheartedly.

They soon pulled into an old cafe' and were seated immediately once the owner recognized Jasper. The waitress then took their orders and sped off to the kitchen. Darren tapped his spoon against the table as they waited. He stared out the front window, which was located three tables away, hoping to spot a spirit. He had thought that hanging around Jasper would improve his odds by now.

"So...What sort of things do you do for fun?" Jasper asked out of the blue.

Darren snapped his head around and stared him down suspiciously. "Why would you want to know?"