Peterson stared in disbelief. “Stan, you actually.
Having known Jason for years, Peterson was well aware of his reputation with girls, Jason had never been the type is commit, much less hundile himself for anyone
He’d seensed serious about Hasnah at one p
paint, but even then, Peterson knew Jason would never have knelt for her. Not like this.
Yet here was Jason Stan–heir to the Stan fortune, Culver’s hockey star, the golden boy who’d never feed a consequence in his life -run his knees for Kelsey Harbour.
Peterson recovered from his shock, breaking into cruel laughter.
“Oh, how the mighty have fallen! Go on! Tell me you were wrong. Tell me you’re my dog!”
Jason’s fists were clenched so tightly his sails dug into his palms, drawing blood. His eyes burned with hatred, every instinet screaming Launch himself at Peterson and finish what he’d started
But then Kelsey’s face flashed in his and her pale, wounded expression when she’d discovered his betrayal.
At the end of the day, Kelsey was in this mess because of him. If these photos were released and her reputation destroyed, whatever slim chance he had of earning her forgiveness would vanish forever.
With that thought, Jason pressed his forehead to the floor in the ultimate gesture of submission
“I was wrong!” he forced out, each word like acid on his tongue
“I shouldn’t have attacked you!”
“Please, leave Kelsey out of this
Tm your dog
Each humiliating phrase tore away another piece of Jason’s legendary pride, dismantling the arrogant persona he’d cultivated his entire life.
“You idiot!” Peterson was practically crying with laughter.
“Did you really think I’d spare your precious Kelsey just because you got on your knees? She’s the reason my leg is ruined! I’m going to destroy ber
Peterson’s thumb hovered over the “post” button on his phone.
Jason’s roar echoed through the room as something inside him snapped. In a surge of blind rage, he leapt to his feet, grabbed a heavy crystal vase from the bedside table, and brought it down on Peterson’s head with sickening force.
Blood sprayed across the white hospital linens.
The security guards longed forward,
But it was too late.
By the time the authorities arrived, it was over
Ryan Peterson lay dead in his hospital bed, his skull crushed by the vase Jason had wielded with such force. The security guards were unconcious on the floor, having been no match for Jason’s, blind fury.
Jason was covered in blood, his face splattered crimson, yet he was still frantically working with Peterson’s phone, deleting everything he could find. Even after he’d deleted the photos, he wasn’t satisfied. With today’s technology, backups could exist anywhere. He desperately searched every cloud storage app determined to erase any trace of the images that could hurt Kebey.
Almost in Love with You: Before That Cruel Summer Took Everything
But the police were already restraining him.
“Let me go! Let ine go!” he screamed, still struggling frantically.
“I need to make sure all the photos are gone!”
The officers ignoril bis pleas.
Click
The handcuffs locked around his wrists.
Jasno Stan was taken into custody.
Meanwhile, across the Atlantic.
Kelsey was shopping for home decor with her mother.
“Sweetheart, be heading back to the States in a few days. You need to take care of yourself here on your own her mother reminded her with
COM.COUIL
Kelsey smiled reassuringly. “To not a child anymore, Mom. I’ll be fine”
She reached for a decorative vase to
add to their cart, but as her fingers touched the cool ceramic-
Crash.
The normally graceful dancer fumbled, sending the vase shattering across the door.
“Are you okay?” Her mother jumped with surprise. “That’s not like you. You’re usually so careful.”
Kelsey stood motionless, staring down at the broken pieces.
An mexplicable sense of dread washed over her, a cold premonition that something terrible had happened.
The case against Jason was ironclad–first–degree murder with multiple witnesses. There was no incarcerated pending trial
room for legal maneuvering, and he was quickly
The Peterson family was devastated. Ryan had been their only son, and they demanded justice from the Stan family, insisting on the harshest possible penalty
A few days later, Jason’s father finally visited him in prison,
Sitting across from each other with a glass partition between them, father and son were silent for a long moment
Eventually, his father spoke coldly “You really are a fool.”
Jason’s eye twitched, but he responded quietly, “I know I messed up.”
He was well aware of the scandal and trouble his actions had brought to the family
“That’s not what I mean,” his father retorted sharply. “I had our people investigate. Those photos Peterson claimed to have of your girlfriend? They were all fakes!”
“What?”
Jason’s head snapped up. His father looked at him with disgust and disappointment.
“That’s why I’m calling you a fool You didn’t even verify whether the photos were real before believing Peterson’s word and killing him?”
His father was so angry he could barely speak. To his surprise, Jason let out a short laugh.
Chapter 22
“What’s so funny?” his father demanded, his voice rising. “This is no laughing matterTMTM
Jason slumped back in his chair, an unexpected relief washing over him.
“That’s good new
news” he said softly. “If the photos were fake, then I don’t have to worry anymore.”
