Grim Love - A Novella Read Online Free PDF Page B

died.
That's not going to happen to you. You're going to live your life
the way it’s meant to be lived and stop trying to end it all before
it’s even begun.”
    He stared at her. “What happened?”
    “When my friends and I stole a boat, I
drowned, along with all my friends. You're my chance to make amends
for that stupid choice because I can help you live a life.” She
wondered if maybe he could be her chance to make things right.
“We’re going to have to take this one step at a time though. Are
you ready for that?”
    “Businesses don't like people with criminal
records.”
    “There's always going to be someone willing
to give you a chance. You just have to find them. Besides, you're
not a criminal.”
    “I am now. My grandfather told me if I got
into trouble with the police again I shouldn't bother going back. I
never liked living with him anyway, but at least I had a roof over
my head. I should have known better, but I didn’t care. You know,
I’ve driven into stuff more times than I can remember. I can't
believe I hit a wall this time.”
    “Well, maybe you need to have your eyes
checked because you hit something. You were lucky because if you’d
done that anywhere else or with no witnesses, you could have
died.”
    “Lucky?” Jasper touched his hand to his face.
“Right now, I don’t feel lucky. I could be dead right now. Without
you standing here telling me to straighten my life out, I'd be
trying to figure out how to get out of this place. So, you want me
to make the best of my situation? Well, the way I see it, I'm stuck
in a bed with wires hanging out of everywhere. There's cops right
outside my door just waiting to throw my ass in jail. My whole body
hurts like hell. I feel like my face is going to fall off and
you're here telling me to change my life like it's easy to just
start all over again from scratch.”
    Perhaps it was nerves or plain ignorance, but
Evangeline couldn't help but laugh. “Of course, it hurts. Look at
you! The pain reminds you that you're still alive. You could have
ended up like me. Dead. You say that's what you want, but, I
promise you, there's nothing wonderful about things on this end. No
matter what I do or how much I hope, I'm still dead. No second
chance for me.”
    Lucius laughed. He liked Evangeline. She had
spunk. It wasn’t every reaper who could grab hold of something and
go with it the way she did. He knew her compassion would get in the
way, but it intrigued him to watch her struggle between both
worlds. Jasper needed someone, so she'd be that someone, even if it
did annoy her boss. Shaking his head, Lucius looked away, knowing
he needed to plan for whatever came next. He'd already been warned
that the two of them would end up falling in love. He hoped she'd
be strong enough to resist the temptation. No reason to become
involved in something that could never sustain beyond her
duties.

Chapter 4
    Jasper stood in front of the judge. He'd been
charged with two counts of drunk driving. The judge knew him well
because of the number of times he’d been arrested for one thing or
another. Circumstances were different this time. With help -
invisible help - Jasper had begun to make some changes in his
life.
    Evangeline remained by Jasper's side, feeling
more nervous than she let on. She'd still not told him the truth
about herself. It seemed to help him believing she'd been sent as
his guardian angel. In a way, that's what she’d become without
realizing it.
    In the last several weeks since his accident,
Jasper had grown stronger and Lucius became more and more angry
with the situation Evangeline allowed herself to be in. It didn't
bode well with him that Evangeline neglected to mention it in
conversation with him either. She had no idea that he knew and he
kept it that way for the time being. What he witnessed was his
newest reaper falling in love with Jasper.
    Sighing, Evangeline focused on the current
circumstances because Jasper could end up in prison. She