CHAPTER 21
Jordan
“You better start talking, Jordy, or so help me God… I have no idea what is going on with you and I don’t like it.”
Taking a deep breath, I start at the beginning. How Eric and I hooked up the night before my interview with him. How we didn’t exchange names and had no idea who each other was. I tell him how Eric and I have been in a situationship ever since. Seeing the hurt on his face when he realises how long I have been keeping this from him creates an ache in my heart.
Reaching over I take his hand in mine. “I know we tell each other everything, Sunshine, and I'm sorry I kept this from you. But I knew as soon as I told you I was sleeping with Eric, you would run off with the idea of double dates and cookouts. It wasn’t like that with Eric and me. Well, not at first, anyway.”
“Not at first? Well, how about now? Are you two in a relationship? Like a real relationship?” Pete is practically vibrating with excitement, which instantly makes me groan. I know where this is heading, and it's exactly what I have been trying to avoid.
Instead of giving him a chance to go off on a tangent, I continue to explain it all: our six months of hot fucking, then finding Blake, then feeling it all shift till we came to our senses and decided to try this dating thing.
“Except instead of going on our first one tonight, I got myself all worked up, drank way too much vodka and pretended to be dead when he came over and found me stuck with my leather pants around my thighs.” Holding out my hands, I look squarely at Pete. Now he knows everything, we can let the interrogation commence.
“I—” Pete clears his throat and looks over at Gavin, who has been listening to all of this from his perch on the breakfast bar. I have to give it to the big guy, he did not laugh at all. I think he was close at one point, but masked it with a cough. “Well, it’s official.” Pete directs his words at his fiance. “I’m not the most awkward one anymore.”
That’s when Gavin loses his composure and a loud laugh bursts from him.
“Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up,” I snap, then wait for the laughter to die down.
Pete nudges me with his elbow. “So, you’re fucking your boss, huh?”
“Shut up.”
“Hey, I’m not one to judge.” Pete turns to Gavin. “Right, Grumpy Bear?”
Gavin groans and Pete blows him a kiss, then turns back to me.
“Is it serious dating, like you think it could go the distance with you two?”
“Like I said, It wasn’t until recently and I have no idea when it switched or how to even fucking deal with all these feelings. ” I pause, not wanting to elaborate. But Pete’s waiting, his gaze boring into me. With a loud sigh, I continue. “When we hooked up the night before the interview, it was so intense and so fucking hot. That was all it was meant to be. So you can imagine our surprise the next day sitting across from each other in Eric’s office. The chemistry was still there, the sex still fresh in my mind. I am only human, Sunshine. I couldn’t resist another taste, then another. And now? Now I’m just fucking fucked. I think I might be in love with him.”
“We’re going to circle back to the six months of me not knowing about this, but wow! I’m impressed that the word ‘love’ came out of your mouth without causing a stroke.”
I smile because he’s right. Not so long ago, I was grossed out by the lovestruck looks Pete and Gavin were giving each other across the dinner table. It was nauseating. And today… today I saw that same look in Eric’s eyes, and instead of running for the hills, it made me crave even more of it. What has that man done to me? I hope to fuck it isn’t permanent.
“Good for you, Jordy. Eric’s a great guy,” Gavin says, moving over to join Pete and I now that the hard part is over.
“He must be if Jordan has hearts in his eyes for him.”
I do not. I don’t. Right? The look Pete gives me tells me otherwise. I’m so fucked.
“You should have told me.” Pete sounds as hurt as I expected him to be.
“I know, I’m sorry.”
“If I had known, I wouldn't have been subjected to your O-face. Do you know you do this weird thing with your mouth?”
I groan again, covering my eyes. I do not need to see Pete's interpretation of it. “Oh, God, please stop,” I beg.
“Yeah, well, that’s what happens when you have secrets from your bestest bestie. You get caught with your pants down.” He mocks me playfully. dropping to his knees and humping the air. “Oh, Eric… give it to me, baby! I looooooove you sooo much!”
“Kill me now. Please, just put me out of my misery,” I beg Gavin, who just shrugs and laughs. I’m sending him a fucking glitter bomb tomorrow, asshat.
“Yeah, I’m not getting into the middle of … that.” Gavin gestures between me and his husband, and I get that. I should’ve known he wouldn’t dare to dim the light of his life by helping poor little humiliated me . “I think I’m going to go home and leave you both to it.” Leaning down, he presses a kiss to Pete's mop of curls. “It’s late. Have a sleepover, put the worlds to right.”
“I knew I loved you for a reason.” Pete hops off the couch. Before I can blink, he’s jumped up and wrapped himself around Gavin like a koala. It’s kinda cute for all of three seconds before they start making out.
I clear my throat loudly. “Uhm, guys, maybe I should be the one to leave?” Yeah, they’re not listening. “I’m just going to go make some coffee.”
Raising myself off the couch as elegantly as I can, I contemplate how I will get to the kitchen when they’re blocking my path. I try one way, then the other, but it’s just impossible. “Oh for the—” I grab Pete’s locks and pull. Hard.
“Ouch, Jordy! Why?”
“If you want to fuck, be my guest. The couch has had its pre-game already. But move first so that I don’t have to see your O-face.” Letting go of his hair, I try really hard not to sound terribly jealous, but he’s the one who chased my hope for a good pounding right out the door.
“Fiiine.” My best friend pouts like a kicked puppy.
“Now you know how I felt” — I pause dramatically, looking at my non-existent watch — “an hour ago, you little cock block.” I push past them and head to the kitchen, calling over my shoulder as I go. “If you want to hear about how Eric and I saved a kid's life the other day, say goodnight to Grumpy and follow the smell of the coffee beans.”
“Gavin, did he just say he saved a kid?” The astonishment in Pete’s tone makes me chuckle.
I waste no time getting the coffee brewing. Luckily, I still have cookies in the cupboard, so I add them to a plate and grab out my two biggest mugs. It’s already after midnight, and if there is any hope of me staying awake to match my best friend's energy, I am going to need the extra sugar.
“What kid?” Pete demands in lieu of any kind of pleasantry.
He hops on the countertop next to me with cat-like stealth, making me startle and almost drop my favorite fuchsia mug with the best quote from a book ever: Petty makes me pretty . Glaring at him for a second, I move both mugs further away from his clumsy ass and start pouring the coffee.
“Hey! That wasn’t even my fault,” Pete protests.
I just lift one brow at him, cocking my hip. “ That almost-accident wasn’t your fault, but you are the clumsiest person on the planet and I am not taking any risks—especially when your feet aren’t planted firmly on the floor.”
Pete considers this for a moment, then concedes and jumps down, needing to catch himself on the sink before he face-plants.
“I really hope your husband has a great insurance policy for you,” I mutter, shaking my head. I give Pete a wide berth as I follow him into the living room and set the tray of coffee and biscuits on the glass table.
“Okay, so how did you save a kid's life?” Pete asks impatiently.
This only makes me take a slower sip of my coffee, before settling back on the couch and relaying the events of last weekend.
The thing with Pete is that he is eternally happy. The guy never stops smiling—ergo, he’s my ‘Sunshine.’ So when his face morphs into a grimace, then a frown, finally settling on anger, I’m not actually sure what to do. This is uncharted territory for me.
“His fucking brother? No wonder you pulled a gun on the assholes. I mean, the gun isn't loaded, right? You never kept it loaded before.”
“Yeah, it wasn’t loaded, but they didn’t know that. Between the gun and Eric’s fuck-around-and-find-out tone, it was enough to scare them off. We brought Blake inside and called Roman to help him get settled at the shelter.” I shrug, because it's really not that big of a deal. We just did what anybody else would have done. “Eric and I have been to check on Blake a few times. We bought him and a few of the other teens some necessities and we text a lot. He seems to have settled and made some friends, but I dunno, I feel kind of responsible for him.”
“What about the brother? Has he tried to contact him?” The concern is written all over Pete’s face. He has never even met Blake, yet he is more concerned about him than Blake’s own parents are. As far as I know, they haven't even bothered to call or try to find their son.
“So far, Blake hasn’t mentioned anything, but he did block his brother's number. Eric also filed for a restraining order in the hope that it keeps his brother and his prick friends away.”
“Well, that's good. Do you think there’s anything else he needs? Gavin and I are happy to get him some things. Maybe we could swing by the shelter some time and you could introduce us. This kid sounds like he needs people in his corner.”
I can feel my cold heart swelling with love for my best friend.
Pete takes advantage of my silent admiration by moving closer and fixing me with an inquisitive stare. “So… tell me the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Are you in love with your boss?”
His question hits me like a punch to the gut. Without any real thought, I look my best friend in the eye and answer him honestly. “Yeah, Sunshine. I think I am.”
I’m not sure what reaction I was expecting from Pete by admitting that, but it certainly wasn't him whipping out his phone and starting a group chat with my parents .
Sunshine: Order in the court, I am calling a family meeting. You son and my best friend is a sneaky little minx who has been hiding a secret boyfriend from us all!!
“You did not just text that to my parents—” my phone starts beeping like crazy.
Mom: WHAT? Nooo. Jordan, you came out of my vagina and you dare to keep this a secret from me?
Dad: Pete, what evidence do you have to support your claim?
Sunshine: The medical bill from having my eyes bleached after I walked in on them mid-handjob on the couch. Good enough for you?
Dad: No further questions. Beverly, dear, your witness.
Mom: OMFG this is epic. Who is he? Is it serious? Out of ten, how hot is he?
Me: I hate you all
Mom: Shut it, you ungrateful brat. I’m talking to my other child.
Pete: SCORCHING!!!
Mom: Just to confirm the details of the case: who was receiving the handjob?
Pete: Jordan. He does this weird thing with his mouth when he finishes. I think he might need to see somebody about that.
Dad: TMI, kid. TMI.
Mom: Oh, his Dad does that too. I think it's genetic.
Dad has left the group chat
Me: Oh, my god! MOM!
Pete: How do you plead, Jordan?
Me: Guilty! For the love of God, please put me to death!
Mom: At least you got one last handjob, dear.
I close and delete the chat, hoping that my brain will do the same so I can forget the fact my mom just told me I have the same O-face as my dad.