Cody
“So… Did you kiss her?” Jax smirks from his spot leaning against the counter.
“No. What is wrong with you?” I roll my eyes.
“What? You’ve dated in the past. I don’t see what the big deal is.” He frowns at me.
“Because it’s been years, Jax! I'm not pushing her.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t want to rush this and then have Sloan decide she doesn’t want a relationship with me. I'm trying to be patient.” I stare up at the ceiling and squeeze my eyes shut. It’s bad enough that I want to move things along, I don’t need Jax pushing me too. It just frustrates me.
“Morning, boys.” Sloan smiles as she enters the kitchen. She looks adorable in my t-shirt and pajama pants. I was so stuck in my head last night, I wasn’t really able to appreciate her in my clothing.
“Morning, can we go get breakfast now?” Jax sticks out his bottom lip in a pout.
“Who said we’re going out for breakfast?” Sloan arches a brow.
“I said I wanted a good breakfast. I’ve had your cooking, Sloan. It’s not great. So, you two can treat me to my favorite breakfast place.” He grins like he just won.
“Please tell me it isn’t a fast-food place.” Sloan grimaces. Jax used to tell us he found the greatest restaurants and get us all hyped up for dinner, just to take us for fast-food burgers. It always drove Sloan crazy.
“It’s an actual café.” I chuckle when relief floods her features.
“Good. Do you think we can stop at my place before we go for breakfast? I’d rather not wear my dress from yesterday.”
“What’s wrong with that?” Jax motions to what she’s wearing.
“I'm not wearing pajamas to a café, Jax,” she sighs like she’s already finished with him for the day.
“Oh, who cares! No one will be looking at you when I'm there.” He smirks and though I want to roll my eyes at him, he’s probably right. Most people will notice the professional hockey player before they notice who’s with us.
Jax’s face is splashed all over the city. Even if you don’t follow hockey, you probably know who he is… And because we’re identical twins, people know who I am too.
“Your modesty never fails to surprise me.” Sloan rolls her eyes.
“Don’t forget you have to go see Uncle Mason too. He already texted me,” I say.
“Ok. Are you guys working today?”
“Nope. We’re yours all day.” Jax smirks.
“Perfect. Let me grab my things, then we can go. By the way, Cody, I'm keeping these pajamas.” She rises on her tippy toes and presses a quick kiss to my lips before she disappears down the hallway, leaving me speechless.
“Well, then… I guess she’s made her decision.” Jax lifts his bottle of water to his mouth and takes a swig, never removing his gaze from me.
I don’t bother responding, instead I stalk down the hallway and knock on the door to Sloan’s room. She opens it a second later and I push my way inside without a word. I shut the door and pin her against it, this is the only way to make sure Jax doesn’t follow me.
“Cody?” She whispers as her chest rises and falls a little more rapidly.
“You can’t give me a quick kiss and then just leave,” I murmur as my lips press against hers.
I haven’t dated since Sloan moved. I haven’t even kissed anyone. But having her in my arms and her lips on mine make me realize just how much I missed this.
I tilt my head to the side and deepen our kiss. Sloan practically melts against my body and wraps her arms around my waist. I kiss her for a few more seconds before I pull back and press a soft kiss to the tip of her nose.
“That was much better than what I did,” she mumbles as she leans her head back against the door. “I forgot what kissing you is like.”
“So, I didn’t lose my touch?” I smirk.
“Not even a little bit.”
“Are you kidding me? How is he still here?” Sloan groans as she lets her head fall back against the headrest.
“Because he’s crazy and has no life? Daddy’s his boss and doesn’t keep track of him so he can do whatever he wants.” Jax pokes his head between the front seats and peers at Jude’s car. “Bro is giving total stalker vibes.”
“What am I going to do? Now, I can’t get clothes and I can’t go home.” Sloan covers her face with her hands and her body sags.
“You can stay in the guest room for as long as you need to, sweetheart. As far as clothes go, it’s not that big of a deal. I’ll handle it.”
I drive towards the café, knowing there’s a little boutique next door. Once I’ve pulled into a spot, I turn towards Sloan and take her hands in mine.
“Stay here, I’ll be right back.”
I'm not surprised when Jax jumps out of the car and follows me into the boutique. We each take one side of the store and pick out outfits for Sloan. By the time we meet at the register a few minutes later, we each have about ten outfits.
“She’ll need bras and underwear, but I'm not buying her that stuff.” Jax grimaces.
“Yeah, that’s out of my comfort zone.” I chuckle. “We can come back after breakfast and let her shop.”
I hand over my credit card and a few minutes later we’re walking out of the store with enough clothing that Sloan won't have to worry about it for a long time.
“What is all of this?” Sloan gasps as we place four large bags in the backseat.
“Just get changed so we can eat, Sloany. I'm starving,” Jax groans.
“Get changed in the backseat so no one can see in. After breakfast we can go back into the boutique and get anything else you need.”
It takes Sloan less than two minutes to get changed and meet us at the door of the café. We’re led to our seats immediately and Jax orders food for everyone without asking us what we want.
“He still does it, huh?” Sloan turns towards me with an arched brow.
“Yeah… Honestly, I don’t hate it. He typically knows what I want and when he’s wrong, he’s willing to switch plates.” I lift my shoulder in a shrug.
“What if that’s not what I wanted, Jax?” She turns her attention towards my brother.
“Oh, but it is. You love potato pancakes, eggs, and bacon.”
“But you got me French toast too.”
“I did. And if you don’t want it, I’ll happily eat it instead.” He grins.
“Sometimes I think you’re a garbage disposal in human form.”
“Well, in my defense, I burn so many calories a day, I need to eat a lot.” Jax shrugs as he takes a long sip of his coffee.
“In reality, he typically eats an extremely clean and healthy diet and he’s splurging today because he knows I won't do this again the rest of the month.” I smirk as I lift my cup to my lips and blow on the hot liquid.
“Aw, man. I think I'm rethinking this relationship.” Sloan scowls up at me.
“Excuse me?” I rear back like she just slapped me.
“Well, I won't be able to eat junk food with you. What happens when I really want ice cream or cookies?”
“Then we get you ice cream or cookies, babe.”
“But you won't eat them with me?” She blinks up at me.
“Man, you’re going to get fat,” Jax singsongs. “You never could say no to that look.”
“I’d take a bite, but no, I won't eat a lot of it.”
“That’s not fun at all.” She folds her arms over her chest and pouts.
“You say that, but when it’s warm enough to go in the pool, you’ll be thrilled with how seriously he takes his diet and exercising.” Jax’s smirk widens even more.