Jordan opens the door and my heart beats like a freight train. His dark hair is wet, hanging in his eyes, his bare,tan chest gleaming from the light that surrounds him. His grey sweatpants hang off his hips, drawing attention to the muscles there. God, he’s so fucking handsome. So fucking perfect. I refuse to look anywhere else but his face, though it’s not an easy feat.
His honey gaze holds mine in challenge. He doesn’t smile or soften. Only smirks as he pushes the door open as far as it will go.
The light falls like a beacon and I glance down at the space between us. My heart beats a thousand miles a minute as the voice in my head tells me to run.
He says nothing as he steps aside, giving me wordless permission to enter.
He doesn’t push me or argue. He doesn’t fight me or make me feel small. He just waits for me to make my choice.
And I think it’s the first time anyone’s reallywaitedfor me to make the right one, instead of expecting me to make the wrong one.
So I grab the strap of my duffel, not saying a word as I walk into his house, and he shuts the door softly.
Good Boy, Alex.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Jordan
Asking Alex to stay here was a mistake. He’s a fucking menace. He’s always around, and always in my space. I haven’t lived with someone since college, except for a short time after graduating when I had to live with my mother.
There’s a reason I don’t spend time with Maggie at my house. I don’t like people in my space.
Why the fuck did I think letting Alex into it would be okay?
He’s loud, annoying, and needs way too much attention.
Alex is like a fucking puppy, and there’s a reason I don’t have a damn dog.
“So, how’s everything with Alex?” Maggie asks, grabbing a carrot from her plate, dragging it through the ranch, then taking a bite.
“Awful.”
“Jordan, seriously? It hasn’t even been two weeks.”
I shake my head, taking the last bite of my burger and washing it down with my Coke.
“I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“You were thinking that he needs more support than he was getting. You were being a good person.” She offers me a soft smile. “You were being a good friend.”
Friend. The word feels strange. I’ve known Alex since I was a teenager, but friend doesn’t seem like the right word for us.
“You know you can stay with me,” she offers.
“Thanks, but I think the more I’m with him, the more I can help him, the sooner he can go.”
“Right,” she says. Her tone tells me she knows that isn’t the only reason I’m declining. Of course I don’t comment on it though, because it’s not something I want to talk about.
“I should get going.” I pull out my wallet and put cash on the table to pay for our meal. When Maggie asked if I wanted to grab lunch, I’d never agreed so fast. I needed to get the fuck away from Alex. I wish I could say it was only because he’s annoying me. The problem is he’s starting to grow on me, and I wish I could say I hated it. Not thatI would admit liking his presence to anyone. I’ll take it to my fucking grave.
“Call me later?” Maggie says once we’re at her car.
“Of course.” I kiss her cheek, then walk to my truck.
Alex’s car looks so out of place in my dirt driveway. It’s shiny and expensive, while my house looks like it’s about to be condemned. It is solid though, and I have no worries about it falling down. It’s not weak, it’s just not really pretty.
I sit in my truck for a while, just breathing and talking myself up to going inside and seeing Alex. He’s happy all the time, it’s fucking weird and exhausting. The other day he was dancing around, singing some stupid song under his breath as he pulled back all the curtains to let the light in like some kind of Disney princess. Had he opened the windows and birds flew in, I’d have had to kill him.
