My runaway thoughts jump on the hope train and start rolling full steam ahead. They tell me that he’s here for me. That he wants to make things work between us.
But that’s when it happens.
I get angry.
After weeks of feeling nothing but sadness for Jordan, I’m suddenly angry at him. The feeling rises like a tsunami, wiping out any previous shock at seeing him. Maybe he’s here to make things right, but my fragile heart can’t handle being rejected by him again—and that’s all he seems capable of. Rejecting me.
Jordan’s always been able to read me like a book, and now is no exception. His faint smile disappears, but he’s not deterred by my hard stare. But has Jordan ever been scared off by my angry faces? I probably look as threatening to him as a kitten wearing a bow. I purse my lips instead but to no avail.
Jordan presses forward until he’s standing just feet away, and the smell of him is enough to send my internal kickboxing instructor into double time.
Curse you, Jordan.
Suddenly, Jordan’s eyes flick over to Ian where he sits next to me.
Jordan winces, and I wonder if he thinks Ian and I are here together. That we reconnected. Well, good—let him think that. Let him see that he can’t just toss me aside and think I won’t bounce back.
He would be wrong, but I’m going to ride this wave like the surfboard I’ve never been on.
Jordan takes a deep breath and nods as if accepting this unexpected wrench Ian has thrown in his plans. “Paige,” he says, looking directly at me like I’m the only person on this beach.
I squint enough to blur his attractive features. I know full well that if my peepers open and let in the full force of Jordan’s Jordanness, I’ll forgive him for anything before he so much as utters another word.
“Paige,” he says again.
My traitorous stomach flutters with the gravelly way he says my name.Ugh, I’m a goner.My eyes crack open, because let’s be honest, they’re addicted to him. If I were wearing a blindfold, my eyeballs would sell their souls just to get X-ray vision so they could stare at him all day.
When I finally allow myself to truly look at Jordan, I’m taken aback by what I see in his eyes. That unmistakable light that glitters with excitement for life is back—not the flicker I’ve glimpsed here and there these past months but a full-fledged burning that changes the way he carries himself. He looks lighter, freer. And I wonder what happened to bring it back.
The light in Jordan’s eyes intensifies, and I’m in very real danger of melting under his gaze. I look the other way, only to find Ian staring at me. He looks completely at ease. Amused, even.
I wiggle my feet uncomfortably in the sand. Why is it that when I find myself sandwiched between two attractive men, they’re both my exes?
My gaze swings back to Jordan. “How did you find me?” The words come out weak and breathless.
“The Find My app,” he says. “We’re still connected.”
“Oh.”Duh.
Jordan opens his mouth to say more, but I don’t know if I’m ready to hear it. I’m scared. I’m scared I’ll fall right back into him and find myself brokenhearted once more. My anger pops back up, and I grasp onto it with eagle-like talons. I don’t want to let the feeling go—it’s my only shield against more heartbreak.
“How long have you been here?” I ask, stalling.
“A couple of days.” His voice is too warm, too inviting. “Paige.”
“Did you drive a car or fly in a plane?”
“Plane.” His brows scrunch. “Paige.”
“Where have you been staying?”
“Paige.”
I squeeze my eyes shut.
“Can I speak?” Jordan asks, a smile in his voice.
Be strong, Paige. He hurt you.I open my eyes. “No, not with me.” I try to sound indignant, but it comes across like I just stomped my foot on the ground and refused to do my chores.
