Page 98 of Xavier

“You’re a good man, Xavier.”

I don’t acknowledge his compliment. I hand my phone to Jordan, so he can give John his email address.

I’ve done some horrible things in my past, risky and dangerous things, in the name of love and love for my country, but I don’t feel like a good man.

Brianna makes me want to be a better man, though. She makes me want to settle down and make all her dreams a reality.

Jordan hands my phone back, and I don’t wait for John to speak. There’s a lot to happen before I even think about my future with Brianna.

“I’ll call you later to go over the plan. I need to fill Brianna in on what’s going on. I don’t want her finding out about my past through someone else.”

I look at Jordan, who shakes his head. I don’t think he or Hudson would spill my secrets, but if all of this is tied to Julia, then Brianna deserves to know the truth.

All of it.

The good. The bad. And the ugly.

John’s voice is full of confusion when he asks, “Why would it matter if someone told her about your past?”

I push the button to end the call. I’m not ready to have that conversation with John.

Jordan waits until I shove my phone back in my pocket before howling with laughter.

“Oh man, he has no clue, does he?”

“What do you think? Do you honestly think I’d still be alive if he knew half of what I’ve done to and with his daughter?”

“Man, you have to let me be a fly on the wall when you tell him. Please. I even have the fly sized drone charged and ready to go.”

“No way in hell. I don’t need you to turn that recording into a top trending video on the internet.”

“I just want to see his expression when he figures out that his daughter fucked someone almost his age.”

He roars with laughter, tears stream down his face.

“Don’t remind me. Believe me, our age difference is a constant reminder. I tried to fight it. I really did. But-”

The balcony door opens and Brianna walks back in.

She glances from me to Jordan, who is still laughing hysterically. She smiles as she looks back at me and asks, “Is he alright?”

There’s no way in hell I’m telling her about our conversation, so I shrug. “The jury is still out on that one.”

Jordan wipes his eyes and clears his throat. “I’m sorry. Where were we?”

Nope, not going there.

“You were going to print off the documents that John is emailing over, and I am going to bring Brianna to your guest bedroom and talk.”

Brianna's eyebrows shoot up in surprise. “Talk? About what?”

Jordan gives me a nod. “Make yourself at home.”

“A lot of stuff, actually.”

I lead Brianna down the hallway to the guest bedroom. It’s the first door on the right.

The curtains are open, overlooking the pool area. The beach and ocean are around the corner, but you can see some of it.

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