Page 31 of Yours to Lose
I didn’t send you that scarf, did I?
Jordan
Also no comment.
I grin like a maniac at the phone because I am one hundred percent sure that I did not, in fact, send Jordan that Converse dinosaur scarf, which means he bought it himself. Thinking of him making that kind of effort for our little game has warmth flowing through me. And without warning, I feel the tiny roots ofsomethingstart to take hold.
It’s useless to stop it, so I don’t even try. I could try and talk myself out of it, but that’s a fool’s game, and Jo Evans is nobody’s fool. So right here, in this pretty apartment that is mine for the summer, I admit to myself the thing that I’ve been trying not to think about for the month since Jordan walked out of Hallie and Ben’s house looking like he was lost and in need of someone to come find him.
I like him.
Asmore.
There’s something about him that called to me right from the jump.
But Jordan Wyles needs a friend, and I want to be that for him. The best friend he ever had, and the best summer ever, at a time in his life when he seems to need it the most.
* * *
I spot Jordan the second he enters the lobby.
Clad in black joggers and a gray T-shirt, small duffle bag slung over his shoulder, his light brown hair is a disheveled mess, and his eyes look tired from his overnight shift. As I take him in, my stomach does an involuntary flip that is as inconvenient as it is unsurprising.
“Friends, Jo” I mutter. “Be his friend.”
Something that is probably easier in theory than in the reality where I am faced with this absolutely gorgeous specimen of man. Sipping my iced coffee, I take a minute to study him before he spots me. He cuts a path through the lobby, dodging people expertly and smiling at no one. A man on a mission, which I assume is to get out of this building as soon as possible, except maybe it’s not because his eyes track the space as if he’s looking for something. Or someone maybe?
I barely have time to finish that thought when he spots me. He doesn’t smile, and he doesn’t wave. Instead, he strides in my direction, his gaze holding mine, all his attention focused on me, andJesus. Being the sole focus of Jordan Wyles’ unsmiling attention is a heady thing. His eyes flash with something I can’t quite place but looks a lot like…relief maybe? It would be weird if it was because I told him I was going to be here and here I am, but then he’s in front of me and it’s gone.
His clean, fresh laundry scent invades my senses, and I grin up at him. “Hey J, happy to see me?”
He studies me. “I’m honestly not sure. Are you about to give me something weird or ask me to go make friends with another Times Square character?”
I laugh because he gets me. “I do have something for you, but it can wait for coffee.” I hand him the iced coffee I brought him, and he takes it from me. “I didn’t know how you took it. Weird right? I feel like after a month of texting, that’s the kind of thing a friend should know, but I just got you what I got myself. If you tell me what you like, I’ll know for next time.”
“Next time?”
“I mean, yeah. Even after I start work, I’m always up for a seven a.m. breakfast. When I told you we were going to be friends this summer, I super meant it, and friends do not let friends crash after doing surgery all night without a good breakfast.”
Jordan takes a sip and then examines the cup. “Milk and one Splenda?”
“Yeah, good guess.”
He shrugs. “Not really. It’s how I like my coffee too.”
He says this nonchalantly, as if it’s not the greatest coincidence of all time. My smile widens. “So we’re coffee compatible. This is such great news.”
“That is absolutely not a thing.”
“Uh, yes, it is. It means if we ever need to share coffee for some reason, no one has to be disappointed that they’re not getting what they want. All the best friendships start with two people who are coffee compatible.”
He raises an eyebrow, but I can see a touch of humor in his eyes, and it delights me. “Why are we sharing coffee?”
“Maybe we ran out.”
“This is New York. You can get coffee anywhere, at any time of the day or night.”
I pause because, fair point. “Maybe I just like that we have something in common.”
