Page 76 of A Lot to Unpack
I’m here, alone, the contracts are both here; I could swap them in a split second and it would all be done and dusted.
All I’d have to do is swap them. Just a little switcheroo. No one gets hurt. My job is secured. Paige is happy. Jordan gets to move on with his life – which is what I really want.
Except… I don’t know, it just still doesn’t feel right. It doesn’t feel honest.
I stare at the new contract in my hand. All I have to do is swap them, just slip one into the other’s place, cram the dodgy one in my bag and walk away.
It sounds so simple and yet I just can’t do it. I can’t bring myself to switch them behind his back. Jordan trusted me enough to leave it here with me, in the open. And he opened up his heart – and his bed – to me over the last couple of days. It might be a victimless task, but it still feels manipulative.
I can’t help but think of Ben. Of all the ways he lied to me, misled me, kept me in the dark. I remember that suffocating feeling of realising I didn’t know what was going on in my ownlife, of being lied to, betrayed in the worst ways. I hated it. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone – least of all Jordan.
So if this costs me the job, then so be it. Let Paige sack me. I would rather be unemployed with my pride and my honour intact, and still be able to look Jordan in the eye, than risk it all for a job. I’d move back in with my parents – I’d sleep in their bed with them – before I’d do anything behind Jordan’s back, even if he would never know it had happened.
I like him. I really like him. I care about him more than some crappy – frankly weird – job. I know what I need to do, and it’s not swapping these contracts. Paige will just have to sort out her own mess.
Suddenly I hear the door opening so I shove the contract back into my bag and hurriedly kick it to one side before diving back on the bed.
‘Morning,’ Jordan calls out. ‘Oh, great, you’re awake. I come bearing coffee and bagels.’
‘Oh, just what I need right now,’ I reply. ‘You’re a mind reader.’
‘I thought I’d surprise you,’ he says. ‘And let you catch up on your sleep – I didn’t let you get much last night.’
‘Where did you go?’ I ask, smiling. ‘I was worried for a second, when I woke up, and you weren’t here.’
‘It is my room,’ he reminds me. ‘I was always going to come back – you know that. I went to the best bagel place in Manhattan. We’re going home soon so I couldn’t let you leave New York without trying one. The coffee is great too.’
He hands me a cup. It’s still so warm, and it smells amazing.
‘Are you okay?’ he asks, watching me. ‘You don’t regret?—’
‘No, no, no,’ I insist, interrupting him, because that’s the last thing I want him to think. ‘I think I was just freaked out, that you weren’t here.’
‘Well, I’m here now,’ he says with a smile. ‘And with bagels – cream cheese and lox. You’ll love it.’
We dig in and honestly, I could cry at how good it tastes. He’s not wrong, they really are the best bagels.
‘So… I’ve got a meeting in Leeds,’ he tells me between bits.
‘Leeds… in Yorkshire?’ I say in disbelief.
‘Yes – I’ve got a meeting with the founders of RedFlags – that app where people warn each other about bad dates. We’re talking about collaborating on something.’
‘That’s cool,’ I reply. ‘The world definitely needs that.’
He nods in agreement.
‘So, I’m leaving earlier than planned, tonight actually. I’m taking a private flight, so I can be there to make a meeting,’ he says like it’s the most casual thing in the world. ‘So, I was wondering… do you want to come with me? I know you’ve got the wedding in a couple of days. It’s in Leeds, right?’
I nearly drop my bagel.
‘You want me to join you on your private jet?’ I blurt back to him. ‘You’re asking me like that might be a question people say no to…’
‘It’s always good to check,’ he replies. ‘I figured I could drop you at the wedding – well, close enough.’
‘I’d love that,’ I tell him. ‘Talk about arriving in style – not that you can drop me at the venue, without a parachute, which my cousin would hate. But, yes, ignore my nervous babbling, I would love that.’
‘Great,’ he says with a laugh. ‘And… if you’re still looking for a plus one…’
