“Give me a hug.” His dad leans up, opening his arms for Jordan, and they have a long embrace before pulling back and saying they love each other. It’s adorable how close they are. I wish I had that with my family. But I always felt like the outsider looking in on them.
“You too,” he says. I lean down, and he wraps me in a tight hug. “Take care of my boy. I’m sure this shook him,” he whispers in my ear. I give a small nod, and he kisses me on the cheek. Then Jordan is pulling me to his side. “See? He’s going to try to hog you,” Rick says, patting my hand. “You kids get home.”
“See you in the morning, Pop,” Jordan says when we get to the door.
“Bring me my coffee,” Rick retorts, winking at us.
Jordan agrees, and we leave.
“He’s sweet. I already love him,” I say as Jordan pulls me into his side, wrapping one arm around me and kissing the top of my head.
“Yeah, Pop has always had sway with people. He makes everyone feel welcome.”
“I wish I had that with my family. You guys love each other so much.” I sigh thinking about mine. “I can barely get my mom on the phone. Pretty sure she’s dodging me.” Not that I can blame her. She knows why I’m calling. Her daughter is driving me insane.
“Well, you do have us. We’re yours, too. Pretty sure Pop is going to try to steal you from me. I can already see the giant dinners the two of you will be making every Sunday.”
Jordan lifts his hand to wave for a cab. His words mean more to me than he knows. I’ll be a part of a family that will actually like having me around. The cab pulls up, and he opens the door for me.
For a moment, he stills and brushes my cheek with the back of his fingers. “Why the face?” he asks, staring into my eyes.
“I’m just happy,” I tell him. No, I’m more than happy. Happy isn’t a good enough word for what I’m feeling right now.
“Come on, let’s get home and I’ll make you even happier.” He helps me into the cab, and I feel peace settle in my chest. Home. I love hearing him say it.
“I should probably do some work. Can I use your office, and maybe a spare laptop?”
“You don’t have to ask to use anything of mine. I’ll show you how to log in when we get there. You can work, and I’ll get us food.”
“Sounds perfect.” I snuggle into him as we ride in comfortable silence. I feel better than I have in days. Even the rain has finally stopped.
When we get to his place, we walk inside and he gives me a serious look. “If you don’t like it, we can change it.”
“Hmm?” I ask, not understanding.
“I want you to like the place.”
“I love this place.”
It must be the answer he’s after, because he leans down and kisses me. I try to deepen it, but he pulls away. “If you start that, I’ll never be able to feed you, and you won’t get to see your surprise.”
“Fine.” I give him a small pout, and against his own words, he kisses it off my face. Though this time, when I try to deepen it, he lifts me and throws me over his shoulder. It makes me laugh as all my hair falls into my face so I can’t see anything.
Before I know it, I’m back on my feet and see I’m in Jordan’s office. I glance around and see a new desk. It’s white with silver trim and looks beautiful. On top of it is a computer, and beside that are dozens of notebooks.
“Jordan,” I whisper. “How? Why? This is amazing.”
He wraps his arms around me from behind. “We can change anything you want. I still need to put up some shelves for all your notebooks.” He motions to a wall.
I turn in his arms and look up at him. “When did you have time?”
“I had some help, but it didn’t take much. It was more having to order things.”
I reach up and wrap my arms around his neck, making him bend down to kiss me. This time he deepens the kiss, and when my butt hits the desk, the notebooks fall to the floor. My legs fall open as he steps in between them.
I go for his shirt, trying to get it off him. I love when he doesn’t have on a shirt so I can run my hands on his bare skin. He feels me tugging and helps me pull it from his body. Then he’s rushing to get me out of my clothes. I lean back, helping him get my pants off, then my shirt goes next. Quicker than I thought possible, I’m completely naked on the desk in front of him.