The Heartbreaker Series: Books 1-3 (16 page)

Chapter Sixteen

Gabe

I kiss Jasmine’s forehead one more time before I knock and walk into Jordan’s room. I’m not sure why he didn’t want his sister to come back in. I’m even more curious why the guy wants me. I step in, close the door behind me, and find him sitting up in bed. I can tell he’s hopped up on pain meds. He’s got that dopey-eyed look.

“How are you feeling?” I ask as I pull a chair up next to him.

“I’m high as a kite right now, but I still hurt like a motherfucker.” His laugh is rough and pained. “I just don’t need her fussing over me.” Jordan looks me right in the eye. “Last night I went out and this dude had been eyeing me. I bought him a drink and we talked for like an hour. We decided that we were going to leave and when we stepped out of the bar and rounded the corner, the asshole sucker punched me in the face. It was like one of those damn Lifetime moves. His friends came out of the shadows and joined in. The whole time they called me a faggot, a queer, and cocksucker.

“The last thing I remember is them grabbing my wallet and pulling my cash out.”

I feel my anger rise on Jordan’s behalf.

“I still don’t understand why you don’t want Jasmine in here. She’ll want to know what happened.”

“I don’t because I don’t need to hear her go on and on about my ‘reckless’ behavior. I don’t need her knowing that this was a hate crime, or whatever the fuck they’re calling it now. I know eventually she’ll find out because the goddamn news will catch wind of this and it’ll be all over the place, but for now all she needs to know is I got mugged.” Jordan groans as he tries to sit up more. I stand up and help get him situated by stacking pillows behind his back.

“I won’t say anything to her about what happened, but she’ll be hurt if she hears it from someone other than you. You know that, right?”

I get him to agree to tell her, but he wants to wait until he’s released from the hospital. I promise to keep quiet about it even though it doesn’t sit well with me.

A few minutes later, Jasmine and Jill come in and my girl goes right to her brother. The tears start again. Jordan hugs her to his side and kisses her forehead. I tell them we’ll be right outside. I figure they could use a minute to themselves. I wrap my arm around Jill’s shoulders and lead her out into the hallway.

I look my sister over and can tell she’s feeling better. Her skin has a nice glow to it that was missing before and she just seems more relaxed.

“How are you feeling? You look great,” I tell her.

“I feel really good, actually. I’m not getting sick anymore and the constant fatigue isn’t nearly as bad as it was before. I talked to Mom. She knows that I’m pregnant.”

“What did she say about it?” Our mom is more freethinking. It’s my stepdad, Rich, that I’m more worried about.

“I think she’s a little disappointed, especially since I’m not married, but she’s excited about being a grandma. Dad threatened to drive down and kick Nico’s ass, but I assured him that you took care of it. That seemed to calm him down.”

I wrap her in my arms and squeeze her. Our mom was supposed to be here over a week ago but had to cancel last minute.

“I can’t believe you’re making me an uncle, but I’ll be the best fucking uncle that kid’s seen. I’m serious when I say that anything, and I mean anything you need, I will get for you or do for you.”

There may be a lot of years between us, but we’re still close. She kisses my cheek before she excuses herself to go update her and Jasmine’s boss.

A short time later, Jasmine steps into the hall and into my arms. I love the feel of her body against mine. I love the fact that she’s letting me comfort her so easily. “He fell back asleep,” she mumbles against my chest. “Can you sit with him while I go get my mom? I hate to ask because I don’t kn—” I put a finger over her lips.

“Jasmine, I will do whatever you need because I love you. Go get your mom and I’ll stay here as long as you need me to.” I kiss her lips and tell her to go. I watch as she disappears down the corridor.

***

My hand trails up and down Jasmine’s back. Tiny goose bumps pop up all over her skin and I can see her nipples harden. Tonight my goal has been to take her mind off her brother, even if just for a little while. Jordan refused to let Jasmine stay the night and I know it hurt her, but the guy wanted his privacy.

She’s a natural caretaker, so I can understand her struggle with Jordan’s request. She came back with her mom around dinner time and I admit, I got a little emotional watching the grown woman wail and then crawl into bed with her son, holding him tightly while Jordan tried to reassure her that he was okay. Marie wanted to stay with her son, but they all agreed that he’d be okay. I was sure she was going to give Jasmine grief when it was time to leave, but instead she kissed her son and even hugged me goodbye.

We all said goodbye to Jordan and I followed the girls out. I told Jasmine to come to my house after she took her mom home since I live closer to the hospital. I thought she’d try to fight me on that, but she didn’t.

When she showed up at my door, I whipped up a small dinner for us and then I proceeded to fuck the stress right out of her. This girl is like natural Viagra to me. I seem to be able to go and go when I’m with her.

She moans and burrows in closer to me and I swear there isn’t even an inch between us. As soon as she rubs against my dick, it gets hard as hell. I gently move her to her back and kiss her down her neck.

I reach her nipples and suck one hardened tip into my mouth. Jasmine moans as I suck her tit into my mouth. I alternate between her nipples as I let my hand drift down to her wet cunt. My fingers deep into her wetness and then swirl around her clit. She wraps her hands into my hair as she begins writhing against me. I kiss back up her body until I reach her mouth. I bite her bottom lip and hold it as I reach into my nightstand for a condom and quickly sheath myself.

I slide her legs up over my shoulders and thrust my cock deep inside her wet pussy. With my forehead resting against her, we both groan. She feels like heaven and if I could stay buried inside of her forever, I would. I start moving inside of her and feel her walls squeezing me. Her nails dig into my back as I begin to pick up the pace.

“Touch yourself for me, baby.”

I watch her arm slide down between us. She rubs her clit for me. I can tell she is getting close to coming, so I begin to plow into her.

While using one arm to support my weight, I reach out and wrap my hand around her hair. I hold her immobile and she goes liquid around my cock. She cries out and tries to arch against me, but I won’t let her move. I feel the beginning of my orgasm building at the base of my spine. It shoots through my balls and straight through the tip of my cock.

As our breathing slows, I bury my face in her neck and take in her scent. She sifts through my hair as I lay on top of her.

“Good morning,” she whispers with a giggle. “That’s a nice way to wake up.”

“Nice?” I ask incredulously before I bite her shoulder.

“Okay, more than nice.” I look down at her and she cups my face in her hand. “Thank you. I know what you were doing last night and I appreciate it.” She reaches up and kisses me before I pull out of her.

We snuggle back into the bed for a bit before we have to get up and head to the hospital. I’ve done a pretty good job at keeping Jordan’s secret from Jasmine even though I’m worried that him asking me to keep it could backfire on me and screw things up with Jasmine and me. He was the victim of a hate crime. It’s not like he asked for it. I know it will upset her if she knows the truth, so maybe I can understand why Jordan is keeping it from her.

After showering and feeding her, we head back to the hospital, where we learn they’re going to be discharging Jordan soon. I offer for him to stay at my place after he turned down Jasmine’s invitation, but again he declines. He just wants to stay at his own place, alone. I can see the hurt all over Jasmine’s face, but I can tell that he’s not going to change his mind.

The nurse comes in with Jordan’s discharge instructions and he declines the prescription for pain pills. He swats Jasmine’s hand away when she tries to help him into the wheelchair. My girl is close to crying, I can see it. We follow along behind the nurse as she pushes Jordan down the hall and into the elevator. The silence is uncomfortable. I wrap my arm around Jasmine and hug her into my side.

She rests her head against my shoulder as we stare up at the numbers ticking down until we reach the lobby.

***

Jasmine

I stand awkwardly to the side and wait for Gabe to return with his car. I don’t know why Jordan is treating me like this. I don’t know what I did to make him mad, but I feel like my heart is breaking. He’s my best friend and he’s completely shutting me out. Hell, he’s probably talked to Gabe more than me in the past twenty-four hours.

The sound of the sliding doors opening pull me from my thoughts. I watch silently as the nurse pushes Jordan outside and Gabe helps him into the backseat of his car.

I slowly follow behind them and sit in the front seat. I stare blindly out the window as Jordan tells Gabe how to get to his place. When we reach his little bungalow, Jordan tells me goodbye and then lets Gabe help him inside while I watch, flabbergasted, from the car. Goodbye was all I got from him? I can’t believe it. I shouldn’t be surprised because he’s certainly been the selfish one. My chest aches with an emptiness I hate. I’m the caretaker. I’m the one who steps in and takes charge. I don’t get why he won’t let me help him now.

A few minutes later, Gabe comes walking out to the car. He doesn’t say anything until we’re down the street. He grabs my hand and pulls it to his lips. “He just needs a little time, babe. He was mugged and he’s still a little freaked out by it.”

Now I feel like a bitch. Of course he’s quiet. I’d be quiet too if something like that happened to me. I’ll give him a few days and then he’ll be ready to talk to me. Gabe kisses my palm. I bring his hand to my lips and kiss his palm as well.

“I get it. I’ve just always taken care of him. It’s hard to let that go.”

It’s a scorcher of a day, so when we get back to Gabe’s house, we change into our bathing suits and head out to the pool. We lay under the big canopy as he reads and I nap with my head on his chest. We lay out here most of the day. I occasionally got up to take a quick dip in the pool. Sometimes Gabe would join me and things would get heated. He’d slide my bottoms to the side and use his fingers on me until I was panting against his lips.

It’s around five and we decide to order a pizza for dinner. While he does that, I take a quick shower. By the time I finish, get dressed, and blow dry my hair, the pizza has arrived. The smell of the sauce wafts up the stairs and makes my mouth water.

I find Gabe in the TV room with the pizza sitting on the coffee table and two bottles of water. I flop down next to him and accept the proffered piece. I moan as soon as I bite into the cheesy goodness. The tang of the tomato sauce explodes on my tongue. Gabe’s eyes turn heated as he stares at me. I simply shrug my shoulders and go back to eating. I’m on my second piece when Gabe asks me a question that rocks me to my core.

“What if I told you that I wanted to find your dad for you, find him so you can get some closure and maybe some questions answered?” He puts my hands in his. “I want you to have the answers I’m sure that you want and need.”

I don’t know what to say. I don’t know how I feel about this. Do I want to meet the man who sired us and then abandoned us? If anything, I want to meet him just to tell him to fuck off.

“Babe, say something.” He kisses my palms.

“I-I don’t know w-what to say. I don’t know if I want to see him…ever.” I take a deep breath. “Can we not talk about him anymore?” I can see that he wants to keep talking about it, but he doesn’t, which I am grateful for.

After we eat, I curl up in his lap as he watches ESPN. I let my eyes drift shut.

***

It’s been two weeks since Jordan’s mugging and things haven’t been good between us. Every time I reach out to him, he blows me off. I offered to go with him to his doctor appointment to get his cast and his broken nose checked, but he told me no.

Last week I didn’t call and just showed up at his place. We’ve always carried a key to each other’s places, but when I inserted my key in his door, it wouldn’t budge. It made me sick to my stomach that he changed his locks. I stood outside his door for almost an hour before I finally left, feeling defeated. All I wanted was to be there for him and to help him deal with what happened. I don’t know if he’s reached out to Gabe at all, but after the day in the hospital, I think he has.

As much as it bothers me that Jordan has reached out to Gabe instead of me, I’m just glad he’s confided in someone.

Tonight, Gabe is coming with me to a party being thrown by the boutique that I just did the lingerie shoot for. It’s the launch of that line, so I need to be there. I’m looking forward to dressing up and seeing my man all decked out in one of his suits. All six-foot-four of him looks delicious when he’s dressed up. I decided, earlier this week, that I would get all pampered for the party.