Page 52 of Devil's Kiss
As Derek watched him go, he thought of the simple words inside the box and wondered if he and Finn would ever cross paths again.
IT WASLATE afternoon and Jordan was about five minutes away from stripping out of the God-awful suit he’d worn and slipping into some shorts and a tank before pouring himself a glass of Merlot.
He’d finally gotten home after the never-ending commencement ceremony, and had wisely avoided all contact with Derek after that one foiled attempt. It was best that things end this way between them. He’d seen Derek through, from start to finish, and somewhere in there along the way become friendly with the guy, but that was it. It was over now. Derek had moved out, graduated, and would start his life and move forward from there.
Just like I need to do,Jordan told himself as he removed his jacket and threw it over his couch. When his cell phone started ringing inside the front pocket, he dug it out and almost dropped it as the wordHe-Manflashed across the screen.
As if he’d conjured Derek out of thin air, the guy was calling him, and Jordan wasn’t sure if he should let it go to voicemail or…Hell, who am I kidding?“Hello?”
“Hi,” Derek replied, and Jordan wondered when his cock had become a slave to the man’s voice. Every time he heard it, it stood to rigid attention. “You free right now?”
Jordan’s pulse raced at the question, and he wasn’t sure why. It was innocent enough, but front and center in his mind was the fact that, as of a couple of hours ago, Derek was no longer a student where he worked. Which meant all of the excuses he’d used over the years to keep his distance no longer applied.
“Yes. I’m free.”
“Can you let me up, then?”
Jordan whirled around to face the elevator as if Derek was stepping off it and into his condo as they spoke. “You’re here?”
“I’m downstairs, yeah. Is that okay?”
Jordan tightened his fingers around the phone as he walked over to the access panel of the elevator and pressed the open button. He watched on the small monitor as Derek stepped inside and then looked up into the camera mounted on the wall of the elevator. That was when he asked again, “Is thatokay, Jordan?”
Jordan saw his lips move on the camera and knew that if Derek took the elevator up to his condo then everything between them would change. That, however, wasn’t enough to stop him from replying, “Yes. Come to me.”
Chapter 14
WHEN THE ELEVATOR came to a stop at Jordan’s floor, Derek was positive his heart skipped a few beats.Christ, he wasn’t sure he had the balls to ask for what he’d come there for. But as the door slid open and Jordan’s handsome face came into view, he was determined to fucking try.
On his way over to Jordan’s, he’d been running through Finn’s words about leaving, and though he knew it wasn’t personal, it sure as hell felt that way. Finn leaving Sunset Cove meant the end of an era of sorts. An end of them, for real. Not just because they were busy and doing their own things, but because Finn was putting miles, states, and a plane ride between them.
Thinking about it made him mad all over again, though he knew he had no right, and when he stepped off the elevator and headed toward Jordan, he watched him cross his arms over his chest in a move that Derek knew all too well. It was a blocking move. Ado not come any closermove. And it had his steps faltering.
When he saw Jordan standing in the crowd today, he’d wanted to go to him for many reasons. One of those was to tell him he looked fucking hot in a suit. But after talking to Daniel, the need to be with Jordan had become more pressing. More desperate. Derek had felt out of control, unable to fix or stop what was happening in his life, and he’d known the only person who would make his world seem stable again was the man opposite him, with narrowed eyes and crossed arms.
“Okay…” Jordan finally said. “What’s with the fierce frown on a day where you should be over the moon?”
Derek wasn’t even aware he’d been sporting a scowl until Jordan, as always, called his ass out on it. Then before he realized he was going to, he blurted out, “Did you know?”
Jordan cocked his head to the side and asked, “Did I knowwhat, exactly?”
Derek wasn’t sure why, but he had a feeling that Jordan had known about Finn leaving. But before he could continue his interrogation, Jordan was speaking again.
“That you would graduate? I never had a doubt. Though your smartass mouth and tendency to cause problems for your professors may have given me reason to worry over the last four years.”
Derek let his eyes move down from Jordan’s styled hair to his high cheekbones, and with his shirt and tie still in place, plus his gray slacks and wingtips, he looked the epitome of sophistication. And just like that, Derek’s first line of questioning left him, and instead he asked, “You worry about me?”
“Oh, only whenever I think about you.”
“And how often’s that?”
The question lingered between them like a dare. One that had been issued four years ago but never acted on. Then… Jordan took him up on it.
He let his eyes trail down over Derek’s own shirt, tie, and slacks, then brought them back to his face and answered, “More often than not.”
Unable to stop himself, Derek took a step forward and Jordan walked backward. They continued that way until Jordan’s back hit a wall and Derek’s polished shoes were touching his.
“Fuck, I want to kiss you right now,” Derek said, as he looked into Jordan’s eyes and waited for him to tell him no. But he should’ve known better when it came to Jordan, who angled his chin up instead. His body language screamed out one thing:I dare you. But if you want me, you better have the fucking balls to take me on.