14. Hartley

Happy birthday to me. I was too sick to celebrate or even bring it up to Jordan, but oh my god. I couldn't believe who was standing in Jordan's home. I didn't know he still lived in the city.

"Vail?"

"I haven't seen you in?—"

"Years, many years."

"Holy shit."

Vail, the man I had crushed on during my teen years. I put him behind me when I went to college, knowing he'd never be interested in me. Why would he? He was ten years older.

And oh, was he even hotter than the last time I saw him. He was older, with scruff along his jaw. His light blue eyes were just as I remembered them, like the clearest summer day. The piercings were new though. It made me wonder what else he had on his body I didn't and wasn't privy to know about.

Memories of him being at our house when we were younger came to mind. My brother was Vail's best friend. Vail quickly became part of our family. It also made me even angrier at my brother. He was smart as hell, yet he was no doubt drunk and passed out somewhere, letting his life go to shit.

"How's Forest?" Vail asked. They fell out of touch when Vail started dating Gil. I wondered if they were still together. I hadn't heard anything about Vail in so long.

"You'll have to call him to ask. Last I heard from him, he was drunk and had no intention of being sober. Our grandfather passed."

He took a step toward me, then another. He kept walking until he laid his hand on my arm where I sat on the couch. The touch burned through my shirt, igniting long ago feelings. "I'm so sorry, Hart."

"Me too. Forest took it the worst. He hasn't been the same since."

"Your grandfather helped raise you. It's no surprise Forest isn't handling it well."

"Yeah." That didn't change the fact my brother should help me pay off the mountain of debt. He didn't want to lose the house any more than I did. Instead, he flew home to drown in his misery. I couldn't help someone who didn't want it. The pile of shit on my shoulders was already heavy enough. Forest was a grown man. He needed to handle his life while I took care of everything else.

Vail cocked his head. God, he was still so much the same, even after all these years. He'd always been inquisitive. Now he was probably studying me, trying to figure out how I was here on Jordan's couch. "Are you and Jordan together?"

I choked on air and started coughing. Vail patted me on the back. It didn't do anything, but I wasn't about to shoo his hand away. Vail could strip me down and touch every part of me so I could live out those teenage fantasies if he wanted to. "I'm fine," I rasped as I caught my breath.

"We're not together," Jordan said, stepping closer. His eyes held mine, hazel pools I couldn't decipher. "I got Hartley sick with the flu. He's here under my doctor's care so he can get better."

"And so Irene can mother me," I added. She was one of the sweetest women I'd ever met. Not only that, but she handled Jordan easily. She wasn't afraid of him, nor did she hold back her words.

"She's good for that."

"Is that why I'm here too?" Vail asked Jordan. "I caught whatever you have. Who told you though?"

"Dexen. He mentioned you'd told Dana you were sick and asked me what I did. Dexen's lucky I fucking like him," Jordan growled. It sent a shiver through my body. I shouldn't get turned on by him but, fuck me, I did. With him and Vail in the same room, I was going to have to perpetually sit with a pillow over my lap. Flu or not, they were both gorgeous. My body reacted to them.

Movement by Vail's side caught my attention. "You have a dog?" I asked stupidly. How bad was my tunnel vision on Vail that I didn't notice the big dog standing beside him? It was just like when I was younger. When Vail was around, the world fell away.

"This is Tahoe. I was told to bring him." His eyes shifted to Jordan. "He's good with other animals."

"Latte will have fun with him," Jordan stated. "You can let him off the leash. He can sniff around and drop his hair all over. It will mix with Latte's and give it some color." Jordan said he didn't like dog hair everywhere, but when he wasn't looking last night, I saw the way he was with Latte. It was clear he loved her. "I'll release Latte once Tahoe gets acquainted with my home."

That brought me to another thing. I was sleeping in one of Jordan's guest rooms. The room right next to his. In his fucking house. I still couldn't believe he wanted me here. He said I was to stay until I was better. His doctor stopped by yesterday to test me. Sure enough, flu. I started the antiviral soon after.

"Come on, Jordan." Vail grinned. "There's not much better than having a dog in your house. You love that beautiful girl."

He met Vail's gaze but didn't confirm or deny what Vail said.

"How do you two know each other?" I asked.

"I cooked dinner for Jordan and his guests," Vail told me. "Then when I heard he got sick, I made him soup and brought it over. I wasn't concerned about catching the flu, thinking I ate well, got the vaccine, and took care of myself. Damn, was I wrong. Now I have this illness and it's not fun."

I patted the cushion beside me. "Sit next to me. We can be sick together."

"Oh good, Vail's arrived," Irene said, bustling down the stairs. "I just fixed up a bedroom for you. Have a seat and I'll bring you some tea."

"I can't believe you want me to stay here," Vail said to Jordan. "You could have just let me ride it out at home. It's not your fault I'm sick. I knew what I was doing when I came here. I'm a big boy."

Jordan hummed and dragged his gaze from Vail's toes to his lips. It seemed Jordan looked at Vail like he did at me, with barely controlled desire. "If you're here, I know you're safe. This way, Irene can take care of you along with Hartley."

"I told you I'm fine. I don't need you to worry about my safety."

"Wait, why wouldn't you be safe?" If something happened with Vail, I wanted to know.

Vail finally took Tahoe off leash and let him roam so Vail could sit by me. He leaned heavily against the back of the couch. The flush of his cheeks told me he was running a fever. Hopefully, Alton would be here soon to help him. "Do you remember Gil?"

"Yes."

"We didn't have the best relationship. It was good for a while, but then… not so much."

I sat forward, forgetting about the flu, Jordan, and the space we were in. "What happened?"

"I won't go into details. Reliving the past isn't my favorite thing. Let's just say I have a PFA against him and leave it at that." He had a protection from abuse against him?

"That piece of shit!" I yelled. "He fucking hurt you. How dare he! You should have told us. You could have stayed with Forest or me. We would have helped you." I was torn between being so fucking angry at Gil for being an abusive asshole and agony at not being able to be there for Vail when he needed someone most. If I had known, Forest and I would have done everything we could have. My brother wasn't always like he was now.

Vail's fingers wrapped around my wrist. "Sit down, Hart. I'm okay."

I was standing? When did that happen? I dropped onto the couch, sitting closer to Vail this time. He still hadn't let go of my wrist. Leaning forward, I put my other hand on his thigh. "What can I do?"

"Nothing. I'm fine now, honest."

"He isn't safe though," Jordan cut in. "That monster is out there still."

Vail turned and cocked an eyebrow at Jordan. "I told you I don't want you near him."

"About that…"

Groaning, Vail asked, "What did you do?"

"Nothing more than a background check. For now. And a scouring of the darker parts of the internet."

"Jordan…"

"I didn't go near him. I protect the people I… care about." What had he been about to say?

"The people you care about?" Vail asked.

A choked chuckle came from near the elevator.

Jordan snapped his gaze to where Raiden stood. I could tell them apart now. Raiden had a scar through his right eyebrow. "Did you have something you wanted to say?" Jordan's tone was lacking humor or genuine curiosity. It was a thinly disguised threat.

"No, sir."

"You have ten toes, Raiden. I can rid you of some of them."

Raiden's back went straighter as he looked ahead, his eyes on anything but Jordan.

"That's what I thought."

Removing the hand I had on Vail's thigh, I reached for Jordan's, where he stood behind the couch beside us. "Hey," I said, giving his wrist a slight tug so I could get his attention.

He dropped his eyes to mine and his lips twitched, but he didn't smile. I didn't like the threats. I told Jordan that last night when Reghan said something Jordan didn't like. These were men who worked for him and would die for him. I knew he valued them, but they were also disposable. They should be treated with respect.

Jordan didn't say he would treat them better, but he offered to not threaten their lives in front of me if he could help it. There was no guarantee of a lack of violence if anything happened. This was Jordan's world, after all. I was temporarily living in it.

With Vail.

It was mind-boggling to me I had Vail and Jordan in the same room. Two men I lusted after. Jordan now and Vail in the past. Although, Vail was still the same as he was then. More muscular now. I saw tattoos peeking out under his long-sleeved shirt. He'd been through a horrible situation with Gil. While I didn't condone violence, just this once, I wouldn't mind Jordan going after Gil for what he did.

Irene returned with a mug in one hand and a thermometer in the other. She set the mug on the coffee table in front of Vail, then reached forward so she could take his temperature. She tsked. "That won't do. A hundred and two. When is Dr. Keeley getting here?"

I could practically hear Jordan's teeth grinding. What I'd learned about him since I arrived was he didn't deal with guilt well and he didn't like he'd gotten me sick. The guilt ate at him, tore him apart. Not being motherly like Irene was, Jordan did things in his own way, like making sure I had what I needed before going to sleep. By telling me his door was open in case I needed anything during the night.

Jordan might not have the words to express what he felt, but if I looked deep enough, I could see them in the depths of his eyes.