“Did you like the song?” he asked, his voice sounding sort of funny. I breathed in through my nose.
“It was beautiful, Jordan. I loved it,” I told him truthfully. Some of the tension seemed to melt away from his body.
“I'm glad,” he murmured. I stared at his profile, willing him to say something else. When it was obvious he wasn't going to, I figured I'd give starting a conversation a shot.
“Congrats on the tour. I'm glad you decided to do it,” I offered. The corner of Jordan's mouth twitched upwards in a smile.
“Thanks,” he said. And then the silence again.
Okay, this was getting beyond ridiculous. “Was there a particular reason you wanted me to take you home?” I asked, sick of the song and dance we were playing around each other. Jordan's hand came up and I watched him rub his hand through his much longer hair.
“I don't know, Mays,” he let out in a rush.
“You don't know?” I asked incredulously. And then he finally turned his head and looked at me. His eyes crackled with a fire that threatened to melt me on the spot.
“No, I do know. I just don't know that you're ready for it,” he said gruffly, not loosening his gaze. I swallowed.
“Tell me, Jordan. Please,” I pleaded quietly. Jordan was breathing heavily in and out through his nose. His neck was tense and he started clicking his tongue ring on his teeth.
“Why, Maysie? What more do you need me to tell you? Haven't I already handed my f**king guts to you on a platter? What else do you need to hear?” he asked me angrily. Jordan reached out and gripped my chin in his strong fingers.
“Do you need to hear that I haven't stopped missing you for one single minute since we broke up? Do I have to tell you that my heart hurts with how much I love you?” He leaned in close to my face and both of us began to breathe erratically as the air heated up between us. My skin pulsated beneath his fingers and I wanted so desperately to dive into this heady feeling he unleashed inside of me.
“I could tell you how much I want to kiss you. That I want your taste in my mouth, on my tongue. That I want to plunge so deep inside you that it will take me a lifetime to climb back out.” OH. MY. GOD!
Jordan leaned in further until his lips brushed against mine. “You have taken my heart, every inch of me, Maysie. I don't know that I have anything else to give you that you don't already have.” I blinked back the tears that threatened to spill over. In that moment, I seized what was in front of me. No more hiding what I was feeling. No more worrying about anything but this beautiful man with his heart in his eyes. I had learned since we were apart that life was too short to live with so much regret. And if I let him go now, I knew the rest of my days would be spent knee deep in the worst regret I could imagine.
“I'm so sorry, Jordan. I've been such an idiot. I love you. So much.” I let out in a liquid gush. Jordan's face stilled and his eyes roved over my face.
“What?” he whispered, his breath dancing across my lips.
Then I realized he had been waiting to hear me say those words to him. He had told me he loved me before but I had never said it back. “I love you, Jordan. With everything that I am. And I'm sick of wasting time until we can be together. I don't give a shit about anything or anyone but you and me.” And just like that, Jordan's face relaxed and contentment spread across his face.
He rubbed his nose against mine. “What the hell took you so long?” he asked before crushing his mouth to mine. At the first touch of his tongue I knew I had come home. Jordan cupped my face in his hands and pulled away. “Promise me, Maysie. No more running. Even when things get rough. Even when we get scared, we'll talk it out. Because there is noone but you. There will never be anyone for me but you! So we have to be careful with one another. We have to go to each other before f**king it all up. Promise me!” he demanded.
I brought my hands up and held his face as he was holding mine. “I promise to stop being a coward and deal with life as it comes. As long as we're together, I think I can handle anything. You are my life, Jordan. And I'm ready to start living it.” Jordan grinned and plundered my mouth again, tasting me, teasing me, leaving me panting for more.
“You're not going to Garrett's. You're coming home with me,” I murmured against his lips. Jordan's fingers combed through my hair before gripping the back of my neck in his warm, possessive hold. A gesture that let me know I was his. For always.
“Take me home, woman. We have some catching up to do,” Jordan said with a smile and that's exactly what we did.
Epilogue
Six Months Later
“Baby, I think a small village could survive off the shit you've packed in here.” Jordan mused, staring into my bulging suitcase. It lay open on my bed as I added dresses, shorts and shoes to the mix.
“We're going to be gone for two weeks, Jordan. I have to be prepared,” I reasoned, throwing in another pair of flip flops. Now it was on to accessories.
“You know, they have stores in Mexico. If you need something you could always get it there.” Jordan put his hands behind his head and smirked as I started sifting through my earrings. I looked over my shoulder at my too-sexy-for-his-own-good boyfriend and rolled my eyes.
“Don't mess with the Maysie Ardin system,” I warned. Jordan chuckled, but left me to it.
It was three days after Jordan's graduation and we were heading to Cancun for two weeks, a graduation gift from his parents. They had been majorly pissed when Jordan explained to them his plans to take a year off and tour with the Rejects. His father had threatened to disown him. But after taking some time to cool down, they had reached a truce. I knew this surprised the hell out of Jordan. He had expected more of a fight.
But his parents weren't as bad as he made them out to be. He had taken me home with him for spring break. I had fallen in love with his mother, who was the exact opposite of my own mom in every way that counted. His dad, while a bit more reserved, clearly loved his son and wanted what was best for him. Jordan was pretty damn lucky.
My parents on the other hand maintained their staunch disapproval of all my life choices. But I had learned that I didn't really care what they thought anymore. That I was officially living my life for me. And that was hugely liberating.
So, we were gearing up for our vacation. I was looking forward to enjoying some sun and cocktails before coming back to work two jobs for the rest of the summer. I had been hired back at Barton's and I would be starting an internship at the local newspaper in July. So I would be pretty busy.