Page 139 of Unexpected Prejudice

Jessie hurried to his side, softly touching Jordan’s trembling shoulder. “Hey, are you okay?”

Moving his hand over his face, Jordan shook his head. “No, I’m not,” he said. “H-he left me,” he cried.

Oh. My. God.

Were Jordan and Shay-Lee a thing? First of all, eww, what a terrible pick for a date, but when the hell did that happen? And since when did Jessie know? I figured he didn’t tell me because he didn’t want to out Shay-Lee, who I assumed was in the closet, considering he was dating that girl Diesel fucked. More importantly, how did I miss it? It was a huge fucking deal that suddenly made so much sense. Jordan had mentioned he was seeing a guy from his team. He had been awfully vague, but of course he wouldn’t tell us it was Shay-Lee. We hated that devil, as we should, because he was a repulsive human being.

All this time, Jordan had his own story going on, and we weren’t a part of it. I may have thought he wanted to be a part of ours, but he didn’t. He was dealing with his life that may have collided with ours in some places but went on in entirely separate lanes.

And right now, it seemed like his life crashed, and we just happened to witness the accident. So, putting aside my shock and recent realizations, I did what any friend would do and came to sit beside him.

Taking his hand, I clenched it softly. “Whatever you’re feeling right now, I promise it will get better, and as long as it takes, you’re not alone. You have us.”

Jessie looked at me from the other side of Jordan’s bed, his gentle eyes shining with… pride?

“That’s true,” he said, looking down at Jordan. “We’re here for you.”

That was what the past few months had taught me. It was a lot harder facing life when you had to endure it alone. Thankfully, not only did Jessie and I have each other, but we also had our family and friends. If telling Jordan he wasn’t alone would give him the tiniest shred of comfort, the way it did to me, we would do that. Because no one, no matter what they did or who they were, deserved to be alone.

Shay-Lee

Jordan Keller was a mistake. A big fucking mistake I should’ve avoided at all costs because getting close to someone meant eventually losing them. Always the same scenario, different circumstances. First, it was my mother. Then it was Miles. Now, it was Jordan.

I thought messing with Jordan would be easy. Get some hot sex while gathering the information I needed without getting attached. How wrong I was. So painfully wrong.

For as long as I’d known Jordan, he’d always been a quiet guy. He hung out with us but made sure not to stand out. Honestly, until this year, I hadn’t really noticed him. The only reason I finally acknowledged him was to use his obvious crush on me to get what I needed. Despite his believing he was subtle in his attraction toward me, he wasn’t, and being the jerk I was, I took advantage of that.

But who was I fooling? I was a slut. Not just for sex but for affection. And with his gorgeous puppy dog eyes full of love and beautiful body, I’d lost track of my initial intention and had grown invested in him. Not only was he sweet and freakishly hot, but he was also there when I’d lost Miles, my best friend, who for years I thought was my salvation.

Leaving his hospital room was one of the most difficult decisions I’d ever made. The selfish side of me wanted to keep Jordan, but the realist in me knew I could never have him because while he was good, I was rotten to my core. He deserved so much better.

Increasing my steps, I wanted to get the hell out of here when someone shouted my name. “Shay-Lee!”

Oh, for fuck sake, I don’t have time for this moron right now.

“Shay-Lee, wait.”

I quickly turned around, surprising Ty, who almost stumbled, trying not to bump into me. What an idiot.

“What do you want, Ty?” I didn’t bother to conceal the lack of patience, causing him to flinch at my hard stare.

“I need to talk to you.”

“Here?” I looked around the busy hospital hall.

Still catching his breath from running after me, he looked around. “Well, I came to visit Jordan and then saw you and had to talk with you. I was summoned to—”

Knowing he was about to spit out crap he shouldn’t say in public, I grabbed the hem of his shirt and jerked his body inside the first room that came to my sight. Closing the door behind us, and giving the empty space a quick scan, I crossed my arms over my chest.

“Now you can talk.”

“I got a court subpoena to testify against the twins at their trial.”

Was I supposed to be shocked by this obvious piece of information?

“Why aren’t you saying anything?” he asked.

“Didn’t realize I had to.”