Page 82 of Unexpected Prejudice

Seeing my confusion, Jessie explained he had this imaginary box where he put all those bad experiences inside. It wasn’t that he ignored those terrible moments but gave himself a way to live with them. Jessie chose not to linger on things, as painful as they were, and take life with ease. He preferred to smile over crying and to focus on the good parts, not the bad ones. This easygoing way of life often made people assume he was childish or even dumb. He wasn’t. He was more intelligent and mature than many people I knew. Sometimes it confused others that a person with a past like Jessie’s could be as happy as he was. We were all used to prejudices, whether good or bad, that we believed we all dealt with life the same way. Well, we didn’t. If there was something I’d learned over the years, it was that there were many ways to face trauma, and each person dealt with it differently. And yet, while his method worked for him, Jessie didn’t do it alone. He had help from us and from professionals.

“Will you tell Erika about it?” Erika was Jessie’s therapist. They started their sessions the day we moved in with Chief, and they had a great connection. She helped him a lot, and sometimes, he tried to convince me to see a therapist, too, saying we could all use one. And although I was happy therapy helped him, I’d rather not share my emotions with anyone, and most definitely not with a stranger.

He shrugged. “Maybe. If I feel like it.”

The idea of what almost happened tonight stirred my insides with nerves and fears. Even with Jordan stopping them, Jessie was still sexually assaulted. They grabbed him against his will, forced him down, and were about to—no. I couldn’t even think about it without feeling sick. Since it wasn’t about me, I took a deep breath and focused on Jessie and the importance of speaking with Erika about it.

“Jessie, this is serious. You were attacked and almost—”

“Hey, hey.” He cupped my face and forced me to look at him. “I told you I’m okay, so trust me. When and if I need to talk about it, I will, okay?”

“Jessie—”

“Don’t you trust me?”

I nodded, understanding that I needed to respect his choice. I did trust him, and even though the thought of Jessie being assaulted made my stomach turn and filled me with rage, I knew that he would speak when he needed to. He always did. And that was one of the things I admired about him.

Leaning closer, Jessie kissed me gently. Once his lips touched mine, I closed my eyes and inhaled the fresh scent of soap he’d used to wash the awful night off him. It wasn’t the usual sweet fragrance we used because Jessie had to use Chief’s shampoo, which smelled woody. The reason Jessie had to use the other bathroom just walked into the room with nothing on, but a towel wrapped around his slim waist.

“Thanks for letting me use your shower.” Jordan’s full lips curved into a small smile as he tightened the knot of his towel.

My eyes, which had taken on a life of their own, roamed his almost naked body. Drops of water traveled down his impressive torso, leaving nothing but a paved, wet road between his sculpted muscles. My throat went dry as I checked out his dark nipples, firm pecs, and the trail of dark hair that made its way from his navel down to his…

“No problem,” Jessie spoke, making me aware I was still staring at Jordan’s body.

What the hell was wrong with me?

Jordan walked toward the edge of the bed. “I have to ask… why do you guys have a dartboard in your bathroom?”

“It’s because Jessie gets bored while brushing his teeth, so we had to put something there to force him to do it. Without it, he would either brush them for five seconds or not at all.”

Yes, Levi, talk about your boyfriend, who is right beside you, and stop checking out another man’s big muscles, beautiful tawny skin, and full lips.

“I’m the king of darts,” Jessie bragged and wrapped his arm around me.

His warm and familiar embrace was comforting and helped ease my growing anxiety. Why was I even anxious to begin with? Was I so insecure that the idea of a shirtless guy in our room made me uncomfortable? But it wasn’t just a guy. Andrei and Diesel wandered around us half-naked most of the time, and I never batted an eye. No, it wasn’t discomfort. If anything, I was jealous and… curious? God. This was such an inappropriate moment to have those kinds of thoughts. Jessie was hurt tonight, and now I was allowing my thoughts to wander around Jordan’s body?

“I bet you are.” Jordan smirked at Jessie before he bent over to pick up his costume off the floor. Moving his thick fingers over the stained fabric, he sighed. “It’s completely trashed. Is there any chance I can borrow something of yours?”

“Sure.” Jessie jumped out of bed before I could even think of a response, and within a minute, he handed Jordan a pair of dark sweats and a shirt.

“Thanks, man.”

“No probs.” Jessie chuckled and moved his hand underneath his shirt to play with his belly button piercing. “I should be thanking you… I mean, helping me sort of ruined the evening for you.”

Like the knight in shining armor he was, Jordan insisted on escorting us back home. Because it was so late when we got back, we offered him to spend the night. We had an empty house anyway. We were left alone, with Andrei staying at Miles’s and Chief at Kai’s. Diesel was supposed to be here, but he wasn’t.

“I’m glad I helped. Besides, my evening was already ruined, so don’t worry about it.”

“What do you mean?”

Jordan shrugged. “It doesn’t really matter.”

“Does it have anything to do with your boyfriend?”

Jordan stopped playing with the clothes he was holding and looked up at Jessie with surprise written on his face. “I… I guess that’s the problem. We were never really a couple, and tonight, he made sure I knew it.” Sadness followed his words, and I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.

“It’s his loss,” I found myself saying before I could reconsider my words. Clearly surprised by my comment, Jessie and Jordy turned to look at me. “What?” I shrugged. “Jordan, you’re a good guy, and you shouldn’t let someone mistreat you.”