Page 9 of Thrown Off Balance

“I'm good, Jax. How are you?” I chuckle as I stare up at him. He hasn’t changed even a little bit.

“I’m living the life! What are you doing back in Rosewood?”

“Oh, she lives here,” Sophia cuts in before I can respond.

“Oh, really?” Jax raises a brow in my direction. “And how long have you been back, Sloan?”

“About a year?” I squeak out as my gaze drifts to Cody.

He’s leaning against the wall with his hands still shoved in his pockets. He keeps his gaze locked on the ground, but I don’t miss the way his jaw clenches.

“A whole year and you never once reached out? Sweetness! You wound me!” Jax clutches his chest.

“Jax,” I whisper, unsure of what to say.

“Who’s this guy?” He motions to Jude.

Jude’s face brightens and he stands a little straighter as he comes to my side. I can't do it. I can't introduce him as my boyfriend.

“I'm Jude, Sloan’s boyfriend. I’m a huge fan.”

“Boyfriend, huh?” Jax ignores his comment about being a fan. He doesn’t care. His entire focus is on his brother and figuring things out for him.

“Jax,” I warn.

“What? I'm just trying to learn a little more about the girl I once knew. Clearly, you aren’t the same girl I grew up with. That one would’ve called us as soon as you stepped foot in town. I just can't imagine our Sloan Weathers coming back and not telling me. Do you know what that means?” The devilish smile he aims my way has me swallowing hard. I'm not going to like whatever comes out of his mouth next.

“What?”

“Well, to heal my broken heart, you have to go to Kennedy’s with us.” Jax drapes his arm around my shoulders and leads me towards the door. “I'm sure the boyfriend won't mind since he’s such a huge fan.” Jax smirks at Jude over our shoulders. “You’re riding with us. I'm not waiting for that stadium parking to clear out.”

Chapter 5

Cody

Sloan is sitting in my car. I don’t know how Jax did it, but he convinced her to take the front seat and then he shoved Jude into the back. Neither one of them said a word and Jax hasn’t stopped talking since he set eyes on her.

“So, Sloan, where do you live now?” I can hear the smirk in his voice and know he’s up to something.

I'm sure he’s viewing himself as my wingman and will do his best to talk me up while keeping Jude distracted. But I'm not interested in a love triangle.

The way I see it, Sloan made her decision when she came back to Rosewood and didn’t contact me. She had my cell phone number and there’s no reason she couldn’t have called me. She didn’t want to.

“I live in the Rosewood Plaza apartments.”

I chuckle at how she’s giving Jax the information he’s asking for, but nothing extra. She’s really making him work for it.

“Oh, one of my friends lives there. He’s on the third floor. Maybe you live near each other.”

Sloan glances at Jax over her shoulder. I'm sure she’s rolling her eyes or making it clear she knows what he’s up to. They always had a funny relationship. They weren’t afraid of calling each other out every chance they got.

“Oh, what a coincidence. She lives on the third floor too! Apartment 5.” Jude happily supplies the information Jax wants.

Jax tugs out his phone and a second later my phone pings with an incoming message. I'm sure it’s a text with her apartment name and number. He wouldn’t let himself forget the information after working to get it.

“Good to know. You know, in case we wanted to mail you a gift or something.”

“Jax, I swear, if you show up at my apartment I'm calling the cops,” Sloan hisses.