Finding Jordie: Things aren't always what they seem. (The Love Lies Bleeding Series Book 1) (27 page)

The next six days consisted of a lot of staying in. Nathan had a few meetings to go to so while he did that I shopped. I thought some of the shops in New York were expensive? Los Angeles was twice the price. I was a bargain bottom shopper as it was, so naturally I didn’t get much. I did find a vintage Chanel jacket that I had to have, though. The guy that helped me out said it was a Rachel Zoe favorite. I pretended to know what the hell he was talking about and nodded and smiled. After he tried to coerce me into buying half the store, I high-tailed it out of there with just the jacket.

Nathan and I went out to dinner twice. I much preferred eating in with him. We watched a lot of television. That was when I was convinced the world had gone bat-shit crazy. What was with all that reality crap anyhow? After three episodes of a show called the
Jersey Shore
, I remembered why I stopped watching television altogether. I was born and raised in New Jersey. We never behaved like that. Although, I had to admit, I loved that Snooki chick.

I thought about how drastically my life had changed in three short weeks. If someone would have said to me that my life would be going in the direction it had a month ago, I’d have told them they needed some professional help. It’s funny how things could change in the blink of an eye. I was happy, though. Unbelievably, blissfully, shit-eating, goofy grin plastered to my face twenty-four seven kind of happy. On the last day I helped Nathan pack up some of his stuff to take to New York. He was going to be there for about five months. Talk about the icing on my happy cake.

“When we get back to New York, what’s your schedule going to be like? I’m not really familiar with a movie star’s schedule.” I laughed. It sounded ridiculous coming out of my mouth.

“It just depends.” He flipped open his suitcase and started unloading the dresser drawers into it. “Sometimes I’ll be on set twelve to sixteen hours, sometimes just in the day, some just at night. It all depends on what filming is called for and when. This film will be cut into part one and two, so it’s a bit longer filming time-wise.”

“Oh.”
Great, he got to smooch up gorgeous women twice as long.
I felt that pang of jealousy run through me again. “So you’ll be in New York, but I’ll never see you.”

“Of course we’ll see each other. What are you talking about? What’s the matter?”

“After you’re done, you’re just going to want to go back to your hotel room and crash. I can’t go there at night. I have a kid, remember? My nights aren’t exactly free. And I’ll be at the bar on the weekends. No matter how well the place has been running without me, I feel terrible not being involved. I’ve always worked. I feel... useless, Nathan.” I let out a frustrated sigh and I may have even folded my arms across my chest like a child having a tantrum. Okay, I
did
do that.

“How about this, I promise every day after I’m done working I’ll come and spend time with you. I can’t believe you thought I wouldn’t.” His tone hinted he was annoyed and I may have even hurt his feelings.

“Nathan, honestly, you’re going to work sixteen hours and then come all the way to the East Village so your spoiled-rotten girlfriend doesn’t have a temper tantrum? That’s crazy.”

“No, what’s crazy is that you think I’ll do that to appease you. What if I told you it’s to appease myself?” He smiled.
My smile
. All I could do was stand there dopey-grinned myself.

“If it were up to me you’d just stay with me,” I admitted quietly. “But I don’t think that’s sending the right message to Emma.”

“What kind of message do you think you’d be sending, Jordan?”

“Uhhh, move in with a guy after only knowing him for a month?” I said sarcastically. What kind of mother would I be if I invited a man to move in with us, even if it was only for a few months? After only knowing him for a month? Would that send a message that rushing into relationships was the thing to do?

“Ah, yes, I forgot, you’ve had a revolving door of men in and out of your life over the last eight years.” He rolled his eyes. “I think Emma would be insulted if she knew you thought she perceived us that way, Jordie. She’s a brilliant kid. She knows we aren’t like that. She knows how much I love you.” He stood in front of me with his arms resting on my shoulders. “Besides, Tyler is shacking up with Rachel until he finds his own place.” He blurted this out like it was no big deal.

“Whaaaat? No way, Rachel is far too picky to let someone live with her, a terminal bachelorette. I don’t believe it.” I felt my mouth hanging open and closed it.

“Believe it,” he said simply.

“Well, the apartment downstairs is vacant right now. Maybe... I don’t know, I’ll talk to Emma and see what she thinks about it. I never thought in a million years I’d be having that conversation with my nine-year-old.” I furrowed my eyebrows and crinkled up my nose at just the thought of that conversation.

“Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do it, Jordie. I’ll stay at a hotel and visit every day, stay downstairs, whatever you decide after you talk to Emma. Just let me know.” He kissed me between my eyebrows and put his arms down. I was a smiling idiot again.

He let out a small laugh when he picked up the picture frame from his dresser.

“Who’s that?”

“It’s a picture of my parents and me. This was taken right before I left for L.A.” He flipped the picture towards me so I could see it. He wore a trace of a smile like he remembered something special.

“You look like your dad. How long have they been together?”

“Thirty years.” His smile widened. “They were high school sweethearts, met their junior year. My father had moved to Sacramento from Nebraska.” He put the frame in his suitcase between some sweaters. “He told me the moment he heard my mother telling the lunch lady that ‘maybe she should try eating that slop,’ he knew he’d marry her.” He zipped up his suitcase. “He offered her his sandwich, and she said to him that she’d rather take her chances with the slop. They started dating and they were married at eighteen. I popped out two years later.”

Now there was nothing subtle about his expression. His smile touched his ears and he looked at me. “That’s why I don’t doubt us, and how I feel about you, no matter how fast you, I, or anyone thinks it was. It happened to my parents, so it’s possible.” He shrugged and heaved the large suitcase from the bed to the floor with a thud. “My parents will tell you that they are just as in love as they were thirty years ago, and I believe them. It’s got to be love if my dad could stay with my mom for that long.” He walked the suitcase over to the door. “Love or insanity.” He chuckled. “I’m just kidding. You’ll see she’s great. My dad’s a good guy too.”

My phone rang and I grabbed it off the dresser. It was never more than five feet away from me while I was there. “It’s Emma,” I told him as I walked out of the room to answer it. “Hey honey, what’s up?”

“What time will you be home tonight? Aunt Kelly wanted to know if I was staying the weekend or if you wanted me home.”

“Hello, Mom. How are you, Mom? I miss you, Mom. Nothing, huh?” I teased.

“Hello, Mom, how are you, Mom, of course I miss you, Mom.” She laughed. “Sorry.”

“I miss you, Emma. Of course I’d like you home. Is there something that you wanted to do with them this weekend? Is that why you’re asking?” I smiled because I knew my daughter better than anyone, and I could hear it in her voice that there was something she wanted to ask me.

“Kinda, John’s school is having a carnival thingy.”

“Emma, if you want to go, I’m fine with that. I would like you home early Sunday then. We can pick you up.”

“I miss you, Mom. I love you!” she shouted with excitement.

“I love you too, honey.”

“Aunt Kelly said she’ll call you later. She’s in the bathroom right now. Bye, Mom. Love you.” She hung up.

“Picking her up Sunday?” Nathan glanced over at me.

“Yeah, she wants to go to a fair at my nephew’s school.” I shrugged and tossed my phone on the bed.

It was just before one o’clock when the doorbell rang.

“Time to go,” Nathan announced.

All five suitcases were crammed in the back of the SUV we took to the airport.

“That’s a lot of stuff for a guy.”

“You have to figure by the time I’m done filming, it’ll be summer right?”

“It’ll be September. Shit, that’s almost Christmas.” I shook my head at the way time flew.

“You know, I probably won’t let you come back to L.A.” I stared out the blacked-out window.

“I’m pretty sure I won’t want to come back.” He sounded so certain of himself.

I woke after some time to find Nathan standing in front of me.

“Sorry, baby, I was trying not to bump you. I need to use the restroom.”

I pulled my knees up against my chest and put my feet on the seat so he could pass.

“Thanks.” He leaned over and kissed the top of my head before he stepped out into the aisle. He’d left his laptop on his seat. I picked it up out of curiosity. I had seen plenty of laptops before, everywhere. I just never had any use for one, and this was far better than the relic that was in my office. I opened it up and saw he was in the middle of writing an email so I started to close it, but then I saw my name and curiosity got the best of me.

Dad, honestly, I’d have married Jordie yesterday if she wouldn’t think I was a completely insane maniac. LOL. I am worried though. Frank is pretty adamant that she has a stalker, a very well-trained stalker at that. But Jordie doesn’t seem to think so. We can talk about it later, hopefully we’ll know more once we’re back in New York. I’ll keep you—

I heard the toilet flush and I quickly put it back on his seat the way I found it.

Marry me yesterday? I repeated the words in my head and a small smile touched my lips. As much as I would love to jump out of my own skin with happiness I couldn’t say anything to him—then he’d know I was reading his stuff. What was this about a highly trained stalker?

He sat back down next to me and took my hand. “How are your ears?” He gave me a light kiss on my left one.

“If you keep that up I’m taking you back to the bathroom.” I turned my head to kiss him. A little pang of guilt unsettled my stomach. “Ah shit, Nathan.” The jig was up, I was tattling on myself. “I picked up your laptop because I was curious about it. When I opened it I saw my name in the email you were writing, and I read it. I’m sorry.” I blurted it out in one quick sentence, taking a huge inhale when I was finished.

“We can talk about it later.” He put the laptop back in his bag as the announcement to stow all electronics finished. He looked pissed.

For the rest of the flight his eyes were everywhere else but on me. He was mad. He had been so private for so long, I should’ve known better.
Shit, shit, shit
. He hadn’t spoken a word to me in thirty minutes. He just stared out the window while holding my hand. After we landed I couldn’t take the silence any longer.

“How long are you going to be mad at me?” I asked in a hushed voice. “I don’t know what to do here. I’m sorry, I wasn’t snooping, I picked it up because I was curious about the laptop itself. That’s all. I’ve been thinking about getting one for Emma. When I saw that it was an email, I went to put it back down, but I saw my name. I only read like two lines.” I trailed off because he was just staring out the window unresponsive.
Shit, Jordie. You really pissed him off.