Chapter 93

Chapter 93
Jordan's POV

The guitar rests across my thighs as I sit on the floor beside my bed, one leg stretched out in front of me. I pluck the same four chords again, listening to them fade into the quiet of my room before I glance down at the notebook beside me. The page is crowded with crossed out lines, half finished thoughts and words I have rewritten so many times that I am no longer sure which version I liked in the first place.

I tap the end of my pen against the paper, trying to find the right words. This song has been living in my head for weeks. I have never told anyone that I write music. Or at least try to. Not even my dad or Kaelen.

It's not that I have some great secret identity as a songwriter. I have never thought of myself that way, no. I play guitar, I sing, and sometimes when something gets stuck in my head, I write it down. That's all it was supposed to be.

Until Kaelen got shot. Until I spent days wondering whether the person I loved was going to survive, and there was nothing I could do about it.

Somewhere in all that fear, a thought came to me. Then another. Eventually, they became words— the words I'm turning into music now. I started writing because I didn't know what else to do with everything I was feeling. Every time I thought I was going to lose him, I came back to this song. I have protected it like a secret ever since.

I lower my eyes to the page again and reread another line.

"No," I mutter to myself. "That's terrible."

I cross it out so aggressively that the pen nearly tears through the paper. I just can't seem to get it right.

I play the chords again, humming quietly beneath my breath as I try to hear the words with the music instead of simply reading them.

I'm so focused that I don't hear someone approaching until I see him standing at my door when I look up. Kaelen is leaning against the frame, watching me with an amused smile.

My heart jumps. I close the notebook so quickly that it nearly slips from my lap. His eyebrows lift. I just stare back at him saying nothing.

There is no reason for me to look guilty. I'm sitting on the floor with a guitar. That's perfectly normal. Except the notebook is now pressed firmly beneath my palm, and I am suddenly very aware of how suspicious that probably looks.

Kaelen's smile grows. "What are you up to, pretty boy?"

Heat creeps up my neck.

"Nothing. Just..." I glance around my room, desperately searching for an explanation that doesn't involve me admitting that I've been secretly writing a love song. "Practicing before tonight's gig."

Kaelen pushes away from the door. He walks toward me slowly, and I immediately know I'm in trouble. He knows I'm lying and is going to enjoy watching me squirm until I confess.

He stops in front of me and studies my face. I hold still but his eyes narrow slightly. I try not to look at the notebook and fail miserably. His gaze drops to it before returning to mine. My stomach plummets.

For a second, I wonder if the lie is written across my forehead. Maybe I should have come up with something better. Maybe I should have thrown the notebook under the bed.

Kaelen reaches down and pulls me to my feet. I barely have time to steady myself before his arms circle my waist.

"Are you sure that's all?"

"Yes." The answer comes too quickly.

His mouth twitches. I know I'm done for even before he pulls me closer until there is barely any space between us, his eyes holding mine.

"You are not hiding something from me, are you?" My lips twitch involuntarily. His eyebrows rise. "Because if you are, that makes you a very naughty boy." His expression turns even more serious, though the amusement in his eyes gives him away. "And I'll have to punish you for it."

I lean into him, enjoying the warmth of his body against mine. "And if it's good?" I ask. "Are you going to reward me for it?"

His eyes narrow. "So there is a secret?"

"Maybe." I smile. "But you're going to have to work hard to get it out of me."

Kaelen's grin immediately falls into place. "Oh, trust me. That secret is not the only thing I'm going to be getting out of you tonight."

My breath catches but I tilt my face in a challenge. "Prove it."

He doesn't need to be told twice.

He leans in and presses his mouth to the side of my neck. The sound that escapes me is embarrassingly soft. I feel his smile against my skin before his lips move higher, following the line of my jaw until he reaches my mouth.

Our lips crash together eagerly, that familiar electric feeling settling beneath my skin. I smile into the kiss before either of us deepens it, and Kaelen catches it, smiling back against my lips as though he knows exactly what's going through my head. His hand slides up my back, drawing me closer until our bodies are pressed together, and I happily let him steal what little space is remaining.

We stumble backward a step, quiet laughter disappearing beneath another kiss. My fingers slip beneath the hem of his shirt, touching warm skin and the firm muscle beneath it. I feel him tense slightly when my fingertips reach his scar, but he doesn't pull away.

I trace the edge of it gently before my hand moves higher, across his chest. His breathing changes with more urgency. I am just beginning to forget that we have somewhere to be when a voice carries from down the hallway.

"Boys? You better hurry up before we get caught up in traffic."

I close my eyes and sigh, a little disappointed by the interruption. Kaelen rests his forehead against mine and exhales. "Fuck."

"I know, baby," I whisper, pressing one last kiss underneath his jaw.

"No," he shakes his head. "I was supposed to tell you that your dad had the car ready."

I pull back and stare at him. "Kae!"

He looks genuinely guilty. "I'm sorry. I just saw you rocking those beautiful curls, smiling at me and forgot."

I stare at him for another second before I burst out laughing. "You are unbelievable!"

Kaelen's face relaxes immediately but still, there is concern in his voice. "Do you think your dad will be mad?"

"Dad rarely gets mad. But we might be late for soundcheck, so let's go." I grab my guitar and notebook while Kaelen waits by the door. "We are continuing this later," I tell him.

"I'll hold you to that."