Chapter 184 | The First One [PS BONUS]
Chapter 184: 184 | The First One [PS BONUS]
"Close enough." She walked back toward the kitchen, hips swaying in a way that made Jordan’s brain short-circuit. "Hope you like marinara. It’s the only sauce I know how to make without burning something."
Jordan sat on one of the barstools at the kitchen island and watched Chloe stir pasta in a pot that was boiling way too aggressively. She had music playing from her phone. Some indie playlist with soft guitar and breathy vocals that matched the whole domestic vibe perfectly.
"You didn’t have to do this," Jordan said.
"I know." Chloe didn’t look up from the pot. "But you’ve been buying me food and computer parts all week. Figured I should return the favor."
"This isn’t a favor. This is you being nice."
"Don’t get used to it."
She was smiling when she said it. The real smile, not the campus smile. The one that made the corners of her eyes wrinkle just slightly and brought color to her cheeks.
Jordan felt something warm settle in his chest. Something that had weight to it.
The pasta finished cooking. Chloe drained it in the sink with the practiced efficiency of someone who’d done this exact meal about fifty times. She mixed everything together in the pot, added what looked like half a container of parmesan, then divided it between two bowls instead of plates because apparently bowls were easier to eat pasta from and she’d learned that the hard way.
She set Jordan’s bowl in front of him along with a glass of the wine they’d opened earlier. Then she took the seat across from him with her own bowl and fork.
"Bon appétit or whatever fancy people say."
Jordan tried a bite. The sauce was simple. Tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, basil. A little heavy on the garlic. Could’ve used more salt. But it tasted like someone had stood at a stove and stirred it for twenty minutes instead of ordering Postmates, which automatically made it better than ninety percent of what Jordan usually ate.
"This is really good."
"You’re lying to be polite."
"I’m actually not." Jordan took another bite to prove the point. "Way better than anything I could make."
Chloe rolled her eyes but looked pleased. They ate in comfortable silence for a while, the kind of quiet that didn’t need to be filled with conversation. Jordan’s phone buzzed twice. He ignored it.
"Kumiko texted me," Chloe said suddenly. "About twenty times."
"About what?"
"You. Mostly." Chloe twirled pasta on her fork. "How you’re the sweetest boyfriend ever. How your voice makes her forget how to breathe. How you did the headpat thing again and she almost passed out in the hallway."
Jordan winced. "I didn’t mean to—"
"I know." Chloe’s voice was calm. "She’s my best friend. I want her to be happy. And you make her happy."
The unspoken other half of that sentence hung between them like smoke.
Jordan set his fork down. "But?"
"But nothing." Chloe met his eyes. "I told you I’d try. I meant it. Kumiko being happy doesn’t make me less happy. It’s just different."
"Different how?"
"Different like." Chloe paused, choosing words carefully. "I’m used to being the only one. The one you text first. The one you think about when you wake up. Sharing that is weird. Not bad. Just weird."
Jordan reached across the table and took her hand. Her fingers threaded through his automatically.
"You’re still the first one," he said quietly. "You know that, right?"
"I do now."
They finished dinner without letting go of each other’s hands. Chloe poured more wine. Jordan helped her clear the plates even though she told him not to. They moved around each other in the small kitchen with the kind of easy familiarity that usually took months to develop.
When everything was cleaned and put away, Chloe pulled Jordan toward the couch.
"Movie?"
"Sure."
She grabbed the remote and scrolled through Netflix with one hand while her other hand stayed firmly locked in Jordan’s. They landed on some action movie neither of them had seen. The kind with explosions and witty one-liners and a plot that made zero sense if you thought about it for more than five seconds.
Perfect.
Twenty minutes in, Chloe shifted closer. Her head found Jordan’s shoulder. Her hand moved from his hand to his chest, right over his sternum where she could probably feel his heartbeat.
"This okay?" she asked quietly.
"Yeah."
Another ten minutes and she was basically on top of him. Legs curled under her. Body pressed against his side. Face tucked into the curve of his neck.
Jordan’s hand found her waist. Slid under the hem of her oversized shirt. Warm skin and the soft curve of her hip bone.
"Jordan."
"Hmm?"
"I lied earlier."
He looked down at her. "About what?"
"About being okay with Kumiko." Chloe’s dark eyes met his, vulnerable and sharp at the same time. "I’m not okay with it. Not really. But I’m trying. That has to count for something."
Jordan’s throat felt tight. "It counts for everything."
"Good." She shifted higher, her mouth close to his ear. "Because right now, I need you to forget about her. About everyone else. Just for a few hours. Can you do that?"
Jordan’s pulse kicked up several notches. "Yeah. I can do that."
Chloe kissed him. Soft at first. Testing. Then harder, more insistent, her tongue sliding against his with purpose. Her hand moved from his chest to his jaw, holding him in place while she took exactly what she wanted.
Jordan’s brain went offline.
His hands moved on autopilot, one sliding up her back under her shirt, the other gripping her thigh. Chloe made a quiet sound against his mouth and shifted her weight, straddling his lap with practiced ease.
The movie kept playing in the background. Neither of them noticed.
Chloe broke the kiss long enough to pull her shirt over her head in one smooth motion. No bra underneath. Just her, skin flushed and breathing hard.
"Fuck," Jordan breathed.
"That’s the plan."