Seducing Jordan: A Second Chances Novella by Andrea Dalling Read Free Book Online

feel different, shouldn’t he? Like he’d undergone some shift. But he didn’t—this encounter with Jordan just felt like an extension of their friendship.
    The same was true when he’d had sex with Cyn the first time. Losing their virginity together was…well, fun. Cyn was so beautiful. Long dark hair flowing over soft curves. Body smooth and yielding under his hands. After three years together, it seemed like a logical progression, not a major event. Nothing really changed. Except…once he slept with her, his curiosity was satisfied. Every time with her was less and less exciting.
    That’s when he’d started thinking about Jordan.
    Would he get bored with Jordan, too? Fear clawed at his gut. That can’t happen. His love for Jordy was so different from what he had felt for Cyn. It was almost as if the roles were reversed. Cyn was his buddy, someone he liked hanging out with, joking with—being able to kiss her and fuck her was nice, but it was a bonus.
    Jordan was his heart. He didn’t care that Rick was impulsive and sometimes a goofball, didn’t stay mad when he screwed up. Just loved him. When he saw himself through Jordy’s eyes, he liked what he saw.
    Sometimes he’d watch Jordy’s hands move as he talked, long fingers, broad palms. Even his nails were beautiful, always neat, not like most guys. And something stirred in Rick when he looked at those hands, making his breath hitch and his senses heighten. Like everything in the world but Jordy slipped away.
    His throat thickened and his jaw grew tight. He got out of bed and walked to the window. In the light of the full moon, the outline of the trees was visible. If only he never had to leave this place.
    His love for Jordan built to an ache in his chest and split him open. The feelings that had been lurking…he finally understood what they were. He was in love with a man. What the fuck was he going to do?
    If they weren’t leaving for college in two weeks, he could pursue the relationship. As it was, that wasn’t realistic. Their friends who’d graduated the year before, the couples who’d tried to stay together long distance, had all broken up by now. That’s just how it went.
    He couldn’t picture himself with another man. Jordy was the only one he’d ever wanted. Could he go back to dating girls after this?
    What choice did he have?
    Time and distance would make Jordan part of his past. He’d meet a girl he could fall in love with, get married, have a family. Nice and normal. And he’d chalk this experience up to curiosity, a teenage obsession.
    Pain gripped his chest. He’d worried about other men hurting Jordan, when he was using Jordan himself. It didn’t matter if he was acting out of love. This was the last thing Jordan needed. It would have been better to let Jordan go off to Princeton never knowing how he felt, where Jordan would have found a nice guy who wanted to be with him openly, who wasn’t praying that no one would ever find out what they’d done together. Instead, he had given Jordan hope—hope that would leave Jordan pining for him instead of eagerly starting a new life.
    Acid burned his stomach. He had to make this right. Not that he could, without turning back time. He’d have to do the next best thing.
    ***
    Jordan woke with a start, gray shapes unfamiliar around him. The brightening sky through the window reminded him where he was. The cabin. Rick. He couldn’t hold back a grin.
    He reached for Rick but the bed was empty. Probably in the bathroom. Minutes ticked by, and Rick didn’t return. He sat up and let his eyes adjust to the dim light. Rick lay on the couch, asleep with a thin blanket pulled over him.
    His throat tightened. Only one reason Rick would do that—he’d changed his mind, sickened by what they’d done together. Tears came hot and sudden, followed by wracking sobs. Jordan tried to be silent, not wanting Rick to see his shame. Pain seared through him. He was so stupid to think this could turn out