Page 35 of Thrown Off Balance

“Good. I’d love your opinion on this. C’mon.” After we escape from the castle, I place my hand on Sloan’s lower back and guide her out of the backyard and to a house across the street.

I twist the knob and step inside. The house is still mostly empty, but there are more samples in here than I can count.

“Whose house is this? I was shocked when I saw new houses being built. I never thought Mulberry Lane would have more than seven houses.” She takes in the interior of the home and smiles at the high ceilings.

“Well, there’s a second generation. We all need homes too.” I grin as I lift the samples I liked and hold them out to her. “This home is mine. Jax is to my right and Sophia to my left. Charlie’s on the other side of Sophia.”

“Really? That’s awesome! I know how much you always dreamed of living here for the rest of your life. What am I looking at?” She takes the samples and examines them. I love how she doesn’t give them a quick look before making a decision.

“These are my cabinets and countertops. Dad wants me to pick a color for the walls today. He said they need to paint before they can install the cabinets.” I grip the back of my neck and rub the tension away.

“I love the gray stained cabinets and the black and white granite counter tops.” She smiles up at me before turning to the book of paint samples. She takes almost five minutes before she points to a blue. “This would be my pick for the walls. It gives you an accent color and something to brighten up the room.”

“Thanks. I’ve been stressing out about this.”

“Wow, you stress about paint colors and not your performance on the ice?” She arches a brow.

“Zip it.” I chuckle. “Do you want to see the rest of the house?”

“Do you need help picking paint colors for the other rooms too?” She’s teasing me, but I don’t mind at all. As long as she’s talking to me and her mind is off of Jude, I'm happy.

“Nah, I'm making the rest of the house white.”

“No! You can’t do that! No one wants boring white walls in every room of the house, Cody!” She hooks her arm through mine and peers up at me. “Well, let’s go! I'm picking colors for each room.”

Chapter 18

Sloan

By the time I'm finished helping Cody pick out the wall colors for every room, most of the family has left the pavilion. Cody’s house is going to be amazing when it’s all finished. I'm so jealous that he’ll get to live on Mulberry Lane for the rest of his life.

“Sloan! Where have you been?” Jude marches over to me as soon as he spots me. I wonder what Wes said to him to make him this upset.

“I was helping Cody with something. I'm shocked you even realized I was gone.” I roll my eyes and walk right past him.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Jude’s voice holds so much venom. I stop walking and glance at him over my shoulder. I’ve never heard him talk like this.

“It means you haven’t paid a bit of attention to me since we went to the first Python’s game! I might as well be invisible to you whenever Jax is around.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Jax leaning against one of the pillars in the pavilion. His arms are folded over his chest and he doesn’t look happy at all. He’s definitely done dealing with Jude. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Jax snap at anyone the way he did with Jude today.

“Oh, please! I didn’t know you were this needy or I never would’ve dated you.” Jude rolls his eyes.

I swallow hard as I glance around the yard and see that even though most of the families have left the pavilion, they’re still close enough to hear our argument. Wes and Addi are standing by Jax with Peck, Sophia, Charlie, and Wyatt close to them.

Wyatt transfers Carter into Charlie’s arms and watches Jude carefully. I don’t miss how all of the men are on high alert and ready to step in if they need to. Some of them are slowly inching their way closer, but they’re doing it in a way Jude won't notice. I see it though and I appreciate them more than they know. I have no idea how Jude’s going to react.

“I'm not needy and you know it! I ask very little of you.”

“Sure, you ask very little of me, but you expect me to do things. I handle every issue at work, even when you don’t ask me to.”

“Are you kidding me! I asked you not to talk to your dad about the Bradford account! You went behind my back and talked to him. I almost had that account taken away from me and that wasn’t what I wanted! You don’t listen to a word I say and you just focus on you. Your wants. Your needs. You only want me around when it serves you in some way.”

“That’s not true.” His brows draw together as he frowns at me.

“Yes, it is, Jude.” I sigh and shake my head. “The only reason you keep inviting me to hockey games is because you know Jax and Cody won't invite you to things unless I'm there.”

“No, Jax and I are friends.”