Page 28 of Xander

What the hell just happened?

Chapter

Nine

JORDAN

Past

“Babe, the cake testing is scheduled at Le Pain Fantastique.” I knocked on my fiancé’s office door before entering. When he turned to look at me, something inside me faltered. “Is something wrong?”

I thought his eyes appeared cold for a moment—but I must have imagined it.

“Henry?” I prompted. Beneath my fingers, I felt the bite of my purse’s stitching. I had come by to pick him up from his office, only to find his desk covered in paperwork. “Are you ready to go? We’d be early if we left now, so if you need a few minutes to finish up⁠—”

“Hey.” He glanced at the time as if he weren’t expecting me for another few hours. “I won’t be able to make it to the cake tasting anymore. Something came up at work.”

“Oh.” Disappointment coated my tongue, but I couldn’t be too angry. Henry had never blown me off before. Something important must’ve come up for him to cancel at the last minute.

It’s a fluke, not a pattern, I assured myself.

“Should I reschedule?” I winced inwardly as I thought of the baker, who had sounded excited when she called me earlier to set up the tasting. Hopefully, the samples weren’t going to be tossed out.

“No, no, you go ahead without me.” Waving me off with his hand, he added, “Take one of your girlfriends with you⁠—”

Henry caught himself, remembering that he hated my best friend, Piya. She ended up on his shit list after a soured business deal with her family. I’d barely seen her since the engagement. I presumed she maintained distance out of respect for my upcoming marriage, or perhaps she understood that my loyalty now lay with Henry. Things were awkward between us, especially after Henry made his feelings for her and her family perfectly clear.

“Actually, take Xander. Yes,” he decided. “Take Xander to the tasting.”

“Xander?” I repeated.

“Is that a problem?”

I was perplexed by his suggestion but quickly shook it off. “No. Of course not. That’s a great idea,” I said brightly. “I’d love to go with Xander.”

Henry grunted. “Good. I’ll text you his number.”

I closed the door behind me and leaned against it momentarily, staring at the skylight pouring sun into the spacious foyer.

Our engagement party was less fun than I had expected. Henry had barely spoken to me that day, which made sense. The party was a performance for his associates, and he said he wanted to put up a strong front for them. I circled around, focused on everyone else’s good times, and was thrilled when I finally connected with Henry’s eldest.

We had more fun than I’d ever hoped, given that I was his father’s second wife. I’d braced for resentment, and to my delight, he had been warm and friendly—like a friend rather than a future stepson. More than once during the party, I found myself wishing that conversation—and laughter—flowed as easily between Henry and me as it had between me and his son.

Maybe it was the Pretty Woman fantasy of seeing a stiff professional slowly unwind and discover his fun side.

It’s okay if he’s serious, I told myself, opening the text message that just came through with Xander’s number. Relationships can be different with different people. Maybe he needs different things from me than his sons do. That’s part of being human.

Besides, Henry had done the unexpected: he had stepped in and saved me at my very worst. I could never forget that.

“Jordan? Hey.” Xander picked up on the second ring, sounding slightly out of breath.

“Did I catch you at a bad time? You sound like you’re—” I hesitated a beat too long. “—busy.”

“I was out for a run. Did you need something?” he persisted.

“Oh, well, actually, yes. Your father had to back out of the cake tasting for the wedding, and he suggested you might go in his place.” This was a terrible idea. What college sophomore wanted to go cake tasting? “He thought it might be a good bonding experience for us,” I improvised.

“My father did not say the words bonding experience.”