Boss Daddy: A Secret Baby Romance by Black, L. (good books for high schoolers .TXT) 📕

you’re afraid of. I haven’t gotten a phone call or an elaborate feathered-filled box asking me to be a matron of honor. If I don’t miss my guess, that means Jordan and you are still not defining anything. You haven’t established what your relationship is,” she said.

“That would be correct,” I said.

“And that scares you. For better or worse, you are used to being in a committed relationship. You are used to the stability. Without that, you feel like you don’t have a footing. You don’t know where you stand in his life, and you don’t know if you should put yourself out there if he hasn’t. After all, you’ve been through a lot, even more recently. So, why should you make yourself so vulnerable?” she asked. “Am I close?”

“Yeah,” I said with a resigned groan. “That’s pretty much what I was thinking. We haven’t talked about it. Not at all. I don’t know if we’re a couple. I don’t know how he feels about me. It’s making me really uncertain about everything.”

“Then maybe you should go to Portland and talk to him. You can’t just sit around and wait for him to pop by again, only to turn back around and leave right after the conversation,” she said.

Samantha was right. This was what I had to do. Thanking my best friend for being the one to talk some sense into me, I got off the phone and went into my bedroom to pack a bag. When I was packed and ready, I drove to The Hollow.

Ava looked up at me questioningly when I walked in. “You aren’t scheduled for tonight, are you?”

“No. And I might need to be unscheduled for a couple of days,” I said.

“Why? What’s going on?” she asked, sounding worried.

“I need to go to Portland. I have to talk to Jordan.”

Ava smiled. “It’s about time. Go. We have everything handled here. Don’t worry about it for a second.”

“Thank you,” I said.

She hugged me tight, and I jogged toward the door.

“Hannah?” she said.

I turned around to face her.

“And if you need to be unscheduled permanently, we have that handled, too,” she said.

I smiled. “Thank you.”

The drive to Portland was only ninety minutes, but I spent every minute of it wondering what was going to happen when I got there. Lingering trauma from being with Ethan for so long had me wondering what I might find at the bar. Jordan tried to get me to move with him, but he didn’t really push very hard. Maybe that was because he didn’t actually want me there. Maybe he was already building another whole existence in Portland and I didn’t factor into that equation.

I forced those thoughts out of my mind as I got to the city. I couldn’t let myself spiral right now. Ethan was gone. Out of my life for good. He would have a long time in jail to think about everything he did, and when he was out, he wouldn’t be allowed anywhere near me.

The GPS guided me to the bar, and I took a few seconds to admire it. Though it was obviously an older building, I was impressed by how well they seemed to make it look like The Hollow in Astoria. It was like it had been there all along.

I glanced in the visor mirror and smoothed my hair before getting out. I felt strangely nervous walking inside, but as soon as I saw Jordan behind the bar, that all melted away. I waited for him to look over in response to the bells over the door. When he did, his eyes widened.

“Hannah!” he said, obviously shocked to see me. He ran around from behind the bar and scooped me into a hug. “What are you doing here? Are you okay?”

I shook my head. “No. I’m not. I miss you. I miss you so much, Jordan. But I’m scared.”

“Scared? What do you mean? Did something happen with Ethan?” he asked.

I gave an exasperated sigh and shook my head. “No. It doesn’t have anything to do with him.”

“Come on,” he said. “Let’s go in the back and talk.”

He gestured at Matt to indicate we were going in the back, and Matt nodded. As soon as we were in the office, I threw my arms around him again. I just needed to be close to him, to feel him near me.

“I’m scared because of what I feel for you, Jordan,” I said. “This isn’t something I’ve ever felt before. I didn’t even know if it was possible. But I don’t know what you feel for me.”

He looked at me incredulously. “How can you not know that? How can you not know how I feel about you?”

“Because you’ve never said it?” I said. “We’ve never said what our relationship is, or if we even have a relationship. We’ve never talked about our feelings. I keep holding myself back because I’m trying to protect myself.”

“Hannah,” he said, taking my hands and holding them tight as he looked into my eyes. “I love you. I’ve loved you for a long time.”

“You do?”

He nodded. “Yes.”

“I love you, too,” I said.

Jordan pulled me close, and his mouth dropped down to mine in a deep, passionate kiss. When he stepped back from me, both of us were breathless.

“I hate this, but I have to go back to work,” he said. “We’re shorthanded already. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t say you’re sorry. It’s your job. I’m here. I’ll wait for you,” I said.

“You will?”

“I have a bag in my car, and Ava gave me permission for a slumber party.”

Jordan grinned. “Oh, did she?”

“Maybe not those words exactly, but the sentiment was there,” I said.

We walked back out to the bar, and I slid onto one of the booths. Jordan poured me a pineapple juice and put a bowl of snack mix in front of me.

“Nice touch,” I said.

He shrugged and grinned before going back to work.

I sat there watching him work for almost an hour before Matt gave me an incredulous look.

“Hannah, are you just