Rock My World/ A Jordan Knight FanFic✔️

10

Nora

"I know it's barely past midnight and this is all very Cinderella of me..." I held up my shoes, which I'd taken off like an hour ago, in emphasis. "But I'm not feeling so hot. I think I need to crash."

We were sitting on one of the couches in the VIP room between Brody and Maggie, and Jordan had his arm draped around me. The champagne was keeping me pretty sparkly, but I was definitely wilting at the edges. I'd taken pretty much all the photo ops and handshakes and smiling I could for one night. But really, I was feeling kind of sick to my stomach from the post-Josh adrenalin dump.

Jordan smoothed my hair away from my eye as his gaze searched my face; I felt his pulse beating against me in his fingertips, hot and slow. My eyes met his, and I felt guilty. I was crazy to run away from him, right? He was beautiful, and he'd been a perfect gentleman so far. But despite my efforts to tune him out, I kept catching glimpses of Josh watching me from across the room. I had to get the fuck out of here.

"Actually, it's past one," Jordan said. "I've got an after party to hit, though. You should come."

True. I should've gone with him. If Devi hadn't left with some guy a while ago, after I'd sworn up and down that I was fine without her running interference, she'd tell me that right now. But I was spent. Emotionally tapped out over the run-in with my ex and the barrage of ugly feelings unearthed by his smirking face. I wasn't proud of it, but there it was. I kinda just wanted to go bury my head somewhere and feel shitty, but I wasn't about to tell Jordan that.

Instead, I gave him what I hoped was my prettiest, most apologetic smile and said, "I'm so sorry it didn't work out. I can pay you back for the hotel room and everything—"

"Nora." He dug in his pocket, took my hand and pressed a hotel room key card into it. "You were amazing tonight."

I shook my head in protest. "Really. I can just get a cab. It's no problem."

"The hotel's a few blocks away," he said, gently but firmly. "You're exhausted, sweetheart."

"I should probably just head home..." I knew I sounded unsure. Tempted.

I couldn't help it if I really, really liked it when he called me sweetheart.

He leaned in closer, his lips brushing my ear as he said, "You know, Nora, my girlfriend would probably stay, and let me buy her breakfast in the morning."

Also true.

I blinked up at him, trying to come up with a rational argument, but the idea of a luxury hotel room for the night was alluring. Max was at my sister's for the night anyway, so it's not like I had to rush home to my crappy apartment to feed my dog.

I tucked the key card into my purse. "Okay."

"Go get some rest," he said, and kissed me on the cheek. "Flynn will walk you over."

#

I made it to the glitzy bar in the hotel just in time for last call. It seemed like as good a place as any to bury my head for a while.

I'd considered going right up to my room and passing out. Maybe taking a hot bath first to soak the more shitty aspects of the night off my skin. But as Flynn walked me over to the hotel and the night's music rang in my skull, it was impossible to get Jordan out of my head. His songs. His voice. The way he looked up on that stage. The way everything else just seemed to melt away when he sang, like he was singing right to me.

The feel of his warm, guitar-string-calloused hand in mine.

And Josh, sizing him up.

That arrogant asshole. Only he could do something so tasteless. Turning up out of nowhere, injecting himself back into my life and trying to ruin this for me.