Broken Halves

Chapter Four

POV: Dani

Jorden and I walk up the stairs side by side; a somber expression drawn upon both of our faces. "I guess you get the Alpha floor now." I pause and twist my shirt around my fingers, completely overwhelmed by nerves.

Jorden stops beside abruptly and turns towards me by the elbow so that we are facing each other. "No Dani, new Alpha or not I would never kick you out of your home." He smiles slightly, trying to attempt the famous Jorden smirk, "Plus I don't want to be sleeping on the bed where you and Cole did the nasty." I smile fully at his attempt to joke; that is the Jorden I know, the Jorden that has been hidden since Cole's death.

Jorden resumes movement and walks me to the door before opening it for me. "Dani, I am here for you whenever you need me." His eyes briefly go down to my stomach before he glances back up at my face. "I couldn't protect the first one, but I'll be damned if something happens this time. I wasn't joking about what I said on stage. I will protect and care for you both as if you were my own."

My heart warms at the tender look in his blue eyes. Slowly, I lean on my tip toes to kiss his cheek. "I am here for you too Jorden. Cole was just as important to you as he was me." His eyes mist as he leans down to wrap me in a hug. Just as he goes to pull away and head back down the stairs to the Beta floor, I panic. Every time I've slept without Cole I've suffered from nightmares.

"Jorden wait!" He pauses by the stairs turns back to look at me. I look down embarrassed to ask, "Can you maybe stay." "The nightmares..." Jorden holds up his hand signaling for me to stop talking. "I get it Dani, let me go get my pajamas, I'll be right back." He smiles warmly at me before continuing his descend down the stairs. I turn as well and open up my bedroom door only to tear up at the scent of Cole. Gently, I place my hand on my belly, "I love you little one." I take a moment to just breathe before Jorden returns.

Suddenly, I am possessed by a wave of guilt as Jorden enters the bedroom. No, I silently scold myself. Cole would want what is best for me, and Jorden staying here to rid me of nightmares is a good thing.

"Let's watch the TV for a bit." Jorden suggests picking up on the slight awkwardness I am feeling. "We can watch Fifty Shades of Grey." Jorden wiggles his eyebrows as he flops down on the bed beside me. I laugh, and just like that the awkwardness is gone. This is no different than our movie nights. Well except, this time, Cole is gone. However, Jorden is still Jorden.

We ended up watching Ben-Hur. Jorden flipped when I admitted I had never seen the movie. He said, and I quote, "Nobody is anybody until they've seen Ben-Hur." Truly I think the movie reminded him of Cole and his relationship. But he wasn't wrong; it was a pretty damn good movie. That night, I slept on the bed, and Jorden was on the bedroom couch. Just as I expected, I slept peacefully with no nightmares.

I awake the next morning to see that Jorden is gone. The sight is not one I am unfamiliar with as I always slept longer then Cole did. Sleep was not something that man ever got a lot of. He'd tell me that there was nothing wrong whenever I'd ask, and I truly believe that. Cole might have been troubled in his own way, but it didn't keep him from sleep. He was an Alpha and I very active one at that. He always used to say it was Jorden who was the hyper one, but in reality Cole struggled more than Jorden did when it came to sitting still for long periods of time.

Slowly, I rise from bed and wrap myself up in a blanket before walking out onto the balcony. I breathe in deeply and watch as Denzell leads the warriors in a run around the yard's perimeter. He looks up as if sensing my gaze and nods at me. I nod back before locking eyes with the man who runs by his side. I smile and wave at Jorden. The goofy brunette raises his hand in greeting before re focusing on the run.