Home is Where the Heart is by Christie Mack

in his arms. “So I take it your father isn’t happy with the idea of you staying then?”
    “You could say that. He was one of the reasons why I was leaving earlier than I originally planned. I can’t be around him when there’s too much hostility between us.”
    “So where are you staying then?” Nick asked him out of curiosity.
    “I thought I would check into the Bed and Breakfast Inn.”
    “Nonsense, I can’t have my best friend staying there; you can stay at my place. Besides, it’s not open for business right now. They’re renovating the place.”
    “Really? I had no idea.”
    “You miss a lot when you’re gone for so long,” Cassie mumbled under her breath. She hadn’t meant to sound so rude—that was more Gabby’s thing—but it just slipped out of her mouth.
    “You sure you don’t mind?” Jordan questioned, grateful for his friend’s kindness.
    “Absolutely. Besides, it’s not like I have to worry about double-checking with any roommates. I live alone, I’m not currently in a relationship—right now, anyway—and we can’t have the starting Quarterback sleeping in his rental car. That’s not right.”
    “Thanks, man.” Jordan gave him that same goofy grin he always did, fist-bumping knuckles with Nick like old times.
    “It’s no trouble. You can follow me home after I’m finished here.”
    “Nick, Cassie, you’re needed with Jake. He wants to show you something,” Gabby said as she walked back to the booth. “Plus, it gives Jordan and me a chance to play catch-up properly.”
    Cassie and Nick offered him slight, apologetic smiles for leaving him alone with Gabby, although the waitress who had taken his order came over and handed him his pizza before walking away. Uh-oh! He didn’t like his chances of walking out of this unscathed. He knew Gabby would have a few choice words for him, considering how close she and Cassie were. He just hoped she’d go a little easy on him, given the public place they were in.
    Gabby leaned back against the plush, red glitter lining of the booth, studying Jordan very carefully as if she was wary of his next move.
    “So, you’re back for good?” she asked him, getting straight to the point. She was determined to bite the bullet and question his true motives for the sake of her best friend and godson.
    He nodded his head. “I am for the moment.” The real Gabby was finally coming out, and Jordan was glad to see it. He’d much prefer the harsh Gabby over the ‘let’s pretend you don’t exist’ charade she had been playing since his return to town. She wasn’t fooling him. Jordan could see Gabby wasn’t happy to see him back in Yellow Valley. Besides his father, she would have been the only one not happy to see him back. After the other night, Jordan wasn’t sure where he stood with Cassie or if she really was glad to see him back—even for a little while.
    “Well, at least until football season starts, and then I will work spending time with Jake into my schedule, no matter how busy I am. I’m going to be a part of his life because I want to be, not because I feel obligated.”
    “And Cassie’s too, obviously.” She didn’t smile, but she didn’t frown either. “I won’t try to keep you and Cassie from being together again. If you make her happy, then that’s all I really care about, but if you know you’re only going to break her heart again…” she took a deep breath to calm herself “…just…please don’t do something you know will break her heart later. I care a lot about my best friend and godson, and if you do anything to threaten their happy lives, I will make your life miserable. Understand?”
    Gabby didn’t give him time to admit his understanding of the conversation. Just like that, she was done, offering him a friendly but confident smile, and then continued to eat her pizza in silence like nothing had happened.
    Jordan knew she had a point, and he respected Gabby for being there for Cassie and Jake when they