Page 79 of Unofficial

The phone shifts, and she hears Lena's muffled voice tell Joe she's going somewhere else. "Okay, tell me."

Settling into the couch, she closes her eyes. "Okay, first, I need you to know that breaking up with Landry wasn't because Kade showed back up. Kade showing back up highlighted a side of him I didn't like, and I couldn't build a future with someone like that."

"Like what?"

"Something always seemed a little off with him. He was really distant, and, well, kind of a jerk. He didn't really care, and I kept calling him out on it like I did when we all had dinner together. But when Kade showed up out of the blue, Landry got mean. I'd seen that side before when I asked a question he didn't want to answer, but this was something else. And when he gets mad, he gets vindictive."

Lena sighs. "I kind of got a weird vibe from him, but I also know how much he struggled with the breakup. I thought maybe he was doing what you were and trying to protect himself. Figured it was just some weird guy thing."

"I tried to look past it; I really did. But he got nasty when he saw Kade here. There are things in Kade's past that he doesn't share with everyone, and when Landry started attacking him personally, I couldn't let him do it. He was saying really mean and hurtful things, and it wasn't fair. Even though Kade led me on and hooked up with you without being completely honest, he isn't a bad person at heart. Not at his core. He just did some really shitty things."

Sniffling, she shifts the phone. "I can agree with that. Kade never set out to purposely hurt either of us. I can also see where Landry would be upset, though."

"I can, too. And what he said to me is neither here nor there, but I kicked them both out. It was so much to take in at one time, you know? Kade coming out of the woodwork telling me he's worked on himself and wanted another shot, and then seeing how nasty Landry got. I didn't know what to think, honestly."

"I get that. You were with Kade for five months. It doesn't seem like a lot, but it can be. There's history there."

"Kade sent a fruit arrangement to my work, and then flowers the next day. All he wanted was a second chance. With the fruit, I put it in the breakroom to let everyone else eat it and sent him pictures. He took it in stride and told me to ask them how fresh the tropical fruit was. When he sent the flowers, he added a note to the card telling me not to let my coworkers eat them. He's heard they're not good for human consumption or something. I had to keep that card because it was cute, regardless of what I decided."

She laughs. "Okay, that is cute. What'd Landry do?"

"He ghosted me. I wasn't sure if I should reach out or not, and I didn't know what to say if I did. But it gets worse."

Lena groans. "I had a feeling you'd say that."

"Kade shows up at work the next day, and he basically bombards me. Asks me to go to dinner, and I was kind of cornered. He wore a suit jacket and tie, Lena. And he looked so uncomfortable and vulnerable. At the very least, I figured he owed me a meal after everything that happened."

"That's what I like to hear."

"We went to the steakhouse, and around dessert, I see Landry at a table with another woman. He just stared at us."

She gasps. "What?"

Jess almost wishes she and Lena were face to face for this conversation because her facial expressions would be out of this world to see.

"It hurt. Even though we weren't on great terms, and I didn't know where we stood, it felt like what Kade did. Except Landry did it on purpose. But then, when we talked about it, he admitted he saw Kade pick me up at my house, followed us, found a girl he knew had a thing for him, and took her to dinner. Then, assuming I was going to sleep with Kade, he took her home out of spite."

"Did you sleep with Kade?"

"No!"

"But he slept with this chick he knew had a thing for him?"

Jess sighs. "He said he didn't want me to be the only one who messed around."

"You're lying."

"That's exactly what he told me. He said the woman knew what he was doing, but it almost makes it all worse."

"Wow," she gasps. "I did not expect that. And I'm going to see if Joe's as surprised. If he's not, I might have to get after him for letting me set Landry up with one of my friends."

The fact Jess and Lena are friends still baffles Jess. This never happens in the movies or TV shows.

"I didn't expect it, either. All Landry had to do was ask me why I went and what happened, and I would have been honest with him. I would have also told him that I had no idea where we stood because he went completely silent after storming out."

"Do you really think Kade had changed, Jess? Like, for real?"

"I do. He shared a few more things from his past that makes so much sense now. It doesn't excuse what he did, and I wish I could tell you, but I don't want to betray his confidence. All I can tell you is that he was once engaged, and it did not end well. He got burned pretty badly, and while it doesn't excuse what he did, I understand him a little more."

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