off further, but I kept it together as I led Jude down the hallway to his door. I stood between the men as Jude unlocked his door and when he looked over his shoulder at me as he entered the apartment, I nodded my head and hoped that he would get the silent message that I needed a moment. He returned the nod and then closed the door.
I turned to Johnny and said, "We're done here. Your next stop is the office. Clean out your locker."
Not surprisingly, Johnny lost his shit. "Fuck you, Nik," he snapped. "You think I need this shit? Standing outside of a fucking door all fucking night? And what the fuck are you doing exactly? Oh, that's right, keeping the client happy. Yeah, I heard all about that. Gotta keep this client smiling long enough for Mike to get himself some hefty new contracts from that rich fuck, Hayes." Johnny glanced at Jude’s door and added, "I guess we know why Mike picked you for this particular job, huh?” The man paused for a moment before saying, “Hell, the guy’s almost pretty enough that I’d let him suck my—"
I grabbed Johnny and slammed him against the wall before he could finish his sentence. "Go," I warned even as every cell in my body urged me to silence the fucker in a way he wouldn’t soon forget. I could see that moment in Johnny's eyes where he was debating whether to push his luck or not, but when he dropped his eyes, I knew it was over.
"Fuck you, I don't need this shit!" Johnny snarled and then he shoved away from me and strode toward the elevator. I waited until he was gone before I sent a quick text to Mike letting him know that I’d fired the guy and that I’d call him later with the details.
As expected, my phone began to ring moments after I sent the text, but I switched it to silent and then turned to Jude’s door. I forced myself to take in a few breaths so I could calm down a bit before entering the apartment.
Although it wasn't particularly late, I expected to find Jude in his bedroom preparing for bed, but instead, I saw him sitting on the couch in the living room. I closed the door and flipped the deadbolt before going to join him. My intent had been to sit down next to Jude but as soon as I rounded the end of the couch and saw him, my stomach dropped out because I knew.
I just knew.
Jude had heard everything Johnny had said.
"Is it true?" Jude asked. He was unnaturally still. Normally, when Jude wasn't focused entirely on something, some part of his body was fidgety. I’d come to realize that it was part of his ADHD. When I’d been helping him clean up his apartment so he could put his sticky notes back up, I’d noticed all the little fidget spinners and gadgets placed strategically around his space so he could easily grab one if he needed to. And while I hadn't read his Post-it notes that night as Jude had started putting them back around the apartment, it'd been impossible not to see some of them over the next few days since I'd practically been living with the man. The notes were further proof that his mind was always on the move, always going faster than the average person’s. So to see him now, sitting so quietly in the dark, made me want to find Johnny and beat the shit out of him.
But it wasn't Johnny's fault.
I’d brought this upon myself.
I sat down on the coffee table in front of Jude. When my knees brushed his, he moved them so there was no physical contact between us. It was a punch to the gut.
"Is it?" Jude asked again.
I knew what he was asking me. He’d heard the part about it being my job to keep him happy. I hadn’t even remembered that conversation I’d had with Mike until Johnny had mentioned it, but it didn’t matter. The damage had been done.
"It's true that Mike asked me to keep you happy so he could get a contract from Hayes."
Jude didn't react. At least not physically, anyway. But I knew what my words were doing to him. I knew that I might as well be cutting him with a knife for all the damage the admission was causing. Hell, a knife would have been kinder.