“So what?” I wink at him. “And now I just stole your move.”
He laughs, grazing his finger below my eye. “Okay, now that’s cute.”
And there goes my gooey, gooey warm cheeks again, even now, after everything. I think my embarrassment meter is broken or something.
“You’re so cute when you get embarrassed,” Kai says, shifting forward and going in for another kiss.
Part of me wants to refuse him and demand for him to tell me who’s been texting me, who kidnapped me, who left all those flyers. But part of me fears the answer, fearing I’ll know who they are, and it will shatter me. The other part of me really just wants a kiss.
After tonight, after the fight, the kidnapping or whatever that was, I want to forget and move on. With Kai. Kai who protects me. Kai who loves me.
My heart misses a beat at the memory of him uttering those words. Did he really mean them?
Kai ends the kiss, but his lips remain a sliver of an inch away. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing.” I move back, picking at my chipped purple fingernail polish. “I was just thinking about the fight and some of the stuff that was said.”
“I know you’re scared,” he says. “But it’s all over. I promise.”
“That’s not what I was thinking about.” I stare down at my hands, too afraid to look him in the eye, or else I might chicken out. “I was thinking about what you said right after you told me to run.”
“Oh,” is all he says.
Insert crickets chirping.
My cheeks warm. Hello, awkward girl, it’s nice to see you again.
“I meant it.” His voice shakes with his nerves. “What I said … back there. I do love you. I have for a while. I just didn’t know how to tell you, especially with all this shit going on.”
I fix my gaze on the floor as a wave of emotions roll over me and sweep me right off my feet. Tears well in my eyes. I can barely breathe. I don’t even know why or where the emotions are coming from.
No one has ever said that to me before except for my grandma and my grandpa when he was alive. And never in a million years did I ever dream someone outside of my family would ever love me. How could they when my own father never loved me?
The important question is, do I love him? I don’t know, mostly because I don’t know what love is. Do I feel like I’m falling whenever I’m around him? Yes, all the freakin’ time. But I’m terrified out of my mind to take that leap.
“I’m sorry if I’m freaking you out.” He sounds like he’s freaking out himself. “But I can’t take it back, not when I mean it.”
Unsure of what else to do, I angle my head up and place a kiss on his lips, letting him know I’m okay, that I care about him. A lot, a lot.
He murmurs something incoherent before he wraps his arm around me, pulling me close and deepening the kiss.
“Get a room, you two, would you?” Grandma Stephy says as she strolls into the apartment.
Kai’s breath dusts my lips as he chuckles. “How the heck does she manage to do that? It’s like she has some sort of freakish radar built into her that lets her know when we’re about to kiss.”
“About to kiss?” Grandma Stephy chucks her purse onto the counter, puts her hands on her hips, and stares us down. “I’m pretty sure you two were about a step away from getting frisky with each other.”
“Oh, my God, will you stop saying that?” My cheeks are glowing as brightly as Christmas lights. “We weren’t getting frisky. We were just kissing.”
She waves her finger at me. “Yeah, but if I hadn’t walked in, you would’ve ended up doing a lot more.”
I glare at her, and she smirks, totally enjoying my discomfort. Then her smile fades as she catches sight of Kai’s face.
“Jesus Christ, boy, what happened to your face?”
“That’s what happens when you don’t use the paintball gun right,” Kai lies without missing a beat.
My grandma meticulously eyes me over. “You look unscathed except for that scratch on your cheek.”
I bury down the fear connected to that scratch and flash Kai my best evil villain grin.
“What can I say? That’s the difference between an amateur and a pro.”
Kai gives me a dirty look, and I bite back a smirk.
“Are you okay?” Grandma Stephy asks Kai. “If you want, I can go get the doctor. I’m sure he won’t mind coming over and taking a look.”
It could’ve been, though.
Reality slaps me hard across the face, knocking the breath right out of me, and my legs threaten to buckle. I must have been in shock or something up until now because everything that happened suddenly pierces through me at once.
“I have to go get something from my room,” I choke out then hightail it out of the kitchen before I fall apart in front of them.
When I make it to my room, I move to shut the door, but Kai squeezes in behind me, pushing his way inside.
“Are you okay?” he asks, shutting the door and locking us in the room.
Tears sting my eyes. “It’s all just catching up with me.”
He wraps his arms around me before I can catch my next breath and rocks me back and forth. “It’s going to be okay. I’m going to take care of this.”
I want to protest. I don’t want him getting hurt. But part of me wants to let him make whoever did this to me pay, whether it be Hannah, my dad, Lynn, or someone else entirely.
“Just be careful,” I whisper against his chest as tears slip from my eyes. “Promise me you won’t do anything that will get you hurt.”
“I promise.” He traces a path up and down my spine. “Isa … If you want, we can tell the police or even your grandma’s detective friend. We could get them put in jail. That’d be a pretty bad punishment.”
More tears fall from my eyes. “Yeah, but then you could go to jail, too.”
“I can handle it. And honestly, with some of the stuff I’ve done, I might deserve it.”
“No, you don’t.” I squeeze him tightly, never wanting to let him go. “Besides, I couldn’t handle losing you.”
His chest rises and falls as his breathing quickens. He rests his chin on the top of my head, holding me close. “Okay, then. Revenge, it is.”
Nodding, I hold on to him for dear life, hoping upon hope that this doesn’t backfire.
Coming Soon!
The Year of Kai & Isa
(Sunnyvale Alternative Series, #4)
About the Author
Jessica Sorensen is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who lives in the snowy mountains of Wyoming. When she’s not writing, she spends her time reading and hanging out with her family.
Other books by Jessica Sorensen:
About the Author
Jessica Sorensen is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who lives in the snowy mountains of Wyoming. When she’s not writing, she spends her time reading and hanging out with her family.
Other books by Jessica Sorensen:
Mystic Willow Bay, Witches Series:
The Secret Life of a Witch
The Secret Life of a Witch 2
Shadow Cove Series:
What Lies in the Darkness
A Deadly Little Game (coming soon)
Standalones:
Rules of a Rebel and a Shy Girl
Confessions of a Kleptomaniac
The Forgotten Girl
Broken City Series:
Nameless
Forsaken
Oblivion (coming soon)
Guardian Academy Series:
Entranced
Entangled
Enchanted (coming soon)
Sunnyvale Series:
The Year I Became Isabella Anders
The Year of Falling in Love
The Year of Second Chances
The Coincidence Seri
es:
The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden
The Redemption of Callie and Kayden
The Destiny of Violet and Luke
The Probability of Violet and Luke
The Certainty of Violet and Luke
The Resolution of Callie and Kayden
Seth & Greyson
The Secret Series:
The Prelude of Ella and Micha
The Secret of Ella and Micha
The Forever of Ella and Micha
The Temptation of Lila and Ethan
The Ever After of Ella and Micha
Lila and Ethan: Forever and Always
Ella and Micha: Infinitely and Always
The Shattered Promises Series:
Shattered Promises
Fractured Souls
Unbroken
Broken Visions
Scattered Ashes
Breaking Nova Series:
Breaking Nova
Saving Quinton
Delilah: The Making of Red
Nova and Quinton: No Regrets
Tristan: Finding Hope
Wreck Me
Ruin Me
The Fallen Star Series:
The Fallen Star
The Underworld
The Vision
The Promise
The Fallen Souls Series (spin-off from The Fallen Star):
The Lost Soul
The Evanescence
The Darkness Falls Series:
Darkness Falls
Darkness Breaks
Darkness Fades
The Death Collectors Series (NA and YA):
Ember X and Ember
Cinder X and Cinder
Spark X and Spark
Unbeautiful Series:
Unbeautiful
Untamed