Page 43 of Bittersweet Redemption

“It’s probably not someone she hangs out with. It’s someone who lurks in the shadows waiting for his chance, and now that you’ve swooped in, he feels threatened.”

“Like a stalker?”

“Yeah, pretty much. He’s making his move to try to scare her away from you.”

“Shit.” I rub my hand down my face.

“You don’t think it could be anyone pissed off at you, do you?” he suggests.

I rack my brain to think of anyone who would give a shit about who I’m sleeping with. I’ve been with my fair share of women since getting out of prison, but they all know what they’re getting into. I’m always upfront with the fact that I’m not looking for anything serious. And none of them seemed concerned about that. Nothing stands out in my mind that would make me suspicious. We hang out, we hook up, and she leaves. No one has ever knocked on my door, asking for a relationship or anything. Although, I guess anything is possible. Maybe they just hid their crazy well.

“Not that I can think of, but I guess I don’t really know,” I tell him.

“Well, keep trying to think about it. Let me know if you want me to run some names or anything.”

“Yeah, ok. Thanks, man.”

“I can see if River has anyone who can sit outside your house. Although an unknown car might spook them. But it should probably be on a night when you guys are going to, you know, do it. That seems to be when the retaliation happens.”

I sigh. That would be awkward as hell and likely a huge mood killer. Plus, Willa and I haven’t even talked about hooking up again. Not that there’s any way I’ll be able to keep myself away from her, not after last night. But still. I don’t want to start that conversation with a, “Hey, let’s have sex again so we can see if someone is watching us.”

“Let’s start with the security system,” I say.

“Good idea. And ask her if there’s anyone else she could think of who might be doing this. Even if it’s just a brief acquaintance who made an off-hand comment at some point. Let me know. We can run some checks.”

“Thanks, Kel.”

“Yeah, man.” There’s a brief pause before he asks, “So, are you sure this is a good idea?”

He’s talking about Willa and me. “No,” I answer honestly. “But I can’t seem to stay away from her.”

And after last night, I don’t want to. Her body worked perfectly with mine. The sound of my name on her lips when she comes will be ingrained in my mind for the rest of my life. Her voice was a perfect mix of sweetness and pleasure. Just thinking about it makes me clench my fists. I hate that I want her. But there’s nothing I can do it about it now. I’m addicted.

Kellan chuckles. “I’ve been there, done that.” And he has. Riley is his boss’s daughter, and they met at work when they worked on a case together. He should’ve stayed away from her, but look at them now—married and living happily ever after. I’m not saying I’m going to marry Willa or anything like that, but I’m obviously attracted to her. I need to fuck her out of my system before I can even think of being with another woman. My thoughts are consumed by her.

“Just. . . be careful, Kai. She ruined your life once. I don’t want her to do it again.”

A small laugh escapes me because isn’t that the truth? “Yeah, me either, man.”

“I will say that Riley really likes Willa. And she’s usually a good judge of character. Maybe you could try to find out why Willa lied about that night. Just for your own peace of mind, you know? Maybe she had a good reason for it.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

Roman runs up to me. “Mr. Kai, are you ready?”

“Yeah, kid.” I turn my attention back to Kellan for a minute. “I gotta go. Talk later.”

I hang up and quickly email the guy installing my security system. I tell him to install the same system at my neighbor’s house and charge it to my card. It’ll be easy enough for her landlord to remove when she moves out if he wants to. I turn back around just in time to block the soccer ball from flying at me.

“Good shot, kid.”

* * *

Later that afternoon, Willa is putting Roman’s shin guards on in the living room before they head out to his game. I’m already dressed for work in my Jones Studio hoodie and jeans, so I make a last-minute decision to go with them to the game. That way, I can be on the lookout for anyone paying extra attention to Willa when they shouldn’t be.

“I’ll follow you guys to the park so I can leave from there to go to work,” I tell them as I walk into the living room.

Roman jumps up. “You’re coming to my game?” The joy in his voice breaks my heart.