Page 85 of Tempest’s Torment

"Your opinion."

"It's not an opinion. I had no cards left." He takes another bite of eggs and I wait, but nothing. "You're a terrible loser."

"I'm not a loser."

"You lost four games."

"Three."

I laugh so hard I nearly choke on my coffee. Kai reaches across and slides my glass of water closer toward me without a word. I take it, still laughing. "Thank you."

"Don't die proving a point."

"I wasn't proving a point."

"You usually are."

I narrow my eyes at him but he's smiling now. I don't think I've ever seen him this relaxed, and God, I like it. I like sitting here with him, I like knowing what his smile looks like first thing in the morning, and I like that his jeans and T-shirt from yesterday are currently scattered somewhere on my bedroom floor.

I like that there's going to be tonight; the thought slips in so easily that I stop for a second.

Tonight, dinner, another game of cards, maybe him in my bed again. Definitely him in my bed again.

"You're doing it again."

I blink. "What?"

"Staring."

Heat crawls into my cheeks, but I don't bother denying it this time. "I like looking at you."

His eyes hold mine. "Good."

"That's all I get?"

"What do you want?"

I grin. "I don't know. Something."

He leans back in his chair and looks at me, really looks. Then his gaze drops deliberately to my mouth before coming back to my eyes. "I've been looking at you since the day you moved in across the hall."

My stomach flips. "You have?"

"Yeah."

I try not to smile and I fail. "Could've mentioned that."

"Thought I just did."

I shake my head and pick up my coffee. Kai goes back to his breakfast like he hasn't just made it impossible for me to stop smiling.

His phone rings before I can think of something to say; the change in him is immediate. He looks at the screen. "Ghost." And just like that, the outside world comes back.

"Yeah." He listens for a few seconds. "When?" He’s silent for a moment, listening to whatever Ghost is telling him. "Who else knows?" That gets my attention and Kai pushes his plate away. "Yeah. Give me twenty minutes."

"What happened?" I ask once he ends the call.

"Rogue found something."