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“Missed you,” I whispered in a choked voice.
At my words, Kai drew in a sharp breath and let me go.
I wasn’t evennearready to release him, but there was little I could do. I stepped back reluctantly, swallowing hard around the lump in my throat.
Tristan swept into my place like he was claiming his prize. “I’m just so happy to meet you all.”
The only thing that kept me sane was the fact Kai hadn’t moved. Hadn’t even acknowledged the man practically burrowing into his chest. He was staring at me like he’d seen a ghost.
I didn’t drop his stare, lifting my chin defiantly. If Kai thought I’d let this go, letusgo, he didn’t know anything about me.
“It’s good to see you,” he said finally, his eyes lingering on me for a moment longer before he seemed to remember we weren’t alone. “All of you. Four months was too long.”
“Damn right, it was,” I muttered, grabbing a beer from Luca’s fridge. Thankfully, we were well past standing on ceremony in this group. I spent more time in the other bandmate’s homes than my own.
Technically, I used to spend all my time inKai’shome. But hey, times had changed. Not for long, though, not if I got my way.
Ollie announced the food was ready and everyone swarmed to the door. Taking it in turns to use the umbrella, we dashed over to the barbecue and grabbed our food before passing it to the next person.
I glowered through the kitchen window as I watched Kai hold the umbrella over Tristan in a gentlemanly fashion.
How many times had he done that for me and I never appreciated it?
The bite of burger I’d just swallowed turned to stone in my stomach. Maybe that was Kai’s problem. He’d spentdecadeslooking after me.
What thanks had I given him?
I didn’t get a chance to talk to Kai for several hours. Tristan was apparently the most devoted boyfriend on earth, not slipping from his side for even a second. Whenever I tried to draw Kai into conversation, Tristan would interject himself and change the topic to some funny story about their filming. There was no discussion about the upcoming album. Everyone was too enamoured with the stranger in our midst to remember why we were there.
After a while, I gave up trying to catch Kai’s attention. Instead, I grabbed myself another beer and sat at the kitchen counter.
The others had all commented on how I hadn’t noticed what was really happening. That I wasn’t paying attention.
But I was paying attention now.
I watched. And I watched closely.
And the more I watched, the more I began to hope.
For as much as they played the role of a couple in love, there was no heat. When Tristan looked at Kai, it was with worry in his eyes.
And Kai? He couldn’t stop looking at me.
Was it because he’d missed me too? Or was he wondering how to make this space between us permanent?
I caught his eye as I drained my beer. I swear, his eyes dropped to track my throat as I swallowed.
I put the bottle on the side and shot him a wink.
Kai ducked his head and cleared his throat.
Oh yeah. I had hope. Just a drop.
That was all I fucking needed.
Chapter fourteen
Kai
