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Bas curled his arm around his waist and pulled him in for a chaste kiss. “Daniel?”
“Yeah, I guess they broke up.”
“I thought she was supposed to be moving in with him this weekend.”
Kai shrugged. “I don’t know all the details, but honestly, I’m not sorry to see the last of him.”
“Why do you dislike him so much?”
“Long story.” Plus, there wasn’t much to tell. Nothing concrete anyway. The guy just gave him a bad vibe, and he had from the moment he’d sat down next to him at the club. “I’ll tell you another time.”
“Fair enough.” Bas kissed him again. “If you change your mind, give me a call.”
God, he was sweet, and it would be so easy to rely on him. He needed to be strong, though, and he doubted Melissa wanted an audience for her breakdown.
“Thank you, but we’ll be fine. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”
“Whatever you need.”
And he believed him. Whatever he needed. Whatever would make him happy. That was what Bas would do. Standing in the living room, surrounded by Barbie dolls and stuffed animals, he realized he was no longer in danger of falling in love with the guy.
He already had.
seven
“Mel, I really wish you’d reconsider.” Three weeks had come and gone since her breakup, and while she seemed better, Kai still worried about her. “Maybe you should take some more time to think about it.”
To his surprise, Melissa didn’t argue. She didn’t rant about being an adult. She didn’t go on about taking chances and living her life to the fullest. Instead, she hugged Kai tight and kissed his cheek.
“I have thought about it, and I’ve decided you were right.” She sounded strong and confident. “I do need to grow up. I need to learn to stand on my own.”
“I’m proud of you, but…Denver? With mom? Are you ready for that?”
Melissa laughed, the sound carefree and musical. “She’s not that bad, and it’ll just be for a little while until I can find my own place.” Spine straight, shoulders back, she met Kai’s gaze with determination. “This is a good thing.”
“That’s the last box.” Stopping outside Melissa’s bedroom door, Bas cupped his hands and blew warm air into them. “Anything else?”
“No, that’s it.” She eased around Kai to wrap her arms around him. “Thank you.” She touched one side of his face and stretched up to place a kiss on the other. “Take care of my brother, okay?”
“As much as he’ll let me.” He hugged her tight again and kissed the top of her head. “You take care of yourself. If you need anything, you have my number.”
“And you better call,” Kai added. “I can’t believe you won’t be here for Christmas.” It was the first time since Melissa had been born that they wouldn’t be spending the holidays together, and he was already grieving the loss.
“You could always come visit. Mom would like that.”
“Yeah, maybe I will.”
Melissa gave him a tight-lipped grin. “Don’t cry.”
“I’m not.” His eyes stung and watered, but the tears hadn’t spilled over, so it didn’t count. “Be careful.” He grabbed onto his sister and hugged her like he would never see her again. “Call me as soon as you get there.”
Twenty minutes later, he finally managed to let his baby sister walk out the front door. It would be fine. Everything would work out for the best. Melissa was smart and strong, and their mother wasn’t the same drunk she’d been back when they had fled.
Strong arms encircled his waist, and a wall of solid muscle pressed against his back. “She’ll be okay,” Bas whispered in his ear. “You did an amazing job raising her, and she’s going to be just fine.”
“She’s so young.”
“She’s twenty-two. Four years older than you were when you decided to raise her.”
