AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Who’re you texting?”
“Oh, just Quint. Making sure we’re still on for tonight. I want you to meet him.”
Kai lost his smile. “Why me?”
“Because he might just be important to me like you are?” Leo winced, not quite sure where that came from. “And I’d like you to get on?”
Kai seemed to take such a long time thinking this over. “Might not be a good idea.”
“Why?” Leo eased away. “Because you kissed me?”
Kai went to say something, then seemed to push it back. “Because I don’t want you getting hurt, you ass. I’ve just got this feeling.”
Leo eased off on his anger. So that was it. “He’s a good man,” he said gently. “I can sense that.”
“Yeah.” Kai gave a sniff and looked away. “Me too.”
“Then you’ll come?” Leo winced. “Please. I want you two to get on.”
Again Kai went to say something, again he didn’t, then eventually, he nodded. “Yeah, okay. I’ll be there.” He rubbed at Leo’s shoulder. “Might just need to have a quiet word in this guy’s ear, though.”
Leo snorted a smile. “No ear, no chats. This isn’t the playground and he’s no bully.”
Kai shrugged. “Just saying it’s an option, like. Me having a word with him over you not getting hurt.”
“Big lad, here,” said Leo. “One who’s desperate for a smoke.” He pulled Kai over to the smoking area for a well-earned cigarette, a little more excited over how this evening would go down.
ChapterTwenty-Five
In his hallowed turf of Chiswick, Quint enjoyed the cosiness of his favourite corner of Mia’s Brew Box. He’d met up with Harry there, who sat opposite, looking pleased with himself despite chasing it up with a frown.
“So, my friend thinks she’s narrowed it down to two people who this Tim fella could possibly be. It’s only a matter of time before she finds him, I reckon.”
“That’s so great,” said Quint, “but why the frown?”
Harry raised an eyebrow at him. “Come on, fella. We both know ‘why the frown’.”
Quint succumbed to Harry’s sixth sense, and oh…. Cody would have to deal with the emotional turmoil of finding out that his soulmate hadrebooted. Despite understanding that Tim had brokenthe rule, nothing would prepare Cody for the rollercoaster ahead of him.
Quint understood that turmoil. He thoughthehad what he wanted, meeting Leo again, beginning a new relationship with him, but something just didn’t feel right. It was a harsh lesson that he was gradually learning, but Leo had stuck with him when he’d rebooted in their last lifetime, so Quint vowed he would always be there for Leo.
But the connection they once had just wasn’t there. He’d picked that up on the brief calls they’d shared. Leo always seemed tense, in a rush to get off. Maybe this Kai had gotten to him. He certainly seemed to be there in the background of the calls, but that could have just been Quint’s imagination. But the love that he and Leo had shared, which had travelled through millennia, felt somehow as if it had been put on hold, the air around Leo suddenly… off bounds. Quint gave a sigh. “We both know we need to lay it all out for Cody before we tell him.”
Harry gave him a hard look. “And we both know what you need to do as well. I can see you’re not clicking with Leo. Sometimes it happens. Walk away.”
“I can’t walk away. I need to look out for him. It’s just… his essence. When he’s near, I breathe it in, and it’s addictive. And as for Cody—he needs this. He’s a first timer as well, and I can tell he’s finding it so difficult to adjust. Maybe he needs this little bit of hope.”
“Or maybe he needs to learn a very important lesson,” said Harry. “I know you like the kid, but he’s got to live his life on his own terms.”
“Maybe.” Quint bowed his head. “Can I ask you something, Harry?”
“Shoot.”
“Why did you agree to help him?”
“Why do you think?”
As their sixth sense connected, Quint knew why. It was the same reason that Harry had helped Quint program his subconscious mind into attracting Leo. It was the lesson of letting go that they both had to learn in this lifetime, and Quint knew exactly why—to ease the hurt over starting again and learning to enjoy life and love again without the burdens. “Oh, you’re good,” said Quint.
