43
Kendra
Kelly was rolling out of bed much too quick.
My hand swatted after him but missed. His feet hit the floor and I knew that something was up. Refusing to let him go, I followed him to his closet.
Pulling a collared button-down from the hangar, he turned to me and said, “I’m sorry. But I have to run. Something big is happening at work and Giselle needs me to meet her downtown.”
I strode toward him. Lifting my arms up to take his waist inside my hands, I stopped him in his tracks. “When can I see you again?”
He pushed his fingers through my thick locks and bent his neck to kiss me. It was just a gentle peck on the lips but I closed my eyes anyway. “Soon.”
Reaching my hand between his legs, I cupped his groin. “Are you sure you can’t stay just ten minutes?”
He groaned and plunged his tongue into my mouth. I sucked it before he pulled back. “I can’t. This is important.”
“More important than me?” I yanked on his limp dick.
He chuckled. “I’ve requested to represent a big name in hopes of making him my client. It can’t wait.”
I frowned, refusing to listen to his reason.
He thrust his tongue into my mouth again, swirling it against mine. I whimpered and he promised to call. “What time?” I asked.
He stepped back and shoved his arms through his shirt. Checking the time, he glanced at his gold watch. “Noon.”
Reluctantly, I stepped forward and helped him button up. “If you’re a minute late I’ll be calling you.”
He wrapped me in his strong arms and nuzzled his face against my neck. I giggled and laughed, loving how we were back to the playfulness that made him so much fun to be with. “We’ll pick this up where we left off.”
He pivoted on a heel and reached for his trousers. Stepping through each leg, he glanced up at me. “I’ll take you for a romantic lunch. You can drink wine and then we can come back here and make love.”
My heart fluttered as I folded my arms across my chest and leaned my shoulder into the doorframe. “I’d like that.”
He kissed my cheek as he skirted by, heading for the bathroom. Kelly sprayed some cologne masking the smell of sex still lingering on his skin before brushing his teeth.
“I’m planning to visit Alex,” I said, choosing to be transparent.
Slowly, he turned and fixed his eyes on me.
“I thought you would want to know where I’m at.” I bit the inside of my cheek. “You know, in case you were wondering.”
He lowered his head and marched to the bed stand, taking his cell into his hand. I watched him scroll through his screen before tapping the corner and lifting it to his ear.
A blank expression crossed my face as I wondered who he could be calling.
The conversation was quick and as soon as Kelly lowered his phone away from his ear, he looked me in the eye. “That was Maxwell. He’ll take you to Alex’s.”
Running a hand through my hair, I chuckled. “As long as he’s there for convenience and not intel.”
Kelly strode toward me, taking my shoulders between his strong hands. He squeezed. “Purely convenience.”
“Then I can live with that.” My eyelids hooded with the way he was looking at me.
“Now, I really have to be running.”
I nodded as he kissed the center of my forehead. As soon as Kelly was out the door, I messaged Alex, letting her know I was on my way. She took the day off from work, and since she rarely did that, I knew that I had to take advantage of her free time to catch up on news.
Once showered and dressed, I found Maxwell in the lobby waiting. When he saw me coming, he stood and smiled.
“You know I’m not happy with you,” I said as we strode side by side out to his vehicle.
“I only do as I’m told,” he assured me.
“I’m going to forget what happened,” I said as I slid into the back of the vehicle, “but please, stay out of my private life.”
Maxwell tipped his hat and shut the door. I didn’t know if he would respect my request, especially since I knew his loyalty was to Kelly first, but I could only hope that Kelly now understood that it was important he trust me.
We mostly drove in silence to Alex’s. Along the way, my mind drifted back, reliving the last twelve hours. The world was full of sunshine and when I thought of Kelly, I smiled. There was still a lot I had to work out with my uncle—and to learn about my parents—but I was feeling much more optimistic about my future than even twenty-four hours ago.
When we arrived to Alex’s, Maxwell opened my door. “I’ll be parked here, waiting for your return, Ms. Williams.”
“Don’t get too bored. It might be a while.” I smiled, straightening his tie as I stepped out.
He watched me enter Alex’s building and I took the elevator up with excitement growing, barely able to wait to tell Alex how amazing last night was with Kelly. As soon as I went for the door handle, the door came flying open. “You’re late,” Alex said.
I laughed. “Didn’t realize we were under the wire.”
Her eyes traveled the length of me. “I take it Kelly’s return went well.”
“What gave it away?”
“Your perky eyes. Smiling face. That fresh glow you only get after amazing sex.”
Dropping my head, I giggled. Then I lifted it back up with eyes that smiled. “I’m sorry I asked you to leave after coming to rescue me.”
She leaned in and gave me a hug. “That’s what I’m here for.”
My eyes closed as my chin rested on her shoulder. A fresh scent traveled up my nose as I sniffed. “Are you cleaning?”
Alex laughed. “Didn’t think I knew how, did you?”
“No, I knew you did.” My brows pinched, trying to understand what was going on.
She pushed my shoulders away. “And now you can help.”
“Oh, no. That is not what I’m good at.”
“You’re great at everything you do.” She took me by the hand and dragged me inside her apartment. It sparkled and shined with that freshly cleaned smell. “Now, come help me unpack the groceries.”
My lips parted at the sight. Alex was good with food, always had plenty, but I had never seen it like this. She had taken it to a whole new level. The kitchen counters were filled with grocery bags. I gave Alex a look and she reminded me, “Nash is coming home.”
“It’s about damn time.”
Alex covered her mouth and squealed. “And I’m planning a sexy night for our reunion.” She pulled out a bottle of wine and held it up.
Snatching it out of her hand, I read the label. “Fancy.” My eyebrows wiggled.
When we finished filling the fridge, Alex asked, “Did Kaycee stay long?”
“We talked for a while.” I moved to the liquor cabinet, pulling out a bottle of vodka. “Then Kelly came home and she said her goodbye.”
“Awkward,” Alex sang.
My mind zoned, orange juice in hand, as I thought about how Kelly had been married and how he was technically a widower.
Alex’s hand drifted across my shoulders before she snatched the juice bottle out of my hand. “Here, let me make it. I want one, too.”
I blinked and glanced at her.
“Screwdriver. That’s what you’re making, right?”
Taking a deep breath, I said, “Kelly was married before.”
Alex’s eyes rounded as she set the container of juice down on the counter. “Wow.” I could see that she was thinking. “Then who was Kaycee?”
“Sister-in-law.” My eyes flicked up to hers. “Visiting.”
“Visiting Kelly?”
Nodding, I added, “In town for the fifth anniversary of her sister’s death.”
“Shit.” Alex lifted a hand and touched her neck. “That’s heavy.”
“You’re telling me.”
Popping the top off the bottle of vodka, Alex poured two glasses then mixed it with orange juice. “I wonder why we couldn’t find that out.” She handed me a drink after she’d stirred it. “You’d think it would be an easy internet search away.”
I shrugged, taking a sip. “It doesn’t matter.”
Closing my eyes, I felt relaxed and at peace. Maybe it was my after-sex glow whose high I was still riding out, or perhaps it was believing that Kelly would make all the bad in my life disappear. Whatever it was, I was confident in my steps going forward. When my eyes opened, I caught Alex glaring. “What is it?”
She set her drink down and sighed. “Did you two discuss more about what your uncle did?”
“I’m not worried about my uncle.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
“I trust Kelly.” My tongue slid over my lips. “I just want to move on.”
“You can’t just push aside what happened to you.”
“I’m better when I don’t think about it.”
“That’s not a good approach.”
Taking my drink with me, I padded to the living room and fell into the couch. “What do you want me to do?”
“Get help. To not push this to the side. I saw how much it affected you and I don’t want to see you have to go through that again.”
Tossing back my drink, I gulped down a mouthful. I wished people would just let this go. I knew I had lots of work to do—find ways to come to terms with the trauma I’d experienced. Kelly would seek justice and Alex would push me to seek professional help.
“I still think that you should seek professional counseling.”
Then, there it was. Finishing my drink, I checked the time. It was nearly noon and I knew Kelly would be calling. Moving to the kitchen, I dug through my handbag for my cell. “Kelly, should be calling soon,” I mumbled.
“You don’t notice it, do you?” Alex huffed.
I glanced at her with an arched brow.
“How you always change the subject when the conversation gets real.”
Staring at the time, I waited and watched for Kelly to call.
“You can’t run away from this, Kendra.”
The clock ticked over and Kelly still hadn’t called. I hurried to the window. “I’m calling him.”
Alex threw her hands down to her sides and turned her back.
The line rang a couple of times before a woman’s voice answered. “Kendra, it’s Giselle. Kelly’s assistant.”
My heart stopped. With a knitted brow I twisted my spine to find Alex staring at me with folded arms. “Is he all right?”
Alex scampered over to me and touched my arm, knowing something was wrong.
The next words out of Giselle’s mouth faded the light I’d felt growing in my life. A dark tunnel closed around my vision and I felt dizzy. “I’ll be right down,” I murmured. Then I ended the call and looked at Alex.
“What is it?” Her neck craned.
With a parched throat I said, “Kelly’s been arrested.”