“I’m glad that’s sorted for you. I’m even happier you’ll be livin’ in Upton. Two minutes away, too!”
I squealed in delight. “I know! I can’t believe me apartment. It’s stunnin’.”
“I can’t wait for a sleepover.”
I laughed, “Neither can Kane from the way he carries on.”
Keela murmured, “Nico told us what happened with him last night. Are you mad at him?”
Was I?
I exhaled. “Yes and no. I’m mad he hurt Skull—who I still have to call, by the way—and how he behaved, but I understand that he got the wrong end of the stick. He thought Skull kissed me.”
“Well, he does have a right to be angry if he thought it was a real kiss.”
“What?” I gasped. “You know we aren’t together.”
“Officially yes,” Keela replied. “But you have both been actin’ like a couple for weeks now—you just don’t kiss and have sex.”
“I don’t think-”
“I think just get with him already. You’re torturin’ the poor lad,” Keela griped as she cut me off.
“Keela!” I snapped. “You’re supposed to be on my side.”
“I told you I’m on the side of love.”
I groaned, “What does that even mean?”
“It means,” she guffawed, “that you two clearly like each other but are either too stupid to realise it or too stubborn to admit it. It’s one or the other.”
I growled, “Are you callin’ me stupid?”
“Yes!” Keela cackled.
I seethed in silence until she stopped laughing at me.
“I’m sorry,” she said through her muffled laughter. “I just love that you’re in this position.”
“Why?” I asked, appalled.
“Because,” she sassed, “being with Kane is what you want deep down, and how he acts around you is forcin’ it out of you and you hate it. It’s interestin’ to watch it unfold.”
“You’re un-fuckin’-believable.”
“I know.”
I pressed my free hand to my face. “I’d smack you if I could.”
Keela snickered, “I don’t doubt it.”
I thought about what she said for a couple of seconds and frowned. “I’m not goin’ to lie, I do like him. I like him so much, but say we get together... what if we fuck things up? I can’t risk it with the baby comin’.”
“That’s a big ‘what if’, babe.”
“You’re not helpin’ me see sense here,” I whined.
“I am,” Keela countered, “you’re just tryin’ to convince yourself what I’m sayin’ is bullshit. You know it’s not. I wouldn’t suggest givin’ things a go with Kane if I didn’t think you’d both be great together.”
I knew what she was saying was true. Keela always had my back.
“I guess so.”
“Does that mean you’ll give you and Kane a chance?”
I thought hard about it.
I knew I liked Kane. He gave me butterflies by just looking at me, and he made me so happy. We still argued, but we were so close now that not being with him would eventually become a problem. My feelings for him were developing fast, and the longer I didn’t give into him, the harder I was making things for myself.
I grunted to Keela, “I suppose.”
“Good, because he left to go over to talk to you ten minutes ago.”
“You fuckin’ bitch!”
I heard Keela’s laughter just before she hung up.
Evil.
She was pure evil.
I shook my head and threw my phone onto my bed. I laid back and sighed as I looked up at the ceiling. I couldn’t get comfortable, the person who rang my doorbell made sure of that.
Kane.
I sat upright, got up from my bed, and walked out of my bedroom and down the hallway to the door. I opened my door without looking through the peephole because I knew who it would be.
He walked into my apartment and closed the door behind him. I turned and walked over to my kitchen table. I rooted for the tube of lipgloss Keela left in my bag, and for my tube of super glue.
“What are you doing?”
“Adding glue to Keela's lip gloss.”
Let's see her trick me again.
Kane stared at me for a moment then asked, “Why?”"
“Have your ever head the term 'some people need glue stick instead of chapstick'?”
Kane nodded. “Sure.”
“Well, that term applies here. If Keela won't shut her mouth, I'll shut it for her.”
Kane blinked. "You can be quite scary sometimes, you know?”
“Even the nicest people have limits, Kane.”
He swallowed. "Noted.”
I sighed.
“What are you doin’ here?” I asked Kane as I put both tubes back into my bag and turned to face him.
“I needed to see you.”
I folded my arms across my chest. “Why?”
Kane stuffed his hands into his jean pockets. “I’ve to get my insulin shot... and I wanted to tell you that I’m sorry.”
I ignored his diabetes for a minute.
I raised my eyebrow. “Are you really sorry?”
He set his jaw. “Why did you let him kiss you?”
That was a no then.
“He kissed me cheek because he is a friend who was congratulatin’ me on me pregnancy.”
Kane blinked. “Oh.”
“Yeah, oh.”
He avoided looking me in the eye then. “I thought it was your lips he kissed.”
I shook my head. “You know you and I aren’t together, right? That means other men could kiss me if I allowed it.”
Kane growled, “Stop it. You’re just trying to make me mad.”
“No, I’m not. I’m tryin’ to make you understand that you can’t just attack people, Kane.”
He blinked. “I don’t usually. I usually keep to myself, but then you happened.”
I scowled. “What does that mean?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know what it means. I just know I don’t want you with other people. Men, women... anyone. I can’t explain it. I’m used to keeping to myself, so now that we’re tied together with the baby, I want to keep you away from people, too. I know it’s stupid and crazy, but I can’t help it. It’s just how I am. I don’t trust people, Aideen, especially not with you and our baby.”
Just remember how difficult this is for him.
Nico’s voice sounded in my mind and caused me to sigh out loud.
“So, what?” I asked. “You don’t want me to talk to anybody? You know I’m a teacher, right?”
He frowned. “I know that. I mean outside work... Who else do you want to talk to besides my brothers and the girls?”