It's All Relative (20 page)

No, who would ever be twisted enough to come up with that scenario?

K
ai woke up Saturday morning feeling pretty good. And not just because he had finally adjusted to the time change and was up at a reasonable hour for a weekend morning. No, what had a smile plastered on his face when he opened his eyes, was the thought of going to Jessie’s place later.

Standing and stretching, he threw on a T-shirt and shuffled to the kitchen to make some coffee and have some cereal at his new table. He smiled the entire time he ate his breakfast, enjoying the ease of sitting at a table, and the sentiment behind the gift. His cousin was such a generous person. As Kai finished his bowl, he idly wondered if there was anything he could give to her. Some small, reciprocal token of appreciation. Unfortunately, he really didn’t have much yet. Maybe later, when he started getting some decent paychecks, he would get her something, or maybe take her out to a nice meal. Nothing too date-like though. Kai wouldn’t want to make either of them uncomfortable.

His first week had gone by in a blur. Getting to and from his job was a longer commute than he was used to, but the freedom of riding a motorcycle was something he enjoyed, so he often looked forward to his rides. Although, he could already tell that he was going to have to wear something heavier over his work clothes when he rode. He was just getting too cold. Maybe he’d do a little shopping today.

The actual work part of work was going smoothly enough. Truly, doing the work was the easiest thing about his job. Cataloging, studying, analyzing…they were all tasks that he found intriguing. It was dealing with all of the various personalities at the research center that was the real challenge.

Louis seemed to think that he and Kai were best friends now, and while Kai liked the man, he wasn’t sure if he liked being treated to the non-stop rendition of the
Tao of Louis.
He had an opinion on everything, and was none too shy about sharing it. He was also 100 percent certain that Kai had screwed Missy on that very first day in the backroom. He hadn’t even hesitated to ask Kai for the details, and had only been surprised when Kai had refused to admit they’d done the deed. To Louis, it was just another fact catalogued in his brain. His sureness made Kai wonder if Missy was telling people that was what had happened.

As for Kai’s actual relationship with Missy, well he probably had a decent case for sexual harassment on his hands. He wasn’t about to take it that far—he could handle being hit on every day without formally complaining—but it was taxing at times. Kai hoped that after a while of his purposeful disinterest in her advances, she would stop. So far, she hadn’t yet. If anything, she’d gotten a little bolder as they grew more comfortable around each other. Just yesterday, when she’d been bugging him about the bike, she’d also grabbed his ass.

Kai had politely, but firmly, asked her to not ever do that again. He was sure she would, though. Really, he wouldn’t be surprised if she cupped his junk one day. He was seriously hoping that day didn’t happen anytime soon.

Then there was his boss, Mason. After a full week he’d finally somewhat warmed to Kai. He seemed to truly appreciate Kai’s work ethic and ability to multitask. He’d commended him on his analyses and often asked Kai to help him with projects he was working on, most of them involving those damn bees. Fortunately, Kai hadn’t been stung again by the little bastards.

But even with all that, Kai got the feeling that Mason would prefer it if Kai weren’t around. Like, for some unknowable reason, Kai upset him. Mason wasn’t obvious about it when he spoke to Kai, but Kai was observant, and he noticed the tightness of Mason’s eyes, the guarded way he smiled, and the small sigh that escaped his lips whenever Kai entered a room. Yes, Kai wasn’t sure why, but he was positive that his boss didn’t like him.

That bothered Kai. He really looked up to Mason, admired his mind and his goals. The work he was doing was important, noble even, and Kai had a great amount of respect for him. He wanted to turn the man’s opinion around, get him to like and accept Kai as an important member of the team…he just wasn’t sure how to do that. The only thing Kai could really do was keep his nose to the grindstone, keep doing his job to the best of his ability. Maybe, given enough time, whatever Kai had done to Mason would fade away, and they could be close colleagues.

Kai hoped so.

Just as he was feeling better from his mental pep talk, he heard a soft, lyrical ringing. He looked over at his nightstand, to where his cell phone was softly playing a song. Frowning, Kai picked it up. He’d lowered the volume of the ringer on his phone, but he was pretty sure he’d never changed the ringtone to “Endless Love.” Rolling his eyes, Kai wondered if Missy had somehow stolen his cell phone and messed with it. Great. He was positive her number was now in his contact list.

Glancing at the name on his display, Kai frowned even more. Answering the call, he held the phone to his ear. “Mom? Why are you up so early?”

His mother seemed surprise that he’d picked up. “Oh, hi, Kai. I wasn’t sure if you’d be up this early on a Saturday. I was just going to leave a message.”

Kai looked over to the clock on the microwave and let out a soft laugh. “It’s not that early for me, Mom. It’s after ten. But it is for you. Why are you up so early?” he asked again, relaxing back against his headboard as he idly watched TV.

His mom hesitated. “Oh, I just…had a couple phone calls to make. I was a little anxious about making them, so I really wasn’t sleeping well anyway.”

Hearing the stress in his mom’s voice concerned Kai. “Everything all right?”

She hesitated again, like she was debating whether or not to tell him something. He had no idea what she might want to say, and it worried him. “Of course, honey. Don’t you worry about me. How are you doing? How’s work going?”

Her oft-repeated question relaxed him. She had called him every day, and the one thing she always asked him about, was his work. “Since yesterday, Mom? It’s fine.” He laughed as he answered, amused by her curiosity.

Kai heard a sound from her that he could have sworn was a disappointed sigh, but all she said was, “That’s good.” Kai wanted to ask her again if everything was all right, but before he could, she said, “Well, I was just calling to let you know that I sent you a care package. You should get it any day.”

Wondering what she’d sent him, Kai smiled as he rubbed his stomach. The women of his family were so incredibly thoughtful. Despite all of his current complications, he was a lucky guy. “Thanks, Mom. You didn’t have to do that.”

She scoffed at his response. “I’m your mother, honey. It’s exactly what I have to do.”

She laughed softly, and Kai shook his head. “Well, again, thank you.”

Just as Kai was hoping his mother had sent him some of her world famous chocolate chip macadamia nut cookies, she asked him about a touchy subject. “So, you meet a girl yet?”

God, Kai hated that question. Curiosity about his love life was one of the unfortunate side effects that came along with having caring women in his life. If it were up to Gran and his mother, he’d be halfway down a wedding aisle by now, but with everything that was going on with Jessie—which was nothing really—Kai just hadn’t had a moment to think about seeing someone else. It kind of hurt his heart to think about it.

Playing up his annoyance, Kai groaned in frustration. “Come on, Mom. Between you and Grandma, I swear, you’d think I was some desperate loser who couldn’t get his own dates.”

His mom was quiet for a moment after his statement. Then she asked, “Millie tries to set you up?”

Kai could hear the edge of irritation and concern in her voice, and he cringed. He shouldn’t have mentioned his grandmother. She and his mom didn’t exactly get along. There wasn’t any real animosity on his mom’s side, but there was definitely no love lost in the other direction. For some reason, Kai’s grandma did
not
care for Kai’s mother. At all. Kai had thought to ask her about it while he was here…but somehow he could never bring it up around her. It was too awkward, too personal. Kai had to think his mother was worried that his grandmother was trying to set him up with a girl who could be turned against his mother, but Kai didn’t think his grandma would ever intentionally be that vindictive. And Kai would never date someone who couldn’t form their own opinions.

“Don’t worry, Mom. She hasn’t sent any she-devils my way.” His mom let out a soft laugh at his obvious joke and Kai smiled. “Besides, I’m too busy with work right now to worry about that stuff.” Knowing his mom wouldn’t take that as an excuse, since she did want grandchildren one day, he quickly added, “Maybe once I’ve settled in some more, I’ll start…looking.”

His mother sighed, and there was clear defeat in her exhale. “All right, Kai. Don’t work too hard.”

Kai smiled as he pictured his tired, worried mother. “I won’t, Mom. Love you.”

“Love you, too, Kai. I’ll call again soon.”

Knowing soon was probably tomorrow, Kai laughed. “All right, go rest. Take a nap or something.” She assured him that she would, told him she loved him again, and hung up the phone.

Shaking his head at his anxiety-prone mother, Kai turned his thoughts to his father. He hadn’t heard from him since he’d arrived here. Thinking it was odd that his dad hadn’t called to check on him yet, Kai briefly wondered if he should give him a call, to make sure everything was okay. Plus, he still hadn’t told his dad about Gran falling. Kai was sure he would want to know that his mom had gotten hurt. Glancing at the clock again, he set down his phone. It was too early to call. He’d do it later, when it was a more decent hour.

Later in the day, after Kai had finally gotten up to take a shower, he called his dad. Surprisingly, the conversation was brief and almost strained. Kai wasn’t sure why it had felt awkward when he ended the call; he and his dad had always had a good relationship. They had similar personalities and common interests. Truly, they got along great, and Kai was a little mystified by the detachment he’d heard on the other end of the line. He’d also been surprised that his dad had already known about Gran’s accident. He hadn’t known all the specifics, and Kai had filled him in as best he could, but he hadn’t been surprised to hear about it. Gran must have called her son at some point and told him herself.

As Kai wondered why everyone in his life seemed to be acting strangely, he got ready for his day. Maybe it was just the distance that was making everyone so odd. His parents were used to seeing him every day. His grandmother was used to not seeing him at all. Surely, they were all just reacting to the strangeness of their new situation. Kai knew he was.

Locking up his apartment, Kai headed down to his bike in the garage. He was going to do a little shopping before meeting up with Jessie, pick up those long johns she’d suggested, or something similar. And maybe he would find something to surprise her with while he was out. It was the least he could do, since she was always surprising him with nice things.

Kai smiled as he climbed onto his bike. He suddenly knew just what he could get her.

J
essie was pacing, and anxious nerves were coursing through her body as she watched the clock on the living room wall get closer and closer to five o’clock. She had no idea why, but in a moment of weakness, she’d asked Kai to come over for dinner. It wasn’t a good idea, but her roommates would have to meet him eventually. Her friends were just too much a part of her life for that not to happen. The girls frequently hung out together or stayed home together. Living with her best friends was a bit stifling at times, but the girls were close, and it would be really odd if Jessie kept keeping her newly-in-town cousin away.

She really didn’t know if her friends would remember Kai or not, and just the thought of them discovering what she’d done with him had her stomach in a tangled snarl. God, they’d be sick if they knew. Jessie put both palms on her stomach as she walked around the spacious room. It still made her feel sick, and she’d had over a week to come to terms with the fact.

Her home was filled with the smell of a roast simmering away in her crockpot. Jessie hadn’t known what to make Kai for dinner, but pot-roast had seemed like a good choice; it screamed comfort food to her. If Kai was feeling a little homesick, and he had to be on some level, then maybe the meal would remind him of his mom. Assuming she’d made the same meals for him that Jessie’s mom had made for her, of course.