It's All Relative (21 page)

Jessie wasn’t sure, since she hadn’t ever heard much about Kai’s mom. For some reason, no one in the family really talked about her. Jessie didn’t know the details, but apparently, her divorce from Uncle Nate had been a nasty one. Kai still seemed to be close to both parents though, and his mom and dad still worked together, so some small level of respect must still be present between them. Jessie didn’t want to ask Kai about his parents though. It felt too…intrusive.

Her stomach rumbled as she ran her hands through her ringlets. She’d spent longer than she cared to admit taming her hair into distinct, defined curls, instead of the wild, out of control mess it could easily fall into sometimes. She hoped Kai liked it. Sometimes she caught him staring at her hair; he usually smiled when he did. A wistful sigh escaped Jessie. She shouldn’t care if a boy liked her hair. This wasn’t a date. This was her cousin coming over for dinner, nothing more.

Just as she was about to check on the potatoes roasting in the oven, April sauntered into the room. Her long black hair was luxurious, shiny, and super-straight. Sometimes Jessie wished she had her friend’s hair. Her kinky mess could be so frustrating at times.

“Hey,” April stated, as she sat on the couch and crossed her ankles. She was wearing a miniskirt with black boots that almost went past her knees. The skin showing between her knee and the skirt’s short hemline was lean and trim, and for a second, Jessie wished for her friend’s slim figure. Jessie’s curvier physique wouldn’t have pulled off the look nearly as well.

Tucking a dark strand behind her ear, April looked over to the kitchen. “Can I help with anything?”

Jessie smiled and shook her head. “Harm beat you to it. She’s already in there making a salad.”

From the kitchen both girls heard, “A kick-ass salad!”

April laughed and rolled her eyes. Jessie thought again of checking on the potatoes, but April spoke before she could excuse herself. “You okay?”

Jessie threw on an unworried smile as she looked around to make sure everything was neat and tidy. It was. She’d spent all afternoon making sure of it. “Yep, I just want everything to be perfect for Kai.” Not sure how that sounded, she added, “He’s a long way from home, and I want to make sure he feels welcomed.” Suddenly feeling lame, she shrugged.

April gave her a crooked grin. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he feels plenty welcomed.”

Jessie frowned at her friend’s suggestive comment. She really didn’t want April entertaining him in
that
way, but she also didn’t have a say in the matter. April was an adult, Kai was an adult…and both of them were single. Placing her hands on her hips in a teasing stance that was obviously not meant to be serious—although, in Jessie’s mind, it completely was—she told April, “
You
stay away from him. He’s family, not a plaything.”

April smirked. “I’m just saying, if he’s new in town, he might want some company.” She smiled suggestively. “And I’m great company.”

Jessie rolled her eyes as she tried to hold her irritation in check. It wasn’t April’s fault she was a flirt, and normally it didn’t bother her. “Well, just tone it down then.” She smacked her friend’s boot. “You’ll scare him straight back to Hawaii.”

April laughed, then purred. “Mmmm, Hawaiian boy. Yum.”

Giving up, Jessie made herself laugh as she walked into the kitchen to see her more reserved friend. Harmony was cutting vegetables at the counter; she smiled when Jessie entered. The deep color of her brilliant red hair contrasted nicely with the dark green of her blouse, making her look like the living embodiment of autumn. Cocking a fiery eyebrow, she tilted her head at Jessie. “You do look a little freaked. Everything okay?”

Jessie wanted to cringe, but she smiled instead. “Yep, just hoping I didn’t burn the potatoes.” Her heart was racing faster than normal when she popped open the oven. The heat wave hit her in the face, and she stepped away to let it escape.

“I’m sure they’re fine, Jess. He’ll probably appreciate the sentiment anyway. I mean, he probably hasn’t had a home cooked meal in a while, right?” Harmony said, her hands flying over red and yellow bell peppers.

Jessie poked a knife into the potatoes and smiled when it easily went right through. Straightening, she closed the oven door and turned down the heat to warm. “Yeah, I think he’ll love it.”

Harmony gave Jessie an odd, appraising look, and Jessie realized she’d sighed in a way that sounded romantic. She had to imagine her face was also looking a little love-struck. Not liking that thought, she relaxed her features and went to the fridge. She needed to avoid looking like she was in love with Kai. Sure, she was attracted to him, but he was family. She could
love
him, but she couldn’t love-love him or anything. That was just the ways things had to be. Whatever she’d felt when she’d stupidly told him she was falling for him, she had to put the brakes on it.

But she still mentally arranged him out of order, placing attraction before family, and she had no idea how to stop doing that. Annoyed, she looked around for some wine to have with dinner. Over her shoulder, she asked Harmony, “Do we have any of that chardonnay left?” Jessie could have sworn that she’d opened a bottle just a couple of nights ago.

The sound of chopping resumed as Harmony went back to her salad prep. “Nope. April had a guy over Wednesday night. They drank it all.”

Jessie shut the door with a sigh. So much for that. She really should have known an open bottle wouldn’t keep for long around here. From the living room she heard April yell, “Sorry!” Shaking her head, Jessie went about making some Crystal Light. At least she wasn’t offering him Kool-Aid.

Just as Harmony was mixing her special blend of spices into a small bowl of mayonnaise—her super-secret salad recipe that she wouldn’t share with anybody—the doorbell rang. Jessie nearly dropped the pitcher of juice she was putting in the fridge. Before she could get it all the way inside, she heard April exclaim, “I’ll get it!”

Cursing, Jessie hurried her slow hands. In her haste, she banged the pitcher on the lip of a shelf and bright red liquid sloshed over the edge to splash on the floor; a couple of drops hit her sweater, but thankfully, she was wearing black.

“Damn it,” she muttered, grabbing a towel from Harmony, who’d automatically reached for one. As she cleaned up the spill, and Harmony finished the salad, Jessie heard April’s excited greeting to Kai; it was immediately followed by a flirtatious giggle. Jessie could just imagine April’s thrill at seeing her cousin. He was…well, he was just about the most attractive man Jessie had ever seen.

Wanting to see him again herself, Jessie slopped up the mess and tossed the towel into the sink. She finished at the same time as Harmony, and they walked into the living room together, where Jessie could hear April chatting with Kai.

Jessie took in the sight of him with bated breath. Smiling politely at April, he was holding a canvas grocery bag in one hand; his other was casually shoved into his dark jacket. He was angled in such a way that his tattooed shoulder blade was facing Jessie. She felt hotter all over as she stared at the spot under his clothes where his ink was hidden away from the world. It gave her a rush to know that none of her friends were aware of it, that for now it was a secret only she was in on. Then April’s hand flitted across his shoulder as she slinked her fingers over his body, in no way being discreet about checking him out. The obvious move made Jessie frown, and ice instantly doused her warmth.
She can’t touch him like that.
Only, she could. She had no reason not to.

Harmony edged past Jessie as she approached Kai. While April probably wouldn’t think about if she’d seen Kai before, Harmony might. Jessie anxiously watched her friend’s face; her insides felt like a dam about to fail, like every last bit of control she possessed was about to burst.
Please don’t let her recognize him.
But as she watched Harmony greet him, her face was only curious and her words were only polite. She didn’t suspect anything.

Hearing Kai say his name out loud made Jessie’s heart do strange things. This was too much, too intense. She was going to lose it while she waited for her roommates’ memories to snap into place. Swallowing, she wondered if they’d notice if she started hyperventilating into a bag. But so far, nothing bad had happened. Harmony was smiling, April was smiling, even Kai was smiling. They were all enjoying a bit of small talk, Harmony and April asking Kai how he liked living here. Nothing about their stance or appearance looked horrified. Nobody was piecing together anything, and they would have by now if they were going to. She could relax. The moment was over.

Feeling better, Jessie finished walking into the room. Kai turned to face her as she did. He took a step toward her, like he was going to hug her, but then he stopped, like he suddenly thought he shouldn’t. Jessie felt her body tremble with a mixture of anticipation and disappointment, but she only smiled at him. As always, those absorbing eyes stole her breath, and transported her to a place where only the two of them existed. For just a fraction of a moment, they were the only two people in the room, maybe the world.

“Hey,” he softly said.

Jessie felt her skin begin to tingle as his eyes drifted over her face, and then very discretely, over her body. Suddenly remembering her friends, Jessie hoped she didn’t look flushed, or flustered, or anything out of the ordinary. She also hoped Kai liked the way she looked. “Hey, glad you could make it,” she calmly told him.

Like he realized he’d been examining her, Kai cleared his throat and shifted his gaze to her house. “This is a nice place. Much better than mine.” Bringing his eyes back to her, he added, “Thank you for having me.”

Harmony pointed to the bag in his fingers. “What’s that?” she politely asked, stealing a quick glance at Jessie. Jessie cursed herself for not asking him that first. Seeing him just took a minute for her to get used to.

Kai grinned at Harmony as he reached into the bag. “Well, I wasn’t sure what we were having.” He pulled out a bottle of white wine and handed it to her, then reached back in and grabbed a bottle of red. “So I brought one of each.”

Harmony smiled as she took them. “We were just saying we needed some.” She raised an eyebrow at him and smiled. “You must be psychic.”

Kai glanced down at the floor, embarrassed. It was adorable, and Jessie watched both of her roommates’ smiles brighten. Shaking his dark head, Kai reached back into the bag. Peeking up at Jessie, he started to hand her a small bouquet of flowers, but as soon as April spotted them, she plucked them out of his hand.

“Oh, carnations, my favorite.” April beamed as she smelled them.

Knowing that he’d meant the flowers for her, Jessie frowned. She couldn’t exactly protest over April grabbing them, though. It would be better if he’d brought the flowers for the house. As April giggled, Kai shrugged. “Yeah, well, it was all they had at the store.” He looked at Jessie after he said it, and there was a clear apology in his eyes.

Jessie shook her head and gave him an encouraging smile. It was for the best. He shouldn’t be bringing her flowers. This wasn’t a date.

April bounced on her toes, clearly delighted at Kai and his gifts. “I should put these in some water,” she announced. Backing away from him, she pointed at the couch. “Make yourself at home, Kai.”

He nodded at her, slipped his jacket off his shoulders, and slung it over the side of the couch. All three girls stopped and took a moment to appreciate the fit body that even multiple layers of clothing couldn’t hide. Giggling as she watched him sit down, April grabbed Jessie’s arm and dragged her into the kitchen with her. Lightly laughing at April, Harmony followed them.

Once in the kitchen, April turned on the water then twisted to Jessie. Her face was incredulous. In a low voice that Kai couldn’t overhear, she said, “He
is
hot! Why didn’t you tell me he was so hot?”

Jessie shrugged, and a trickle of something odd and awful ran up her spine. Jealousy or disgust, she wasn’t sure. “He’s family. I don’t see him that way.” Jessie could almost physically feel the lie in her words.

Harmony appeared to as well. “Yeah, sure, Jessie,” she playfully said as she slipped the white wine in the fridge. Setting the bottle of red wine on the counter, she gave Jessie a knowing smile. “My older brother might be family too, but even
I’ll
admit he’s good-looking.”

Feeling uncomfortable and trapped, Jessie reached up for a vase, just to give her hands something to do. “Fine,” she muttered, filling the vase with the running water. “He’s attractive.”

April snorted as she unwrapped the flowers. “Attractive? He’s downright edible.” Smiling at thoughts that Jessie knew were lurid, April popped the carnations into the too-full vase. Water seeped out the sides, and Jessie sighed.

Well, she supposed her roommates being attracted to Kai was preferable to them knowing he was her one night stand. She’d suspected that April would be interested in him anyway. Shaking her head, Jessie set the flowers on the counter. Carnations were April’s favorite, really? Jessie knew for a fact that was a lie. April was a classic rose girl. It was truly the only traditional thing about her. Jessie had often heard her tell men that every other flower out there was just the rose’s sad, inferior cousin, and at the moment, Jessie empathized with the carnations.

Smiling at each other, Harmony and April started returning to Kai. Making a show of examining the roast, Jessie stayed where she was; she needed a minute to collect herself. Seconds after they disappeared, April poked her head around the corner. Giving Jessie a playful smile, she whispered, “I’m gonna ask Kai out. That okay with you?”

Jessie froze in place. She didn’t want April dating Kai, but she had absolutely no good reason to tell her friend that it wasn’t okay. She couldn’t tell April that the idea of another woman being with Kai sickened her. She couldn’t tell her that she wanted to be the only woman in his life. She couldn’t tell her that picturing Kai’s hands on April made her want to vomit. And Jessie definitely couldn’t tell her that earlier this week, a few days after having an incredible one night stand with him, Jessie had told his sleeping body that she was falling for him. And against her earlier desire to somehow halt those feelings, Jessie was afraid it was too late; she’d already fallen.