I worry he’s gotten worse over the years. The Kai I used to know would already have a ring on your finger.”
Her stomach turned at the thought, but not for the reason she would have guessed. “How long was it before he asked his fiancée?”
“He’d known her a month and then he wanted to actually get married before he went into the service, but she held out. She said she wanted a big wedding. I overheard. He argued that he simply wanted her. Be careful, Kori. One of the few times I tried to talk to him after the incident with Hannah, he promised me he would never get serious with another girl. The good news is he seems to have broken that promise. Now, I’m going to sleep for a while because when I make this announcement, I’m going to piss off everyone in my life with the exception of Squirrel.” He gave her a grim smile. “Hey, I’ve always got Squirrel. But maybe I’ll put off the announcement for a while. After we wrap this film I’ve got a couple of weeks vacation. I’ll go someplace none of the bastards can find me. Then I’ll tell them.”
It sounded like a perfect plan to Kori. He stood up and Kori remembered why she’d run out here. “Hey, I was wondering if I could bring a friend along tonight.”
He stopped, his jaw forming a hard line. “Sarah?”
That wasn’t a good look. “Yes.”
He paused for a moment before answering. “I would rather you didn’t. I like her.”
“That would seem to be a reason to invite her along.”
“I like her. She’s a lovely woman and I could spend time with her, but I couldn’t bring her into my world.”
She had no idea what was going on in his head. “I don’t know that she wants to go into your world. I think she wants to spend time with you.”
“Yeah, well, I can find a lot of women who want to spend time with me. Do you know the funny thing? Most of them don’t bother to call after they’ve gotten what they want. Even the ones who seem so nice and sweet, they run once they get a taste of what it’s like to be close to me. Over the last couple of years I’ve found some women I thought I could get close to, really talk to. Once I left town, they never called.”
“Did you call them?”
His head shook briefly. “I try to leave it in their hands. I don’t want to pressure anyone. Sarah is different. She’s vibrant and cool and fun, and if she was my girl I would have one of two choices. I could hide her away or I could let the vultures have her.”
God, he really was Kai’s brother. “Sarah is a strong woman.”
“They break down everyone.” Jared lifted up his bag, a hollow look on his face. “I can’t do that to her. She’s stunning. She’s so fucking beautiful I can barely look at her, and they’ll make her feel like she’s nothing. How can I do that to a woman I like?”
“Shouldn’t that be her decision?”
His shoulders squared and he seemed to grow a damn foot. “No. It’s mine. She needs to stay out of this life. She’ll be happier. I’m sorry, Kori. The last thing I want to do is disappoint you. It’s an actual ache in my gut to do it, but I have to. She deserves better than what they would do to her. They shame anyone who isn’t a size zero negative. I’ve seen them hurt women who are a fucking size two. No woman can win with them. Sometimes I think they live to hurt people.”
“Shouldn’t she decide if she can handle it?” Sarah was strong. She believed in herself. Sarah was smart and self-sufficient.
“She doesn’t understand what could come for her. Not really. I’ve had several women who understood how bad it could be.”
“Maybe you’ve found not-so-strong women.”
“Maybe, but they taught me. I like Sarah too much to put her in harm’s way. Please come up with a reason she shouldn’t come. If you can’t, I’ll have to ignore her and that’s going to break her in a way I never would. I like her. Please don’t make me hurt her.”
Kori understood him. She got that he was trying to save her from herself, but her heart ached for her friend. And for Jared. It seemed like an awfully lonely life.
The door opened and Kori recognized the young