neck cracks painfully. I bite my lip hard enough to draw blood, but I refuse to let this asshole know he caused me a second of pain.
Straightening the lapels of his suit before checking that his cufflinks are still in; he moves toward the door before throwing a reminder over his shoulder to be at the planetarium.
As soon as he is out the door, Kai is in front of me, reaching out, but I lift my hand to stop him.
“Leave now,” I order, my voice sounding surprisingly strong.
“No, fuck that, you’re hurt,” he spits out like I’m unaware of the throbbing around my eye socket. His eyes are full of anger, but more than that, I see them swirling with questions. Seems Zodiac might have made a bigger mistake here than he realizes.
“My pain is of no concern to you. Now get the fuck out of my apartment.”
“Red,” Kai starts but I snarl at him.
“Get the fuck out. This, whatever this is, whatever it could have been between us is over. I don’t want to see you anymore. Don’t call, don’t text, and don’t come by. Find a new nurse to use as an emotional punching bag and doctor your wounds. I’m so fucking done.”
I move to step around him, but he pins me against the counter.
“You need to listen to me, there is more going on here—” I need to shut him up before he gives himself away on camera so I do the only thing I can, I reach up and kiss him.
I pour everything into it, taking him off guard for a minute before he wraps his arms around me and kisses me back with as much vigor. All the hurt and pain, the want, and yearning for this man and his brother goes into it until I feel completely empty inside.
I rip my lips from his, both of us breathing heavy.
He lifts his hand and lightly skims his fingers over my cheekbone, making me hiss.
“You need ice,” he curses, moving to grab some, but I stop him. I lean up and place my lips against his ear so that the cameras won’t pick up my whispered words.
“If you don’t leave, I’ll spill your secret to anyone who will listen. I hid it for a year, because even though I knew better than to trust you, I fucking cared about you, about both of you. Now though, the sight of you makes me sick. Just go.” When he hesitates again, I pull back and shout at him, “Just fucking go!”
He drops his head to his chest for a moment before lifting his stormy eyes to mine and nodding. “I’ll go, but this isn’t over between us,” he warns me as he opens the door.
“We never even began. Goodbye, Reid.”
I wait for him to step out and as soon as he looks about to speak, I slam the door shut and deadbolt it. I lean against the door for a moment and take a deep breath, but my insides feel like they’ve been carved out with a spoon.
Heading back to the kitchen, I grab my phone and pull it apart. Sure enough, there is a small round green disk inside it. I knew the second my phone was taken they would bug it.
Turning my back to the room, I take the bug from my phone and turn on the faucet and let the water run. I make it look as if I’m bending over to sip the water when in fact, I slip the bug down the drain and let the water run over it.
Drying my hands, I grab the ice from my freezer and place a handful in a clean towel and press it against my eye before moving over and collapsing on the sofa with my eyes closed. I fidget around so it looks like I’m trying to get comfortable and pretend to nap for thirty minutes. In actuality, I use the time to plan my next move. I still have a few loose ends I wanted to tie up, but I’ve got no choice but to move up my timeline.
Climbing to my feet, I sway unsteadily, knowing I need real rest and food so my overtaxed body can heal, but it’s going to have to wait.
Moving down the hallway to the bedroom, I head straight to the closet. I only keep the bare minimum here for appearance’s sake.
I grab a clean set of jeans and a hoodie, sticking with the pumps, and pull my hair