up and down, seeming to size him up in that way men did when they wanted to measure the make of someone they thought they might be able to take down. Joe would be lacking. He might be big, likely had been some sort of athlete from the shape of him, but he was older and at least thirty pounds thinner. The man wouldn’t last long if he wanted a tussle with Kai.
“Bugger, G, you have a fucking type,” Joe said to Gia, his smile so wide now Kai spotted his back teeth. “Did you give yourself even a week before you found the poor kid?”
“It’s time for you to leave,” Gia told him, arms curled, fingers holding onto the long sleeves of her robe, her face bunching into a glare when the man only laughed at her.
“You got a problem,” Kai said, moving in front of Gia when Joe stepped forward, “then I’d be happy to help you with it.”
“Oh, no, mate,” he said, that kiwi accent Kai picked up becoming more pronounced the louder the man got. “Of the pair of us, you’re the one who’s courting the problem.” He shifted a glance to Gia then looked back up at Kai. “You just don’t know it yet.” He made several steps backward, saluting Gia as he went, then turned, laughing as he moved down the hallway and disappeared into the elevator.
“Asshole,” she said, turning to move into her apartment. Kai waited until the elevator closed, then followed her, relieved that she hadn’t locked the door behind her. He found her in her living room, standing next to the wet bar she’d installed against the bay window that led to the balcony. Her place wasn’t much different than his, but it felt cozier, warmer somehow, decorated much like her office—with rugs and paintings, plants and figurines that probably meant something to her and nothing at all to Kai.
All he cared about in that moment was how her hands shook when she tried to pour herself a bourbon and got most of it on the counter. He moved to her side, taking the small glass from her before he grabbed the bottle.
“I can do it…”
“You’re making a mess,” he told her, filling the glass nearly to the rim. She took it, squeezing his hand in thanks and collapsed into a large tufted armchair with plush cushions and a matching ottoman, resting her feet on the edge. Kai picked up her feet, placing them in his lap with no arguing from Gia. He looked down, head tilting when he spotted an old yellow box under the chair, reaching for it, but Gia pushed it under the ottoman and out of Kai’s reach. Thinking of nothing but how soft her legs felt when she moved her feet together, he rubbed the tops of her toes, smoothing his hand down to her ankles.
To his left, the low rumble of a laugh track sounded, pulling Gia’s attention away from his touch, and he glanced at the television, head shaking when he spotted the same dumb show his sister had been obsessed with as a kid. Some goofy-looking kid and his disheveled, but too-hot for him woman argued with a man called Feeny wearing a sports jacket with patched elbows, and Gia’s smirk widened with the man told the boy to persevere and, possibly take a shower. Kai wasn’t paying attention to the T.V.
He had better things on his mind.
“So, the guy… was he your ex?”
She slipped her gaze from her drink, those big, dark eyes red rimmed and glistening. “I…don’t have those.” Kai moved his head, narrowing his eyes when she didn’t elaborate right away. “Exes. I don’t have them because I don’t date.”
“Anymore?” he asked, needing the clarification.
Gia went still, staring at him, her breath slow, and the look she gave Kai had him guessing what she was about to say came with no exceptions. “Ever.”
Kai felt his chest contracted and something shift inside his head, like a dimmer lowering, a realization that Gia might never change her mind about them. She’d put him off so many times and he kept trying. There was something between them, something white hot and blistering. He’d told her once they’d be combustible and he’d meant it. But back then, he’d only meant sex between them. Now, he knew her. He cared about her. She was he people. Now he felt things for her.
But did she?
He couldn’t stop himself. Kai couldn’t give up, not just yet.