I pull the earbud out of my ear closest to her, dropping it into her waiting palm.
“Overlord.”
There’s a pause.
“What?” I ask, turning to face her. My nose is inches away from her. I want to kiss her.
“I didn’t peg you for a zombie guy,” she says, her warm breath caressing my cheeks.
“There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Kels, but you’re going to get the chance to find it out. All of it.”
Chapter twenty-one
Kelsey
“Hello,”Isay,myvoice gravelly with sleep.
“Kelsey?” My sister’s voice comes through my phone. “Why is it so dark?”
Crap.I grab my phone and shove it into my pillow, confused about how I accidentally answered a video call without knowing it.
“Mmm,” Carter groans from next to me, and I flip my phone back around, aggressively smashing the red button to end the call.
Carter’s large body surges upright, his hand immediately reaching for the phone next to him. His eyes are intent as they meet mine. “What’s wrong? Is everything okay with Jaxon?”
We had another potential Bennie sighting at the concert last night at the Tokyo Dome, and even though my team determined it was likely another false positive, everyone is back on high alert, especially since there are no cameras in the hallways of our Japanese hotel room.
Slowly scanning his bare chest, I take a second to appreciate his abs flexing above the crisp white sheet. I haven’t gotten over how good he looks in the morning.
“All good,” I say, leaning over to kiss him lightly. “It’s Izzy. She video called me, and I accidentally answered it.”
“Ashamed to be seen with me?” he teases as my phone starts ringing again.
“Just don’t need more people in my business,” I say, clicking the button on the side to stop the vibration. “Jaxon meddling in our lives is enough for me. Plus, once my sisters catch wind of something, they’re going to continue to interfere until they get exactly what they want.”
“And you’re worried they’re not going to like me?” he asks, concern flaring in his eyes.
I snort as I throw on one of my running outfits. “No. I’m more worried they’re going to become best friends with your mom, and they’ll have a wedding planned for us by the time we get home.”
My phone starts vibrating in my hand again, and I stare down at it, unsure of what to do.
Carter stands up, pulling on a pair of black joggers and a T-shirt from his bag. Kissing my forehead, he grabs his key off the dresser and heads toward the door. “I’ll go grab some coffees. You let them know I think red roses at weddings are cliché.”
I laugh as I stare after him, impressed yet again by how firm his ass looks in all pants—especially those joggers that hug him just right, outlining every muscle as he moves. His legs, long and strong, seem to take up more of my mental space with each stride. Maybe I shouldstart lifting with him in the mornings instead of making him come on runs with me.
The door shutting pulls my focus back to my phone, and I finally answer my sister’s call.
“Hey, Iz,” I say, pulling open the blinds to stare out at the roof of the Imperial Palace a few blocks over.
“Hey, Iz? That’s how you’re going to answer after hanging up on me and then ignoring my calls?”
“Would you have preferred ‘What up’?” I joke.
“I, unfortunately, have to agree with Izzy on this one,” my sister Bryn says, shoving her face into the screen next to Izzy’s. With their straight brown hair, similar builds, and darker eyes, people used to get my sisters confused, even in a town as small as Wild Bluffs. The odd one out with blonde hair, blue eyes, and a petite frame compared to them, people tended to think I was sisters with Izzy’s friend Becca instead of my actual sisters. When I moved to the East Coast for college at the United States Naval Academy, I realized I wasn’t actually that small at five foot five, but I’ve never stopped feeling short. Carter doesn’t do much to help with it, though at least he isn’t a hulking behemoth like Bryn’s boyfriend.
“Hey, Bryn,” I say, forcing cheerfulness into my tone. “Any news on your house?”
“It’s Jameo’s house,” she shoots back. “But it’s coming along nicely.”
