Kym meets his gaze, her expression not shifting, but there’s something about the way she looks at him—something sharp, almost annoyed, like she’s irritated that he’s even questioning her.
“I’m sure,” she says simply. “He sold me sheet music.”
And before I can process that, Lilia suddenly turns to me, hesitation in her expression. “Addie… didn’t he also talk to you after class once?”
Oh.
I almost forgot about that.
Kai raises an eyebrow at that, interest flickering in his gaze. “About what?”
I glance between them, shifting slightly. “He just… noticed something was wrong with me that day,” I admit. “He said I should come to him if I had any more problems.”
Lilia visibly shudders.
“Okay, well, he’s adefinitesuspect then.” Liam makes a face.
I sigh, rubbing my arms. “It’s definitely a guy.” And before anyone can ask, I clarify. “The intruder had a masculine build.”
And I also kicked him where it hurts.
I let out a breath, my arms folding over my chest. “You hired Sterling for a reason. Maybe we should just… let him handle it. Besides, we don’t even know for sure it’s Anderson yet.”
They’re really smart, sure. They probably think they can solve this themselves despite having someone on the case already.
Christian nods slowly, lips pressing into a thin line. “She’s right. We don’t. Until we do, we just keep an eye on him. Quietly. No need to jump to conclusions.”
Lilia hums, unconvinced, and I watch as she twirls a piece of hair around her finger.
“Or,” Liam says, lifting a hand, and sitting forward with far too much energy, “we could come up with an actual strategy. Like—I don’t know—stakeouts? Traps? Maybe install one of those—”
“Liam.” Bea’s tone is clipped, her expression pinched.
He pauses mid-gesture, blinking at her. “What?”
“I think you’ve said enough.”
Liam scoffs. “Said enough? Bea, I’m a fountain of ideas. Avisionary. You can’t just—”
“You’ve said a lot of things, Liam,” Kai cuts in smoothly. “None of them helpful. All of them annoying.”
Liam freezes, hand flying to his chest like Kai just stabbed him through the heart. “That’s low. Even for you.”
Kai’s smile unfurls then, charming as ever. “Don’t be dramatic.” His gaze flicks lazily toward Liam, glinting with amusement. “I can go lower.”
Liam gapes at him, offended, while Lilia snorts into her sleeve. Christian, to his credit, doesn’t even look up from his notebook, just mutters, “No one doubts that.”
Liam leans forward, wagging a finger at Kai. “One of these days, Steele, someone’s going to knock that ego of yours down a peg.”
Kai only smirks wider. “And ruin the view from up here? Selfish.”
And that’s more or less how it is for the rest of the afternoon. Kai and Liam bickering like children, Liam occasionally dragging Kym into the argument, and Will making remarks every now and then that Lilia promptly shuts down.
Christian and Bea attempt to play peacemakers to no avail.
Eventually, it gets too cold.
“Cards?” Kai offers, lounging across the edge of the sofa, and although he’s only just asked, he’s already shuffling the cards.
