“I agree, which is why I want to install some at your house. An alarm system too.” I settle her by my side on the couch.
She tucks her hair behind her ears before turning to face me. “That’s a good idea. I’ll take care of it this week.”
I press a kiss into her hair. “Let me organize it. I’ll have to do it for here anyway, and I can probably get a better deal for two properties.”
“Fine. But I’m paying.” She narrows her eyes, warning me not to disagree. “Curtis will have to pay half, and it will piss him off.”
“It shouldn’t,” I bark, my mood souring like it always does anytime that prick comes up in conversation. “He should want to pay it to ensure his family is safe, and he should have suggested it before he left.”What man abandons his family without taking every precaution to ensure their safety?I take deliberate, slow breaths, calming myself down. “I don’t want to take any chances. What happened tonight might not be coincidental.”
She cocks her head to the side. “Did something else happen with your dad I don’t know about?”
“I spoke to my mom last night.” I can’t stop the smile forming on my face. “She’s divorcing him, Kendall. As soon as she gets out of rehab, she’s getting the paperwork drawn up.”
“That is wonderful news. I’m happy for both of you.”
“Reconnecting with Dana was the best thing for Mom. She seems able to get through to her in a way I haven’t. Rehab is going well, and she’ll be out in five weeks.” I trail my fingers along her face. “She asked me to come visit. Something about a family therapy session, sans the asshole, naturally.”
“Are you going to go?”
I bob my head. “Yeah. I think it could be good. Painful, but good. I am thinking of going next month, at the start of spring break, and combining it with a trip to Yale. I would like to check out the campus and maybe view a few apartments.” Wetting my lips, I peer into her eyes. “I was hoping you might come with me.” She chews on her lip, and her brow scrunches up. “But it’s totally fine if you can’t.” I rush to reassure her as my heart sinks.
It’s not really fine. I want her with me so badly. I want her involved in the decisions I’m making about my future because it impacts her future too. Plus, I want to spend time with her in public without the fear of anyone seeing us. I want to take her out for dinner, and make out at the movies, and walk hand in hand along the beach without worrying we’ll be caught. I want a taste of what it’ll be like to love her freely, but I won’t pressure her.
“I want to go with you.” Her fingers trace through the growth on my chin and cheeks. “I want to explore Yale with you and help you to find a place to live. I want to enjoy spending time together without having to constantly look over our shoulders.” Our thoughts are always so in sync. “Leave it with me.” She leans in and kisses me. “I’ll try to work something out.”
39
KENDALL
“For the record, I think that is a really bad idea,” June says as we exit Bentley Law out onto the sidewalk. “Like really, really bad.”
“I have to do something,” I say, loosening my scarf because it’s not quite as cold as it was when I arrived at work this morning. For early March, the weather has been milder than usual. “I won’t let Greg ruin everything Vander has been working towards.”
“Youaredoing something,” she says as we head in the direction of the restaurant where we’re meeting Viola for lunch. “Both of you have new security systems, and you’ve set up a meeting with a Yale financial aid officer. Della told Carly she’s pretty confident Vander will get full financial support. She said Yale’s financial policy is strictly needs based and they support students’ needs with no loans required.”
“I’m encouraged to hear that,” I truthfully admit. “And I’m confident he’ll get full financial support, but it’ll mean jack shit if his father uses his contacts to rescind his place on the art program. I know you think that’s unlikely, but you don’t know what that man is capable of.”
She slams to a halt, tugging on my elbow and pulling me in to the wall, away from the busy street. “I know exactly what that asshole is capable of. I work with him too, and I’ve heard all the rumors. Why do you think I don’t want you to go ahead with your plan? Baiting him is too risky, Kendall. You could lose everything and make things worse for Vander. Have you considered that?”
“Of course, I have.” I rub at a tense spot between my brows. “But I can’t sit back and let this play out how Gregory Henley expects it to play out. He has an agenda, and I’m not going to be a pawn in whatever sick game he is planning. He is not using me to get back at Vander, and I’m not letting any man manipulate me again.”
She tugs on my elbow. “We better get a move on. Viola will bust our balls if we’re late.” We resume walking. “I understand where you’re coming from. You love Vander, and you want to protect him. That’s noble but not if you end up sacrificing your career for him. How will you support your kids if this backfires and you end up out of a job?”
“Doing this is the only way I can protect Vanderandmy job. If I sit back and do nothing, I may end up fired anyway. Look at what happened to Tania.” I drill her with a look because she knows I am making sense.
We stop at the entrance to the restaurant. “I care about you, Kendall, and I don’t want you to get hurt. If you won’t tell Vander what his father is doing, you need to at least come clean with Vi. You need more than my opinion.”
“Come clean about what?” Viola asks from directly behind us, and we yelp in fright.
Nerves fire at me as I turn around to face my best friend. I have been keeping my secret from her because I’m a chickenshit. I know she won’t approve, and I don’t want anyone bursting my bubble, but I can’t keep lying to her now June has alluded to the truth. I have no choice but to fess up. “I’ll tell you inside,” I say, opening the door and walking to my doom.
“You have achieved the impossible, Ken,” Viola says, twenty minutes later, after I have spilled my guts.
I have barely touched my salad while my two besties have almost finished theirs because I’ve been doing all the talking. Fessing up about my relationship with Vander and ending with the predicament I find myself in.
“You have truly shocked me.” She sets her silverware down and takes a sip of her glass of water.
“Because I didn’t tell you?”
