I talked to Sonny. She said I “have to” pick you up. See you at 9.
Me
Ok
Kade seems sweet enough. I probably acted too rash, seeing as it isn’t fair to go on a date with someone when you have feelings for someone else. But one date with a nice guy can’t hurt.
My eyes follow Kade over the next hour. He has girls that show interest, but he doesn’t pay them any attention. His eyes find mine after each girl leaves. I wonder if he’s concerned that I’ll think he’s flirting with them. He seems to always be in conversation with Mike or some of the other members. I assume it’s business related, because there isn’t any laughing or joking around. At one point, Mike collars Kade and speaks into his ear. Whatever he says has Kade nodding before walking out. I don’t miss the fact that a gun is tucked into the waistband of Kade’s jeans.
I’m sitting at the bar waiting on Sonny to finish her shift when the club door opens and Kade reappears. It’s been about an hour since he left, not that I was counting. His hair is disheveled and his shirt’s plastered in dark splotches.
“Is that blood?” I ask myself, my mouth agape.
Mike walks up to him and pinches his shirt, causing Kade to drop his gaze. After a quick exchange of words, Kade heads to the back of the club and toward the hallway with the bathrooms. After a few minutes he returns, his hair in place and wearing afresh shirt. His eyes find mine as he removes his phone from a pocket.
My phone chirps.
Kade
Don’t you normally leave around 6?
Me
Sonny is giving me a ride, so I’m waiting for her to finish up.
Kade
I could take you home if you don’t want to wait.
Me
Oh no. She gets off in like 15 min. Thanks though!
Kade
OK.
The screen shows never-ending bubbles of incoming text.
Kade
Jessi, you good? Are we good? You still want to see the movie tonight?
Me
Yeah! Everything is fine. I’ll see you later.
“You ready?” Sonny startles me.
“Yeah,” I say as I grab my jacket.
I don’t know what happened today, but whatever I saw made Kade wonder if I’d changed my mind about him. My gut tells me he had blood all over him, and not from a fistfight.
Maybe I should have taken the out he gave me.
CHAPTER 43
JACK
