I lie on my bed, the tears streaming down my face.
“Suicide,” the officer on duty said, even after I told him how my father reacted.
“Suicide,” I heard that monster tell everyone as he made the necessary calls.
“Suicide,” the women whispered at her funeral. But they never knew the truth.
That monster had killed her spirit years before. Her body just followed.
Chapter 12
Kenzie
Icouldn't wipe the smile off my face. I never thought I'd feel like this about someone, and this quickly. Kace. He makes me happy, and I want to know all there is to know about him. Fate brought us together, from all our chance meetings to this. My cheeks redden at the thought of his lips on my skin, the way he holds me like he never wants to let me go.
A knock on the door pulls me away from my thoughts. When the second knock sounds, my heart rate quickens. My impatient man. I open the door, and he stares down at me, his eyes ablaze, his breathing ragged.
My face falls. “Are you okay?”
Without a word he steps forward, his arms curling around me as he crashes his lips to mine in a kiss that conveys his pent-up need.
I lace my hands through his hair as he lifts me in his arms and walks into the apartment. I reach behind him, just able to grab the door and shut it.
No more words pass between us because none are needed. We are hunger and desperation. We pull at each other's clothes until we're standing naked in my hallway. His eyes rake over my body hungrily. He steps closer to me and lifts me by the waist as I wrap my legs around his hips, my heels digging into his ass.
He slams me against the wall, which makes me flinch from the cold, but I don't mind as he claims my lips in a desperate kiss, our tongues caressing and moans falling from our mouths. The television plays softly in the background. I dig my nails into his back one moment and then grip his hair in the next.
"So eager," he hisses as he thrusts into me, each movement making me arch my back, getting closer to him. He wraps his hands around my head to stop it from slamming into the wall. I feel my orgasm building, and after a few more thrusts, I feel myself tipping over the edge, with him following me a few seconds later, calling my name into the crook of my neck.
He lifts his eyes to mine, and they are pained. I take his face in my hands and start to kiss his face all over. He smiles at me sadly, then places a soft kiss on my lips.
"You're too good for me," he whispers.
"No. You're perfect for me." He captures my mouth again as he walks us into my bedroom, my legs aching but my heart full of this man I will never get enough of. The words are on the tip of my tongue, but the last thing I want to do is push him away.
* * *
I watch him sleep,running my fingers through his hair. I smile down at him and wonder what goes through his mind at times. I have never met a guy like Kace. He is so complicated, his moods are all over the place, but I know where I stand with him. He seemed genuinely interested in my work and impressed that I started my own business. I just wish he would trust me with more of his life. I barely know anything about him, except that he has a brother and an estranged father, and that his mother died when he was young. But I don't know what makes Kacehim. He writes for the paper and delivers pizza. Somehow, I feel like I am missing something. He never wants to meet at his house. I will have to change that in the morning. For now, I snuggle deeper into the covers and adjust myself so he wraps an arm around my middle as I fall asleep.
I wakeup to the sound of my alarm and an empty bed. I reached for my phone and see a text from Kace.
Had to run,have an early start this morning. You look beautiful when you sleep. Xo
I sigh,hoping that everything is okay with us. I roll out of bed, ready to face another day at the shop. Maybe I should call Tiffany. I just feel like something’s off with him. The way he looked last night, so shattered and tortured, it broke something in me. But he doesn’t seem like the kind to confide in his brother, least of all after the disastrous engagement party.
I have to be patient. I text back that I hope to see him later. I want to say so much more. That I miss him and wish he’d been here when I woke up. That I am here if he needs me.
I just don’t want to overstep. We are far from official yet.
“Penny for your thoughts?”Layla asks.
“Just a lot on my mind. Nothing important.” I shrug.
"Is that why you've been distracted all day? Girl, you have never messed up acrylic, but that woman would have left here a hot mess if it I hadn't snapped you out of it."
I cringe at the recollection. I really have been distracted today. Kace hasn't called or texted me all day, and it’s closing time. He hasn't told me we're dating. I've said nothing about it either, but we've had sex enough times to deny something's happening.
I let out a breath. “I’m seeing someone.” She grins, pulling over a chair.
