Chapter 5
5
KEVIN
“ W here’s Craig?” I ask as I sink on the cushioned seat at the dining table.
Kara is glowing today, even more so than yesterday. She has her hair in a loose bun at her nape, no makeup on, and she’s in a pink floral dress. “Hungover. He’s trying to sleep it off.”
I eye the plates before me. Most of the guests eat either on their balconies or on a long table set up outside. Only Kara and I are here at the kitchen island.
I’m not exactly a breakfast person, but it’s like I woke up to a different life, and everything looks delicious.
For way too long, one day bled into the next, a dark smear of routine, obligations, and expectations. But today, everything is sharper and brighter. I can’t stop smiling, even as I drink my coffee, the bitterness tasting oddly comforting.
I know why.
It’s her.
She’s the reason the world feels new again.
“Is your coffee funny?” Kara asks, running a finger along the rim of her cup.
“What?”
“You’ve been smiling into it.”
“Oh, nothing.”
“You also look awfully chirpy.” Images of last night shuffle through my mind’s eye at her teasing tone.
“Well, you are glowing.”
“I was glowing yesterday, too.”
“Fair point.” I put down my cup and interlock my fingers on the marble table. “But there’s something different about you. Almost like?—”
“Like I got a huge cock shoved into me last night?”
My head automatically swivels, glancing around to see if anyone heard that. “Kara…”
She widens her eyes, her pretend innocence only making me laugh. “What? You started it. Aren’t you too old for innuendoes?”
“That’s not an innuendo. That’s a straight-up explicit summary of last night.”
Kara smiles and takes a sip of her coffee. “I have a question.”
“Shoot.”
“What happens tomorrow?”
“What do you mean?”
“I go back to uni, and you go back home.”
I raise a brow at her. “So?”
The unspoken question hangs between us, and the fleeting sadness in her eyes pierce through me.
“Be honest with me. Is this nothing more than a weekend fling to you?” she asks, her voice losing its usual cadence.
“You think I go to business events and bed every woman I meet? No, Kara. This is far from being a fling.”
“So what should we do … after? I’m three thousand miles away from you.”
“You forget who you’re talking to, Kara. I have a private plane. I can go to you for breakfast, fuck you at lunch, and leave after dinner.”
She laughs, her head tilted back. “You’d do that for me?”
The ground shifts under me. Something warm and unfamiliar unfurls in my chest, and I feel an ache, sharp but sweet. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you.”
Her eyes soften. “We’ve only met yesterday.”
“But you felt it, right?” I take her hands in mine and stare at her left ring finger, already imagining what kind of stone would best suit her. “Tell me you felt it too. The first time I saw you, it was like something clicked in me. Like my whole being lit up for you.”
“Kev…”
I make my way to her, no longer caring if anyone sees. We’re not doing anything wrong, so why shouldn’t I show her what I feel every chance I get?
She sits on the stool, and I cup her face in my hands, blush blooming on her cheeks. “Tell me you want this, Kara, because me? I’m all in. You own every part of me.”
Her eyes flutter, and she kisses my palm. “I’m all in for you.”
That’s the only thing I want to hear. The only thing that matters.
Pleasure sings through my nerves as I kiss her—not just fueled by lust. This time, it’s passionate, my lips molding to hers, our tongues tangling.
“What is the meaning of this?!”
Someone yanks me from her, and Kara sucks in a sharp breath, her face a mask of pure terror.
Craig’s jaw tightens, the muscle jerking as he clenches his teeth. His hands hang at his sides, his fists half-formed, fingers flexing as he glares at me.
His eyes burn. They lock onto me with an intensity that sucks the oxygen out of the room, making the air feel heavier.
I lift both palms, my gaze flicking to Kara. “If you’re going to be angry, be angry at me.”
He jabs a finger at me. “Of course, it’s you! You’re thirty-five, she’s just twenty-one!”
“Stop talking about me like I’m a child, Dad,” Kara says, trying to come between us.
“You are a child! He’s more than a decade older than you.”
“Just like you and Mom, then.”
“She was old enough.”
“Mom was twenty-six, and you were almost forty when you got married.”
“That’s not the same thing, Kara.” Craig suddenly looks like he’s aged ten years, and I can’t help but feel bad for the man.
“How is it not the same? Kevin and I aren’t doing anything wrong.”
“I was in love with her,” Craig says, his voice low, his shoulders sagging, even as he throws murderous looks my way.
“So am I with your daughter, Craig,” I tell him, threading my fingers through Kara’s. It feels a little weird saying it out loud, but it’s the truth. Nothing but the bloody truth.
“You just met her yesterday.”
“You married Mom two weeks after meeting her, and your marriage lasted three decades,” Kara says, tears springing to her eyes.
“Yeah, and look where we are now.”
“You were happy, Dad.”
“Until we weren’t.” Craig slumps on the nearest chair and rubs his forehead. “Kara, listen.”
The silence stretches in the kitchen. We can hear the laughter and chatter of the guests outside, but the mood here is different, tense. One staff member walks toward the sink, sees our expressions, and spins on his heel, pretending he didn’t see anything.
Craig pinches the bridge of his nose and lets out a long breath before swinging his gaze to me. “If you mess with her, I don’t care if Ellis and I have been partners for years. I will cut both of you off without a second thought.”
I nod solemnly. “Understood.”
He breathes deeply and stands, scratching his head as he walks out, probably to check on the other guests or take a moment to wrap his mind around what just happened. Well, at least he no longer seems angry. He’s more likely resigned to the fact that he can’t do anything about us now.
The moment he’s out of our view, Kara grabs my forearm and forces me to look at her. “You’re in love with me?”
I release the breath I didn’t know I was holding. “What do you think this is all about, Kara? I told you I’m not into hookups and flings, and I sure as hell wouldn’t face your father’s wrath if I wasn’t serious with you.”
She beams at me, and I smile back. “Then how about we discuss our travel plans for the next few months?”