Chapter 12 #3
“Of course. Then when the monsters are born, I’ll be saying I’m a stressed-out mom of twins, so any and all bad behavior or rude things I say are because of that.”
They all laughed.
After a bit more discussion, it was decided to put emergency window breakers at each place setting, as decorations and party favors that everyone could take home.
Kara approved wholeheartedly. She’d had one in her own vehicle…
when she had a car, before Nolan had stolen it along with all her other belongings.
They’d put shells on the tables as well, the ones Bowie had been collecting every time Pyro brought her to the beach.
Amazingly, even after her recent harrowing experience, the little girl still loved the beach.
The sand, the water, everything about it.
She was also becoming a good swimmer, much to Pyro’s delight.
She’d told her mom that she wanted to help decorate, so they all agreed that putting the shells she’d so painstakingly collected on the tables would soften things up a bit and make Bowie feel included in the event.
“So…” Laryn said, after shoving another chip into her mouth and swallowing. “What’s up with you and Chaos?”
Kara felt herself blushing. “What do you mean?”
“Don’t pretend you two aren’t attracted to each other,” she said with a smile. “It’s as obvious as the nose on my face. And trust me, I’ve had loads of experience denying my feelings for a guy.”
Penny reached out and took Kara’s hand and squeezed it gently. “Chaos looks at you as if you’re the sun to his moon. Have you talked at all about the possibility of dating?”
Kara was thrilled down to her toes that her friends thought Arrow might like her as much as she liked him.
She thought he did, but was too afraid to say anything in case he was simply being nice.
Thinking of her as nothing more than a housemate who’d be leaving as soon as she got back on her feet and the threat from Nolan was one hundred percent over.
“I had such a bad experience before…I’m afraid to try again,” Kara said softly.
“I get that, but Chaos is not that asshole you were with before. Not even close,” Penny told her.
“I know. But I was so sure Nolan was a good guy too. He never gave me any clue that he was a psychopath serial killer who would turn on me so viciously.”
“Do you seriously think Chaos would ever hurt one hair on your head?” Laryn asked, lifting one brow.
Kara didn’t have to think about the answer to that. “No, but it seems…weird, to go from what happened to me to…” Her voice trailed off.
“To what?” Penny asked gently. “To being happy? To feeling safe? Loved? Appreciated?”
“Well…yeah.”
“Look, we get it. We’ve both been through some shit,” Laryn said.
“And what happened to you was awful. It’s no wonder you’re having a hard time trusting Chaos.
But life is short. It can be hard. Unfair.
Cruel. But that just means you need to grab on to the good stuff even harder.
And Chaos is part of the good stuff for sure.
I’ve known him for years, and he’s always been right there for all the guys. Without question.
“I can personally vouch for him. He won’t hurt you.
And if the look in his eye when he sees you, or when he gets to leave work early to come home to you, is any indication at all, he’ll bend over backward to make sure you have everything you need to be happy.
But in order for that to happen, one of you will have to make the first move.
And I don’t think it’ll be him, because he’s probably too worried about what you’ve already been through, and because he doesn’t want to rush you. ”
Kara stared at Laryn for a long moment. Was she right?
Was Arrow holding back because he thought that’s what she needed?
What she wanted? The more she thought about it, the more she realized that was likely the case.
It was the kind of man he was. He might want something with all his heart and soul, but if he didn’t think it was okay to take it, he’d forgo what he wanted.
“She’s getting it,” Laryn said with a grin.
“And it’s not lost on me that I’m the one giving you advice to make the first move, when I was a scared little shit and didn’t do the same when the shoe was on my foot.
But I’ve learned my lesson. I wasted so much time.
Time that means Tate and I could’ve been together for three years by now, if I’d had the courage to admit that I liked him. ”
“What if you’re wrong? I’d die,” Kara whispered. “And it would make things here uncomfortable. I’d have to move out.”
“I’m not wrong,” Laryn said firmly.
“You know Jen would welcome you back to her place with open arms,” Penny added. “Selfishly, I wouldn’t mind having you down the hall.”
Kara was scared to death to open herself up to Arrow and be rejected, but her friends seemed so sure…
And it wasn’t as if she hadn’t seen for herself how good the man was to her.
Things appeared in her room without her having to ask for them—like the laptop she was now using.
It wasn’t new, but it probably wasn’t cheap either.
She’d tried to protest, to tell him she’d pay him back, but he’d simply shrugged and said it was a gift.
But it was more than material things. It was the way he was always asking her how she was doing.
How receptive and understanding he was when she needed to talk about stuff going on in her head.
The man was almost too good to be true, but she’d been living with him long enough to know that what she saw in Arrow was genuine.
Unlike Nolan, who hid his true personality behind a facade, only showing the world what he wanted it to see.
Hiding his evilness behind good looks and a charming personality.
“Right. So…I need to get Tate to call the Anchor Point owner and work out some details. Are you sure you won’t tell me how to make this taco dip?” Laryn asked.
Kara grinned. “Nope.”
“Darn. Okay, but every time we get together, I’m gonna need you to make this. I mean, I’m feeding growing babies here.”
“Give me a break,” Penny said with a roll of her eyes.
Being around these women always made Kara feel as if she belonged. As if she wasn’t the introverted weirdo she’d always felt like growing up.
She walked the two women to the door and hugged them tightly before turning off the alarm and opening the door. “Thanks for the pep talk,” she said.
“Thanks for helping us figure out this reception thing,” Penny said.
“Yeah, and for getting me addicted to yet another food,” Laryn joked.
“Anytime.” Kara waved as they made their way to the car. She didn’t shut the door until they were safely inside, waving again as they pulled onto the road. Then she closed the door, locked it, and turned on the alarm once again.
She stood with her back against the door for a minute or two, thinking about what Laryn had said.
About how sure she was that Arrow would be interested in more than a friendship.
It had only been a matter of weeks since they’d met, but living with the man kind of sped up the getting-to-know-you part of a relationship.
She knew how he liked his coffee, that he wore boxers and a T-shirt to bed, that he didn’t use a top sheet, and that he liked Colgate toothpaste.
Those were little details, not important in the grand scheme of things, but they made her feel as if she knew him more intimately than she knew most other people.
She also knew he was compassionate and considerate, could be grumpy if he didn’t have his morning coffee, actually liked working out, would drop everything to help a friend, and was passionate in his hatred for anyone who hurt women, kids, or animals.
But was all that enough for her to take a risk, a huge leap of faith, and admit that she wouldn’t mind dating him?
That was the question. Was she brave enough to risk upsetting the routine she’d gotten into over the last few weeks? What if he told her that he only wanted to be friends? What if her admission made things between them awkward and weird?
The only thing she knew for sure was that if he did just want to be friends, she’d never in a million years act like Nolan had. She never wanted to be with someone who didn’t wholeheartedly want to be with her too.
Feeling brave with Laryn’s words still echoing around in her head, Kara decided that when Arrow got home that night, she’d broach the topic. See if she could feel him out. Determine if he thought of her as anything more than a friend or down-on-her-luck woman he’d rescued from a flash flood.
It was scary.
But she was ready to see if the good luck she’d had recently would hold.
Feeling optimistic, Kara headed to the table to put the dirty dishes in the sink. She’d need to make another batch of taco dip, but she was out of cottage cheese. She grabbed her laptop and settled on the beanbag in the living area. She was in the mood to write and was feeling inspired.
As always, she couldn’t wait for Arrow to get home, but today it was more than simply wanting to see him. She was suddenly anxious to know if her girlfriends were right, and he really could be interested in more than a simple friendship.
* * *
Nolan Colins was in a good mood. Things were finally going his way.
He’d been pissed off for the last month. Ever since his girlfriend got away.
She was his. Would always be his.
He’d escaped the cabin just in time. At first he thought Kara had died, and he’d been pissed that he hadn’t been able to continue his fun with her. But when he couldn’t find her body at any of the morgues or hospitals, he began to think she’d tricked him. Had somehow slipped out of his grasp.
And that made him see red.