Chapter 11
Kinsley
Chapter Eleven
As soon as Thomas’s door closed behind me, I wanted to sneak back inside. Coming out of his room could mean that everything would go back to how it was before we came here. I bit into my bottom lip. Maybe that wouldn’t be so bad. If we wanted to work this case together and solve it, we should act professionally. I sighed and went to my room to change before I followed Connor downstairs.
He was leaning against the kitchen counter, his legs crossed over each other, his eyes fixated on the floor when I reached the bottom of the staircase.
“I saw you two dancing together last night.” Aaliyah pointed at him. “Believe me, he was all over you.” She was sitting at the kitchen island facing Connor. Her long braids were arranged in a big bun on the top of her head, complementing her heart-shaped face. “There she is.” She grinned when she spotted me, and I walked closer, taking my place next to Connor. “You missed my texts.” Before I could answer, she went on. “I was just telling Connor that he has nothing to worry about.” Connor rolled his eyes as he looked down at me, but there was a light blush coming onto his cheeks.
“Were you talking about Kevin Miller?” I asked, and Aaliyah excitedly nodded. “Then I don’t think Connor needs reassurance after last night.” I beamed, and she gasped dramatically.
“Kinsley!” Connor yelped, putting his palm over my mouth.
“What happened?” Aaliyah leaned in closer, a smile pulling on her lips.
“Nothing,” Connor answered quickly, glaring at me, his brows knitted.
“Come on. Tell me,” Aaliyah urged, and Connor sighed. He gave me another look and then pulled his hand away from my mouth, revealing the small smile I had on.
“We may have made out,” he blurted, and Aaliyah shrieked.
“May have?” I lifted a brow at him.
“We made out,” Connor corrected himself, and Aaliyah sucked in an excited breath.
I, on the other hand, made my way deeper into the kitchen, my stomach grumbling unpleasantly. I was just about to go through the fridge when Aaliyah called after me.
“I brought cookies.” She beamed, handing me a tray full of chocolate chip cookies from behind her back. “It’s like a welcome here gift. Cora baked them.”
Cora was her girlfriend, I remembered. Connor sent me a sneaky smile, and I handed him a cookie.
“Thank you,” I said to Aaliyah, sitting down at the counter and placing the plate in the middle so everyone could reach it. I must have missed some of the conversation while I was eating, because the next thing I heard was Aaliyah sucking in a deep breath.
“You must be Pisces,” she said to Connor, and I almost swallowed the cookie sideways with a chuckle. He was indeed a Pisces, born on March 4.
Connor’s eyes widened at me in a help me way while Aaliyah nodded confidently.
I cleared my throat, standing up. “How did you find me so quickly?” I asked, changing the subject, and Aaliyah turned to me with a catlike smile.
“Small town,” she answered. “And…” she trailed off for a moment, glaring at Connor. “Almost everyone in town knows where the Rhodes’s house is.” She gave Connor an apologetic look.
“Makes sense,” I replied. The whole kitchen momentarily turned silent.
“So, umm,” Aaliyah started, maybe hoping that someone would pick up the line, and when she realized that no one would, she went on. “I came for Kinsley to give her a tour around town, but if you would like to join…” The approaching footsteps coming down the stairs robbed her attention.
“Actually.” Thomas stormed into the kitchen wearing light-washed jeans and a light blue shirt, turning all the attention toward him. “I will need my brother here.” He gave Connor a stern look.
“All right then.” Aaliyah jumped off the kitchen island. “We should go.” She gave me a wide-eyed look before she turned away from Thomas and hurried out of the door.
“We need to talk,” Thomas said to Connor as soon as it was just the three of us left in the kitchen, and I felt that it was my cue to leave too. As I was passing Connor, he stopped me, giving me a goofy grin, and I instantly knew what he wanted. I raised my hand, moving in sync with him as we fist-bumped and wiggled our fingers, doing our secret handshake.
“I will send you pictures,” I assured him as I turned to the front door, but before I could open it, a hand wrapped around my arm, pulling me backward. Thomas turned me toward himself with the same stern look on his face that he had given Connor.
“Kinsley.” He spoke my name with a softness I have never heard him use, while he brushed the skin on my wrist with his thumb. “Be careful, okay?” He looked deep into my eyes. So deep it felt like he could see right into my soul. And all I could do was nod.