Chapter Twenty-Eight Levi
I have not touched a single drug in a while, but it’s Thursday and I think I’ve been high for weeks now because suddenly I don’t hate work and my mind is like a library, completely silent it’s almost a miracle. Doctor Sloane says we’re all experiencing a ‘honeymoon period’ because of Kai and maybe she’s right but I hope it lasts forever.
He just seems to fit, like he was tailor-made for both Cole and I and we were always just waiting to meet him. Cole and I are two sides of the same volatile coin, but Kai balances us. In a way, he’s become a centre.
It’s slightly unhealthy how badly I want him constantly, and I know Cole feels the same. If we could keep him with us all the time and not allow him out of our sight, we would. Is that fucked up? Sure, but I’ve never done anything in halves.
I remember when I first started dating Cole. I was like this too, slightly too obsessive and luckily, he was the same. Kai is still a little hesitant, but I understand him. It can’t be easy joining an already established relationship especially if that relationship is Cole and I, but I’m determined to make him see just how well he fits with us.
A quiet knock sounds at my door and Kai appears, leaning against the threshold with a smile. I haven’t seen him since Tuesday and my heart does that flip thing again like I’m a teenager. He’s dressed in a dark grey knit sweater and his collar neatly peaks out. His skin is a rich golden brown, still sun-kissed from Monaco.
“Hey,” he says. “I brought you a cupcake.” He walks in, holding out a chocolate-frosted cupcake with chocolate sprinkles on top. “It’s Hannah’s going away party and I wanted an excuse to see you.”
I grin. “You missed me?” I ask, coming around my desk to stand in front of him.
Kai nods. “Yeah,” he says quietly.
My heart squeezes a little because even though I’m happy he’s here, I know there’s something he’s been hiding since Monaco. Cole has noticed it too and whilst I hate the idea of snooping into Kai’s personal life and finding things he’d rather keep hidden, I know we both want him to be safe.
Adam’s words sound somewhere in the back of my mind, but I push them away. Adam is an elitist dickhead who is unable to process rejection. His insecurities have nothing to do with Kai.
I touch his cheek, looking into his eyes like they might give me an answer. “Is everything okay?”
His brow furrows before he nods. “Yeah, everything is great. Why?”
I shrug, trying to look casual. “You just seem a little distant sometimes. Like you’re lost in there.”
Something flashes behind his eyes, it’s quick but it’s there. He smiles, eyes like crescents. “I think this project just has me a little stressed, that's all, but everything is fine.” He kisses me again. “Promise.”
I look at him for another moment and I’m so in love with him it’s too obvious. I open my mouth to say it, but I don’t know if he’ll believe me. It’s so soon and he’s still catching up to all of it. He needs time but I know where I stand already. Give me a megaphone and I’d happily stand in Leicester Square to let everyone know.
“How have you come to mean the world to me in such a short space of time?” I ask quietly. “I’d give you whatever you want, you know that right? Both of us would.”
Kai hesitates, like he wants to say something but eventually, he just nods. I want him to tell me what’s wrong, but I know I can’t push—not until he’s ready or until Cole finds something. I pray to whoever is listening that the former happens first.
“I know,” he whispers and takes a step away from me. “I have to get back downstairs before anyone notices I’ve been gone too long.”
I smile. We haven’t hidden this all that well. I don’t really think we’re trying to and anyone observant enough would have noticed the matching bracelets by now.
“See you tonight?” I ask.
Kai groans. “Can’t. Sorry. Promised Jenna and Marie a wine night.”
I pout and Kai laughs, coming over to kiss me again. “You’ll have me for the whole weekend. You can keep me locked in the house the entire time if you want.”
“Please don’t give us ideas.”
I stay working late. Meetings run over and I have way too much work to catch up on because of the weeks I missed. By the time it’s eight in the evening, the entire office is empty, and my stomach is begging for me to put some food inside it.
The parking garage is almost empty when I reach the level my car is on. It’s a sleek black Mercedes Benz SL that I had specially customised with a coffee-coloured interior. Between Cole and I, I’m the car person. I’ve loved them since I was a little boy when my father got me into Formula One.
Only, when I reach it, something is off. The hairs on the back of my neck stand and I almost drop my laptop bag when I see my car. All four of the tyres have been slashed and the exterior has been completely keyed. The gashes in the rubber look like they’ve been made by a screwdriver, and the lines on the black paint are thick, peeling back the silver like some animal clawed on it.
I suck in a loud breath, my eyes darting around me to see if anyone else is around, but the garage is empty. My eyes zoom in on my car again, at the garish scratches and the wrecked tyres.
My movements are almost automatic—I pull out my phone and call Cole.
“Hey, Evie,” he answers almost immediately. “On your way home?”
“Uh no,” I say looking at my car.
“What’s wrong?” I hear him shift, his tone growing serious. “Are you okay?”
I keep staring at my car, slightly confused. I can’t think of anyone who would want to do this. “I’m not sure,” I say slowly.
“Levi?”
I take in another calming breath. “I’m fine,” I say. “But my car isn’t. Someone keyed it and slashed the tyres.”
“Where are you?” he asks. I can hear the edge in his voice.
“The office.”
He appears in a terrifyingly short time and engulfs me in a hug as soon as he sees me. Daniel appears behind him too, his intimidating exterior amplified by his frown as he inspects my car.
My mind drifts to Adam for a second but I don’t think he is the kind of guy who would risk getting caught by security cameras. I can hardly imagine him in anything other than a dress shirt and khakis.
“Are you okay?” Cole asks, holding my cheeks, green eyes scanning my face in one quick swoop.
“Yeah,” I say. “Fine. I just came downstairs, and my car was like this. I called security but they said they didn’t see or hear anything.”
One of the security guards clears his throat behind me. “We are checking the security cameras, and we’ve called the police as well, Sir. They should be here any minute.”
“If this wasn’t random then we think whoever did this probably has access to the building already for them to know where Mr. Bellamy parks his car or at least what it looks like.”
“The person who was following me,” I say. I turn to Daniel. “Have you seen anyone when I’ve gone running since that incident?”
Daniel’s eyes meet Cole’s. He rubs the back of his neck and clears his throat. “Ah, no, Sir. There was no one.”
As I predicted, Cole had someone watching me again as soon as I told him about the hooded man. Nothing has been out of the ordinary since then though which makes this weirder.
When the police show up, an officer circles the car with narrowed eyes. His partner, a short, stout guy, pulls out his notebook. “Sergeant Hollis,” he says by way of greeting. “Is there anyone you think would do this? This is an expensive car, whoever it was could have known you specifically.”
I shake my head. I doubt anyone hates me enough to vandalise my car. “Anyone from your past or your partner’s past? A jilted employee?” His eyes look between us.
Next to me, Cole still has his arm curled around my waist and I’m flush against him, my hand on his chest. “None that would do this,” he says.
I’ve only ever met one of Cole’s exes and they were only together for a few months non-exclusively. She looked like a supermodel and when I introduced myself as Cole’s boyfriend all she’d done was smile and say, “Oh, that makes so much sense.”
“Uh, no. I’ve never really dated anyone seriously enough for them to key my car except for Cole.” I pause. “There is someone else though, but I don’t think he would do something like this. It doesn’t seem like him.”
Seargent Hollis nods. “Any suspicions you have are worth noting down,” he says.
“Adam Roth,” I say. I know Cole is looking at me, but I don’t look at him. “He’s not an ex but we did exchange a few words some weeks ago.”
Cole’s arm tightens around me. I did tell him about the last conversation I had with Adam but neither of us has thought about him much since.
Sergeant Hollis nods, jotting something down. “Okay, well we have requested the security company for all the footage from today. If there is anything, we will let you know immediately. In the meantime, we’ll check with Mr. Roth about his whereabouts tonight.”
I’m suddenly exhausted and would like to go home. “Thanks, Sergeant.”
“Of course,” he says.
I give my car one last look. It’ll take weeks to fix before I can drive it again. If Adam did this, I’ll kill him myself.
When we make it home, I call Kai half expecting him not to answer since he’s with Marie and Jenna but on the third ring, I hear his voice on the other end and something inside me relaxes.
“Hey, baby,” I start.
“Hi,” he says. “Sorry, let me just get away from the noise.” I can hear Jenna and Marie in the background plus the soundtrack of what sounds like Mama-Mia before a door shuts and it’s quiet. “Okay, I’m alone. What’s up? Everything okay?”
“Yeah,” I say. “Everything is fine but there was a bit of an incident. My car was keyed, and the tyres were slashed at the office.”
“What?” Kai says on the other end. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, completely fine. It’s just weird.”
“I’m coming over.”
I huff out a laugh. “No, you said you were spending time with Marie and Jenna, right? I’m fine. I promise. I’m with Cole and the police said they’d check the security cameras. It was probably just some random kids who tag cars.”
“No, Levi—”
“Kai, I promise I’m fine. I’m just mad that they ruined my car.”
He sighs quietly then whispers a reluctant okay before saying goodnight.
Cole goes upstairs to take a shower, and I sit in the kitchen having dinner when I hear the doorbell ring. I’m half expecting to see Daniel when I open but Kai is standing before me, eyes wide and his face flushed.
He rushes in to hug me, holding me tightly, his scent engulfing me. It’s a mixture of laundry detergent, his cologne and triumphantly I realise, Cole and I.
“Kai,” I say as he pulls away. “What are you doing here?” I shut the door behind us.
He suddenly looks shy, running a hand through his curly hair and smiling a little. “Sorry, I just had to know if you’re okay. I—” he breaks off.
If it was possible to burst into a thousand tiny hearts, it would happen now. I hold out my arms, trying to show him that I’m unharmed. “It’s okay. I’m fine,” I tell him. “My car, not so much but I’m okay.”
His eyes analyse my face for a quiet moment like he’s trying to decide whether I’m telling the truth.
“You didn’t have to come all the way here and leave Jenna and Marie. Now they are going to think we’re taking you away from them,” I try to laugh but Kai still looks freaked out.
“When will you get the security footage?” he asks, frowning.
I shrug. “Maybe in the morning? They don’t keep it on site, which is stupid, but the police said they would let us know first thing in the morning.”
He nods, almost like he’s relieved. “Do you know who would want to do that?”
I tilt my head, trying to read his face. I can tell he’s worried but there’s something else, something I can’t read. I get that anxious feeling swirling inside me again, that he’s hiding something from us.
“Maybe Adam?” I say. “It’s weird but it’s not the first car to be vandalised in this city. Someone probably just saw a nice car after they had a shit day and decided to ruin someone else’s.”
“Adam?” he frowns.
I nod. “But I don’t really believe it’s him either, to be honest. Too up his arse to do something so messy.”
Kai bites his bottom lip, and I can tell he wants to say something but before he can, Cole surfaces from his shower. He wraps his arms around Kai’s waist, pulling him in.
“Thought you weren’t coming tonight,” Cole says against Kai’s mouth.
His smile is watery. “Yeah, just wanted to make sure you’re both okay.”
As I watch them, I hold on to the feeling I have growing inside me. I recognise it like the back of my hand and something is terrifying about it. I fell in love with Cole so quickly and completely but in moments like this, I realise I’ve fallen for Kai, slowly, but completely.