16. Sixteen
One call to his father—the only number West had memorized—and a helicopter was landing in the middle of Sawu Island the next morning. Begrudgingly, West left the warm bed and the comfort of Kat wrapped around him as she slept. He had admitted a lot last night and hoped she had believed him.
It was becoming increasingly clear to him that he had strong feelings for her, and the second he had released himself inside her he knew there could be no one else. He needed her to challenge him when he was being an ass, and to comfort him when he was feeling low. And he wanted to be there for her. She deserved to know just how perfect she was every day, and that was exactly what he intended to do.
West ran out to meet the helicopter as he contemplated how to get Kat to stay with him when they got back to the States. She had a tough armor that he was slowly chipping away at, and yet, he could tell while she had given herself to him, she wasn’t quite ready to give him her heart.
“Mr. Monroe?” the captain yelled as West reached the helicopter, its blades spinning above loudly.
“Yep, that’s me.”
“Fantastic! Your father is going to be happy to see you.”
“My father?” West asked. This was a military helicopter and an American one at that. West had no idea what his father had to do with the military other than alerting the officials to his location. Their conversation on the phone had been short, as service had been spotty at best.
“Wouldn’t take no for an answer,” the captain said. “We didn’t have a transport at the ready to get you until tomorrow, but your dad must have friends in high places because I was woken up in the middle of the night with orders to come get you.”
“Oh . . . sorry about that.” West almost felt bad for making this poor guy fly through the night. His dad was, of course, a force to be reckoned with, and he didn’t even want to think about what favors he had called in to get West. They would have been fine on the island for another day, but Tommy Monroe would only expect the most expedient exit for his son.
“Don’t be. If I could just get something signed for my wife, all will be forgiven.”
West supposed it was the least he could do. “Yeah, sure of course,” he said with more excitement than he felt.
He covered his eyes from the sun and stared back at the rumahapat where Kat slept. “Let me get Kat and we can get out of here.”
A few hours later they were airborne and on their way to Jakarta. The whirls of the blades drowned out all other sounds, and West wanted nothing more than to comfort Kat as he watched her nervously wring her hands in her lap.
Being on the same channel as the pilot, he was unsure if he should ask her what was wrong. If it was about him, he knew she wouldn’t answer—and he wasn’t sure he actually wanted to know.
Giving in to curiosity, he grabbed one of her hands, pulling it into his lap. “What’s wrong?” he asked into the microphone of his headset, the only way she would be able to hear him.
“I don’t know. I know I should be excited to get back to my family and friends, but for some reason, I’m kind of sad it’s over. Does that make me crazy?”
West let go of her hand, wrapping his arm around her shoulder, their heads resting on each other, the headphones impeding the closeness West wanted. “No, that’s not crazy. It was nice being just the two of us in the end; it was our own little paradise, if we forgot about the murdering drug lords.”
“Yeah, it was nice. I guess I’m kind of nervous to see my mom too.” West’s dad had told him that Kat’s mom was at the hotel in Jakarta waiting for them, and when he had told Kat he was surprised she hadn’t reacted with much excitement.
“You don’t mention your mom very often, is there a reason for that?”
She exhaled audibly and glanced up at the pilot. “Uh, captain, can you just ignore us for a minute?”
“Sure thing, miss.” He saluted her and Kat looked visibly more at ease. Of course, the pilot could still hear her, but maybe he’d tune her out.
“My mom and I don’t get along very well,” she started, her hand tightening on his. “I was always daddy’s girl, and she adored my brothers.”
West searched his brain for what he knew about her brothers but came up blank. She really hadn’t talked much about her family other than her grandmother.
“Caleb is older than me and is an accountant. He’s married with two girls, and my mom can’t get enough of her grandchildren. Then there is my younger brother Cameron, he’s the baby of the family. He just had a kid with his new wife. They both have their shit together.”
“You have your shit together just fine,” West said loudly through the mic.
She rolled her eyes, a smile finally creeping across her face. “You know that’s not true. I still have no idea what I’m going to do when I get back to the real world, and I know that’s going to be the first thing my mother asks now that she knows I’m alive and fine. She was okay with me doing music, but in her eyes I’ll never be fulfilled until I’m married with children.”
“Do you want kids?” he asked, unsure if he even knew his own answer to that question.
“Someday, with the right person, but in her eyes my internal clock is ticking and soon it will be too late.”
West waited for her to continue, and at first she didn’t say anything. An array of emotions played across her face, and he sat there just holding her hand, wanting her to know that he was there for her.
“My grandma, she and my mom always fight. The more my grandma pushes away White assimilation, the more it angers my mother. My brothers, well at least Cameron and I, really loved getting to know that side of us, and yet my mom pushed back on it all the way. Every time my grandma would tell my mom she was raising us wrong it became a fight. I think I remind my mom of my grandma, and that brings up a lot of bad memories. My dad had always been the barrier between us, he would talk my mom down when she’d go off on one of her supposed well-meaning rampages. I just never feel like I’m quite enough for her.”
West knew that feeling all too well and lifted her hand to kiss the back of it. “Why are you just now telling me this? You know how I feel about my father, you didn’t think I would understand?”
She shrugged and smirked. “Honestly, I had hoped you’d never meet her. I love her, I do, but if you think my self-image is low now, just imagine what it was like in high school.”
“It’s okay, Kat; thanks for telling me now. Maybe she’ll be so happy just to have you alive she’ll never criticize you again.”
Kat laughed. “Doubt it, but she might just be a little more understanding.”
“Hey, she’s spent a week with my dad, if that doesn’t make her more open and understanding, I don’t know what will.”
After arriving in Jakarta, a black town car picked them up at the small private airport. Kat tried not to squirm in her seat, but her nerves got the better of her. Soon she would be with her mom and the myriad of questions she would pose. Questions Kat just didn’t have any answers for.
Her future plans? Nonexistent.
What happened on the island? Who knows. Kat sure couldn’t put into words everything she had just been through.
Her relationship status? Kat couldn’t say.
She wasn’t ready.
But as they pulled up to the hotel’s front door, she knew she didn’t have a choice.
West slid out of the car, offering her his hand, and in any other situation Kat would have felt like a princess with her prince leading her into a ball. But alas, she was just about to be assailed with questions left and right, and she had very few answers for anyone.
The doors opened and they walked into the flashing of cameras and a crowd of people waiting for them. Cher and Lydia were the first to practically jump on top of her, causing her to let go of West’s hand, her one anchor in the storm.
“Oh my god, you’re alive!” Lydia screeched, jumping up and down. “You look so tan,” she added, causing Kat to laugh.
“You really do look amazing for someone who spent ten days on an uncharted island,” Cher said as she gripped Kat for dear life. “I’m so happy you’re okay,” she added as a tear slid down her cheek.
Before Kat knew it, she was crying because she hadn’t expected such a homecoming, and because she had indeed missed her friends. Her lifeline over the past ten years. They hugged and cried for who knew how long before Kat’s mom finally pushed through.
“Katy, I’m so glad you’re okay.” Her mom pushed away a tear, a rare show of emotion. She had barely cried at her husband’s funeral.
“I’m happy to see you too, Mom,” she said, and surprisingly, she meant it. On the island they had been go, go, go, and survival had been their main goal, but now her thoughts caught up to her, the idea that she could have never seen her loved ones again.
Out of the corner of her eye, she caught West and his dad deep in conversation with the press surrounding them.
Just as she suspected, they weren’t especially interested in her.
“You’re going to have to tell us all about that,” Cher said, motioning toward West.
“There’s nothing to tell.”
“Liar.”
Of course she was lying. The last thing she needed was her mother thinking she was on the verge of getting a rock star son-in-law anytime soon. While Kat realized she was hopelessly in love with the man, she had no idea if he remotely felt the same.
“Sorry, I need to borrow her,” West said, grabbing her elbow.
When had he even made it back to her?
“Take her forever,” Lydia quipped, causing Kat’s eyes to grow huge. Damn Lydia, always opening her mouth.
West just smiled as he pulled her from the crowd. “The doctors and the cops need to see us,” was all he said, maneuvering her through the room. “Don’t worry, I’ll be with you every step of the way.”
Kat wasn’t sure what on her face had given her away, but his words instantly calmed her nerves as she followed him into the conference room.
The warm water from the shower fell on her tired muscles, soothing Kat more than she knew she needed. She was beyond exhausted from all the excitement around their return.
West had been right; everyone had still been waiting for them. Kat had been convinced that they would just go to the police and that no one they knew would still be in Indonesia. How wrong she had been when they had walked into the hotel.
Besides her mother and her friends, it had all been for West, of course. The media frenzy that had exploded the moment he walked through the door had been astounding, reminding Kat of why they could never be together. She couldn’t live that life, always fighting the media when they were out. What kind of life would that be? West’s father had placated them, promising a full-on press conference later that evening, after they had had some time to see the doctor and get cleaned up. Tommy Monroe’s ability to keep the press at bay impressed her.
After they had seen the doctors, who were rather impressed at her stitching and antivenom-making abilities, they were questioned by the police, which had been exhausting.
They didn’t know where the island was. They had boated in what felt like circles, so they could only give a vague explanation of where they thought they had escaped from in relation to where they ended up, which was Sawu Island.
It wasn’t much to go on, but the Indonesian police said they would start hunting for the operation and the men responsible. It didn’t make Kat feel much better. Once the news started to show West’s face, the drug operation would figure out who he was, and they could easily retaliate or send someone to kill him. West blew off her concerns, telling her not to worry. Kat wasn’t convinced.
Clean for the first time in dyas, she stepped out of the shower. She felt like a whole new woman with all the grime and dirt finally off. She would never take a hot shower or a toilet for granted again.
She was meeting West and his father for dinner, along with her mother. Her stomach was full of butterflies. It wasn’t real. She and West weren’t dating, and this was not a meet-the-parents dinner, but it still felt significant. She worried Tommy Monroe wouldn’t like her. West had said some harsh things about him, and she was worried she wouldn’t live up to his standards.
Kat wiped the steam from the mirror, her raw, reddened skin staring back at her. She was back in civilization; she should have felt happy. Despite being alive, clean, and well-fed, all she could focus on was her purposeless life and a future that may or may not include West. Not once in all their lovemaking had he expressed any desire to continue after they returned home.
Cocaine island, as she now referred to it was looking better and better with each passing day. West’s father had booked their flights home, but when West had been busy talking with Luke and Declan, Kat had asked him to book her flight to Iowa with her mother and not tell West. He had given her a close inspection but hadn’t pried into why. Kat had been thankful for his discretion.
She needed to go home for a while, and not home as in L.A., but home to her family. She wanted to talk with her grandmother and to see what her ancestors would say to do when feeling blocked and out of sync with the universe.
Kat wrapped the towel around her body and went to her luggage, the one thing that hadn’t gotten lost on her journey. She dug through the pockets, pulling out a bracelet with a turquoise pendant.
“I should have been wearing you,” she said, slipping it around her wrist. Turquoise was meant as protection, and tonight Kat’s heart needed as much protection as it could get.
She had to tell West that this was the end of the road, that when she got on the plane in the next few days she was going to Iowa to figure things out, and that he needed to do the same. To work some things out with his father, maybe try acting if that’s what he needed to do to feel fulfilled. To make decisions about who he was, just like Kat.
Who was she kidding? Her heart was already breaking into a million little pieces just thinking about it, but she had to do it now before she became even more attached. What life did Kat have with him? She knew she would never be happy lounging around his large house living off him. She had to do something with her life, and the appeal of being her own recording artist had begun to fade away. But if she didn’t have that dream, what did she have?
She had loved writing music with West when he had allowed her to. Maybe she could partner with some other artists or be an agent, Creator knows she’d be better than Declan. She could actually help women looking to break into an unforgiving industry. Not that Kat knew the first thing about being an agent, but she wouldn’t ask West for help. She knew it was pride keeping her from asking him, but she couldn’t do it. She had always done things on her own, and she wasn’t sure she could change her ways.
A knock at the door drew her thoughts away from West and her breaking heart. A welcome reprieve. She opened the door, and Cher waltzed into the room. She looked at Kat, still wrapped in her towel, and walked over to the closet, looking through Kat’s dresses.
“I bet that shower felt good,” she said.
“I already picked out a dress.”
Cher looked at the dress laid out on the bed and frowned. “That is too subtle. You need something sexier.”
“For dinner with my mother and West’s father? I don’t want to be sexy!” Kat lifted the navy dress with the higher neckline. “It’s at least form-fitting. What’s the problem?”
“The neckline goes for ages. Come on, Kat, show off your assets.” She looked pointedly at Kat’s chest.
“I’m not trying to impress anyone. What makes you think anything happened in the first place?”
Cher pulled out a black bodycon dress with a plunging neckline that thankfully had mesh to hold her chest in. It was sexy in a not-so-obvious way and would still be appropriate enough to appease her mother’s sensibilities.
Cher scoffed. “Please, I saw the way you two reached for each other when you first showed up at the hotel. I know something happened on that island, and I get it. You didn’t want to say what it was in front of your mother, but you can’t lie to me.”
Cher knew her all too well, and that’s when Kat couldn’t hold back the tears any longer. She threw herself across the bed, the tears coming unbound. “I think . . . I . . . I think I’m in love with him.” And as she voiced it for the first time, she felt the reality of her words sink in. She was falling for him. For his charm, attentiveness, the way he now truly saw her as a legitimate musician.
Cher came to the bed, wrapping her arms around Kat, and that made her want to cry even more. Her friend held her for a while. No questions, no comments, and no recriminations because that’s just how best friends should be. Eventually, Kat felt the tears abate and sat up, wiping her eyes.
“God, I’m going to be so puffy.”
Cher chuckled and handed her a tissue. “I don’t think West is going to care. I think he loves you too.”
Kat wiped her eyes. “It’s just some island version of Stockholm syndrome. Once he gets back to L.A. and his life of glitz and glamor, he’ll realize how plain and boring I am and go back to his models and actresses.”
“Is that what you’re worried about?” Cher leaned in to look at Kat, her hand resting on Kat’s back.
“Come on, you know West, it’s a legitimate fear.”
Cher contemplated her words. “Perhaps. But have you actually told him this?”
Kat was quiet for a minute. “We all start with good intentions.”
“And why can’t you trust him to keep those good intentions? If it’s truly love, he’ll never notice another woman again.”
The air left Kat’s lungs. There was the question she kept asking herself. Why couldn’t she trust him? “It’s just who he is, Cher. A tiger can’t just change their stripes.”
“Maybe, but that tiger can be slightly domesticated with the right partner. Remember, you fell in love with that tiger, and if he loves you, you have to trust in that love. He didn’t cheat on Gia; in fact, it’s been a really long time since I’ve seen him with a different girl every week.”
Kat scrunched up her face. “You’re not allowed to make sense.”
She stood up and walked to the bathroom, grabbing Kat’s makeup. “I always thought there was a strange spark between the two of you, even before that night. I wasn’t sure what it was exactly, but it took long enough for you both to figure it out.”
Cher was annoying her with logic. They had something, she just wasn’t sure if that something was worth risking her heart for.
“Now, you’re gorgeous without makeup, but since he’s seen a hot mess for the past few weeks, let’s knock him off his feet,” Cher said, a mischievous smirk on her face.
West eyed Declan and Luke over his whiskey glass. Since he and Kat had arrived at the hotel that morning, it had been one thing after another, but now he was finally properly showered, shaved, and in his own clothes having a drink with his friends. Even if the term friends didn’t really feel appropriate these days.
The two were talking about a party they had attended at an Indonesian billionaire’s home. It had been “epic,” and they bored West to death. His mind kept shifting to Kat. What was she doing? Was she showering? She was probably naked. He wanted to be in the shower with her.
Snap out of it, West.
He shook his head, adjusting himself and crossing his legs, forcing himself to listen to Luke.
“Gia’s here.”
His head snapped up to glare at Luke. “What’s she doing here?”
Luke took a drink slowly, while West tried to school his features. He didn’t care about Gia, he just didn’t want her coming around him and Kat. She was good at making trouble.
“She’s here with me. I told her you were missing and we were staying in Jakarta, but I asked if she wanted to stay with me, as two people who deeply care about you.”
West rolled his eyes. “How thoughtful of you.”
Luke laughed. “Let’s say we’ve found ways to pass the nights in your absence. Why didn’t you tell me she was so feisty?”
West didn’t care that Luke was screwing Gia, but he couldn’t figure out what Luke was trying to do. They were friends, so why was he trying to goad him into caring?
West smiled. “That’s great, I’m happy for you, man.”
Declan choked back a laugh as Luke’s face fell.
What the hell was going on? They were acting strangely, but for the life of him, he couldn’t figure out why.
“You call your studio agent yet?” Declan asked, changing the subject.
“Yeah,” West replied.
Declan waited for him to elaborate; West didn’t. He didn’t want to. These two were acting weird. “Did you take the acting gig?” Declan finally asked.
West let out a long breath. He didn’t want to tell them first. There would have been a time, probably even ten days ago, where they would have been the first to know, but now he felt like he owed Kat that answer first. But as two pairs of expectant eyes glared at him, he nodded, and they both smiled at him, clearly happy with his decision.
West wasn’t so sure he had made the right one if these two were so on board. He tilted back the rest of his drink. He had talked to his accountant that afternoon, and after the tour, the trips, and all their expenses, his accounts weren’t looking so good.
West had been right about his music streams going up thanks to his disappearance, but until he figured out where his money was disappearing to, he needed a large payday, and Onslaught Pictures was offering a lot of zeros to do two pictures, provided the first one did well at the box office.
Kat’s disappointed face flashed through his mind, but he pushed it aside. He had to do something, and she just didn’t understand this part of his life. This was the one time where the fact that they came from two different worlds played a role in their relationship. It would take time for her to understand that acting was a sacrifice for him, not the easy way out.
He looked over at Declan and Luke, sipping on their drinks, and was ready to leave them and get back to Kat. If he had learned anything after his time on the island, it was that he was done with shallow conversations and pointless parties.
“I have dinner with my dad and a press event later tonight. I’ll see you guys later,” West said.
“I’m flying back to L.A. tomorrow with Gia since you’re safe,” Luke said.
West left the bar realizing his longest friendship had completely changed forever, and he wasn’t sure how he felt about it.