I growled, “You can’t bullshit a bullshitter, Kane. I know you like the back of me hand; you’ll just say no to every apartment we view so that I’ll have to move in here.”
“That’s completely false,” Kane chirped. “I don’t have any ill will towards you. You’re my friend so I will help you just like you want me to.”
I was so onto him.
He looked as innocent as a child with their hand in a cookie jar, and even though he did sound like he was on point with not trying to trick me, his little speech didn’t fool me. Something was cooking in his twisted mind, something evil. I knew him well enough to know he wasn’t giving in to my decision without a fight.
I held out my pinky finger, and the action caused Kane to beam at me.
“You swear you won’t say no to an apartment just to see me move in here?”
“A pinky promise, are you kidding?”
“No.”
“Damn, I could eat you up, babydoll. You’re too cute.”
I growled, “Swear.”
Kane smirked as he latched his pinky finger around mine. “I swear.”
I held his gaze. “You pinky swore, and you can’t go back on a pinky promise... it’s the law.”
Kane winked at me. “I wouldn’t dream of it, babydoll.”
I gnawed on the inside of my cheek so that I wouldn’t curse at him.
“So,” Kane smiled, “when are we going apartment hunting? I’ll arrange everything, just give me a day.”
He suddenly seemed delighted with the idea of apartment hunting which only fuelled my suspicions that he was up to no good. He really wasn’t doing himself any favours.
“Monday. Me class is out on a school trip all week and because it’s to do with hikin’, I don’t have to attend. We can go check out places then. Is that okay?”
Kane thought for a moment then he said, “Yeah, I can do Monday.”
I snorted, “You said that like you would be switchin’ somethin’ else out so you could come with me.”
“I will be.”
“What were you goin’ to be doin’ on Monday?” I asked, quizzically.
Kane shrugged his large shoulders. “I had a little business to attend to at the club in town, but I’ll push it to Tuesday.”
The club?
I sat upright and narrowed my eyes. “If you’re talkin’ about doing bad things in Darkness, I’m goin’ to be unbelievably mad at you.”
Kane scrunched up his face. “What are you talking about?”
I grunted, “I’m not stupid, Kane. I remember good and well what I saw in Darkness the night we had sex. I just haven’t brought it up since then because it was your business and not mine.”
Kane tilted his head. “Is it not still my business?”
His playfulness was gone, and serious Kane was rearing his angry head.
“Yeah, it is, but I’m a lot closer to you now so-”
“So nothing, Aideen,” he cut me off, his tone firm. “My business is my own. If I want your opinion on something, I’ll ask for it.”
I reared back at little, not liking being talked down to by him.
“You wanna take your own bloody advice then because you’ve been stickin’ your nose into my business since you found out I was pregnant.”
“So?”
So?
“What the fuck do you mean so?”
“I mean so.” Kane shrugged, uncaringly. “You’re the one who is pregnant, not me. If I butt into your life, it’s because I want to make sure you’re okay. You’re carrying my child. Call me crazy for caring about you.”
I felt my temperature begin to rise.
“You do realise the double standards you’re settin’ right now, don’t you?”
Kane laid back and sighed, “No, but I’m sure you’re going to explain them to me anyway.”
Right, he was.
“What gives you the right to pick apart everythin’ I do, but when I bring up some shady shite you do, I get shut down by big, bad Kane.”
“Big, bad Kane?” Kane repeated the corner of his lip quirked.
“It was that or pig-headed, arsehole Kane. Take your pick.”
Kane humourlessly laughed, “Don’t stop now, babydoll. Tell me how you really feel.”
I itched to smack the stupid smug look off his face, and I would have only I didn’t want to get arsehole all over my hand.
“You know what you can do?” I bellowed.
“I’m going to guess something unpleasant.”
Oh, my God!
“Go and fuck yourself, you fuckin’ wanker.”
Kane laughed, “That doesn’t sound unpleasant all. Hit me with something else.”
As you wish.
I turned and grabbed the battery-operated alarm clock on the locker next to me, then turned and smacked Kane right in the chest with it.
“Take that, you tick tockin’ prick!”
Kane grunted and hissed for about a second, then he laughed. And he laughed hard. It infuriated me. I angrily pushed his bed covers off me and got off the bed. I didn’t get up as swiftly as I wanted to, but I got up, and that was the important thing.
“Where are you going?” Kane asked through his stupid laughter.
I stuck my middle finger up at him then turned and stormed out of his room. I briskly walked down the hallway towards the stairs and sped it up to a light jog when I heard Kane’s footsteps coming after me.