A faint smile lifted Kellan’s lips, but it quickly faded. “I’m sorry I was sort of an ass to you. I just didn’t want you involved in her ugliness.”
I stroked his moist skin with my thumb. “I’m not involved with her, I’m involved with you, and I wanted to be there to support you. “
Kellan looked down, his face a mixture of appreciation and concern. “I know. I just . . . I know her, and I knew how she’d be.” He glanced up at me. “Especially now that she knows what you mean to me. I wanted to protect you.”
I gave his chin a light kiss; his skin was slightly salty. “I’m not weak. I can handle it.”
Kellan’s smile was peaceful as he sat on the bathroom counter. “I know you’re not weak. I think I’m the weak one. I needed to know you were safe, protected. I didn’t want you to have to hear . . .” His voice trailed off as he let his thought die. “This was all about me, Kiera . . . and I’m sorry.”
I could easily imagine just what Joey would have said to me—every intimacy she would have described, every bad behavior she’d witnessed from Kellan. She would have tried to drive a wedge between us, just because she hadn’t been able to turn Kellan into one of her boy toys. It only reaffirmed to me just how dangerous jealousy could be.
Straightening my shoulders, I laced my arms around Kellan’s neck. “You can stop apologizing, you know. I forgave you a while ago.”
His smile broad, Kellan wrapped his arms around my waist. The jagged line along his jaw didn’t look quite as bad with his eyes glowing with happiness. “Yeah?”
Stepping closer to him, I shrugged a shoulder. “Of course. You and I aren’t always going to agree; we’re not always going to get along.” Careful to avoid his cut, I grabbed both of his warm cheeks. “And . . . I am so proud of you for telling me the truth when you really wanted to lie. That means more to me than . . . well, that means everything.” My throat closed up on me, and I had to swallow to relieve the pressure.
Kellan’s eyes searched mine as he nodded in my hands. Moisture pricked my eyes as I thought of the many lies that had speckled our relationship. Honesty, while painful at times, was the best thing we could do for each other.
Before the emotion of the moment could sweep me away, I made my mood brighten and asked him, “Do you want to tell me what happened?”
Kellan gave me a long, drawn-out sigh, reminding me that neither one of us slept last night. I stifled a yawn after that realization. “She wanted to meet here at the house, but I told her I’d meet her around the corner. I wanted to beat her there so she didn’t show up here anyway, so I didn’t have time to go to a bank. I didn’t have enough cash, and she freaked out when I wrote her a check for the rest. I offered to drive with her to a bank, but she smacked me, and I told her to fuck off. I went for a run after that to blow off some steam.” Bitch. He rolled his eyes while I narrowed mine. “She’s a touch crazy. I don’t know how I ever lived with her.”
I was more wondering how he’d ever slept with her. But he was already irritated, so I didn’t say it. Kissing my head, he murmured, “I just want to shower now, get ready to go.”
I stepped back so Kellan could step away from the sink. I hated that he was leaving today and I wasn’t. I wished he could stay. I wished I could leave. But wishing doesn’t change anything, and we would both have to be patient. Kellan turned on the water as I shut the bathroom door. I took over his spot on the counter and watched him adjusting the temperature of the shower. Hopefully the hot water had refilled since my epically long shower earlier.
When the water was perfect, Kellan took off his shoes, socks, and T-shirt; the damp shirt clung to his skin as he removed it. Once it was visible, my eyes fixated on the tattoo over his heart. It was a good thing Joey hadn’t seen my name etched into his skin. Kellan might have received more than a bloody line across his face. But Kellan didn’t often show his tattoo to the world. It was ours, private. I would really miss seeing the scripted letters when he was gone. Just one of a thousand things I would miss.
Kellan’s fingers paused on his track pants. Roused from my melancholy thoughts, I glanced up at his face. He was frowning. “Am I making a mistake?” he whispered over the sound of the shower.