The arousing thought made Jessie’s stomach tighten uncomfortably. Stepping over to the faucet, she stared at herself in the mirror. “Stop it, Jessie. You can’t be with him, so stop thinking of him like that,” she whispered to herself. With her own irritated eyes glaring back at her, she sighed again and turned on the water. Wishing she could splash some on her face without completely ruining her makeup, she settled on feeling the rushing coolness filter through her fingers instead. After another long, cleansing moment, she headed back to Mr. Tinley.
Her brief self-scolding in the bathroom cleared her head a little, and for part of the day, she was able to tuck Kai away into a tiny, unused portion of her brain. But not for long. Eventually he came out, disrupting her work by churning her stomach and igniting her body. The first time he slipped out, she was massaging the shoulders of a man whose back was covered with wiry gray hairs. But Jessie didn’t see the gray hairs. She rarely ever noticed her clients’ oddities, more focused on the muscles beneath the skin, but today her mind completely evaporated the chalky whiteness glowing in the candlelight, and replaced it with the deep, sun kissed shade of Kai’s skin.
And that was only the first time he disrupted her thoughts. She thought about him while working on a strained calf muscle, a bad case of plantar fasciitis, and a shoulder blade stress knot. She pictured her oiled hands running over his taut body as she rubbed down a figure that was not so toned. She visualized the swirl of his tattoo as she worked on a woman whose skin rivaled the depth of color in that dark ink. And between clients, she found herself staring out the window in the break room, hoping to see Kai pull up in that sporty bike of his.
No, as much as she tried, Jessie just couldn’t seem to get Kai out of her head, and it made her feel awful. But wonderful.
With her thoughts drifting and her cousin filling up her brain, Jessie’s day was a long one. She was grateful when it was over, and she was waving goodbye to the receptionist. Glancing at the patio table in the bed of her truck, she wondered if maybe she should wait to drop it off later; he was just affecting her more than usual today, and she wasn’t sure what might happen if she were around him right now, especially if he was being affected by her absence, as well. But then again, while talking on the phone with Kai was soothing and refreshing, it wasn’t enough to keep Jessie satisfied. She needed more. She needed to see him.
And maybe not seeing him for a while was the cause of her problems? Maybe he was something she needed to gradually pull away from, not quit cold turkey. Not that she ever intended to truly quit him. Kai was family, and family didn’t abandon each other, even if being around one another was difficult at times. Her decision reaffirmed, Jessie climbed into her truck and set off to her cousin’s place.
Jessie sighed in disappointment when she pulled into his underground parking garage. The spot reserved for his bike was empty. He wasn’t home yet. Not sure whether she should leave the table in front of his door or not, Jessie climbed out of her truck and stared at the white lines outlining the space where his motorcycle should be. She’d really been hoping to see him.
As if fate wanted them to keep meeting up, Jessie heard the growl of his bike while she was staring at the white lines. Joy lifting her spirits, she twisted around to see his sleek form approaching on that smooth bike. He looked completely natural on it, like he’d been riding bikes his entire life. Effortlessly pulling into the spot she was standing beside, he set his feet on the ground as he shut the bike off. Pushing down the kickstand, he turned to look at her. Beneath the pitch-black helmet, Jessie had no idea if he was happy to see her or not. She was hoping he was. She was certainly happy to see him.
Sitting back on his bike, he popped his helmet off. The grin Jessie saw there was exactly the one she’d been hoping to see. “Hey there, cousin. What brings you to my neck of the woods?”
Jessie suppressed a cringe at hearing the familial term he’d placed between them. Usually she was grateful for the reminder, but after all the fantasies she’d had this afternoon…well, she sort of wanted to forget.
Mad at herself for actually wanting to forget they were related, Jessie smiled brightly at him. “I have a surprise for you…cousin.”
Kai didn’t react to her term either, only tilted his head at her statement as he swung his leg over his bike. After slinging his helmet over his handlebar, he walked up to Jessie. Standing directly in front of where she was leaning against her truck, he reached out for her hand. Loosely holding her fingers, he ran his thumb up and down the back of her hand. It was exquisite torture for Jessie, and she really hated how much she loved the slight caress.