Jessie took in the sight of him with bated breath. Smiling politely at April, he was holding a canvas grocery bag in one hand; his other was casually shoved into his dark jacket. He was angled in such a way that his tattooed shoulder blade was facing Jessie. She felt hotter all over as she stared at the spot under his clothes where his ink was hidden away from the world. It gave her a rush to know that none of her friends were aware of it, that for now it was a secret only she was in on. Then April’s hand flitted across his shoulder as she slinked her fingers over his body, in no way being discreet about checking him out. The obvious move made Jessie frown, and ice instantly doused her warmth. She can’t touch him like that. Only, she could. She had no reason not to.
Harmony edged past Jessie as she approached Kai. While April probably wouldn’t think about if she’d seen Kai before, Harmony might. Jessie anxiously watched her friend’s face; her insides felt like a dam about to fail, like every last bit of control she possessed was about to burst. Please don’t let her recognize him. But as she watched Harmony greet him, her face was only curious and her words were only polite. She didn’t suspect anything.
Hearing Kai say his name out loud made Jessie’s heart do strange things. This was too much, too intense. She was going to lose it while she waited for her roommates’ memories to snap into place. Swallowing, she wondered if they’d notice if she started hyperventilating into a bag. But so far, nothing bad had happened. Harmony was smiling, April was smiling, even Kai was smiling. They were all enjoying a bit of small talk, Harmony and April asking Kai how he liked living here. Nothing about their stance or appearance looked horrified. Nobody was piecing together anything, and they would have by now if they were going to. She could relax. The moment was over.
Feeling better, Jessie finished walking into the room. Kai turned to face her as she did. He took a step toward her, like he was going to hug her, but then he stopped, like he suddenly thought he shouldn’t. Jessie felt her body tremble with a mixture of anticipation and disappointment, but she only smiled at him. As always, those absorbing eyes stole her breath, and transported her to a place where only the two of them existed. For just a fraction of a moment, they were the only two people in the room, maybe the world.
“Hey,” he softly said.
Jessie felt her skin begin to tingle as his eyes drifted over her face, and then very discretely, over her body. Suddenly remembering her friends, Jessie hoped she didn’t look flushed, or flustered, or anything out of the ordinary. She also hoped Kai liked the way she looked. “Hey, glad you could make it,” she calmly told him.
Like he realized he’d been examining her, Kai cleared his throat and shifted his gaze to her house. “This is a nice place. Much better than mine.” Bringing his eyes back to her, he added, “Thank you for having me.”
Harmony pointed to the bag in his fingers. “What’s that?” she politely asked, stealing a quick glance at Jessie. Jessie cursed herself for not asking him that first. Seeing him just took a minute for her to get used to.
Kai grinned at Harmony as he reached into the bag. “Well, I wasn’t sure what we were having.” He pulled out a bottle of white wine and handed it to her, then reached back in and grabbed a bottle of red. “So I brought one of each.”
Harmony smiled as she took them. “We were just saying we needed some.” She raised an eyebrow at him and smiled. “You must be psychic.”
Kai glanced down at the floor, embarrassed. It was adorable, and Jessie watched both of her roommates’ smiles brighten. Shaking his dark head, Kai reached back into the bag. Peeking up at Jessie, he started to hand her a small bouquet of flowers, but as soon as April spotted them, she plucked them out of his hand.
“Oh, carnations, my favorite.” April beamed as she smelled them.
Knowing that he’d meant the flowers for her, Jessie frowned. She couldn’t exactly protest over April grabbing them, though. It would be better if he’d brought the flowers for the house. As April giggled, Kai shrugged. “Yeah, well, it was all they had at the store.” He looked at Jessie after he said it, and there was a clear apology in his eyes.
Jessie shook her head and gave him an encouraging smile. It was for the best. He shouldn’t be bringing her flowers. This wasn’t a date.
April bounced on her toes, clearly delighted at Kai and his gifts. “I should put these in some water,” she announced. Backing away from him, she pointed at the couch. “Make yourself at home, Kai.”
He nodded at her, slipped his jacket off his shoulders, and slung it over the side of the couch. All three girls stopped and took a moment to appreciate the fit body that even multiple layers of clothing couldn’t hide. Giggling as she watched him sit down, April grabbed Jessie’s arm and dragged her into the kitchen with her. Lightly laughing at April, Harmony followed them.
Once in the kitchen, April turned on the water then twisted to Jessie. Her face was incredulous. In a low voice that Kai couldn’t overhear, she said, “He is hot! Why didn’t you tell me he was so hot?”
Jessie shrugged, and a trickle of something odd and awful ran up her spine. Jealousy or disgust, she wasn’t sure. “He’s family. I don’t see him that way.” Jessie could almost physically feel the lie in her words.