Unexpected Gift(27)

I nearly spit out my drink. I choke a little, finding it hard to swallow my beverage. “What? Him? No way. And I’m not attracted to him, jerk.”

“Please. I’m even attracted to him. Have you seen him? We are looking at the same guy, right?” She snorts, taking another hit off that damn stick. I want to rip it from her mouth.

“Then you go for it.”

“Ha, nice try. Don’t be coy. We all know how fucking stunning he is. With the hair like that dude from Grey’s Anatomy.”

“You watch Grey’s Anatomy? Kenna! How did I not know this?”

“Shut up. I don’t like to talk about it,” she mutters, hiding her face as she takes a drink.

“Oh my god. You have been hiding this from me.”

“You’re changing the subject again.”

“No, you brought it up.”

“Whatever. Listen, Molly. I love you. You’re my family. I’m worried about you living with him. You guys act like you hate each other, but really you just need to fuck.”

“Kenna!” I scold her for her brashness.

“What? Maybe if you guys get it out of your system, the hate you spit toward one another won’t be so bad.”

“There is no sexual tension. We just don’t like each other. We will be tolerating each other for Posie.”

“You realize that’s for the next eighteen years, right?” Kenna cracks her neck, and the sound makes my skin bead.

I haven’t thought of that. Eighteen years? Of course, it will be that long. That will make Posie an adult.

Kenna clicks her tongue. “Actually, it would be forever, because once you have a kid, you always have a kid, but at least when she turns eighteen, you can move out of the house. You won’t have to live with him anymore. Unless you fall madly in love with him, which I wouldn’t blame you. You two would have the prettiest babies.”

I start to sweat, every pore dripping with anxiety. I bet Caden didn’t think about that, either. We did what we thought we had to at the moment.

“Oh, you’re doing that thing with your hand and your neck. You know I’m right!” she cheers, whooping as she pats herself on the back.

I rip my hand from my neck and twist my fingers together. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m not doing anything.”

“You are freaking out,” she says in a sing-song voice.

“I’m not. I’m fine. I mean, yes. Now that you say that, I hadn’t thought of that, but it will be fine. We can make it work.” My phone buzzes with a picture message from Caden.

I open it up and laugh when I see puke on his face. The message reads, “You’re missing out on all the fun.”

“What’s so funny over there?”

I slide my feet under me and type a message back. “Oh, nothing. Caden sent a picture with puke all over his face.”

“Gross.”

If that is what you call fun, you can keep it. Send.

My phone buzzes again with a message from him. Party pooper.

I sit my phone down after that. I don’t want to text back. I don’t want to carry a conversation that I know isn’t welcome. Yeah, he messaged first, but still, he is only trying to be friendly.

“So, he is messaging you now?”

“Kenna, we have to talk. For Posie.”

“Right. For Posie.”

“What is your deal?” I huff, starting to get mad. “I mean, if you want him… you can take him. He is an arrogant, cocky, self-centered, egotistical, rude, sarcastic, narrow-minded—”

“—He is far from narrow-minded.”

I keep going, barely hearing her. “Let’s not forget how gross he is. He has slept with so many women.” I tap my nails on my glass.

“Don’t judge him because you are too much of a prude to have sex.”

“I’m not judging him.”

“I know. You’re finding fault with him so you can try to find reasons not to be attracted to him. I know you, Molls.” She pats my leg. “It’s okay.”

I ignore her again. “He is surprising, though.” I remember how he takes care of Posie without complaint, cries at the expense of my brother, and helped Posie out of a locked car. All of his actions are so different from what he lets the world see. From what I’ve observed, he has a heart of gold—something I never would have thought he had. He cares a lot. He has the capacity to be different from others, but he chooses not to be. He wants people to see what he wants them to see. And that throws me for a loop.

“In what way?”

I swirl the drink in my cup, watching the liquid circle the rim. “I don’t know. I just know he is.”

“And the plot thickens. Yeah, I don’t know how this will go, but I bet it ends with you having sex and falling in love with him.”

When my hair tickles my shoulders, I throw it up in a messy bun, not wanting to deal with it. “No way.” But my heart runs with it. It flutters so much that it starts to fly. I don’t want to believe her, but I wonder...

I wonder if I can fall in love with a man like Caden. I always have my guard up around him, like I want him to stay a certain distance away from me. Too close, and the heat radiating from his skin makes me want to step into his arms. Too far, and I feel safe, but alone, missing the scent of him.