The band is headed to Texas for another show and then they are taking a two-month break before they are slated to record their second album. I don’t know what I’m doing, but when Kai asks me to stay on the bus with him I say yes.
I don’t have anything with me other than the clothes on my back, but as long as I am with Kai, I don’t need anything more.
Penny said she had a feeling I wouldn’t be coming home with her tonight, and she actually brought a bag for me. She has it in her car. Hunter brings it to the bus for her. He and Vance both tried to get her to come with us but she declined. I think they both were sad to find out she is now engaged.
/> Penny squeezes my neck and kisses my cheek. “Katie I think you are finally where you are meant to be so don’t screw it up this time.”
“How did you even make this happen?”
“I had help from an old friend.” She looks at Vance and winks. I didn’t know they still talk.
He grins and opens that stupid mouth of his. “I had to get Kai’s dick back. Every day I have watched him pine away wanting you and hating you. He is worse to be around than a woman on the damn rag.”
“Thank you,” I mouth to Penny as she walks off the bus. The door shuts and Kai throws me over his shoulder like a caveman and carries me back to his bed while the guys whistle.
“I guess I owe you an explanation about Khloe and Raven,” Kai says somberly bringing up what divided us in the first place.
“Kai, I’m sorry for how I reacted. I just wasn’t expecting that ya know.” I wasn’t ready for the responsibility that could have come with his secret. I was scared.
“Khloe isn’t my daughter. She is my niece.” He holds his finger to my mouth so I can’t interrupt. “Raven cheated on me with my brother. Hell, we really wasn’t even dating. We were just kids. It was the summer before ninth grade. I kept trying to get up the courage to approach you.” He wraps his pinky around mine.
He squeezes my pinky hard with his. “Raven and I were stupid. It was the summer before ninth grade. We connected over music. I thought she really liked me. Some other girl had my eye, but she made me so nervous, I couldn’t ever get the courage up to talk to her.” He looks at me with sad eyes and I know he is talking about me. I’m the other girl.
“Kirk had just graduated and I looked up to him so much. Raven started coming over a lot. He would pick her up and drive her home. That was the summer we found out he had a drug problem. Anyway it turns out Raven had a crush on Kirk. She had this big fantasy about how they would fall in love. She was just using me. Long story short, she slept with my brother one night when he drove her home. I didn’t find out about it until much later, when Raven told me she was pregnant. She told me her family threatened to put my brother in jail for statutory rape. I stepped up and said the baby was mine. Kirk doesn’t even remember having sex with her he was so out of it.”
“God Kai that’s horrible.”
“My parents told me to claim Khloe as mine. They had me lie and say that I was the father. My mom works with abused children Katie, how would that look for her to have a son known as a child rapist? Raven was just fourteen at the time. Raven’s family just wanted the baby to go away. They never questioned any of it. My father was a judge at the time when Khloe was born. He was so intent on keeping his perfect image. Raven went on homebound and when Khloe was born, I signed the birth certificate and then we both signed our rights over to my mother. Raven held my brother and our lie over my head all through high school.”
“Where is Khloe now?”
“She’s with Raven and Kirk. They actually got married. It’s ridiculous but somehow they are making it work.”
He goes on to tell me that Khloe was really confused at first but she now knows that Kirk is really her dad and that Raven is her mom. His family was afraid that Kirk would get back on drugs so they kept the truth about Khloe being his from him all that time. Raven really wasn’t trying to hurt Kai and me she just wanted the truth out there. She wanted her daughter but she didn’t go about things in the best way. I want to hate her, but I can’t judge her knowing everything I know. She was just a screwed up girl.
“I should have fought for you Katie. I should have told you the truth. I thought I was doing the right thing.” He brushes his strong thumb over my lips.
“I should have stayed and listened Kai.” I was too upset at the time but maybe our year apart did us both some good too.
“Oh, I’m sorry about your car,” he says out of nowhere.
What the fuck did he do to my car? “My car?” I ask him curious why he is sorry. After I left Kai, I gave the car back; I could not bring myself to keep it. I had Becks return it to Kai’s parents.
“I sort of set it on fire,” he mumbles into my neck kissing my fevered skin.
“You did WHAT?!” I scream smacking his chest. I am going to kill him, and then I am going to kiss him, before I kill him again!
“I was really angry with you Katie. You probably shouldn’t listen to some of the songs I wrote about you.”
“Oh really, now I have to listen. Today was the first day in a really long time I have listened to music. I couldn’t bring myself to listen to anything. I was afraid I would hear your voice.”
He clutches his heart in a dramatic fashion as if he is wounded.
I start to get up from the bed. He grabs onto me holding me tight against his bare chest. “Where are you going Kat?” he seems panicked as though he is afraid I will leave him. He doesn’t need to worry. I will never leave him again.
“I am just going to get my phone so I can listen to your album.”
“That can wait Kat. I have been one year without feeling your skin pressed against mine.” His hard length presses into my side, and he groans as I die a little, remembering how good he can make me feel.