She shocked me since last night—she was vocal about what she liked, loved, and wanted more of. This morning, she showed me how talented her mouth was, and I found a new favorite position.
Her on top.
There wasn’t any way that was bad with Natalie, but the images of the way her face looked as she shattered over me would stay with me for a very long time.
She stepped up to me and offered the tentative, non-assured smile that meant she needed me to do something to show her. It was amazing how much I learned about her in just a few days, but it was never enough.
I wanted to figure out every single look she gave me and what they all meant. I wanted to know every part of who she was and what made her tick.
I reached my hand to her backside and under the towel, pulling her to me. “Seeing you in this towel makes me want you all over again.”
Natalie stepped up on her tiptoes and kissed me, holding my face in her hands. I loved it—it was like she tried to channel everything she couldn’t say through her lips and onto mine.
I ran my fingertips along the bare skin of her butt and pulled on the towel. It fell to the floor, and the second I felt her skin against me, I hardened.
She was going to kill me, but I’d die a happy death.
“Did you have a nice shower?” I rubbed her nose with mine, my fingers now tracing a path down between her breasts, her flat stomach, and between her legs.
She nodded, her eyelids lowered. “Would’ve been better if you were there with me.”
Well, shit. Despite how small my shower was, I would make it work. That was now top on the list.
Natalie reached her hand inside my shorts, and I knew our breakfast would be cold. I lost count of how many times I had her already, but to hell with working or taking Natalie to see the sights of New York. All the sights we needed were right here in front of us.
All I wanted was to be inside her. “How about I make you dirty,” I said, lifting her onto the small island. “Then we go and clean up again.”
Natalie bounced her leg up and down, wringing her hands as we headed on the train to Sebby’s house. After our day of lovemaking, I got her to agree to meet the guys. I knew she was nervous, wondering what they would think of me bringing her, but I wasn’t.
I waited a long time for the day I could introduce my friends to someone as special as her.
All I could do was hope Natalie was the one.
“Natalie.” I put my hands over hers to stop the nervous wringing. “It’s okay.”
She nodded. “I know.”
I put my lips against her ear. “Do I need to remind you of the many orgasms I gave you last night and today?”
She blushed, biting her lip and looking up at me. “Kai,” she whispered.
“I can’t wait to give you more tonight. Meeting my friends is nothing. I promise. They’ll love you.”
She pulled her phone out, followed by her ear buds. I smiled, waiting for whatever she would play to tell me what she felt.
Without a word, she put a bud in my ear and one in hers. She opened her music app and hit play. Before the song even started I tipped her head back and kissed her softly. Whatever the song was, she needed to know I was here.
“Bound to You” by Christina Aguilera began playing in our ears, and I once again felt like the wind had been knocked right out of my lungs. As the powerful lyrics traveled between the two of us, Natalie laid her head on my shoulder, tucking herself into my side. When she sang the line about being terrified of loving for the first time, Natalie turned glassy eyes to me. Her eyes wide, she searched my face for a reaction.
I wasn’t sure if she thought I would run or what, but there was no trepidation here. I already knew what I wanted from her and us. Natalie seemed to be figuring it out, too.
Seemingly satisfied with what she saw on my face, she settled back against me and closed her eyes. I kissed the top of her head and hoped I could show her what she meant to me and have her believe it.
Nothing made me happier than being here with her. I caressed her hair and back as we listened to the rest of the song without needing to say a word.
“‘Die a Happy Man,’” I whispered into her hair as the song ended.
Natalie quirked her eyebrow up. “Is that country again?”
“Yep.”
She laughed. “I never pegged you for a country guy. Or pop for that matter.”
I shrugged. “Music is music to me. I’ve always loved different sounds for certain things. Lyrics are powerful. There are times, like now, when country lyrics are perfect. There are others when it has to be old school.” I wiggled my eyebrows at her, and she laughed again, remembering my Boyz II Men song. “And besides, you like pop, too. What does that say about the manager of a rock band?”
She held up her hands. “Okay, okay. You’re right. I spend my life surrounded by rock, so sometimes, I like listening to other things. And music is powerful. If it wasn’t for music, I don’t know where I’d be right now. I need to hear this song.”
I took her phone from her and searched for the song. “Here you go.” I pressed play, and she settled back against me. We were just a few minutes from the stop for Sebby’s house, and I found myself wondering what they would think of her. I wanted her to fit in, to befriend Larissa—I hoped they’d bond and it wouldn’t be awkward.
I hadn’t taken a girl to meet my friends in years, and even when I did, it never seemed to last very long. It wasn’t that they disliked my girlfriends or dates, it was just that I didn’t seem to find one who clicked with all of us.
“It does seem too good to be true, doesn’t it?” Natalie said as the song ended.
I shook my head. “It’s good, Natalie. It’s better than good, and it’s true. You and me, right here and now, it’s as real as it gets.”
“What happens when I go home, Kai? Will you still…?” She broke off and looked away.
“Did you listen to the lyrics? There’s a reason I played that for you. We’ll figure the rest out, I promise.” I took her hand and stood as the train came to a stop. “This is our stop. Come on, beautiful.”
“Shit man, she’s gorgeous.” Sebby slapped me on the back, opening a beer and handing it to me. “How the hell did your ugly mug get a woman who looks like that? Damn.”
“Sebby,” Ian said. “Seriously. Have you seen your woman?” He clapped me on the back and rolled his eyes at our friend. “She’s great, Kai. I like her a lot.”
We’d been at Sebby’s for about an hour. When we first arrived, we spent the first thirty minutes talking. Natalie, despite being nervous at first, had opened up, and I believed she was enjoying herself.
Lyssa immediately took to her, and she was inside the house with her now. I made a mental note to check on her in a few minutes and make sure she was okay.
“I like her, too,” Tate said. “Are things serious? I’m gonna be honest here and say you look totally whipped by this woman, bro. I think you’ve looked longingly at the door about a hundred times since she went inside.”
The guys all laughed, including me. I had no problem admitting anything to them, and they were about to all find that out.
I took a gulp of my beer and set it down in front of me. We hung out on the couches in front of the huge television in the garage, our instruments untouched.
“Holy shit,” Sebby said when I didn’t respond. “Did you guys see that look on his face?”
Ian and Tate nodded. “Dude. How long have you been seeing her again?”
“Well, we’ve known each other for several months, ever since I took over as the rep for Jaded Regret. She just came up here last week, though.”
“So let me get this straight.” Sebby crossed his arms in front of his chest. “You’ve been talking to this girl for months and then she came to New York for what? To visit you?”
“Well…kind of. We had some work to do on the international tour, but I just wanted to spend time with her.”
“So you’re togeth
er.”
I nodded. “Yes. Completely.”
Tate raised an eyebrow. “Kai, we’ve known you for a long time, and I have to say, I’ve never seen you like this. Is she…?”
He stopped, leaving the sentence hanging in the room.
“Is she what? Is she the one?”
I heard Sebby suck in a breath, and I looked over at him. His mouth hung open, and his eyes were wide as saucers. I’d never uttered those words out loud to them, or anyone else. For years I thought there wasn’t any way I was ready for what they all had. I had my dreams and aspirations, but love just didn’t happen for me.
Until now.
Wait. Love. I wasn’t afraid of those words as much as I was cautious of them. I wanted to give myself to someone, and that someone was her. But I wasn’t sure I could label it that yet. As far as we’d come, I knew we had more to go before we were ready to admit those sorts of feelings. I could see her being the one and only love of my life. Yes. One hundred percent, yes.
I met the eyes of my friends. “It just may be possible she’s the one. I’ll have to wait and see, but I definitely think it could go that way.”
Three sets of eyes swung to the open doorway where Natalie stood. She stared directly at me, and I wondered if she heard what I just said. I wasn’t embarrassed if she did, I just didn’t want her to be uncomfortable.
“A-am I interrupting?” She worried her hands in front of her, and I knew something stressed her. It was either what I just said, or it was Larissa and Lyssa.
I stood and wrapped my arms around her, pressing my lips against her ear. “Never. I missed you.” I felt her relax against me, and I stepped back, winking at her as I pulled her with me back to the couch.
She sat next to me, and within seconds, Larissa stepped into the garage. Her gaze immediately found me, and she smiled, the cat-ate-the-canary type of smile I recognized immediately. Larissa was on a mission, and I bet I knew at least partly what it might be.
She loved Natalie.
Of course, she did.
There wasn’t anything not to love.
“Lyssa finally passed out,” she said as Sebby handed her a beer. She cracked it and settled next to him on the couch across from us. “She wanted Natalie to read her a bedtime story.”
I looked at Natalie. “Is that right? Oh, she must love you then. Lyssa only asks a few people to read her bedtime stories.”
Larissa nodded. “Yeah. It was cute. Then Lyssa started asking her all sorts of questions. Poor woman. I’m sure if anything could scare her away it would be my inquisitive child.”
So that was what the wringing of the hands was all about. “What did she ask her?” I asked.
Larissa and Natalie looked at each other, and both began laughing at the same time. Hearing her laugh immediately eased me.
“I think you may want your girlfriend to tell you later.”
My girlfriend. I loved the sound of that. We hadn’t labeled ourselves yet, but I wouldn’t mind defining our relationship before she went home.
Exclusively.
Natalie shook her head. “It wasn’t that bad, Larissa. It was funny. She’s so cute.” She looked over at me. “Lyssa asked me if I was going to marry her Uncle Kai and give her a cousin, and if I did, she wanted a girl to play with.”
Oh my God. That crazy kid. And here I was, worried about how hard my friends would ride her. I didn’t count on a five-year-old kid. Natalie seemed to be handling that well. I wondered what she said in response to her.
I started to ask, but Natalie held up her hand. “She also asked me if I slept in the same bed with her Uncle Kai like her mommy and daddy did.” Natalie winked over at Larissa, and she covered her face with her hands, shaking her head as laughter shook her shoulders. “She also asked me if we liked to hug naked like her mommy and daddy did. She said they liked it so much they made a lot of noise when they hugged.”
Everyone paused for a moment as that tidbit sunk in before the room burst into uncontrollable laughter. I had tears in my eyes and pain in my stomach from laughing so hard.
When we were finally able to compose ourselves again, Larissa and Sebby were as red as tomatoes but wiped tears of laughter from their eyes.
“Guess you two should stop hugging so hard,” Ian said, and we laughed again. God, it felt good to hold Natalie’s hand and laugh together with my friends.
“Well…” Tate slapped Sebby on the back. “That was hilarious. The best thing I’ve heard in a long time. Naked hugging. You two do know there’s such a thing as a door lock, right? What have you done, traumatizing this poor child at such a young age? God only knows what she’s seen with you as a father.”
Natalie wiped her eyes again, doubling over with laughter as another round infected all of us. My cheeks hurt from laughter, but what I noticed the most was how full my heart was. Here I was, sitting in my best friends’ house with my girl by my side.
If only I could freeze time and keep her here next to me forever.
Chapter Fourteen
Natalie
“It was great to meet you.” Larissa hugged me against her. When she pulled back, she didn’t let go all the way. “It’s wonderful to see Kai like this. Thank you for doing that for him.”
“I didn’t do anything,” I said. “But thank you. It was great to meet you, too, Larissa. I hope I get to hang out with you guys again.” I meant that, too. It wasn’t very often I got to hang out and be normal with a group of people who looked at me as Natalie, not Natalie Anderson, manager of Jaded Regret.
Not once tonight had any of them asked me anything about Jaded Regret, or asked me to get autographs or concert tickets. When Kai told them what I did, they all nodded and said “cool” and that was the end of it.
Larissa looked over her shoulder and then back to me. “I’ve never seen Kai like this,” she whispered.
“Like what?” I found myself whispering too, even though no one else was around. Kai and the guys were still in the garage, and I’d come in to use the restroom before we left. It was getting late, and I knew Kai and I had work to do tomorrow after spending our entire day working on other things.
I had to figure out when I would go home and talk to Kai about what it all meant.
I never had to do this before, so I felt out of my element.
“The way he looks at you. I hoped he’d find someone someday to fall in love with. For so long he’s been just about work and told all of us he wasn’t looking to settle down. We knew that wasn’t the truth, but he didn’t want us to worry. But now…I see the Kai that’s been hiding for a long time. Now he’s not just happy because he has a career he wanted. Now he’s happy because he has you.”
Fall in love with. Larissa’s words bounced around inside my head, and my heart tried them on like a pair of pants in the dressing room. I contemplated how they fit—whether they were too tight, too loose, or just right.
I didn’t know what the feeling was. I knew how much I loved Beau and now his kids, but that wasn’t the same. I spent my life protecting him and keeping him safe.
I would have to process that for a while and see what I thought about loving someone else or having them love me.
Love to me always meant being hurt in the end.
Let down.
Destroyed.
Tears pricked behind my eyes. “Thank you, Larissa. This is all very new to me, too, so I’m not sure where things are headed for us. But I know I care about him. A lot.”
Larissa nodded her head. “I know you do. I can see it in the way you look at him and the way his eyes follow you everywhere you go.” She reached for my hands. “Give him a shot, okay?”
She didn’t know me; there wasn’t any way she knew about my issues or my hesitation with getting into a relationship with someone. But she read me anyway. I nodded, giving her the most I could give at this moment. I wanted to give him a shot. I had given him more access to me than anyone had in a long time, if ever. I just had to figure out how to continue.
> When I walked out to the garage earlier, I heard what Kai said to his friends. He thought I may be the one. The one. I didn’t know how he could feel that way already. I hadn’t stopped thinking about it since I overheard it, but I forced myself to calm my racing thoughts. He didn’t know I was there. He was talking to his friends, not me. I was torn between wanting to run to the airport and go home or throw myself in his arms and thank him for thinking that about me already.
Maybe he just said that. Maybe he didn’t know what he said. Maybe I misheard him.
Maybe, maybe, maybe.
I took a deep breath and smiled at Larissa. She was a great person, and I could see myself being friends with her, too. Spending time with her and Lyssa tonight was icing on the cake for me. Replaying Lyssa’s comical questions forced me to stop overthinking what I heard Kai say and focus on the here and now.
Until he talks to you about it, let it go. You can’t freak out.
Kai continued to tell me he didn’t want to pressure me. Hell, I was the one who threw myself at him when we made love for the first time. That wasn’t me. At all. But Kai did something crazy to my head. I couldn’t seem to keep my walls up and my lines uncrossed.
“Ready?” Kai appeared behind me, making me jump. He wrapped his arms around me from behind and kissed my neck.
Larissa’s mouth curved into a smile, her eyes shining at us. My heart skipped a beat when Kai moved up to my ear and nibbled it.
“I’m ready.”
Kai smiled at Larissa. “Tell my little Lyssa I’m going to get her next time.”
Larissa groaned. “Not before I get her. Geez, out of the mouth of babes.”
“We’re having lunch with my mom today.” Kai said it like he just told me the sky was blue. He tapped a pen on his desk and stared at the contract in front of him like it was no big deal that he just told me in passing I would meet his mother today.
“Excuse me?”
Meeting the mother was a big deal. A big, big, big deal. I knew how close he and his mom were. Meeting his friends the other day was huge. I knew how much that meant to him to see me around them.
Exposed: A Jaded Regret Novel Page 16
