Mandy immediately sticks out her hand and points her little finger. “Oh, I’m always in,” she says. Her tone is particularly devious and I can tell by the look in Piper’s eyes that it makes her uncomfortable.
“Me, too,” I say, forcing a laid back demeanor. I blink at Piper, hoping to send her a subconscious message that it’ll all be okay. In the end, I find it hard to believe that Mandy would let our secrets slip out, especially when doing so wouldn’t benefit her in the slightest. She has nothing to gain by telling Shawn about our night together.
“Okay, sure,” Piper says. I smile at her as we both meet little fingers with the others.
“As always,” Shawn begins his catch phrase, “when the words hit air, they stay there.” We all lower our hands and the air in the compartment feels a little bit thicker. “I’ll start…” He tilts his head back and stares at the ceiling while his mind wanders. “Never have I ever…”
We wait patiently, but nothing comes out of his mouth.
“Well, shit,” he finally says.
“Anybody bring a deck of cards?” I joke.
“Oh, I’m sure one of us can think of something to jump start this game…” Mandy says, leaning forward. “Oh yeah… Never have I ever run away from home.”
“Oh, ha-ha, Mandy,” Piper mutters.
“See?” she replies. “Still plenty of skeletons to be played with. Or how about this? Never have I ever concocted an elaborate scheme to get two of my friends back together again when one of them clearly wants nothing to do with the other anymore—”
“Mandy, cut it out,” Piper interrupts. “We already told you that we didn’t do that.”
“I’m not an idiot, Piper.”
“Yes, you are,” I add, “if you still think Piper and I would meddle in your relationship.”
“Wait,” Shawn finally says. “What are you guys talking about?”
“Oh, kind of like how you used to stick up for your golden boy every time we broke up?” Mandy asks me.
“If you didn’t want to get back together with him every time,” I say, “then you shouldn’t have gotten back together with him every time. I didn’t force you to do anything.”
“It sure as hell felt like it,” she says. “I wasted so much time, it’s not even funny.”
“Mandy…” Piper whispers her name as she glances at Shawn.
“So…” he says, “dating me was a waste of your time?”
Mandy opens her mouth to speak but hesitates a moment. “Yes,” she finally says. “I feel like the break-up should have happened sooner.”
“Damn…” Shawn mutters. “By all means, Mandy, don’t hold back or anything.”
“It’s the truth—”
“That’s really cold, Mandy,” I say, staring her down.
“That’s a bold response from someone like you, Kai,” she fires back. A smile suddenly crosses her lips. “Oh, I have one. Never have I ever fucked my best friend’s ex-girlfriend.”
“Mandy, stop,” Piper snaps.
I sit back, unable to say a single word that crosses my tongue.
“Oh, please,” Shawn says. “I know all about you and Kai hooking up in high school. That’s old news.”
“Right,” Piper says. Her blue eyes turn black as she stares Mandy down. “So we should just move on.”
Mandy ignores her. “You should probably bone up on your current events, Shawny,” she quips. “You’ve missed a few headlines. Hasn’t he, Kai?” She stares back at me with cold, lifeless eyes.
Shawn laughs. “I don’t know what you’re on, baby,” he says to her, “but it must be some serious shit.”
Mandy’s face bounces back and forth between mine and Piper’s. “No one has anything they’d like to say?” she asks. “Something you’d like to get off your chests?”
“Mandy, please…” Piper whispers.
“Fine, I’ll do it then.” She looks at Shawn and leans forward. “Shawn, three nights ago, Kai fucked me and Piper in a hotel room.”
I close my eyes and say a childish wish to myself to suddenly be somewhere else. It doesn’t matter where; The bottom of an erupting volcano, or at the end of a noose, or even in an underground pit surrounded by black widow spiders. Any of those would be preferable to being on this train right now.
“What’s she talking about?” Shawn asks the room. The hairs on my neck stand tall, magnetized by his eyes staring me down. “Kai? Is that true?”
I open my eyes and see Mandy’s amused face looking back at me. “Yeah…” I finally say. “It’s true.”
Shawn falls silent.
“Looks like we don’t all know each other that well, after all,” Mandy smirks.
“Knock it off,” Piper tells her. “What is wrong with you?”
“Me?” she asks. “I’m just being honest with the people that care about me. It seems like a decent change of pace for this group.”
Anger spikes in my blood. “You’re being a total bitch is what you’re doing—”
“Kai…” Piper warns.
“No, by all means, let the man speak his mind,” Mandy says.
Piper shakes her head. “We shouldn’t be having this conversation right now,” she says.
“On the contrary,” Mandy shrugs, “I think we should all just let everything out right now — bring us all a little closer together. Shawn can talk about how fucking clueless he is, Kai can talk about how he betrayed his best friend, I’ll talk about how much I enjoyed it, and you can talk about the little bundle of secrets you’ve been carrying around with you for weeks.”
I look at Piper, but she quickly turns away from me. All my fears about her rise again and I feel that aching tickle at the back of my mind. The one that tells me she’s hiding something. “That’s enough, Mandy,” I say, fighting the urge to give in.
She grins. “Oh, it’s a whopper, too. Let me get her started...” Her eyes graze the ceiling before falling back to me. “Never have I ever been pregnant.”
The words rush through my ears, but refuse to grab hold of me. They pass through my memory multiple times, echoing over and over again, before they finally settle into my brain and sink in.
I turn to Piper. She doesn’t move. Her mouth hangs open slightly with words caught on the tip of her tongue. She flicks her little blue eyes at me, but they quickly fall to the floor with silent gravity.
“What?” I ask her.
Chapter 11
Piper
I imagined this moment in quite a few ways. They mostly involved us sitting down together in a quiet room. I’d calmly explain the situation and then tailor the rest based on his reaction. The latter part in particular was a complete mystery to me, no matter how many times it went through my mind. It’s the only part I have no control over. Finding out you’re going to be a father must be a shock to any man, but Kai Casablancas?
Oh, boy.
“Piper…”
I force myself to look up from my feet. Kai stares back at me across the car with wide, confused eyes. I open my mouth to speak, but I can’t find the words. I let the rhythmic sounds of the train fill the blank space between us. I sense Mandy leaning back against her seat next to me. She no doubt feels very pleased with herself right now and probably wears the satisfaction in her eyes, but I can’t stand to even look at her right now to confirm it.
“Is that true?” Kai’s voice brings me back to him. He’s looking at me, expecting me to give him the answer I rightfully owe him.
“Yes,” I whisper. “It’s true.”
“Whoa…” Shawn says, frozen in his seat across from me.
Kai falls silent and it absolutely kills me. He always has something to say. He’s always said something, no matter what the situation brings. It’s only been a few seconds and I already miss his voice.
Please, Kai. Say something. Anything. Yell at me. Scream at me. I don’t care. Just say something.
His lips stay closed, as does everyone else’s for what feels like an eternity.
�
��Piper and I should have sex.”
My eyes shoot over to Shawn. “Excuse me?” I gasp as rage slowly starts to boil within me.
“Kai slept with Mandy,” he says. “It seems only fair that the two of us should copulate.”
“Shawn—” Kai snaps out of his trance. “She’s carrying my child.”
“You should have thought about that before you stuck your dick inside of my girlfriend, Kai.” Shawn shakes his head at him with shame. “One night with Piper and we’ll all be square.”
“Ex-girlfriend,” Kai corrects him.
“Can we please vote on the whole having sex with me issue?” I ask. “Actually, no— fuck that. We don’t vote on who gets to fuck me. I’m not having sex with you, Shawn.”
“I agree,” Kai says.
“Actually,” Mandy adds, “I think he makes an interesting point.”
I twist in her direction, hating her even more. “Mandy.”
Shawn gestures at her. “Thank you. The voice of reason chimes in.”
“Voice of reason, my ass,” Kai says. “It’s not happening.”
“You could have backed out at any time, Kai,” Mandy says to him. “In fact, I remember Piper telling you I would leave if you didn’t want to go through with the three-way. You hesitated, so obviously, Shawn’s feelings must have crossed your might, right?”
Shawn stares at Kai. “You fucking Brutus.”
“Oh, please—” Kai says back. “You wouldn’t have backed out either, Shawn.”
“Yes, I would have!”
“Okay then — hypothetical theater,” Kai begins. “Imagine Mandy and you are still together and she takes you to a fancy hotel room, whispering words of a super secret surprise for you. You get there and Piper lies on the bed, naked, wearing nothing but a silk robe. You think, ‘Well, shit. I can’t do this. Kai would kill me.’ But then, Mandy mounts Piper and they start kissing, putting on a sexy show for you—”
I lean forward in my seat. “Get to the point, Kai.”
He pulls his words back. “Do you leave?” he asks Shawn.
Shawn stares straight ahead at me, no doubt doing everything in his power to visualize my naked body beneath a silk robe. “Shit…” he finally mutters.
Kai nods and slaps a hand on his shoulder. “Thank you.”
Shawn bounces his arm to knock Kai’s fingers away. “I still don’t think that vindicates you,” he says, crossing his arms. “I am a far weaker man than you are, Kai. You knew better.”
“Maybe so,” Kai replies, “but we can find a better way of settling this that doesn’t involve you fucking my pregnant girlfriend.”
“Fine,” Shawn bites with disappointment.
“Can we please not say the P-word?” I interject. “It makes me feel uncomfortable.”
Kai shifts his attentions to me. “Are you sure you’re pregnant?” he asks.
“Kai!”
“How long have you known about this?”
I look back at him, pleading with him with my gaze. “Can we please not talk about this here?” I ask.
“At least four weeks,” Mandy answers for me.
“Mandy!” I shout at her.
Kai almost falls forward out of his seat. “Four weeks?!” he shouts with anger in his voice.
“Not four weeks—” I look at him and I lose my words.
“Then how long?”
“I was four weeks late,” I explain. “I didn’t know for sure until a few days ago.”
“Late is the missed period thing, right?” Shawn asks.
“Yes,” Kai answers without glancing at him. He keeps his eyes focused on me. “But she keeps careful track of that, which means, she has pretty much known about this for four weeks. Isn’t that right, Piper?”
“I didn’t want to worry about it until after school was over,” I say. “We were both already stressed enough with finals as it was, I didn’t want to make it worse.”
“Oh, I imagine you thought you were doing the right thing. But as usual, Piper Lynch gets empathy wrong.”
I sit back. “Kai… I—”
“You what?” he snaps. “You didn’t care? You didn’t think I’d notice that something was wrong with you for weeks? You didn’t consider anyone’s feelings other than your own?”
I shake my head. “That’s not fair…” My lips quiver. “You have no idea what this feels like.”
“Because you won’t tell me,” he replies. “Almost four years together and you still won’t open up to me, Pipes.”
“That’s bullshit.”
“Is it?” he asks. “You know everything about me. I tell you every little thought that crosses my brain, but you… Getting to know you is like wrestling with a shark. Always has been.”
“This isn’t exactly something I can just drop into any casual conversation, Kai,” I argue.
“Good morning, Kai,” he quotes. “Your hair looks nice. By the way, I’m knocked up.” His hands jerk into the air. “Boom. Done. I don’t see the problem.”
“No, you wouldn’t,” I say. “The world is just so damn simple to Kai Casablancas.”
“This is not nearly as complicated as you’re making it out to be, Piper. I had a right to know.”
“I was going to tell you—”
“When?”
“When the time was right.”
He scoffs and shakes his head. “This is unbelievable…”
“The only thing I find unbelievable about this is your reaction, Kai,” I say.
“Oh, really?” he asks. “Did you expect me to be happy about it? Jump up and down? Do a little dance?”
“No,” I answer, “but I expected you to keep your fucking cool about it.”
He rolls his eyes. “Well, I’m not.”
“I know that now. Whatever happened to growing and changing together, huh? Where’d that epic Casablancas romanticism go?”
“Out the fucking window, obviously.”
“Yeah, no shit. I knew this trip was too little too late.”
He pauses. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means, Kai, that we’ve been dead in the water for months now…” I inhale a quick breath. “We should have just bit the bullet a long time ago. It would have been better than waiting for us to drown.”
“Finally,” Kai sighs, “one of us says it out loud. But as fucking usual, the timing is a bit off. Should have said it four weeks ago.”
“Well, with any luck…” I mutter. “I won’t be knocked up for very much longer.” He stares back at me in stunned silence, unable to respond. I lose my words and find myself overwhelmed by nausea. Every bump and rock of the train car makes me even more dizzy. I look around to see Shawn and Mandy’s quiet, awkward expressions. Their eyes refuse to make contact with either of us.
“Excuse me…” I whisper. “I can’t be here right now.” I stand up and bolt away, quickly maneuvering through the aisle to the next train car.
Kai fucking Casablancas.
Finally, our truth comes out.
***
“I don’t mean to alarm you,” Mandy whispers in my ear, “but Kai is staring at you right now.”
I push my golden tassel to the side as a gust of wind sends it into my face. “Let me guess,” I say. “He’s leaning against his car, trying way too hard to look cool, while Shawn jumps around him, trying to decide which one of his legs to hump?”
She chuckles. “Yeah, pretty much.”
“I figured.” I look across the parking lot. He and I lock eyes for a long moment before I roll them back over to Mandy. “I guess we know what this means.”
“Kai Casablancas has officially made his way through each and every girl in our graduating class… except you.”
“How delightful,” I mutter. “This summer should be fabulous.”
“Just keep your knees together for a few more months until college begins,” Mandy says. “You’ve managed for two years, you can go a little longer.”
I blink. “You think I’m te
mpted?”
“Oh, please. Of course you are.”
“I am not!”
Mandy raises her brow. “Okay, fine. I take it back. You’re not the least bit tempted in fucking the most gorgeous man that’s ever graced the halls of Belle Academy.”
“I think you give him too much credit.”
“I think the lady doth protest too much.”
I glare at her before stealing another quick glance at Kai. “I have more important things to worry about than Kai Casablancas,” I say.
“Ahh…” Mandy smirks. “The big trip?”
“You still in?” I ask.
She scoffs. “Um… duh! A week in Europe with Piper Lynch? I can’t fucking wait.”
I hesitate for a moment. “There’s more to it than that.”
“Like what?”
“Can you keep a secret?”
Her eyes roll into the back of her head. “Are you kidding? It’s me, Piper.”
I smile and bite my lip, wondering where to begin. “Well…”
“Hey, Pipes.”
Kai’s voice invades my ears and I slam my lips shut. He sits in his stupid corvette, staring up at me from the driver’s seat. “What?” I ask, glaring at him.
“Let’s go. Mom’s waiting,” he says.
I look back at Mandy. “There’s something I should mention about the trip—”
“Hey, Kai,” she says, smiling at him.
“Howdy, Mandy.” He sends her a wink and Mandy’s cheeks turn pink.
Maybe I shouldn’t trust her with this after all.
***
“Jeez, you look like crap.”
I pull my eyes away from the busy Paris sidewalk to find Shawn standing over my park bench. He stares down at me with his duffel bag slumped over his shoulder and a shit-eating grin on his face.
“You certainly have a way with women, Shawn,” I mutter. I look at my phone to check the time, realizing that I’d completely lost track of it. Somehow, I’ve been sitting out here for nearly two hours.
Shawn plops down next to me and tosses his bag to the ground. “This place looks exactly the same…” he says, looking around. “I swear, I saw that exact same kid selling bread on the street four years ago.”
UNDYING: A Bad Boy MMA Romance (Midwest Alphas) (Book 3) Page 23
