“Do you work because of child support?”
The question stings. I think about not answering but I’m not a liar. “The little girl you saw me with is my niece. Her name is Lacey. We were shopping for her Halloween costume.”
“She looks just like you.”
“Poor thing.” Thea smiles and laughs. “She’s five, and yes, one of the reasons I work. The other is to help my mom out, and my sister when she needs help—which seems like a lot these days. With the exception of Jude, none of the guys really know about Lacey or the situation with my family and I’d like to keep it that way.”
“You’re a good man,” Thea says while nodding.
“I’m not, though, am I? I knowingly kissed a woman who has a boyfriend.”
“She’s wanted to be kissed by you from the first night she met you.”
“She shouldn’t,” I say to her. “I’m damaged and come with more baggage than a full airline flight.”
Thea lets my words sink in. She shouldn’t want to be with someone like me, not when she has the golden douchebag.
“How did you get these bruises?” Her fingers ghost over the bruises I earned last week.
I breathe in heavily and let the air out of my lungs slowly. “Underground fighting, Thea. My mom is being evicted from her home and doesn’t have the money to move. The money is good.”
“Kyler.” Tears well in her eyes.
I shake my head. “I’m okay. They don’t hurt.”
“But you’re going to get hurt.”
I can’t argue with her there. I’ve thought about it a million times over. A punch to the head and I could end my career. Before I can stop her, she presses her lips to my bare chest. I close my eyes and my hand turns into a fist. When her soft, desirable lips touch mine, I let her kiss me. And when her tongue enters my mouth, I welcome her. It’s when she hitches her leg over my hip, I have to stop her.
“We can’t do this, Thea.”
“Why not?”
“Because you have a boyfriend, and while he may be the biggest asshole on the planet, I don’t want you to regret me if something were to happen.”
Thea lies back down and sighs. “I don’t get it, this fight between you and Adam. He’s the whole reason I went out tonight. After your game the other night, he was waiting for me in the parking lot and told me—no he demanded—I move out and into a dorm because of you. Do you guys know each other or something?”
I push her hair behind her ear and let my hand linger there for a moment. “Thea, I’m a lot of things, but a liar is not one of them. I keep a lot of shit bottled up because I don’t like to hurt people’s feelings. I want you to understand this and remember what I’ve said because I’m going to tell you something and I don’t want you to hate me.” I lay everything on the line, from who is evicting my mom and why, to what I saw Adam doing. Thea cries and I feel about two-feet tall. I pull her into my arms and apologize profusely.
“Adam said you assaulted him,” she mumbles into my chest.
“He wishes,” I say to lighten the mood. “Because he’s your boyfriend, I wouldn’t do that to you.”
“See, Ky, you are a good man.”
I adjust slightly so I can look at her. What I wouldn’t give right now to say fuck it and make love to her, to show her how a real man can make her feel. I resign myself to living a fantasy and press my lips to her forehead. “Go to sleep, Thea.”
She nestles into me, putting her arm around me. When I’m on the cusp of falling asleep, she slides her leg in between mine and lets out a little sigh. I’m fucked six-ways-from-Sunday at this point and might as well enjoy her while I can. I rotate just enough to where I’m still I’m holding her, but she’s on her back and can feel every inch of what I’d love to give her.
“Goodnight, sweet Thea,” I whisper in her ear before closing my eyes.
Fifteen
Thea
My mind is scrambled.It has been for a few days since the night with Ky. Never did I imagine what started off as some innocent drinks at a bar, would turn into an argument, then undoubtedly the hottest kiss of my life, which ended with a heart-to-heart in his bedroom. The complications of Ky’s life are clear now, but they are still present, and even though he’s shared the load, I know he’s still carrying the burden on his shoulders. I don’t even know where to start to try and figure out what’s going around in my head.
The easiest piece of information he gave me was the fact he has a niece—not a daughter—and she’s clearly the apple of his eye. This much was obvious from the way he was with her at the mall the other day, but the fact he’s admitted he basically provides for her shows me a side to him I never knew before. The caring, protective, family man. The one who would do anything in his power to look after those closest to him.