Page 7 of He's Mine

Fuck! Why do I feel like I fucked up by not telling Kat everything up front? Why do I feel like I need to fix something with her? Why does it feel like she is putting distance between us and why do I hate her doing it?

“Spade…I need to talk to Kat. Alone.” I stand up and take her by the arm, causing her eyes to widen and look from me to Spade.

I all but drag her to my room and shut the door behind us.

“I should have told you how long I was going to be here and why I was renting.”

“No, it’s alright.” She says the words, but I don’t believe them. Something in her eyes has changed and just like her ‘distance’, I don’t like it.

“It’s not. I really don’t know how long it will take them and I needed somewhere to stay until the house is ready. I worried if I said something up front, it would be harder to rent a place.”

“It really is alright, Whit. I should have asked more questions up front and found out how long you would be here. Just…,” she looks at me from where she is sitting on the bed with a smile that doesn’t reach her eyes, “give me a couple of months’ notice so I can find someone new.”

And why does that not sit right with me either? Find someone new. I don’t like that at all even though I comprehend it will have to happen. I can’t stay with her forever. I’ve moved closer to her without really meaning to causing her to have to look up at me. I can’t stop myself from reaching out to touch her chin. She keeps giving me those bedroom eyes and I’m not going to be able to stop myself from doing something I shouldn’t.

“I would never hurt you, Kat.”

She narrows her eyes like she might not believe me, and I find an overwhelming need to find a way to get her to. I need her to believe me, that I wouldn’t hurt her, that I wouldn’t lie to her. I want her to trust me.

“I…we don’t really know each other, Whit,” Before she can say anything else my mouth is brushing against hers.

The move shocks both of us. When I pull away, I take a step back and we stare at one another with the same look. Shock. Her hands come up to touch her lips like I might have burned her. Her brows draw down in confusion and she rolls her lips around her teeth like she’s trying to figure out if she can taste me there. “Why did you do that?”

“I…friends do that kind of thing. It’s like shaking hands or…hugging.” I am grabbing for something to make it sound alright.

“You kiss Spade like that?”

“What? No.”

“Didn’t think so. But I’d like to see his face if you did.” Her evil chuckle has my face breaking into a grin before I stop trying to fight the laugh that comes deep from my belly. She holds her hand out for me to shake it after both of us have gained some control of ourselves again. “Friends.”

“Friends.” I shake her hand and fight the urge to pull her into me and touch our lips together again. I got her to let it go the first time, something tells me I’m not going to be that lucky a second or third or fourth time.

We come back out and Spade asks me if everything is alright. I nod and try to turn my attention to the movie we all agreed on. It’s a comedy so it’s not hard to keep up with the storyline while I secretly watch Kat through my peripheral vision. She’s the most…interesting woman I think I have ever met. One moment she is wrapped in tulle and wearing makeup and the next she is eating pizza with my best friend laughing at fart jokes like she’s one of the boys.

One movie quickly leads to two and then a third one when Kat’s head slides against my arm, her soft little snore sounding just like a purr reminding me of her namesake -a purring kitty cat. I don’t hide the fact I am looking my fill now that she is sleeping and can't tell I'm doing it. When Spade moves on the other side of her, I remember he is here. I had forgotten.

“Ain’t she cute.”

I narrow my eyes at him and scoot further down so more of her can slide over on me. It’s a territorial move but one I have to make. Spade sees it and puts up his hands in a move of surrender.

“She’s all yours buddy. A girl like her…she means forever which is a little longer than I want to give to anyone right now.”

His words hit me hard, and I mentally take a step back. A girl like Kat does mean forever. And what the hell do I know about that kind of forever girl? It’s better that I leave Kat alone - no more kisses, no more touches even if they are all innocent, and no more getting too close.

Even as I think it, I scoot even lower, so her head ends up on my shoulder and she’s close enough the scent of her reaches up and ensnares me.

Chapter Seven

Kat

My days and nights aren’t as sucky as they used to be. I probably owe a lot of that to Whit. And I should probably be worried that he’s come to mean so much to me and my happiness. I just can’t seem to stop myself from gravitating towards him.

It’s not that I don’t like hanging out with Spade too, but me and Spade don’t act the same way Whit and I do. Somehow when we’re together, Whit and I tend to touch each other a little too much, or things always turn a little sexual, like when he randomly drops closed-mouth kisses on me or how we stare at one another a little too long. We’ve even started slapping each other on the ass ‘for luck’.

I tell myself that it’s just us being friendly and that I am firmly in the little sister zone. But when I go to sleep, the things we do to one another in my dreams are anything but brother and sisterly. I understand how I am setting myself up for heartache but somehow when I am with him…I forget.

He’s been asking me to come with him to one of his hockey games. It’s a team made up of other businessmen who get together to play. The first couple of times I am able to use work to keep from going. I’m hesitant because I would be meeting a lot of his friends and what if there’s an old girlfriend hanging around, or worse -a current one?

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