Page 131 of Just Between Us

I nod, grinning, and this time I kiss him deeply, desperate to convey something I barely understand myself.

“What was that for?” he asks.

“Just.” I shrug, pulling away. “Where’s Levi?”

He’s quiet for a second then she smiles. “He just came from a run. I think he went upstairs to shower.”

An idea strikes me, and I grin. “Huh, I think I need a shower too since I smell like roses.”

Cole groans. “I have a call in two minutes.”

I shake my head, pecking him again. “Too bad. We’ll have fun without you.”

Levi is already in the shower when I walk into the bathroom. Steam forms a sheer cloud through the room, and I quickly undress before opening the door and stepping in. His hair is wet and hanging around his face, muscles taut, a perfect V pointing directly to his dick which I want in my mouth immediately.

He smiles when he sees me, pulling me in for a kiss. “Hey, baby. You’re home.”

I hold him close, deepening the kiss and letting the hot water from the shower soak us both.

Levi feels like home. Cole feels like home.

And it feels like, after years of searching, I finally belong somewhere. I found my perfect fit.

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Cole

Levi’s parents, Kai’s sisters and his mother sit around the dinner table with us on a warm Saturday evening. I watch everyone laughing and enjoying themselves and a part of me wishes I was close with my own family, but they burnt that bridge a long time ago. I don’t think there is much of a way back.

After everything that happened with the Petrov shipment, Nick has kept his distance which is all I’ve ever wanted. A part of me knows I should have done worse to him. He should be rotting in the ground being feasted upon by worms like Kenny or Adam for what he did, but another part of me knows there’s still the five-year-old Cole inside me, desperate to have him come back to that shed and tell me he’s sorry.

Kai sits next to me, and he laughs at something Zoe says. It took me a minute to figure out which one was which, but Zara is the louder one and Zoe prefers being in the background.

Zara and Levi have already declared themselves new best friends, but I can tell Zoe is still wary of us. She eyes me from across the mahogany table like she’s trying to read all my secrets just from my face. I have no idea how to handle nineteen-year-old girls, but it’s safe to say she terrifies me.

Levi is deep in conversation about the political state of the country with Zara and Aleeta and I watch everyone around the table with an ease in my chest I have never felt before.

With Adam and Kenny gone and both Levi and Kai knowing the truth about what I did, I feel a lot lighter and the happiness that flows inside me is unfamiliar but welcome. I always thought I was happy with Levi but there were so many secrets between us. Now that Kai is with us it’s like having a walking sunbeam around you all the time. I’m obsessed with constantly being in his light.

When dinner is over, everyone filters into the second living room, the house full of loud chatter and clinking glasses full of wine.

My phone vibrates in my pocket, a text from my grandmother asking me to deal with a particularly difficult client.

“You feeling okay?” Kai looks at me carefully, like he’s trying to assess any damage. “I know my sisters can be intense.”

I smile. Zara has been too focused on Levi and Zoe has barely said a word, but she does keep staring. “Nah, they are great. You did an amazing job with them.” I plant a small kiss on his lips. “I just need a second to make a call, okay?”

He frowns like he doesn’t want to let me go but he nods, and I pass Levi, giving him a quick kiss too. When I make it to my office, I shoot a quick message to my grandmother telling her I’ll deal with it on Monday but just as I slip my phone back in my pocket, there is a soft knock at the door.

Kai’s mother walks in, looking a little cautious. She’s short, can’t be more than 5”2 and her skin is a smooth deep brown. A pile of curls is set atop her head and it’s uncanny how much she resembles her three children.

“Cole,” she says walking further into the office. “Do you have a moment?”

“Of course,” I say. “How can I help?”

“I just wanted to come in here and tell you thank you,” she says.

I tilt my head. “For what?”

She shrugs. “I don’t know, you just seem to care about my son a lot and Levi too. It’s like you move with them, wherever they are, your eyes are on them. It’s…sweet,” she says. “I don’t know how much you know but Kai didn’t have the easiest childhood, and I was oblivious to it for a long time. He deserves people who care about him. I’ll say this to Levi too but I’m glad that it’s both of you.”

---