Page 36 of Law Of Love

“This is good,” he muttered, cocking his head at my half-finished sketch of a bluebird soaring through the air with its beak to the sky, the wind rushing through its feathers and causing them to appear ruffled. “Maybe your little waiter friend was right. Your work might be hanging in the Louvre one day.”

“Thanks,” I said awkwardly, clearing my throat and taking my pad back. “How come you looked in an even worse mood than usual when you came in?”

“Tough day working.” Kaleb leaned against the doorframe, his biceps bulging, making it extremely difficult to focus anywhere else.

“Working? I thought you went shooting.”

He didn't speak for a second, pinching his eyebrows together, his tongue skating along his teeth.

He was stressed.

“Yeah, shooting is working for me. It's practice. I can't let my skill level drop over Christmas break.”

“Oh right, yeah.”

“Any more on your dad?”

“Mom reported him missing to the police,” I said hopelessly.

“And...?”

“They don't seem interested. They don't believe it's out of character for him, so they want us to give it a bit more time.”

Kaleb appeared a little taken aback. “That's kind of unusual. It's not the procedure usually followed.”

That was interesting to know.

His eyes wandered briefly, honing in on my lips, and he opened up his mouth to speak.

“I'm home!” announced Jackie as she rushed into the house, pushing her long hair away from her face, huffing as she dropped her bags of groceries onto the floor. It caused Kaleb's eyes to round, and he quickly made his way downstairs to help her carry them to the kitchen.

“How was your day?” I asked, following them.

Jackie shrugged. “Besides a boss who won't get off my back now that I've got my promotion? Great.” She laughed. “Hey, you finally got your car fixed, Freya; that's good.”

My eyebrows dropped, and Kaleb faltered for a second as he dug deeper into the grocery bag for a sack of potatoes. “I—I didn't…” I muttered, confused.

Jackie glanced at me curiously. “Well, it was parked up on the road instead of in the driveway, so it’s been moved. I assumed you'd fixed it? Looks like it’s been cleaned, too.” She finished unloading her grocery bag, yanked off her work heels and groaned with relief as she sauntered out of the room.

The cogs in my brain were working overdrive as I bit down on my lower lip. I hadn’t noticed my car had been moved. God, I really needed to start paying attention.

“Here,” mumbled Kaleb as he threw me a set of keys, and I caught them with a small yelp, glancing down to see my lilac heart-shaped keychain hanging from the metal.

“You—you fixed my car?” I asked in disbelief, causing him to shrug like it was no big deal, packing away a box of pasta.

“Don't say I never do anything for you.”

“Why?” I asked, squeezing my keys between my hands. That must have cost him a fortune. Or had he done it himself? The thought of Kaleb all sweaty and covered in car grease made me gulp.

I didn't have the money to pay him back right now—the amount I made from my once-a-week job wouldn’t cut it—and guilt hit me like a tsunami.

“You were walking to college in the rain,” Kaleb responded, tucking the empty shopping bags away in a drawer, studying me.

“Thank you.” I smiled. “But an umbrella would have sufficed.”

He stepped closer to me, smirking. “I'm not really the bare minimum kind of guy.” A chuckle escaped his lips, and he stepped past me into the doorway. “Plus, I like women only one type of wet.”

My breath hitched, and sudden arousal flowed through my body, my mouth popping open. I stood motionless, welded to the kitchen floor with, my heart beating so fast I thought it was going to fall out of my ass.

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