Page 39 of Mending Scars

“Well, sorry to have ruined your plans,” I teased.

She stared into my eyes. “You didn’t ruin anything. I wasn’t living before. I always blocked out the world and the ugliness it contained.” She gave me a shy smile. “You changed that—you showed me how beautiful life can be.”

My eyes ran over her face. “Same here. After my parents died, life wasn’t the same. And then, everything that happened with Ethan and Molly solidified what I thought—life’s a bitch, and then you die. But then I met you, and you reminded me that life is a gift.” I brushed my knuckles down her cheek. “You are my gift.”

Leaning in, I gently kissed her lips and pulled her against me. My heart raced every time that sweet mouth of hers met mine. Kaiya was my high, the addiction I couldn’t satisfy. No matter how much I had of her, it wasn’t enough; I still wanted more.

My hands went to her ass as I pushed my hardening cock against her. She softly moaned in my mouth and threaded her fingers through my hair.

A knock on the door broke us apart. I buried my face in one of Kaiya’s pillows and let out a groan of frustration.

Damn it, we should have stayed at my place.

I peeked up at Kaiya to see her lips twitching as she fought a smile. She mouthed sorry before saying, “Come in.”

Kamden stuck his head in the room. “Hey, I rented a couple of movies for us to watch. I was just about to put the first one in.” He raised his eyebrows expectantly, like a kid asking for ice cream.

I knew Kaiya would say yes before she even spoke. The endearing look on her face said it all. “Okay, we’ll be right there.”

“Awesome, I’ll make some popcorn,” Kamden replied before turning around and going back down the hallway.

Kaiya yawned as she sat up on the edge of the bed. “I don’t know if I’ll even make it through the first movie. I’m so tired.”

She came around to my side as I stood up. “Are you sure you want to stay up? Maybe you should get some sleep—it’s been a long day.”

“No, it’s okay. I want to spend some time with Kam, especially since he’s trying to work through his issues.”

I draped my arm around her and kissed her temple. “Okay, Warrior. Whatever you want.”

We headed out the door toward the living room. Even though I would much rather be in bed alone with Kaiya, I still enjoyed doing homey stuff with her.

We sat down as the sound of popping and the smell of popcorn filled the air. Kaiya snuggled close to me and leaned her head on my shoulder, then yawned again.

Yeah, she’ll be asleep in half an hour, tops.

I put my arm around her as Kamden brought the popcorn in two bowls and handed us one. Kaiya started munching on the snack as Kamden started the movie.

Kaiya made it about twenty minutes before she started dozing off. Her head would slip off my shoulder and she would jolt awake and start fighting sleep again.

Kamden laughed. “Tired,sorella?”

“No,” Kaiya lied. “I was just resting my eyes.”

I snorted, causing Kaiya to glare at me as she sat up.

So stubborn.

She finally gave in to sleep halfway through the movie. I gently cradled her in my lap before rising off the couch. “I’m gonna take her to bed. It’s been a long day.”

I heard the movie turn off as I walked down the hall to Kaiya’s room. I shut the door with my foot and laid her down on the bed. She didn’t move an inch, even when I covered her and kissed her lips—she was completely out.

I took off my jeans and shirt, then slid into bed next to her. Wrapping my arms around her waist, I placed one of my hands on her stomach and smiled.

My baby.

The smile was still on my face when I fell asleep.

At work the following day, my mind was still swarming with thoughts about the baby. Most were good, but every now and then, a negative one slipped in there.

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