Page 58 of Dirty Pucking Tease

"I guess I deserve that."

"Just tell me that the reason you didn't invite Cam had nothing to do with me at the Cages."

He sucked in a deep breath through his nose before slowly exhaling. "I'm angry she went to the cages because she could have been hurt, and even if we aren't together, I still care about her. She went to the Cages to get back at me because she knew I wouldn't want her there. I'm even madder that she dragged you down with her, but..." He paused as his tongue swept out, wetting his dry lips. "No, that's not why I didn't invite her. There's a lot more to the story that you don't know, Kai, and I prefer to keep you out of it."

"Then I'll stay out of it." I had no doubt there was more to the story and that Cam was probably trying to keep me out of it, too, but I didn't believe Cam going to the Cages had anything to do with Trystan. "I was never mad because you didn't invite her. I was mad you left it up to me to tell her you didn't invite her."

"Sorry about that." He sighed. "I guess I didn't think about that."

"Maybe next time you will."

"So, what's up with you and Jax?" he asked, bumping my arm with his elbow.

"Not sure what you mean."

He laughed. "Is everyone still pretending you guys aren't a thing?"

My jaw dropped, and my eyes widened. "You know?" His lips curled into a grin as he nodded. "Does everyone know?"

"If by everyone you mean Harlow, Syn, Cam, Owen, and me." He smirked, nodding his head. "Then yes, everyone knows."

"Do you think your mom and my dad know?"

"Uh, no, probably not." He chuckled. "They're all blinded by love and lust and all that shit." I laughed. He was right. Our parents had that once-in-a-lifetime love that made you want to vomit because you knew the chances of you ever finding that kind of love were slim. "Plus, they're not around that much anymore."

"Jax thinks they'll freak out if they find out about us."

"Did you ever hear the story of the first time I met your dad?"

"Didn't we all meet at the same time at our first Thanksgiving together?"

He shook his head. "No, I actually met Bradley when my mother was admitted to the hospital because we thought she was having a heart attack."

"I didn't know about that." I also wasn't sure where we were going with this story.

"It turned out it was a panic attack, but it was pretty scary. She thought she was dying, and your dad showed up at the hospital and never left her side." He ran his hand through his hair, pushing it out of his face. "Jax was the only one home at the time. He thought he caused it when it was actually my dad."

"Why would Jax think that?"

"During the divorce, he turned into a little asshole who liked to get into trouble, and it probably didn't help the situation, but he didn't cause it. She and my dad had a huge fight that day, and my dad told her he wanted full custody." I shook my head in disbelief. Trystan's dad had always been so good to all of us. He treated me and my sister like part of his family. "He didn't wantcustody. He was angry because he found out my mother was dating your father."

"Ah," I said. "Your dad has always been so awesome."

"Yeah." He nodded. "After my mom's scare, everyone got their shit together. Jax stopped doing stupid shit, and my dad stopped being a dick."

"Does this have something to do with Jax and me?"

"Before you guys moved in, my mother made us both swear not to cross any lines, and she was pretty specific with what lines she was talking about, but that was a long time ago. I think Jax is terrified that he'll actually cause her to have a heart attack."

I understood that Jax went through a lot with his family before I ever met him, and I understood he didn't want to let his parents down, but I also knew that meant there was no future for us if he couldn't get past this. "I just don't understand why it has to be a secret from everyone. Like the puck bunnies." I muttered the last part under my breath.

"Kai," he said with a slight edge to his tone. "Please don't misunderstand me here." My eyes narrowed on him. "How do I say this?" He pressed his lips into a thin line. "Nothing that happened in Jax's past excuses his behavior now. I'm only telling you this so you understand where his head is."

"I'm not following."

"You need to stand up for yourself, Kai." I nodded. "Jax is my brother, and I love him, but he's an idiot." He shook his head like a thought just popped into his head. "I guess all men are idiots sometimes."

"Are you an idiot sometimes?" I laughed.

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