It's All Relative

by S. C. Stephens

  Goodbye…cousin.

  Chapter 13

  The First Date

  To say that Kai Harper was confused would be an understatement. Here he was, actively planning a date with a vivacious, flirtatious, gorgeous woman, and all he could think about was his cousin’s lips wrapped around his. It was sick. It was twisted. And it was occupying every waking moment he had.

  He pictured her smile when he ate breakfast. He remembered the feeling of her compressed to his back when he drove to work. He imagined the sound of her laughter while he listened to his coworkers. But most of all, he remembered the feeling of her lips against his. He could almost still feel the heat.

  A hand smacking his shoulder brought him back to the present. “You still here?” Kai looked up at Louis. The Indiana Jones wannabe was standing in front of him with a hand on his hip, like this was an old western movie and Kai was about to tell him to draw. Considering that the extent of their adventurous day had involved the two of them collecting water samples from a nearby stream, it was sort of funny to Kai.

  Securing the vials of water in a pack, he slung it into the back of one of the center’s jeeps. “Yeah…I’m listening.” Knowing that he hadn’t really been paying any attention, Kai struggled to remember what they’d been talking about. He instantly remembered with Louis’s next statement.

  “Good, then take her to Paccione’s. You’re practically guaranteed a successful mating.” Louis shifted his stance and grinned. “In fact, I think that’s written right into the menu.”

  Kai rolled his eyes and shook his head. Right, Louis was helping him plan a date with Jessie’s roommate. While he appreciated Louis’s enthusiasm, he really wasn’t trying to have a successful “mating” with April. And fancy restaurants didn’t sound like much fun to him. It was just a little too…typical.

  Climbing into the rig, Kai shrugged. “I don’t know, Louis. That seems a little…cliché.”

  Louis chuckled as he climbed into the driver’s side. Adjusting the numerous gadgets on his belt so he could sit back in the seat, he gave Kai a wry smile. “Clichés are clichés for a reason, Harper…they work. Every species has their version of strutting and feather-preening.” His eyes turned forward as he started the engine. “The human ritual just happens to involve lobster and overpriced wine.”

  Kai watched Louis start to move the vehicle, wondering when this outdoorsy, slightly wild-looking man had ever taken the time to dress up and take a girl to a place where eating the chicken with your hands was frowned upon. As they started back to the center, Kai sighed. He really didn’t know April well enough to plan a date with her. Picturing what Jessie might have fun doing, he started smiling. Now, with her, he could easily imagine setting something up. Something different, something unique that would make her smile. Something a little…romantic.

  Kai frowned. He shouldn’t really be planning romantic outings with his cousin. As the incongruous gray buildings came into view, Kai looked over at Louis. “I was thinking about something outside, a picnic or something. That’s romantic, right?”

  Kai wasn’t entirely sure if Louis knew anything about being romantic. At least, not anything that was original. Louis gave him an odd look as he parked the jeep behind the buildings. “Take her to Red Rocks.”

  Kai blinked. Should he know what that meant? Seeing his confusion, Louis explained. “Red Rocks Amphitheater. There’s nothing playing this time of year, but you could take her up there and have a picnic on the steps.” He cracked open his door and before he got out, tossed back, “Most women go nuts for that kind of shit. It works better than piss on a porcupine.”

  Kai shook his head again at his coworker’s choice of bizarre, but oddly effective, mating practices in the wild. But climbing out the Jeep door, he started to think that Louis might be on to something…about the human dating ritual that is. Kai wasn’t sure what April was into, but he could easily picture taking Jessie up there, stretching a blanket out under a clear blue sky. He’d have to layer up to not freeze to death, but then…that could lead to cuddling later.

  Kai sighed as he walked into the building, remembering for the umpteenth time that he wasn’t planning an outing with his cousin, and really, he shouldn’t actively plan for cuddling with her. No, he was planning a date for April.

  He needed to remember that.

  As he went about solidifying his plans, he spent the majority of his free time at Gran’s, making sure she was healing okay. She rolled her eyes whenever he asked. At one point he thought she might pop up and do a jig to prove to him that she was healthy as a horse. Assuring her that the display wasn’t necessary, he did as much as he could for her without coddling her.

  He spoke with April a few times on the phone during the week. She called him to confirm their date, then she called him to ask what she should wear. Since he didn’t want to ruin the surprise, he only told her to dress warm. Pausing, she’d asked, “Warm? Really?”

  An odd feeling entered the phone after her question, like she was silently sulking on the other end. Maybe she’d been hoping that they’d be going somewhere that required very little clothing? “Is that okay?”

  Her voice all sunshine and cheeriness, she told him, “Yeah, it’s fine. We’re going to have a blast, Kai!”

  Wondering if he was planning a decent enough date, Kai considered running it by Jessie. He wasn’t sure if he should or not. True, they were family and he respected her opinion, but he was planning a date with another woman. Even though they’d both agreed that this was…necessary for them to move past what had happened between them, what was still bubbling between them, she probably didn’t want to hear about it. Kai knew he wouldn’t want to hear about her and some other guy. He already hated the tidbits he’d heard about her and her d-bag ex, Jeremy.

  So, whenever he talked to Jessie, he kept the topics off April, sticking to work or Gran…or her; Kai could listen to Jessie talk about her life for hours. After a two hour conversation late one night, Kai wondered if that was typical cousin behavior.

  She came by his place the next night, looking fresh faced and flushed when he opened the door. Smiling at the unexpected visit, he smiled wider when he saw what she had in her hands. Shaking his head, he pulled open the door and swung his arm, motioning for her to come inside.

  Beaming as she walked over to the patio set that she was letting him use in his kitchen, Kai watched her plop down a couple of thick cushions over the wrought iron chairs. Even though he would readily admit that the furniture was a little hard and uncomfortable, and some padding would be nice, Kai put his hands on his hips in mock sternness as she adjusted them into place.

  “You need to stop doing nice things for me.” Securing the deep blue fabric to the metal chairs, she peeked up at him while he shook his head. “I can’t keep up, Jessie.”

  Finishing, she admired his small kitchen set for a moment before twisting to face him. “You don’t need to, Kai.” Tilting her head to the side, she bit her lip. A long, curly lock fell over her shoulder, resting just above her breast. Kai swallowed, forcing his eyes to stay locked on hers. “Besides, I couldn’t leave you with butt-numbing furniture.”

  Jessie laughed after her comment, her face lighting up in a way that made Kai want to sigh. He didn’t though. He only smiled and sat in his suddenly comfortable chairs. Smiling wider, he leaned back and exaggerated a long, happy groan. “Well, my butt and I thank you.” Kai laughed, feeling lighter just being in her presence.

  She started to lower herself into the newly padded chair opposite him, but paused halfway down. “Oh,” she exclaimed softly, reaching in her pocket. Struggling to contain an impish smile, she pulled out her hand and handed him something. “Here, I got this for you.”

  Kai watched her warm brown eyes burn with mischievousness as he took the object. Furrowing his brow, he stared at a candy bar in his hands. Then he read the label and started laughing. Glancing up at her, he gave her a crooked smile; her eyes locked onto his lips. “A Bit-O-Honey bar? B
ecause of the bees…right?”

  Laughing genuinely, she nodded her head. Kai couldn’t contain his smile, watching her amusement. Shaking his head, he put on his most disgruntled voice. “Cute.”

  As Kai started remembering her hands running all over his back, he started to feel a little warm. His eyes drifted to her lips as she shrugged and said, “Yeah, well, I saw them at the gas station when I was filling up on the way over and thought of you.”

  She tilted her head again and stared at him so lovingly, he stopped breathing for a second. Swallowing at the look in her eye, he whispered, “Always thinking of me…”

  The smile fell from her face, instantly replaced by a look of longing and pain. Kai wanted to reach out for her, wanted to pull her into his arms and hold her. More than anything, he wanted to tell her that they could find a way, that they could be together. Even if it was wrong, even if their families would disown them, surely what was building between them was strong enough to make a lifetime of ridicule worth it?

  His stomach twisting at the mere thought of caving, he looked away from her. As right as it felt sometimes, it also felt so horribly wrong. He couldn’t entertain those thoughts. Not with her.

  She sighed softly after he broke their intense connection and Kai peeked back at her. Worrying her lip, she studied the table. Just when he thought to ask her how she was feeling, even though he already knew that she was as torn and conflicted as he was, she whispered, “Where are you going to take April?”

  Kai sighed now and Jessie looked up at him. Knowing that telling her about April now would only help to firm the wall they needed to have between them, he laid out his plans. She listened, small tears forming in the corners of her eyes. When he was finished, she was silent.

  Just as Kai looked away again, she spoke. “It sounds beautiful, Kai. I think she’ll love it.”

  Kai looked back at her again. Even though she’d said, “I think she’ll love it,” Kai clearly heard, “I know I’d love it.” He swallowed and nodded, then he got up and came around to her, pulling her up into the hug he felt she needed. The hug he needed.

  Letting go…it can be so hard. Especially if you don’t really want to…

  As the week dwindled, Kai got nervous. He liked April well enough, but really, he wasn’t all that interested in dating her. But Jessie was insistent that he try, and his grandmother….well, once she found out he had a date, with Jessie’s friend no less, she was over the moon. She asked him details about April every time he went to check on her. Laughing, he told her that he hadn’t even been on a date with her yet, so she could stop with the wedding planning.

  Chuckling, and looking relieved that he had someone, she then switched the conversation to her second favorite topic – his job. Gran always asked him how he was fitting in there, if he liked it, if he got along with his boss. She always gave him an odd look when she asked about Mason, so Kai always smiled brightly and told her that things were going great and he was very happy. True, his boss still hadn’t warmed to him, and he really wasn’t sure what he was doing wrong, but no need to worry the poor woman with his work woes.

  She’d look even more relieved after that, like a weight had been lifted from her frail shoulders. When he thought to ask her why one evening, she shifted the conversation again, but this time to Kai’s dad. “He misses you so much, dear.” Lifting a gray eyebrow, she softly added, “You know, if you ever did get…unhappy here, he would surely find a spot for you at the research reserve. You could work with your father every day…and Leilani.” Her lips twisted a little after she referenced his mother.

  Kai frowned at her suggestion. For one, his father hadn’t sounded like he missed Kai all that much the last few times he’d talked to him. It bothered Kai, the sudden distance between them. He wasn’t sure why it was there, but he was hoping that his dad just wasn’t dealing with the separation as well as his mom. Well, if you can consider her calling him at all hours of the day and sending him care packages that included things like deodorant and shaving cream, handling it well.

  Kai didn’t like the edge he’d heard in his dad’s voice recently, but didn’t know what to do about it, especially from here. Maybe when he went home for Christmas they could have a sit down talk?

  Focusing on his grandmother’s second statement, he raised an eyebrow at her. “You want me to go back to Hawaii? Are you trying to get rid of me?”

  The old woman gave him a loving smile and shook her head. Placing a wrinkled hand on his smooth one, she said, “No, dear, I love having you here.” She sighed, a sadder sound than the conversation warranted. “I just want you to be happy.”

  Looking down at the ground, Kai smiled. Thinking of his cousin, he whispered, “I am happy here.” Even if being around Jessie was a little torturous, it still filled Kai with a feeling that could only be described as happiness.

  That happiness extended right up to his date night. As he drove his bike to go pick up April, he started wondering if Jessie would be there, or if she’d avoid the weirdness of him picking up another woman right in front of her. He hoped April wasn’t too hands-on if Jessie was around. But he couldn’t tell her not to be, and Jessie couldn’t tell her not to be. Neither one of them had a good reason to tell April to be respectful of Jessie’s feelings. There was just no way to bring up what was going on between them without grossing everybody out and embarrassing them both.

  Taking his helmet off once he stopped the bike, Kai took a moment to appreciate the clear, beautiful, early afternoon sky. The mountains in the distance created the perfect backdrop for the looming city spread out around him. The bustle of human life reached his ears along with the singsong of still active birds and the occasional yap of a nearby dog. It wasn’t like Hawaii, but Colorado was growing on him. Once he adjusted to the temperature, he thought he’d be right at home here.

  Smiling at the thought of sharing Jessie’s hometown with her, he twisted the messenger bag slung across his chest, laying it on the ground next to the bike. Once of the downfalls of driving a motorcycle - no trunk space - but he’d managed to finagle everything he needed for a decent meal into the bag, even a bottle of wine.

  Letting out a quick exhale, Kai worked on calming his nerves as he walked to the front door. Jessie’s truck being in the drive wasn’t helping with his nerves either. She was here. She would come out to say hello, to show a polite respect to her cousin, and then she’d watch him drive off without her. Kai imagined that was going to hurt her and as he knocked on the door, he wished Jessie had stayed away for this. She shouldn’t have to see it.

  The door opened widely and Kai smiled at seeing April before him. She was very pretty. Given a different set of circumstances, Kai probably would have welcomed a date with her. Having taken his advice, she was dressed in a couple of layered long-sleeved shirts over a pair of tight, stretchy denims. Her hair was perfectly styled, every strand in place, and her makeup was meticulously applied. While she looked amazing, Kai worried that she wouldn’t approve of a helmet potentially ruining the smooth, low ponytail she had her hair in.

  “Kai, hello.” She leaned forward, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.

  Kai looked down for a second, confliction rising in him. He didn’t want to be attracted to April, but he was a man, and he did enjoy her attentions. And he felt really guilty about that. He felt even guiltier when he looked up and saw Jessie watching them, a few steps behind April. As April smiled and pulled him into the house by his arm, he locked gazes with Jessie. Not able to control it, he stared at her longingly. If he hadn’t agreed to this, he would tell April that he really wanted to go out with his cousin tonight, not her. But this was what Jessie wanted, what they both needed.

  He watched Jessie swallow and give him a slight nod. “Hi, Kai.”

  Trying to keep the longing in his face out of his voice, he told her, “Hi, Jessie.” By the way Jessie’s eyes watered, he wasn’t quite sure if he was successful.

  Oblivious to the mood in the room, April gra
bbed a fluffy jacket from the back of the couch. She was attached to his arm in an instant, wrapped, bundled, and ready to go. Kai pulled his attention from Jessie to concentrate on his date. “Ready?”

  April smiled brilliantly and hugged his arm, pulling herself closer into his side. “Yep.” Without a second thought about it, she glanced over at Jessie. “See ya, Jess. Don’t wait up.” She winked after she said it and Kai briefly closed his eyes to block out the image of Jessie’s face paling.

  As April tugged his arm out the door, Kai looked back at Jessie. “Goodbye,” he whispered.

  Jessie feebly raised her hand in a wave, her already wet eyes looking heavier. It nearly killed Kai to watch April close the door between them. He’d never felt more horrid. But somehow they had to change their relationship. They had to be a family. They had to get rid of this…tension.

  Once outside, April started digging in her purse, like she was looking for her car keys. Kai cleared his throat, pointing to his bike when she looked up at him. “I thought we’d ride?” April had seemed like she’d wanted to before, when Kai had picked up Jessie, so he’d just assumed that she’d be thrilled with the idea.