“Bailed?”
“Left without telling you.”
Koko smiles. “I like you, Kaylee. You’re a good roommate,” she says, giving me a little head bow. “But I had fun last night…without you. To be honest, I enjoy being”—she cocks her head to the side, thinking—”independence.”
Holding back a giggle, I smile. “You mean independent?”
“Yes, independent.”
“Well then, I’m glad. I know I don’t ask you much because I want to respect your privacy, but are you glad you stayed in the US and happy with modeling?”
She looks thoughtful again, then turns and scoots to the edge of the bed. “Modeling is…okay. I wanted to experience something different I wouldn’t get to do back home, living with my parents. But mostly, I like the parties and meeting people…” She grins widely.
“Oh,” I say, taken aback. Koko could go far as a model with her unique look, gorgeous smile and hair. “I had no idea, because things are going so well for you at the agency.”
“I was taught to work hard, excel in whatever I do. But I have something in me…I don’t know the word. I…” Then she says something in Japanese, and it sounds so beautiful coming from her.
“What does that mean?”
“It means I don’t want to, uh, daydream my life. I want to live. To experience.”
“Yeah, that would be nice.”
“At least a little while. Then I go back home, work hard, take care of my family.”
“I’m sure your parents are very proud of you, Koko.” I sigh and get off the bed. Then a thought pops into my head. “You’ve never had any problems with Archie, have you?”
She cocks her head. “No, why?”
“Nothing,” I say, shaking my head. “I need to go get another room key. I seem to have misplaced, well, pretty much my whole purse with everything in it.”
Koko leans over and pulls the drawer of the nightstand open. “Here is your bag, Kaylee.”
“Oh, my God, thank you.” I flop back down on the bed, grabbing the purse and checking its contents. I’m too embarrassed to look at her with the tables turned—her all full of life answers and wisdom, watching out for me, the immature one making bad decisions.
“So, you were with Justice last night? He’s a good man.”
I roll my eyes before I can stop myself and when I look up, Koko narrows hers. “You don’t think so?”
“It’s complicated.”
Koko laughs behind her hand. “You Americans always call the simple things complicated.”
“What do you mean? And why do you say Justice is a good man?”
“Besides helping me with that big man?”
I hang my head. “I forgot about that, but yes.”
“I only need to see his eyes when he looks at you. He would do anything for you, Kaylee. You just…”
“What?”
“You just have to let him.”
I don’t even know what to say to that. She did break it down simply. There’s just one problem with what she said—I don’t know if I believe it. Not after last night. “I don’t know. I’d like to believe that’s true—”
“Then believe it,” she says, standing. “See? Simple.”
“Simple maybe, but not easy.”
“Easy is not always best, Kaylee. I’m going to shower now.”
When she goes, I pull out my phone, which is off, and contemplate turning it on. I’m not quite ready to face whatever is there. Then again, if one of my editors messaged me for an update, that’ll make me look bad.
I go to my laptop and check my emails instead. I’m still waiting for the first article about the community center to post. It’s gotten bumped a few times. Since I don’t see it, I send the editor a quick email and ask when she plans to have it up.
Next, I pull up the spreadsheet we made for the fundraiser event to keep track of all the details. Because of how busy the agency is before and during fashion week, my mother has yet to give me a final list of models she secured. But I can’t blame it all on her; I know plenty of models, ones I’m sure would say yes.
When I go through the list of newbies she has secured, I stop when I see Mina—a stark reminder she’s young and naïve. I think about what I saw, about my mother, and how I can no longer run from this. I thought I could bury it in the past, that it didn’t matter. Now I feel nauseous and it isn’t from the hangover. Koko’s words run through my mind.
As much as Justice Bridges needs an ass chewing and to give me answers, there’s something more important I need to take care of. I turn on my phone, ignore any messages, and quickly call Glenda to get Mina’s cell number. A few of the girls are sharing rooms here in the hotel but I can’t ask my mother which one.
When I get the number, I text Mina to meet me in the café ASAP. She’s hesitant, but I tell her it’s important and about the fundraiser.
Twenty minutes later, the quiet redhead with the translucent skin, measuring in at five eleven, sits across from me, drinking a latte.
“Why am I the only one here?” Mina says, hunched over the mug she’s holding with both hands. My mother would kill her right now if she saw that posture. Oftentimes, we get them when they’ve been tall long enough to develop a habit of slouching, trying to appear smaller than they are.
I glance to the side, thinking we probably should have picked somewhere away from the hotel, but that would have seemed even more suspicious. “Mina, this isn’t about the fundraiser.”
“Oh, my God. Is it about last night’s show? I know I had a little stumble. My heel got caught. Did Gretchen tell you to cut me from the agency? Gah, why do I always—”
I reach across the table and touch her hand. “No, I’m sorry. It’s nothing like that.”
“Then what is it? Because everyone’s going to the pool…”
I let out a breath, knowing I have to just say it. “I saw you with Archie.”
Her brows furrow, then her gaze falls to her mug. “What do you mean?”
“I think you know.” Fear crosses her gaze and though I feel for her, I have to press on. “Archie had his hands on you. I saw it. And I saw your face and your body language. You didn’t want it.”
She shakes her head. “No, he was just helping me. With my positioning.”
“Come on, Mina. Please don’t brush this off. I even heard you telling him to stop.”
Her lips pull tight and she sets her mug down, looking across the café. “I swear, Kaylee, you better not screw this up for me. It wasn’t a big deal. Other girls—” Her eyes snap to me and widen. “I really don’t have time for this,” she says, straightening and pushing her chair back.
“Wait. You can’t leave. Don’t forget, my parents own the agency,” I say out of desperation.
Frozen, she stares at me with eyes that turn glassy, and I regret my words. She slouches back into her chair. “What do you want from me?”
“I want you to be honest with me. If Archie has been harassing you…or any of the girls, I want to help you.”
“The only way you can help me is make sure I don’t get cut and I stay in your parents’ good graces.”
Sighing, I reach out and touch her hand. “Mina, you’re gorgeous and fresh and there’s tons of buzz about you. That’s what matters. Don’t ever feel like you can’t speak up.”
“Right.” She slips her hand from mine. “Hey, it’s nice of you. But you’re not in my shoes. You left remember? I’m doing what I need to do.” She stands and looks down on me. “Oh, and Kaylee?” I look up. “Girls talk, you know. And if you left for the reason they say you left, maybe you ought to start your little revolution there.”
I watch Mina walk off, my lips parted, my heart racing.
Chapter 13
Justice
“Look, doll face, you know I’d do anything for you, but I’m starting to have second thoughts about this.” Though her words sound as though she is about to bolt, Gretchen pulls her glasses down from the perch on top of her blond hea
d and begins looking at the menu.
We’re sitting in her and Kaylee’s favorite place to eat brunch, waiting for the woman herself to show up. Only problem is, Gretchen didn’t mention the fact that this fundraiser planning session includes me. “I appreciate that, Gretchen, and I don’t want to cause problems between you two, but like I told you, I’m desperate.”
She pulls her glasses off her nose and pins me with a serious gaze. “I just can’t believe I agreed to this without knowing all the details. You’re lucky I trust you with my daughter.”
“I know. Honestly, I’m not just trying to protect my own ass here. I want to respect Kaylee’s privacy. I mean, how much more would she hate me if I went blabbing to her mom about stuff?”
Resting an elbow on the table, she tilts her head at me. “She hates you?” Before I can respond, she adds, “And what kind of stuff are we talking about here?”
“Honestly, I don’t think so. But we had a…misunderstanding. I think. It’s the only reason I can think of for why she won’t answer my calls or texts.” And why she left New York early. The next day, I tried reaching Kaylee all afternoon. Then I went to a party with Elise. She could tell I was upset and worried and said she’d go alone, but I felt guilty bailing on her . Probably a mistake, since I spent the whole time talking about Kaylee. I didn’t tell Elise all that happened, but she said I must have done something wrong because there’s no reason any woman in their right mind wouldn’t answer my calls—her words not mine.
“Well, that clears it up.” Gretchen glances at the door, her body language nervous. “I’m holding you to your promise. If she won’t give you a chance, then as soon as we go over the final lineup of models, you’re gone.”
“Scout’s honor.”
“Somehow I doubt you were ever a boy scout.”
If I thought Gretchen looked nervous, I’m sure I surpassed her when Kaylee walks through the door and heads this way. We lock eyes, and I can see her lips thin out and disappear. Pissed as hell, she’s still the most beautiful thing in the room. I’ve had Kaylee on my ass plenty of times, but this time is different. She’s looking at me like I shot her puppy, and I didn’t do anything wrong.
“Really, mother?” Kaylee says in a clipped tone.
Gretchen and I stand and the two women hug. I pull out Kaylee’s chair, and she sits without looking at me. When we are all seated, no one says anything and neither of them look at me. Staring at Kaylee now, all I can think about is that night. The feel of her skin against mine, the scent of her hair, the way her mouth moved against mine. I refuse to believe that was all the alcohol’s fault.
“Well?” Kaylee says to Gretchen.
“Oh, yes.” Gretchen reaches into her bag on the floor and pulls out her tablet. “I’ve got an updated list here, and I printed a copy for you as well. Just want to make sure it jives with the designers. Plus, the good news is—”
“That’s not what I mean, mother.”
The server picks this time to step up and see if we’d like drinks. My answer was about to be “hells yes” when Gretchen tells her we need a minute.
Kaylee picks right back up. “What’s he doing here?” She doesn’t even look at me.
“Well, aren’t you two working together on this project?”
Her head shakes, her face filling with something between annoyance and skepticism. “Don’t play dumb. You didn’t say he was going to be here.”
“He…is sitting right here. Losing patience too, by the way.”
Her mouth falls open and she finally looks at me. “You don’t get to talk to me yet. Just because you conned my mom doesn’t—”
“Just a minute, missy,” Gretchen interrupts with knitted brows. “I didn’t raise you to be so rude. And he didn’t con me. He said he was concerned about you,”—Kaylee huffs and crosses her arms—”that you weren’t responding, and he had something important to talk to you about.”
“Talk? Hmm. Justice isn’t much of a talker.”
“It sounds to me that you two need to be alone and work this out.” Gretchen stands and gathers her tablet, putting it into her purse. Guess she decided her backup plan wasn’t going to work. “I’ll touch base with you later, baby.” Then she turns to me. “Good luck.”
“Mother, no. This was your idea.”
“Well, I’ve got to run now. Time is money.” She passes a motherly look between Kaylee and me. “I’ve got a tentative yes from two well-known vets, but I don’t want to jinx it, so I’ll tell you both when I find out.”
I watch her walk off, fear keeping me from turning my head and facing those disapproving eyes. I’m so used to annoying Kaylee that I am racking my brain for what I did wrong, because the odds are, it was something. Now, it’s time to find out and settle this thing.
“Let’s hear it?” I say matter-of-factly.
And once again our server appears. “Ready to order drinks?” Her smile is plastered; she can sense the tension. I mouth a sorry with my head shake and she walks off.
Kaylee’s still taken aback by my question. “Let’s hear what?” Her tone is impatient.
“Whatever it is I did wrong this time.”
“Wow, why do you suddenly sound defensive?”
I lean back in my chair, confidence building, digging deep to pull out my man card. I look into those soft hazel eyes, and I know I’d never hurt her, so we’re hashing this shit out right now. “Because I am, Kay. Maybe you could pick a temperature and stick to it. I much prefer hot to the cold, in case I get a vote.”
Mouth agape, she rears her head back, averts her eyes across the room. I wait and watch her breathe. I can’t tell if she’s calming down or getting amped up. Either way, it’s not like I’m made of stone. I can’t watch her struggle and not feel a tightness in my chest. I lean forward and take her hand. “Talk to me, Kay.”
She turns back to look at me. “I just thought you weren’t the guy I thought you were, but you keep showing me you are the guy I thought you were.”
I show her a tight smile, pull my lips under my teeth, taking that in. As vague as that is, it sounds like me. “I’m going to need a little more than that.”
“How about the fact that you had sex with me when I was plastered off my ass?”
My eyes widen. Now I’m the one taken aback. “Whoa, what?”
“I know we had sex, Justice. I snuck out of your room…where we were in bed together…”
“Yeah, because we were sleeping. You were sleeping it off, actually. Shit, Kay, I can’t believe you think so little of me.” So that’s what this whole guy I thought you were thing is all about.
She shakes her head with this disapproving high school principal face. “Look me in the eye and tell me we didn’t have sex.”
Scooting my chair closer and resting my elbows on the table, I lock eyes with her and say, “We didn’t have sex.”
Her mouth falls open and she scoots her chair back, anger burning in her gaze. “Then what the hell is this?” she whisper-yells, pulling her hair back to reveal a faint hickey on her neck.
“Shit!”
“That’s what I thought.” She storms away from the table and then out of the restaurant. I hop up and race to catch up with her. “Kay, wait.”
Outside, she’s walking to her car, and I jog up to her before she gets in. “Don’t go.”
She turns on me. “To think I wanted you to treat me the same way you did other women. Be careful what you wish for…” She leans against her car and wraps her arms around her body. “It’s fine. I don’t even know why I care.”
This whole thing has gotten out of hand, and I can only hope her words are just her hurt feelings talking. “You want honesty, Kaylee? I hate that you think of me like that. I really hope you don’t mean that.”
She doesn’t deny it as we stare into each other’s eyes.
“God, when are you going to start trusting me?” No response. “Fine. I can’t do anything about that. But I’ll be damned if I’m going to let you accuse me of
something I didn’t do.” I plant my hands on her car on each side of her, caging her in. “You were so damn drunk that night, I’m guessing you don’t remember much.” She gives me a barely perceptible head tilt. “I’ll admit, you were hard to resist. But I did it. I wasn’t about to let you go out hammered, though, so I told you to stay the night. And we slept!” I pause for dramatic effect, and I can see the wheels spinning. “About an hour after we fell asleep, I woke up to your hand on my package.”
Her eyes widen and she shakes her head.
“Oh, yes,” I say. “Well, you can imagine how surprised I was. I mean, it was definitely a nice surprise, but…” I grin while her face is the complete opposite.
“No…” she whispers.
“Yep. And you were pretty determined too, just like a busy little bee down there. But I managed to stop you before…well, you know. Still, things got a little heavy before I put the brakes on and yeah, I left you a little present to jog your memory. Guess it didn’t work the way I thought.”
Kaylee ducks under my arms and takes a few steps away, her back turned. “Fucking hell,” she whispers. “How humiliating. Here I am hating you for taking advantage of me and I… I’m such a whore.”
Laughter busts from my throat before I can stop it. “You’re not a whore. You were drunk…and you felt comfortable with me.”
“You don’t know. Maybe I would have done that with some rando I went back to the room with.”
I take her shoulders and turn her to face me. “No, you wouldn’t have.”
“God, I’m so embarrassed. And I’m so sorry.”
“Sorry? It was the best thing that’s happened to me in a long time.”
She slaps me on the arm. “Not for that. Because I accused you. I saw the hickey and I was in your bed and…I just assumed…”
“Trust me, if we went all the way, you would remember.”
She lowers her eyes. “But why didn’t you…”
“Even though you’d been asleep, it just seemed like the statute of limitations hadn’t run out. You were probably still drunk. As badly as I wanted you, Kay, there was something I wanted more.”
Beautiful Bridges (Bridges Brothers Book 3) Page 11