by Eden Butler
9.
GIA
SHE THOUGHT OF MOVING. Several times since the day she had realized her new neighbor was Kai Pukui, she’d had thoughts of getting her realtor to poke around the city and find another place for her. He was a distraction she didn’t need. He was a temptation that had her contemplating the worst kinds of decisions—the kind that would see her ruining twenty years of hard damn work.
But Kai was a force of nature, one Gia didn’t seem able to avoid. Even if he wasn’t trying to enter her orbit, that annoying star circled her. Coming too close, reminding her what she’d almost allowed herself to do with very little fight from her.
He was an infant when you had a Rider Strong poster hanging over your bed in fourth grade, she reminded herself as she walked across the Cleveland sidelines, waiting for the game to start. Kai adjusted his pads, getting one of the assistant defensive coaches to help him fix the lacings and all Gia was able to do was watch the man twist as he looked over his shoulder, blissfully shirtless, explaining to the coach where the problem lay.
The bastard looked up when the adjustment was made and caught Gia watching him, her gaze stuck to the long slope of his broad muscles, then to the wide, smug grin on his face before he winked at her. She bristled, looking around her to assure no one had seen her gawking at one of her players and then moved back upstairs and into the box to watch the game.
More consideration of a new place came to her one Friday afternoon when Gia finally made it home from the office after leaving Cat and Reese drinking at the latter’s apartment, both women complaining about men—Cat and Wilson’s incessant flirting, which Gia could relate to but never tell her assistant about, and Reese about whoever it was she was pining over.
She was distracted when she came to the mailboxes, thinking of Reese and the rumors she’s heard flying around about her and Glenn and all the times the woman had promised Gia there had been nothing between them. So, Gia was only half-aware of the approaching figure who stood next to her as she unlocked her mailbox, not moving as she thumbed through the junk mail and post cards her parents sent from yet another trip to Tuscany.
It was only when Gia turned that she realized Kai stood next to her, leaning against the row of brass mailboxes, that usual, not-bothered-by-anything smirk set firmly over his mouth.
“Nani,” he greeted, his gaze on her face, shifting lower the closer she came to him. “Long day?”
“Something like that,” she told him, moving out of the small alcove that housed the mailboxes. “Any letters from home?” She nodded to his empty hands, rolling her eyes when he slipped his keys in his pocket. He likely hadn’t bothered checking his box.
“I’ll admit, I spotted you standing there and wanted to say hello.” He jogged in front of her, holding open the door that led to the lobby. “We haven’t spoken since that night we…you know…” When Gia jerked a glare at him, Kai’s smirk stretched into a full smile. “I was going to say ‘that night we were stuck together in the black out.’”
“Oh, I’m sure that’s exactly what you planned to say.” Gia reached for the call button in the elevator corridor, but Kai hurried to push it first, lifting his hand in apology when she frowned at him.
“Just trying to be helpful.” That frown deepened, and the man exhaled, scratching his chin. “You seem a little…irritated.” He leaned closer, whispering against her ear. “Is it because I caught you staring at me before the game. Oof,” Kai said, holding his stomach when Gia elbowed him there.
“I’m not irritated, young man,” Gia said, holding back the smug grin she wanted to release when Kai rolled his eyes before she looked up at the numbers above the elevator, wanting them to lower so she could get inside that car and into her apartment without him keeping her distracted. “Maybe,” she continued, an idea coming to her, “I just don’t like you.”
“Ha, no, nani, that’s definitely not it,” he said, leaning against the wall with his feet crossed in front of him.
“What makes you so confident?”
He smirked, the twitch of his mouth going still as he went on looking at her. “Because, Gia,” Kai started, standing up straight. He rested his palm against the wall and left virtually no room between where he and Gia stood. “Twice now I’ve kissed you…really, intimately…kissed you.” Kai brushed Gia’s hair behind her ear and his breath tickled against her bare neck. “The way you kissed me back, touched me…no one kisses someone they don’t like with that much…passion.” She glanced at him, holding her breath when he reached for her cheek. “You got that in spades.”
The elevator chiming broke them apart and Gia was grateful for the interruption. She hurried inside, stepping close to the front, to access the buttons while Kai stepped behind her, stretching his arms against the railing that ran along the back of the car.
“Um…four please,” he said, laughing under his breath.
“So…damn funny…” Gia started, then stepped back, making way for the security guard who tipped his hat to both she and Kai when he moved a cart into the elevator weighted down with several boxes.
“Sorry, folks. Mrs. Elliott needs these on the sixth floor,” the security guard explained, his face somber.
“Of course,” Gia said, selecting the number six button when the door shut. Mrs. Elliott was a Vietnam widow who’d never stop searching for her missing-in-action husband. Every week she had the researchers she hired send over their findings, no matter how insignificant, for her to go through. Since Gia had lived there, the boxes had gotten thinner and thinner.
She stepped back to give the guard more room then straightened when she felt Kai’s hand resting against her hip. Gia wanted to slap his touch away. She wanted to remind him that they weren’t alone, but something about those boxes and what they probably didn’t tell the widow had her wanting to feel some small contact.
For all her misgivings and fear, Gia didn’t stop Kai when he curled his arm closer, pulling her against his chest. She didn’t lean against him. She didn’t give him any clue that she wanted him touching her right there where the guard could turn and see how closely they stood together. But that didn’t keep Kai from holding her to his chest or him from leaning down to brush his lips against her ear.
“When are you gonna stop running from me, ku'uipo?”
Gia’s heart raced, the beat skipping and drumming hard when she realized Kai had called sweetheart. He’d told her once if he ever called her that, she’d know he meant it.
Kai kissed the shell of her ear just as the car stopped on their floor. Then, he threw a wink over his shoulder and disappeared into his apartment. Only then did the racing rhythm of Gia’s heart return to normal. Only then was she able to remember to move, passing his door to hurry in her own place away from the temptation that waited for her just three doors down.
10.
KAI
HE’D NEVER MET A MORE stubborn person. Had it not been for the season and the hard work he and his teammates did on the field, Kai might have gone slowly insane over Gia.
How she disregarded him.
How she pretended there was nothing between them.
How she looked right through him, over his head, damn near beyond him as she held court, manning the team meetings and giving directives about the Lil Steamers camps.
Not once did Gia give him any indication that she knew he watched her or that she had ever touched him.
But she had. There would be no way for her to fake that.
Kai couldn’t shake her—not the recall of her sweet mouth or the feel of her soft body pressed against him. He’d become greedy for her and Gia had erected taller walls to keep him away, stronger locks she likely thought he’d have no hope in breaking.
She had no idea how determined Kai was.
He returned to their building late after their last regular season home game, expecting Gia to ignore his knock, like she had all the times before when he wanted to see her, but stopped short, coming off the elevator with his senses on alert and his fists curl
ing at the shouting that greeted him.
“…selfish, stubborn bitch!”
“Name calling is unnecessary, Joe and immature.”
Kai spotted the man standing in front of Gia’s door, his back broad enough that he could only make out the side of her arm as she held it against the frame as if placing it there would keep him from barging inside her apartment.
Kai instantly moved faster, his heart pounding and the only thought in his head was getting that asshole away from Gia.
“Then let me in, eh?” the man said, waving his hand too close to Gia’s face for Kai’s liking. “Speak to me like a proper adult, not some dumb fuck you tossed out because you had a mind to. You owe me—”
“I don’t owe you—or anyone a damn thing.”
“Is there a problem, Gia?” Kai asked, stepping to her side, glaring at the man before he could hurl anymore insults at her. He knew she would hate him fighting her battles for her, but the man looked unhinged and he was too free with his hands. Kai wanted to stop trouble before it came.
“Well, fuck me,” this Joe character said, releasing a laugh that didn’t sound one bit amused. He looked between Gia and Kai, his head shaking. “And how long did you wait before you picked up this one?” He squinted, looking Kai up and down, seeming to size him up in that way men did when they wanted to measure the make of someone they thought they might be able to take down. Joe would be lacking. He might be big, likely had been some sort of athlete from the shape of him, but he was older and at least thirty pounds thinner. The man wouldn’t last long if he wanted a tussle with Kai.
“Bugger, G, you have a fucking type,” Joe said to Gia, his smile so wide now Kai spotted his back teeth. “Did you give yourself even a week before you found the poor kid?”
“It’s time for you to leave,” Gia told him, arms curled, fingers holding onto the long sleeves of her robe, her face bunching into a glare when the man only laughed at her.
“You got a problem,” Kai said, moving in front of Gia when Joe stepped forward, “then I’d be happy to help you with it.”
“Oh, no, mate,” he said, that kiwi accent Kai picked up becoming more pronounced the louder the man got. “Of the pair of us, you’re the one who’s courting the problem.” He shifted a glance to Gia then looked back up at Kai. “You just don’t know it yet.” He made several steps backward, saluting Gia as he went, then turned, laughing as he moved down the hallway and disappeared into the elevator.
“Asshole,” she said, turning to move into her apartment. Kai waited until the elevator closed, then followed her, relieved that she hadn’t locked the door behind her. He found her in her living room, standing next to the wet bar she’d installed against the bay window that led to the balcony. Her place wasn’t much different than his, but it felt cozier, warmer somehow, decorated much like her office—with rugs and paintings, plants and figurines that probably meant something to her and nothing at all to Kai.
All he cared about in that moment was how her hands shook when she tried to pour herself a bourbon and got most of it on the counter. He moved to her side, taking the small glass from her before he grabbed the bottle.
“I can do it…”
“You’re making a mess,” he told her, filling the glass nearly to the rim. She took it, squeezing his hand in thanks and collapsed into a large tufted armchair with plush cushions and a matching ottoman, resting her feet on the edge. Kai picked up her feet, placing them in his lap with no arguing from Gia. He looked down, head tilting when he spotted an old yellow box under the chair, reaching for it, but Gia pushed it under the ottoman and out of Kai’s reach. Thinking of nothing but how soft her legs felt when she moved her feet together, he rubbed the tops of her toes, smoothing his hand down to her ankles.
To his left, the low rumble of a laugh track sounded, pulling Gia’s attention away from his touch, and he glanced at the television, head shaking when he spotted the same dumb show his sister had been obsessed with as a kid. Some goofy-looking kid and his disheveled, but too-hot for him woman argued with a man called Feeny wearing a sports jacket with patched elbows, and Gia’s smirk widened with the man told the boy to persevere and, possibly take a shower. Kai wasn’t paying attention to the T.V.
He had better things on his mind.
“So, the guy… was he your ex?”
She slipped her gaze from her drink, those big, dark eyes red rimmed and glistening. “I…don’t have those.” Kai moved his head, narrowing his eyes when she didn’t elaborate right away. “Exes. I don’t have them because I don’t date.”
“Anymore?” he asked, needing the clarification.
Gia went still, staring at him, her breath slow, and the look she gave Kai had him guessing what she was about to say came with no exceptions. “Ever.”
Kai felt his chest contracted and something shift inside his head, like a dimmer lowering, a realization that Gia might never change her mind about them. She’d put him off so many times and he kept trying. There was something between them, something white hot and blistering. He’d told her once they’d be combustible and he’d meant it. But back then, he’d only meant sex between them. Now, he knew her. He cared about her. She was he people. Now he felt things for her.
But did she?
He couldn’t stop himself. Kai couldn’t give up, not just yet.
“That’s sad, Gia,” he told her, taking her feet between his hands, massaging his thumb against the arches. Kai grinned when she closed her eyes, purring against the sensation of his touch on her feet.
“What’s sad?” she asked, eyes closed as she sipped her drink. “Me not dating?” She shook her head, releasing a low moan when Kai rubbed harder. “It’s…it’s survival.”
“No one to take you on dates…”
“I can take myself out,” she told her, smiling when he sighed.
“No one to massage your feet.”
She opened her eyes, a slow smile forming over her plump mouth. “I have you for that.”
“But we aren’t dating?” She shook her head, pulling on her foot, stopping when he held it tight. “Not finished.”
“Less talking then.”
“I can talk and rub at the same time. Besides, you owe me an explanation.” She bristled at the comment and he knew his mistake. That Joe asshole had claimed Gia owed him too. She was right no one owed her. They expected. “I just mean,” he started, working the pad of his thumb deeper into her foot, moving from the arch, to the heel, “that you’ve gone a long time not speaking to me, avoiding even basic eye contact with me.”
“It’s been a busy season.”
“I’ve missed you.”
Gia seemed surprised by his confession, pausing before she took another drink to watch him over the rim of her glass. “You shouldn’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because I don’t date,” she explained, closing her eyes when they’d begun to glisten. She blinked quickly, her lashes fluttering, reminding Kai of a fan. “Because I can’t give you what you want. I’m…only good for friendships.”
“Friends?” he asked, the disappointment he felt threatening to suffocate him. Kai never got friendly vibes from Gia. He never got anything but heat and passion and chemistry so thick it felt nuclear. When she nodded, not bothering to answer, Kai tested the waters, moving his hand away from her feet, rubbing along her calve like he’d done that night on his balcony. She’d been so amendable then, so receptive. That hadn’t felt like just a friendly moment.
Neither did this one.
Gia watched him, her eyes shifting, gaze steady on the slow movement of his fingers as he rubbed her leg, enjoy how soft her skin was, how warm. “I can be your friend, nani.” Kai moved closer, pressing his hand against her thigh, tickling the skin there. “I can be more than a friend if you want.” Kai kept his gaze on her, staring, smiling at how still she became when he leaned forward and kissed her knee, then moved her legs apart, holding one in his hand as he knelt in front of her to press his mouth against
her thigh. “Haven’t you ever had more than a friend?”
“Once,” she admitted, slipping her gaze to his fingers as he brushed them against her thigh, then back up again when he moved his hand underneath her robe. “It…didn’t…take.”
“Maybe,” he said, pressing his palm next to the inside of her thigh, closing his eyes in a long blink against the warmth he felt there. “Maybe you should find another more-than-a-friend. I could…”
“No,” Gia said, moving her hand to his wrist and Kai stopped to watch her. He waited, wondering if she wanted him to stop touching her altogether. But Gia swallowed, her breathing increasing when he leaned forward to rest an elbow on the arm of the chair. The movement brought him closer to her. It made the space between them warm and sweet and small. “I…don’t want that. Not again.”
“No?” he asked, understanding more about her than he ever thought he would when she nodded. There was a lot she didn’t say that spoke more than any explanation, or anything she could tell him about what that Joe asshole had wanted from her. “Okay, Gia…”
“Kai…what are you doing…”
He smiled, the gesture slight. Then he leaned forward, keeping his mouth in front of hers, close enough to smell the bourbon from her breath and the heat of that sharp liquor. She would taste delicious. He knew it.
“I’m being friendly.”
“He didn’t…” Gia shuddered, her breath in a low gasp when Kai turned his hand to skim a knuckle over the front of her pussy, teasing her. He liked how she moved when he did that, how just that slight touch made Gia arch against him like she wanted more. “Joe…said I was cold.”
Kai’s laugh was quick, and it sounded sharp even to him, but he put Joe and his stupid comments out of his head as he brushed back the thin fabric that separated what Gia had that he wanted from his touch. When he felt her there, wet and ready, Kai groaned, inhaling her, wanting to taste her on his tongue.
“You don’t feel cold to me.”