That catches me off guard. When we were at their place, Bette didn’t say anything about visiting while JT was home. Does that mean E did come up?
“Bette’s here?” I ask, wondering if I should prepare myself for more than one ass-kicking.
“Hold on.” He holds a finger up for me to wait and speaks to Wes. “What do you mean she looked high school-ly?”
“You know…” Wes makes a rolling motion with his hand. “How she would retreat into herself when she would go days without speaking”—his fingers form a V and point from his eyes to JT’s—“and she could be looking right at you and not see you.”
“Were you even bullied?”
My eyes fall closed against how condescending I sound even in my memory. Days? Kay would go days without speaking? What happened that would cause that kind of reaction?
“I know she didn’t really say…well…anything until he showed up.” Again, Wes points to me. “But this was different.”
“Fuck.” The mood shifts as JT starts to massage the ridge of his brow.
“What’s wrong?” Trav asks before I can, and I feel him shift, ready to fight anything that dares threaten Kay.
JT casts a look around. The crowd has dwindled considerably since apparently a street race is underway, but we aren’t alone. “I’m not getting into it here, and the only reason I’m not kicking your ass for the dig you made about her being bullied is because I know she didn’t tell you the full extent of what happened.”
Fuck me. I need to know what went down.
“I’m not going to tell you.” Shit. “It’s not my place.” Double shit. “What I will tell you is this, and I’m only going to say this once, so you better listen the fuck up.”
Instinct has me wanting to question who the fuck he thinks he is talking to me like that, but I’ve given this guy enough reason not to like me; I don’t need to be outwardly disrespectful as well.
“Kay—”
“She doesn’t like it when you call her Kay,” Tessa interrupts.
“Shut it, Tess.” She mimes zipping her lips. “Anyway…” JT gives her side-eye. “Kay is my family.” He turns away, pacing a handful of steps before turning back. “You may have gotten all growly hearing her be called my girl, but make no mistake, she is mine.”
The fuck she is. This time I sound practically feral, and Trav’s strong throwing arm pressing against my chest is the only thing keeping me from decking the guy.
JT puts up both hands in a stop motion and takes a step back. “Relax, Caveman.” His use of Kay’s nickname cuts deep. “I don’t mean mine in the way she’s yours—and she is yours. I mean she’s mine the same way she’s E’s. I don’t give a fuck about actual blood relation. That girl is my sister and always will be.”
I gotta hand it to him, he earns my respect with each word—okay maybe not each word, but you know what I mean—that comes out of his mouth. And he’s right—the only vibe I’ve picked up from him is the same I have around E or Grayson.
“JT is just a friend. He’s as much a brother to me as E.” Kay tried to tell me the same thing, but my asshole response was, “Yeah, and in Biz Markie’s song, that’s exactly what the bitch says when she’s actually hooking up with the other guy.”
JT and I stare each other down, breathing heavy in a standoff for the same girl, one as a brother and one as the—God willing—boyfriend. I know the moment he sees the shift of understanding in my gaze, and his whole body deflates as his defensive guard lowers.
“Now…as much as she will deny it and is fighting it, Kay loves you.”
Skittles may not be the one saying the words, but it still feels good to hear them. The knot that has been a permanent resident in my gut loosens fractionally.
“You have a chance—albeit a small one—to fix this and win her back.”
“She—” I clear my throat, emotion getting the best of me. “She said she’s too weak to be with me.”
“And you believe that?” If looks could kill, I’d be dead where I stand.
“Fuck no.”
I get a nod of approval.
“She’s not weak. She just…doesn’t feel fully healed from the last time.”
I’m really going to have to sit Kay down and make her tell me everything that happened after her dad died. I can’t come up with a proper playbook if I don’t know my opponents.
“It’s going to be a lot of work, and it will feel like an uphill battle at times. You won’t just have this bullshit that’s happening now with people trying to dig up dirt on her for the simple reason of her being with you. You’ll also be fighting the shit from her past.”
“I’ll take on the whole goddamn world if I have to. I’m not giving up. Kay is mine, and I’m not going to let a single soul keep her from being at my side where she belongs.”
#Chapter14
UofJ411: More than friends? #MuscialBedMates #CasanovasGirl
*picture of G leaving Kay’s apartment with a duffle bag hanging from his shoulder*
@AshWonderWoman: @TheGreatestGrayson37, does @CasaNova87 know you spent the night at his girlfriend’s place? #IKnowWhereYouSleptLastNight #CasanovasGirl
UofJ411: Why so sad? #HeresAKleenex #CasanovasGirl
*picture of an obviously-been-crying Kay at a table in the library*
@Beccalynn1010: They have to have broken up. Look at this ^^ She was totally crying #DoYouNeedATissue #CasanovasGirl
UofJ411: Someone is missing… #WheresWaldo #CasanovaWatch #CasanovasGirl
*picture of the crew’s lunch table with everyone there except Kay*
@Behawks87: Why isn’t she eating with them anymore? #DidTheyBreakUp #CasanovaWatch #CasanovasGirl
UofJ411: Is this goodbye? #TroubleInParadise #CasanovaWatch #CasanovasGirl
*boomerang of Kay walking away from Mason*
@Ladyjanegray75: I wouldn’t walk away from you @CasaNova87 #CasanovasGirl
#Chapter15
Elvis Duran and the Morning Show blares through Pinky’s speakers while I hide out in the parking lot, but not even Greg T’s antics can cut through the nerves consuming my body. I have fifteen minutes left until I have
