UNDYING: A Bad Boy MMA Romance (Midwest Alphas) (Book 3) (25 page)

I shake my head. “I was so focused on getting to today, I didn’t really think about what would come after…”

“I’d like to teach, so I guess grad school is maybe a thing…” Kai mutters.

My father nods. “A greatly encouraged thing,” he says. “You can never have too much education, especially in your field, Kai. And yours, Piper. I know you don’t care much about more school, but it’s something to think about.”

I nod. “I will —
think about it
, I mean.”

“Oh, I don’t care about that…” Ava says. “I want to know about
the two of you
.” I hear Kai inhale a quick breath. He doesn’t release it. My own muscles go tense with nervousness. “What’s next for you two? I mean, it’s been a few years now—”

“Mom…”
Kai interrupts.

“I think they might be a little young for those questions, Ava,” Hawthorne says.

“Hogwash,” she says. “We weren’t much older than they are now when we got married.”

Married.
The dreaded M-word. Of all the conversations Kai and I have had about each other, about sex, about everything in between, this topic has only surfaced once. Kai’s told me that he didn’t believe in marriage. I told him I didn’t either and we left it at that, but I’m not about to break Ava’s heart at one of her own dinner parties. I smile at her. “We haven’t really talked about it, but who knows?” I say, offering her a sliver of hope that should shut her up until the next family gathering.

“Yeah,” Kai says, playing off my careful words. “Like Dad said, we’re still pretty young. There’s no hurry.”

“Maybe not for
you
,” Ava says, “but I’m not getting any younger and I don’t want to die before I meet my grandchildren.”

I chill runs down my back. “Okay…” I chuckle. “Let’s not get too far ahead here…”

Kai shakes his head fast. “Yeah, I mean… we’ve been together a while, but that’s not… not even.
No
…” he says, his words laced with panic.

“Calm down, Kai,” my mother soothes. “You’re babbling like a brook.”

His head falls and he stares at the table while his cheeks turn bright red. I can’t imagine I look any calmer than he does. “We’re not ready for anything like that, Ava,” I answer her. I keep my words steady and direct, hoping to squash any uncertainty shaking my vocal chords.

“Neither am I,” my father adds.

“Philip, I believe we are in agreement,” Hawthorne says.

“Well, that’s a first,” my mother quips.

My father holds up his glass once more. “I’ll drink to that, if you will, Hawthorne.”

“Oh, you know me, Philip,” he replies and reaches for his glass. “I drink to anything.”

Glasses clink together around the table once more while Kai and I sit catatonic, each of us staring off into the dark spaces around us.

***

I step outside onto the front steps and pause until Kai is outside with me.

“Goodnight, everybody!” he calls out over his shoulder and we hear the semi-drunken goodbyes of our parents inside as he subtlety slams the door closed behind us. He immediately fills his lungs with fresh air with his eyes clenched shut. His hand lingers on the doorknob, holding himself up against the warm blowing wind.

I open my mouth to speak, but think better of it. I suspected those questions really rattled Kai at the time, and as I watch him now, I know my suspicions were correct. Extreme commitment terrifies Kai Casablancas. It always has. Being with me exclusively? That was easy for him. Talk of marriage and children? I’m surprised he’s still standing. Hell, I would have launched my own body out a window if I was within jumping distance of it, too.

“Sorry about that, Pipes…” he finally says.

“Sorry about what?”

“My mother…” He stands up a little taller. “She can be kind of…”

I smile at his worrisome brown eyes. “I know,” I shrug. “What else is new?” I take a step closer to him and inch my fingers around his waist.

“I don’t like feeling pressured into doing things…” he mutters. “Especially not life-changing things.”

“I know what you mean.” I pull myself in closer to plant a few soft kisses on his neck. His scent fills my nose, enticing me to forget all of the evening’s unpleasantness. Thankfully, it’s working, and I can already feel my sex warming with life.

“Of course — I’m talking to Piper Lynch,” he laughs. “The queen of avoiding things.”

I pull back slightly with narrow eyes. “The
what
now?” I ask.

He stutters over his words. “Well, I mean… you know what I mean. Your dad pushed you to do things and you — you know… ran away—” He stops suddenly. “I’m digging a very deep hole, aren’t I?”

“I’ll let it slide,” I grin. “You’ve been through a lot.” I lean back in and kiss his warm neck again.

His pulse increases against my lips. “Oh, goody,” he says as his hands slide up my back.

A smile teases my lips. “I have a surprise for you,” I whisper in his ear.

“Does it involve forgetting this dinner ever happened?” he asks. “Because I’d be down for forgetting this dinner ever happened.”

“It might,” I answer. I flick his left earlobe with the tip of my tongue and he shivers against me. “Come on.” I pull back quickly and step off the front stoop. Kai follows closely behind me until we split off to enter his car. I settle into the passenger seat of his bright blue corvette, chosen because the color matched my eyes — according to Kai, but that could just as easily have been a good line to get me into the backseat (either way, it worked). It’s the replacement ride of the red corvette he had in high school, but lost to Shawn when he lied about losing their bet.

“So, where are we going?” he asks.

“Just start driving,” I smile, “and I’ll direct the way.”

He stares at me through the corner of his eyes with suspicion, but does as he’s told.

***

I grip Kai’s hand a little tighter as I pull him off the elevator with me. The suspicion in his eyes has only grown since we drove away from my father’s house.

“Piper…”

“Yes, Kai?”

“What are we doing in a fancy hotel?”

I look back and grin, flashing my teeth at him. “I told you I had a surprise for you,” I say. I reach into my pocket to find the electronic room key stuffed inside.

He watches me closely, his eyes following the blank, white key card. “What kind of surprise?” he asks.

I stop in front of our door. “A graduation gift.”

Kai bites his lip. “Oh, was I supposed to get you a gift?” he asks.

“Maybe,” I answer. My heart skips as he pins me against the door and leaves a firm kiss on my lips. It knocks the wind out of me and I linger in his grasp with my head on air.

“I should probably be punished then,” he whispers. His lips graze mine as he speaks. I quiver with the gust of his warm breath against my chin.

“Probably,” I agree. I kiss him once more. “But
not
tonight.”

He raises an eyebrow. “The plot thickens…” His strong fingers release me, but he stays close to me as I pivot around to open the door.

I slide the key into the lock and twist the doorknob to force the door open an inch. “After you,” I tell him.

He hesitates a moment, but I see the excitement blurring his eyes as he places his palm on the white door. He pushes it open and steps inside.

As I follow him in, I grab the ‘
do not disturb’
sign and hang it on the knob.

The room is set up just as I expected it to be.

The curtains are drawn, the lights are set down low, and Mandy Black lies on the king-sized bed wearing nothing but a silk, red robe.

Chapter 4

Kai

This plot just keeps getting thicker.

I stare at Mandy on the bed and wonder if a mistake has been made. Words form on my tongue, but I lose them just as quickly as they came. “Hey, Mandy—” I finally manage to say.

She smiles at me, her eyes locked on mine behind her dark brown bangs. “Hey, Kai,” she says back.

I look away, but I can’t stop myself from glancing down her body as I do. She lies back against her elbows in a straight line from her head to her toes. Her knees are crossed, but she quickly bends one as my eyes touch it and her bare toes slide up her calves to rest just below the opposite knee.

“Piper—”

“Shh…” I feel her hands spider up my back. She grabs my jacket and slowly pulls it down my arms. “Surprise,” she whispers in my ear.

No fucking way.

I step forward to put a few feet of distance between myself and Piper. “Whoa, whoa…” I say, spinning around to look at her. I hold a hand up to keep her at arm’s length. Blood pumps through my veins faster than ever. My fingers and toes turn numb as my cock hogs every drop of it. “What’s going on?” I breathe, fighting the urge to chuckle.

Piper closes the gap between us and my reflexes are powerless to stop her. “I wanted to give you the perfect gift for graduation,” she says. “A show of appreciation for how
hard
you’ve worked.” Her fingers tug at my belt.

I look over her shoulder to see Mandy biting her lip to hold back her token, high-pitched giggles. “And why is Mandy here?” I ask.

Piper grins.
“For fun.”

“Right…” I swallow to keep myself from drolling. “Fun for whom?”

Mandy slides off the bed and steps lightly towards us. “And here I thought people with college degrees were supposed to be smart,” she jokes. She pauses behind Piper and leans down to rest her chin on her petite shoulder.

Their eyes drill deep into mine. I shift my gaze to lock on Piper’s beautiful blues. “Are you sure about this?” I ask her.

She bites her bottom lip. “Of course I am, Kai,” she says. “It was
my
idea
.
”

“I thought it was
my
idea,” Mandy says in her ear.

“Was it?” Piper furrows her brow at her.

“Ladies—” I hold up my hands and they both turn back to me. “I don’t think it matters.”

Mandy smiles. “So he
is
smart…”

“And assertive,” Piper adds.

“I think he’s stalling.”

“I think you’re right.”

I shake my head. “No…” I say. “I’m just a little…
overwhelmed
.”

Mandy slides off Piper’s shoulder and slinks back onto the bed while Piper moves in closer to me. “Kai…” she whispers. “If this freaks you out, we don’t have to do it. Just say the word and she’ll leave. We’ll spend the night alone, just you and me.”

I imagine the devil and angel floating above my shoulders playing a vicious game of tug of war. The devil tells me that if I don’t give in to this, I’m a fucking idiot. The angel even agrees with him somewhat, but he presents a compelling reason to hold myself back.

A perfect mental image of Piper and Mandy fooling around has danced in my mind ever since they admitted to it on that train to Munich four years ago. Of course a threesome together has crossed my mind once or twice, but I’d never in a million years suggest it. I’ve been with Piper more times than I can count and I remember enough of my one night with Mandy to fill in all the blanks I have on the subject. That fantasy was just that; A fantasy best left to the imagination for one reason and one reason only.

Shawn Monty would fucking kill me if I ever touched Mandy Black again.

However…

Shawn and Mandy have been broken up for a while now — far longer than they’ve been apart before. Mandy seems pretty sure about them never getting back together again. She’s told me that herself in her own words. I highly doubt she’d even go along with this if she thought for the slightest second she’d ever go back to him.

“Kai?”

I blink and force myself to focus on Piper’s face. “Hmm?” I ask.

Laughter teases her lips. “You okay?” she asks.

I answer her with a kiss, firm and true on her red lips. “All right,” I tell them. “Let’s have some fun.”

Piper kisses me back, masterfully drawing my bottom lip between her teeth. “Don’t worry, Kai,” she says as she takes a step back towards the bed. “We’ll be gentle with you.”

Mandy pushes herself back to lie against the pillows and Piper climbs on top of her. I stay back and watch from the foot of the bed as their lips lock together.

My fantasy meets reality and it nearly knocks me off my feet. My girlfriend and her best friend. There’s something so painfully erotic to me about watching two women kiss and this moment is no exception. Years ago, I found myself in a similar situation with two girls from Belle Academy, but their attentions were mostly focused on me instead of each other. I wasn’t complaining back then but I’m
sure as hell
not complaining now either.