Kane(48)

I knew what she was saying was true. Keela always had my back.

"I guess so."

"Does that mean you'll give you and Kane a chance?"

I thought hard about it.

I knew I liked Kane. He gave me butterflies by just looking at me, and  he made me so happy. We still argued, but we were so close now that not  being with him would eventually become a problem. My feelings for him  were developing fast, and the longer I didn't give into him, the harder I  was making things for myself.

I grunted to Keela, "I suppose."         

     



 

"Good, because he left to go over to talk to you ten minutes ago."

"You fuckin' bitch!"

I heard Keela's laughter just before she hung up.

Evil.

She was pure evil.

I shook my head and threw my phone onto my bed. I laid back and sighed  as I looked up at the ceiling. I couldn't get comfortable, the person  who rang my doorbell made sure of that.

Kane.

I sat upright, got up from my bed, and walked out of my bedroom and down  the hallway to the door. I opened my door without looking through the  peephole because I knew who it would be.

He walked into my apartment and closed the door behind him. I turned and  walked over to my kitchen table. I rooted for the tube of lipgloss  Keela left in my bag, and for my tube of super glue.

"What are you doing?"

"Adding glue to Keela's lip gloss."

Let's see her trick me again.

Kane stared at me for a moment then asked, "Why?""

"Have your ever head the term 'some people need glue stick instead of chapstick'?"

Kane nodded. "Sure."

"Well, that term applies here. If Keela won't shut her mouth, I'll shut it for her."

Kane blinked. "You can be quite scary sometimes, you know?"

"Even the nicest people have limits, Kane."

He swallowed. "Noted."

I sighed.

"What are you doin' here?" I asked Kane as I put both tubes back into my bag and turned to face him.



"I needed to see you."

I folded my arms across my chest. "Why?"

Kane stuffed his hands into his jean pockets. "I've to get my insulin shot... and I wanted to tell you that I'm sorry."

I ignored his diabetes for a minute.

I raised my eyebrow. "Are you really sorry?"

He set his jaw. "Why did you let him kiss you?"

That was a no then.

"He kissed me cheek because he is a friend who was congratulatin' me on me pregnancy."

Kane blinked. "Oh."

"Yeah, oh."

He avoided looking me in the eye then. "I thought it was your lips he kissed."

I shook my head. "You know you and I aren't together, right? That means other men could kiss me if I allowed it."

Kane growled, "Stop it. You're just trying to make me mad."

"No, I'm not. I'm tryin' to make you understand that you can't just attack people, Kane."

He blinked. "I don't usually. I usually keep to myself, but then you happened."

I scowled. "What does that mean?"

He shrugged. "I don't know what it means. I just know I don't want you  with other people. Men, women... anyone. I can't explain it. I'm used to  keeping to myself, so now that we're tied together with the baby, I  want to keep you away from people, too. I know it's stupid and crazy,  but I can't help it. It's just how I am. I don't trust people, Aideen,  especially not with you and our baby."

Just remember how difficult this is for him.

Nico's voice sounded in my mind and caused me to sigh out loud.

"So, what?" I asked. "You don't want me to talk to anybody? You know I'm a teacher, right?"

He frowned. "I know that. I mean outside work... Who else do you want to talk to besides my brothers and the girls?"

I shrugged. "Skull."

Kane gritted his teeth.

I pointed my finger at him. "He is me friend and, to be honest, I'm  closer to him than I am to you. I've known him for years, Kane."

The muscle in his jaw rolled back and forward as he ground his teeth together.

"I don't like him."

That pissed me off.

"You don't even know him."

"I know that he knows you... all of you. I don't like that, so therefore I don't like him."

"Oh, my God," I groaned and rubbed my eyes. "You're confusin' the hell out of me."

"I'm sorry."

I looked at Kane and saw he really was sorry, even though he didn't truly know what he was doing wrong.

"What do you want?" I asked. "I want to make us both happy. Just tell me what you want."

Kane raised his eyebrows. "It's not obvious what I want?"

"Not to me."

He blinked. "You, Aideen. I want you."

What?

"What do you mean you want me?" I asked, dumbfounded.

"You aren't stupid, you know what I mean."

I did, but my mind refused to believe it unless he said it.

"We just became real friends," I protested.

I didn't know why I was protesting-I told Keela I'd give things a go  with Kane. I wanted to give things a go with him, I was just getting  caught up in a stupid argument and straying from what needed to happen  for my sanity as well as Kane's.

Kane shrugged. "I just want to try being with you. I'll probably be a  shitty boyfriend, but what if we don't put a title on us and just...  hang out?"

I tilted my head. "Let me get this straight. You want us to be together in a relationship without callin' it a relationship?"

"Exactly."

"Why?"

"Less pressure?" he sighed. "I don't know. I'm trying to figure this out as I talk, babydoll."

I stared at Kane for a long moment. "Is this just because I'm pregnant?"

"No," he instantly replied. "Look, I talked to Dominic and he made me  make sense of why I think of you all the time and enjoy arguing with you  so much. It's because I like you but don't know what to do about it. I  don't like people, Aideen. Ever. I sometimes can't stand to be around my  brothers, but I want to be around you all the time. Do you understand  that? I want to be around you. I need you, babydoll. You keep me sane,  by driving me insane."

I blinked and tried to avoid the heavy part of what Kane was saying with  a joke. "Did he give you a run down on his Man Bible as well?" I asked.

I could have sworn he blushed.

"Yeah," he mumbled. "He's learned a few things from being with Bronagh."

I couldn't help but snort.

"I don't know what to say, Kane," I admitted and shifted my stance. "I'm  twenty-eight years old, and I'm pregnant with your baby. Startin' a  relationship with you seems to be the logical thing to do, but if I'm  honest, I'm really scared. What if it goes badly and we hate each other  more than before?"

Kane stepped forward. "We won't let that happen."

"We can't let it happen," I corrected. "Do you understand me? We can't  hate one another whether we get together or not. I don't want our child  to grow up in a hostile environment."

Kane's face softened. "Trust me, babydoll, that's that last thing I want, too."

I inhaled and exhaled. "I'm very unsure about this, but if we don't put a  title on it, and just continue the way we are, I'll become more  trustin'. Is that okay?" I asked. "It's the best I can do right now. I  can't jump into a relationship with or without a title without trustin'  you."

Kane nodded his head. "That's fine by me, babydoll. I'm just relieved you want to try."

"I do. I like you so much. I'd be lyin' to you and meself if I said I wasn't feelin' for you lately."

He waggled his eyebrows. "What things have you been feeling for me exactly? Be descriptive."

"How descriptive?" I grinned.

Kane gasped, "Aideen Collins, are you flirting with me?"

"Flirtin'? You mean me awkwardness is seducin' you?

He laughed, "Just give me a come-hither look and you'll seduce me plenty."

I burst into laughter. "Bloody pervert," I said as Kane invaded my space  and folded his arms around me, pulling me against his body.

I wrapped my arms around him and sighed with a smile on my face. This  felt right. I didn't know if it was right, but it felt right, and right  now that was good enough for me.

"I've never been someone's boyfriend before. Sorry if I'm shit at it."

I laughed against Kane's chest. "I'll ease you into things."

"That sounds good to me, babydoll."

I rolled my eyes but smiled wide.

I felt happy.

Truly happy.

I just hated that there was a voice in the back of my head that whispered, but for how long?





"Aideen?"

I looked at my little brother when he called my name. Gavin and my other  brothers were in my new apartment putting up new shelves and bookcases  that Kane bought for the apartment. He was out with Nico so he couldn't  put them up for me, but I didn't mind because it gave me a chance to  hang out with my family.

I was officially fully moved out of my old apartment and settled into my  new one. It didn't take long for the movers Alec hired to shift  everything because Kane already took care of buying new, expensive  furniture for the new apartment so it was just things like my clothes  and such that needed to be moved in.