“You do that.”
I turned on my heel and walked out, my face hot.
On my way through the restaurant, I noticed something I hadn’t seen before—Kai, sitting alone at the staff table near the back. He had a plate in front of him, but he wasn’t eating. Just staring off in the distance.
It was odd. From what little I knew of him, he seemed like the type who’d be laughing and joking with the other staff, not sitting by himself in silence.
I walked toward him, tentative. Maybe I should apologize for how I left things yesterday. Or at least?—
He looked up. Saw me. And then he put his napkin on the table, got to his feet, and walked away.
I stood there, frozen in place as I stared after him.
The ache that filled my chest was sharp and unexpected. But it was quickly overtaken by something hotter: anger.
He’d kissed me yesterday. Stroked my body in wayno one ever had before. And made me feel things I’d never felt before.
And now he couldn’t even stay in the same room as me. I wavered between the two emotions—hurt and pissed off. But I was starting to lean heavily toward pissed off.
9
ZOE
The front deskstaff asked me to join them in the restaurant for a late dinner after their shift, but I politely declined. As I headed back to the hideaway, I could admit that it was mostly because I didn’t want to see Kai. I was still angry at him, but over the course of the afternoon, I’d realized that I was mad at myself more. I’d taken my eyes off the prize. I wasn’t here to meet men. I was here to work hard and secure my future.
So it didn’t matter that Kai was hot. Or that he’d made me laugh. Or that—oh crap, he was standing right there.
My stomach dropped as I skidded to a halt just inside the room. He was in the tiny kitchenette, and he closed the half-size fridge door as he straightened up with a bottle of beer in his hand.
Shit. Why wasn’t he at the restaurant with the other staff?
My first instinct was to slink past him and retreat to my bedroom. That had been the whole point of avoiding the restaurant—so I didn’t have to face being snubbed by him again.
But instead, anger bubbled up inside me, hot and sharp. I marched over.
He was still wearing that vivid blue sweater that matched his eyes, paired with jeans. His feet were bare.
“What the hell is your problem?” I demanded.
His eyebrows shot up practically to the ceiling. “Pardon?”
“You have a lot of nerve ignoring me today after what happened yesterday.”
He looked taken aback for a moment, then held up his hands. “Wait a second?—”
“Listen, you arrogant jerk?—”
“Wait. Just wait—please.”
The ‘please’ caught me off guard, but I wasn’t ready to back down. “Like I’m really going to do anything you tell me to.”
“Fair enough.” He studied me for a moment. “Let me just ask you this. Are you going to slap me?”
“I should.”
“I’d prefer you didn’t.” He set down the beer bottle and reached into his back pocket, pulling out his phone. “Please let me show you something.”
I crossed my arms. “I’ve seen what you have to offer, and I’m not interested anymore.”
