Chapter Eight
Abigail
Kye had been quiet all last night after we had come back from the agency. I knew he was worried about going back to Madeira and possibly running into his family. I decided not to mention anything and just enjoy our evening together. I finally convinced him to allow me to cook, mainly because I had ordered some fillet steaks for us both. He had looked after me for the past two weeks and I wanted to do something for him. Seeing as I couldn’t take him out for a meal, I decided to bring one of his favourites home to him.
We sat there chatting about nothing in particular, and Kye finally admitted to me that he had a word with the photographer that had manhandled me into position. I tried to tell him that I was used to it, but he insisted that I shouldn’t be treated like that. That no woman or model should be treated like that. He said that all of the support staff at the studio agreed and thanked him for standing up for the models, and they had promised to contact him if it happened again. There was my caring gentleman again. Not only was he fighting in my corner, but every model that faced that particular photographer.
We sat out on the balcony again enjoying a drink, and again I found myself awake in my bedroom this morning, still wearing the same lounge suit I had worn last night. Kye the gentleman again, placing me in bed without undressing me. How this man didn’t have a string of women after him, I did not know, because as soon as a woman saw how he cared for them, they wouldn’t want to let him go. I knew I didn’t, and we weren’t even going out.
I had to let Jo know my decision, so I needed to have a conversation with Kye. I got up early this morning and found a note from Kye saying he had gone out for his morning run. With that in mind, I decided to make him breakfast for a change. I had to look around the internet to find out what a typical Portuguese breakfast would be. Having never been there before, I assumed it would be very much like most European countries and consist of bread, ham, and cheese. With this in mind, I managed to find a local bakery that had made me some Bolo do Caco bread from a recipe I had found online. It was like a large roll that was specifically made in Madeira. I hoped it was as good as he got at home. Kye always had good quality ham and cheese in the fridge, so I was all set. Luckily, he had shown me how to use his complicated coffee machine, so I could at least make a coffee.
Pulling everything out ready to start when Kye got back, I made myself a coffee. I was going to make Kye a typical milky coffee for breakfast. I was going to try to make this a day that would bring back the nice memories of being at home, not the ones he was holding onto. I heard the door open and Kye walking towards the kitchen.
“What are you doing, Bonita?”
I still had no idea what “Bonita” meant and why he was calling me that. I knew I could use Google Translate to find out, but I didn’t want to shatter my illusions that he was calling me something sweet or endearing. One day I would ask him, but for now, I just wanted to hold onto the hope that he was slowly falling for me and I was breaking down some of his defenses.
“I wanted to make you breakfast this morning. Go and have your shower, and it will all be ready for you when you come back.”
I had placed myself in front of the bread. I didn’t want him to see what I had done before it was ready. I was worried that he would be annoyed, but I had done it now and I would just have to face the consequences. Reluctantly, he left the kitchen for his shower and I got to work. By the time he had returned, I had a coffee ready for him, along with a toasted ham and cheese roll keeping warm in the oven.
“Take a seat, and I will just get your breakfast out for you.”
He sat down and immediately took a sip of his coffee. Placing the roll down in front of him, I grabbed mine and sat down across from him. He sat there for a moment after taking a bite of the roll and his eyes came up and met mine.
“Where did you learn how to make Bolo do Caco?”
“I didn’t make it. I found a little bakery nearby that made it for me. I know it probably isn’t as good as in Madeira, but I wanted to make you breakfast to try to bring back some good memories of your home. We need to talk about going on the photoshoot. I know you are worried about going back, and I won’t force you to go. If you really don’t want to, then I will speak to Jo and…”
“You will do no such thing. My job is to make sure you are safe while you are working. That doesn’t mean that just because I have fallen out with my family, I am not going to go back to Madeira because my parents and sister will be there. If you want to do this shoot, then I will go with you. We don’t have to stay in a hotel, because I bought a house over there a while ago. I have been back a couple of times, but every time, I get anxious about going back. Don’t worry about me. And thank you for this. You have brought back good memories of home. I loved this bread as a kid. I’ve never been able to get it quite right myself, so you will have to get me the name of the bakery.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. Not because I would be able to do the photo shoot, which I was really looking forward to doing, but because I had made Kye feel happy and remember good times at home. All I had to hope was that going there would not lead to him shutting off from me more.
“I will give Jo a call in a minute and let her know. Now to the next problem we have to face.”
“And I will come to meet your sister and her fiancé. Christine and Lucas, isn’t it? I also promise not to be a moody bastard and will try to make polite conversation.”
Getting up from my seat, I walked around to him and pressed a kiss on his cheek. “Thank you.”
We were currently driving to my sister’s house in North London. I had to admit it was a lot easier to get there from Kye’s place than it was mine. I would have had to drive through central London to get there, but Kye was easily able to drop onto the North Circular from his place to get there.
Kye surprised me this morning by agreeing to go back to Madeira. I really thought I would have a fight on my hands but the fight was different than I had expected. I was happy he had suggested staying at his house. It would allow me to be myself and not worry about other guests in a hotel and what they would do when they saw me. I suspected after seeing his apartment that his house wasn’t really the description of his place, but we would see when I arrived next week.
I hoped that the time away would allow me to get to know Kye a little better. He hadn’t moved away this time when I kissed him. I thought for a moment that he actually moved in towards me, as though fighting against himself. I was sure he liked me. I just needed to get him to admit it to me.
My sister must have been looking out for us, because as soon as we pulled onto the drive, the door was opened and Lucas and she were standing there waiting for us. I was about to get out of the truck when I felt Kye’s hand take hold of my wrist.
“Perhaps I can come back later and pick you up, Bonita. I’m not sure I can do this.”
I turned to look at the man next to me, a worried look on his face. This was a vulnerable side of Kye I didn’t think I had ever seen. I knew most men had them, but Kye had always been able to portray himself as the big, bad alpha male, one that wasn’t afraid of anything. But seeing him sitting there now, he looked scared.
“Kye, it’s only my sister and her fiancé. They are friendly. They just haven’t seen me in forever and I guess that Chrissy is just eager to see me. We don’t have to stay late, but I would really like you to meet my sister. Please.”
I knew he was having an internal argument with himself, but he needed to come out of the protective shell that he had placed around himself. Seeing him look down at our hands, I was shocked to hear the words that came from his mouth next.
“I’m frightened, Bonita. I’m worried they will judge me for the things I have done in my life. I don’t want to ruin your day with your family. I’ll just …”
I wasn’t going to let him get away, not now.
