5. Lea

Chapter five

Lea

T hank the lord for endorphins. That orgasm cleared up what was left of my migraine from earlier, and the tip Fred left me tonight was more than enough to cover the cost of a week of BioNeur. Hell, I could even get some real groceries this week.

“Talk about a Christmas miracle,” I say, laughing to myself.

I toss on a pair of shorts and grab my tumbler, ready for a refill and a snack.

I open my door, and my hand flies to my chest. “Ah!” I screech, eyes wide as I take in the hulking figure standing mere inches from my door.

“What the fuck, Kai!” I shout at him, but instead of his usual retort, his jaw is hanging, and his eyes are as wide as saucers.

When he recovers, he snaps his mouth shut, only to open it again and start yelling at me. “What the fuck, me? How about what the fuck, you! Seriously Lea, does your fucking brother know you’re making porn?!” he shouts at me, and the way his eyes bulge and judgment leeches into his tone has me hunching over, gripping my stomach as laughter bellows out of me.

Who the hell does this man think he is? A loud snort leaves me before I can straighten and face the apparent wrath of Kai. Joke’s on him, though. This is nothing new. I’ve dealt with his mood swings my whole life, and frankly, it’s only made me want him more. Yes, he’s an asshole, but something about how damn flustered he gets just makes me enjoy the chase. I think it’s cute.

Kind of like a raccoon with rabies.

It’ll tear your face off and ultimately end in your untimely demise, but people still call them trash pandas and try to keep them as house pets.

By the time I’m standing straight again, Kai’s warm brown eyes are filled with confusion and annoyance.

“What the hell is so funny, Lea?” he asks, crossing his arms over his chest. The light from the kitchen casts shadows against his brown skin and makes his biceps look even more cut. Damn him and his attractive everything.

“You’re overreacting,” I tell him, pushing past him and making my way to the kitchen. “And it’s not porn,” I clarify.

“Well then, what the hell is it?” he asks, his voice sounding even more grumpy, and I just want to pinch his cheeks when he gets like this. Annoying pain in my ass.

“I’m a cam girl, Kai. In case you hadn’t noticed from all the time you spent in my home growing up, my family isn’t made of money, and the women’s AHL team certainly isn’t paying the big bucks.”

“Why this though? Can’t you do something else to make up the extra money?”

“Are you dense, or what?” I ask, hopping up on the cold granite counter. I know he can’t stand it when I do this, which only makes me do it more often. “Do you really think I could play such a physically demanding sport, travel with my team, and hold down another conventional job? Seriously?” I ask, opening one of the dark wooden cabinets beside me and grabbing a pack of peanut butter crackers.

My brother’s allergic to peanuts, so I know they’re Kai’s, and he only confirms that when he stomps over to me and snatches them out of my hand.

“These are mine ,” he grumbles.

A loud laugh bursts out of me, and when he gives me that inscrutable look of his, I suck my lips into my mouth, trying to hold in the laughter threatening to erupt out of me. I snake my hand inside the cabinet, grabbing another pack out and tearing into it, stuffing two crackers into my mouth.

Kai’s eyes bulge, and suddenly, I’m reminded of just how much fun it was to pick on him growing up. In recent years, he’s done a lot more of the tormenting, but with our current living arrangement, it seems the tables have turned yet again.

“I can barely afford to pay half of the rent on my old apartment, which is why I’m here. I don’t make enough to feed myself, and I sure as shit don’t have enough to pay for my meds—” His eyes widen ever so slightly on that word, but I keep speaking. “The only thing keeping a roof over my head, food in my stomach, gas in my tank, and my brain from exploding is this job,” I tell him, sliding off the counter. “And the orgasms are nice , too,” I say, leaving his stunned expression with an exaggerated wink.

Just when I think I’ve stunned him into silence, he’s suddenly at my back, gripping my hips and spinning me to face him.

At five foot eleven , I meet his gaze, mere inches from mine, but if I were shorter, I’d have to crane my neck to look up at his six-foot-four height as he tries to tower over me.

“If you don’t quit, I’m telling your brother,” he tells me.

I rear back as if he’d smacked me, eyes wide with shock. “I don’t know if you realize this or not, Kai, but I’m a fucking adult. As I already said, but don’t worry, big guy,” I say, patting his chest, “I’ll repeat it for you since you seem to be having trouble understanding tonight and didn’t get it through your thick skull.” I cough dramatically into my fist. “Kind of like you couldn’t manage to get the puck into the net the other day,” I say, speaking out of one side of my mouth.

Watching the way his face twists with my words is going to bring me joy for a long time to come.

“As I was saying, my parents don’t have any money, Kai. My brother is finally making decent enough pay to help not only himself but also them. And if you so much as mention me struggling to pay for a goddamn thing, let alone how I’m managing, he’ll throw it all away for me. Liam will sleep in a fucking cardboard box to make sure I have what I need, and you know it. So if you love him the way you claim to, you’ll keep your mouth shut and mind your own goddamn business,” I finish, sucking in a much-needed deep breath.

His eyes narrow, but he takes a step back. “Fine.” That’s all he says before he stomps back to his room like a child who didn’t get his way.

So, like the child I am sometimes, I call over to him. “Don’t worry, Kai. There’s more than enough room in my bed for you too. With those sexy goalie hands of yours? We could be loaded.”

He glares over his shoulder at me and slams his bedroom door shut.

I chuckle lightly to myself, reaching into the cabinet for his jar of honey-roasted peanut butter and a spoon from the drawer below. I take the whole thing into my lair as if I'm a dragon protecting my most prized possession as my reward for managing to win my first battle with my new roomie.