9. Aiyana

Chapter nine

Aiyana

I finally checked the time when I got off the line with Kas. The team must've flown home extremely early if he's already on his way over. It's just after nine in the morning, and Kat is still asleep. We didn't go to bed until late last night, and neither of us have plans for the day, so she said she's going to sleep in.

I finish blow-drying my hair and braid the black strands back into a single plait, changing into a pair of black leggings and my favorite oversized hoodie. It's one that Kas gave me in our senior year of high school. Well, he didn't give it to me, I took it, but he never asked for it back. So I'll consider it a gift.

I finish getting ready for my big day of laundry and being a complete couch potato when my phone chirps with a text from Kas.

Kas

I'm at your door. Open up.

Rolling my eyes, I pad across the vinyl plank floors and open the door to find Kas with his hooded eyes pinched in worry. He's holding several paper grocery bags containing god knows what, so I open the door wider for him by way of greeting.

He lets himself in like he owns the place because, well, technically, he does.

He goes to work, putting all sorts of snacks up in the cabinets, and I take note of what he brought—garden salsa Sun Chips, crunchy Cheetos, and strawberry Pop-Tarts. He moves on to the fridge, stocking it with Sour Patch Kids, sour Skittles, brie, dill pickles, and Fruit Roll-Ups. All of my favorite snacks, most of which are relatively unhealthy, but I've always been a big proponent of food serving more purposes than one. One of which being to feed my bleeding uterus and, of course, my soul.

He even remembers that I like my candy cold.

It must be the hormones because my eyes prick with tears before I practically suck them back into the devious little tear glands they came from. I'm pretty sure it's not actually possible to suck them back in, but where there's a will, there's a way.

When he's finished in the kitchen, he heads toward my room, and my eyes widen with shock. That's bold. Even for him.

I stomp after him, letting out an exasperated huff. When he gets to my room, he takes in the bare mattress as I wait for the sheets and mattress protector to finish washing.

His eyes swing to me and back to the bed before he dumps out the bag of items and gets to work, making my bed.

He's brought a heated mattress pad, a black sheet set, and a soft faux fur blanket big enough to act as a comforter. I'm too stunned to say anything, let alone help him, as he trudges full steam ahead with his plans.

Once the bed is made, I realize he's picked a blanket with a giant purple-and-gold snake in the center, surrounded by a black border.

He's killing me. Slowly, but never softly.

He pulls out the final items from the bottom of the bag. Extra strength painkillers with caffeine because those were the only ones that ever worked for my headaches, and a bag of assorted dark chocolate Lindt truffles.

His eyes finally land on me, his breath hitches, and all of his resolve seems to vanish.

Kas practically hurdles himself toward me, gripping my cheeks as he looks me over, seeing my eyes welling with tears. I've missed him so much; it's like a piece, no, a whole chunk of me has been missing without him.

I take the step forward before I can second-guess myself, and his arms instantly curl around me, pulling me to his chest, warming that broken, messy place in the deepest recesses of my heart.

He's twining his fingers into the hair at the nape of my neck, tugging gently as he lifts me into his arms and walks us backward toward the bed after kicking the door shut. We lie there, just holding each other, saying absolutely nothing for the next half hour until I hear the pipes running with water, letting us know that Kat's awake.

He kisses my forehead, the peaceful silence still enveloping us as he leaves me in the bed, cold and lonely despite the heat radiating from the mattress pad.

Will I ever stop missing this man?

Will I ever stop loving this man?