Page 80 of From the Start

I slap at his hand curled into my side. “We can discuss our relationship status later. I need to go.”

“Where do you need to go?”

“Kai, if you don’t move your hand, I’m going to remove your balls with the dull, rusty knife we use to cut lemons at the bar.”

He snatches his arm away. “You have a scary imagination.”

I jump out of bed and my breasts bounce with the motion. I’m naked. How did I forget I’m naked? Did Kai perform some kind of sex magic on me last night?

“Where are my clothes?”

“Calm down, Slugger.”

“You did not just tell me to calm down. I knew it.” I shake my head. “This was a mistake.”

He growls before launching himself out of bed and prowling toward me. “You promised me you wouldn’t think this is a mistake.”

I throw my arms into the air. “I also didn’t expect to fall asleep and forget all about my dad. He’s probably lying in a pool of his piss now.” I groan. “I really don’t want to clean up piss this morning. At least theMoonshine & Merriment Festivaldoesn’t kick off until noon today.”

Kai shackles my wrists. “Slugger.”

I yank my hands away but his grip is too strong. “Let me go, Goofy. I have to get home.”

“I already phoned and checked on your dad.”

My brow wrinkles. “Dad answered the phone? He never answers the phone. He claims there isn’t anyone he wants to speak to unless Mom is reaching out from beyond the grave.”

“I spoke to Carl.”

“Carl? Carl the caretaker? He should have gone home by now.”

“When you fell asleep last night, I rang him and asked him to stay over.”

“You did what?” This time, I’m strong enough to yank my hands away. “Carl doesn’t work for you. He works for me.”

“This is why I tried to wake you. I knew you’d go full on Mermaid frenzy on me.”

“Hold on. You tried to wake me?”

“I’ll be honest. I didn’t want to. I wanted to sleep next to you all night long.”

He wanted to sleep next to me all night long? And here I was worried he would chase me away once he got into my pants. Maybe Kai is more mature than I give him credit for.

“I didn’t get here until three in the morning. All night long wasn’t possible.”

“Nonetheless. I didn’t want you to leave. I tried to wake you since I knew you’d want to get back to your dad. But you were out cold.”

“I was out cold?” I don’t believe him. I’m not a sound sleeper.

“Yep. I took a selfie as proof.”

“Kai Raider. If you took a naked selfie of me, I’m going to throw you to the sirens without any clothes on.”

He smirks. “Sounds like fun.”

I glare at him. “And I’ll phone your mother and tell her what you did.”

“You play dirty.” He picks up his phone from the nightstand and hands it to me.