Page 45 of Obsessive Love (The King #1)

Chapter Forty-Four

Kaleb

M ovement in the room around me pulls me out of my slumber and my muscles tense, my arms holding Sophia securely against my chest as I listen to the footsteps crossing the room towards us, now fully awake and on high alert.

I keep my eyes closed and my breathing even as the footsteps get closer and as I listen intently to my surroundings, I hear the harsh whispers of a female's voice.

"Look, I told you he was in here with her."

I internally roll my eyes as I hear Jaylen's whispered words and clench my teeth in frustration that this imbecile has woken me up.

He moves beside the bed, assumingly trying to get a view of me and Sophia huddled under the duvet together.

I discreetly move my hand towards Sophia's pillow, which neither of us is resting on. I grip it in my hand and then I swiftly lift it up and swing it behind me, whacking Jaylen over the head with it.

"Ahh, fuck!" he shouts, stumbling backwards.

Sophia jumps up, and her wide, sleepy eyes turn towards me. I turn to see her cousin on the floor beside the bed with his phone in his hand and a guilty smile on his face.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Sophia snaps, glaring at him.

"Urm, I was just-"

"He was trying to show me that you two were in bed together because I didn't believe him."

Mine and Sophia's eyes drop to Jaylen's phone when we hear Jess' voice filter through the room.

"Shut up!" Jaylen hisses, quickly ending the FaceTime and standing up, nervously glancing between us.

"You have privacy issues," I grumble, shaking my head in disbelief. I turn to Sophia, suddenly thankful that she insisted on putting pyjamas on after our shower last night.

Her blonde hair is frizzy and tangled and her plump lips part as she yawns and wipes at her eyes.

Even first thing in the morning after only a few hours of sleep, she's a captivating sight.

"Seriously, Jay, what the fuck is wrong with you?"

He shrugs as he shuffles towards the open bedroom door.

"I didn't hear Kaleb leave your room last night and when I woke Jess up to tell her, she didn't believe me, so I had to get proof. Sorry for interrupting, I'll leave and urm, I'll see you for breakfast in a little while."

He hurriedly walks out of the room, closing the door behind him. Sophia flops back against the bed, covering her beautiful face with her hands and groaning.

"He's lucky I didn't have my gun under my pillow like usual."

Her hands slip from her face as she turns to me with raised brows and scoffs.

"Jesus Christ. I'm surrounded by idiots and psychopaths," she says.

"Just to be clear, I'm under the psychopath category, right?"

Her jaw slackens as she gapes at me in shock.

"That's what you're worried about?"

"Well, I wouldn't want you to think of me as an idiot, dolcezza ," I tell her, stretching my arms and legs before getting out of bed, smirking down at her as she continues to stare at me.

After washing off in Sophia's shower, unfortunately alone, I go back to my own room to get dressed, choosing a long-sleeved T-shirt and some jeans before going downstairs to the kitchen where Jericho's currently seated.

"Morning, brother."

He grunts in reply to my cheerful greeting and gulps down his coffee, keeping his eyes trained on his phone.

"How did things go last night?" I ask, pouring my own cup and moving to stand opposite him at the breakfast bar.

"Good, I suppose. Micheal wasn't too happy about my proposal, but Dominic agreed to it almost instantly. I informed them both that technically I'd still be in charge, but because I'll be out of town, it'll be made clear to everyone that Dominic will be in charge," he says, putting his phone down. "They're going to look into the Garcia daughter, see if they can find out what she's like and if she'll be suitable, but apart from that, they're on board."

"So, what happens now, then?"

"Now, I wait for Brody Garcia to contact me, and I wait for the divorce papers to be sorted out so that Sophia and I can sign them and then end this whole thing. Did you and Leo come up with anything?"

"Poison," I say, taking a sip of my coffee. "Easiest and most efficient way and Leo said he knows a guy that can get him a vial of some shit that'll basically just make it look like he had a heart attack, that way, we won't have to worry about bumping heads with any higher-ups that dad might be connected to."

He watches me in silence for a moment before he nods.

"Smart idea. If it seems like a natural death, no one will think of it as suspicious and then there won't be any need to look into it. Well done."

"I'd still rather just shoot him," I state.

He glares at me and I shrug.

"This is exactly why I'm glad you have Sophia in your life. Hopefully, she'll be able to stop you from acting on your impulsive thoughts whilst I'm gone."

"Where exactly are you planning to go?" I ask, curious as to what his plan will be once he's no longer in charge of the organization.

"Honestly, I have no idea. All I know is that I need to get away. I feel like I've been trapped here for years with this lingering grief dragging me down and living a life I haven't wanted. I think I just need to get away and see if there's anything else out there for me, you know?"

I frown and walk around the counter until I'm standing in front of him.

"You're coming back though, right?"

His lips lift at the corners and amusement swims in his eyes as he nods.

"I know you'll be missing me whilst I'm gone, but don't worry. I'll come back eventually."

I scoff and shove his shoulder as I shake my head.