Page 104 of The Echo of Forever

“By the way, Forever and I haven’t shared with our families yet. Your discretion is appreciated.”

She gave a slow but fake smile and nodded.

Don’t let me down.

CHAPTER 25

FOREVER

Got a proposition for you.

My phone rang not even a second later.

Kai was always down for bullshit.

“Where you been?” he asked, sounding agitated. “Your father is about two phone calls from me strangling him.”

Right.

I’d been missing in action for a couple of days. Now that Demetrius and I split up to handle things separately, getting my dad off Kai’s back was on the agenda.

“Needed to take care of some things. I’ll be at your office in ten minutes.”

He sighed and ended the call.

Kai did business on the south side of Everwood in what we called the gambling district. He dealt in money instead of death, a true fucking outlier.

“Ms. James, Mr. James sent word for you to meet him in the conference room.

The conference room?

I smiled.

Of course, he decided to play disappointed big brother, to get something more from me other than cashing in on that favor.

Looks like we were both plotting.

“Did you know?” I asked the second I pushed through the glass doors.

He looked up from his phone, lips pulled into a deep frown.

“Know what?”

“That I’m married…” I took a seat across from him and flashed my left hand, wiggling the fingers in case he missed the rock. “To Demetrius Cannon of all people.”

His eyes went from my hand to me several times before he burst into laughter, head tossed back and all.

“Oh, you think it’s funny I lost every memory of a man I clearly loved enough to marry? I’m missing the joke in being lied to by my doctors about the severity of my accident, but I digress.”

He leaned forward, the laughter long gone.

“You serious?”

I nodded.

“So, you didn’t know.”

Kai was always the easiest to read. He didn’t give a fuck enough to mask his true feelings.