Page 85 of Unexpectedly You

I pick up my phone, thinking about who to call, but I don’t have anyone. So I’ll have to wait until tomorrow and call the bank.

My phone pings, and I open the text, and damn, Adam was right, it’s two pages long. They want photos, GP records, Arianna’s schedule, clean DBS, and I’ll have to disturb the neighbours who’ve seen me with Arianna, and much more.

There’s a knock at the window but I don’t turn around, lost in my desperation, and anyway, the studio is closed.

I want to go upstairs and cuddle with my two favourite people, but thanks to my parents, something has broken, and I don’t know how to put it back together.

There’s a series of knocks, each one more urgent than the last, and this time I turn around.

Kai’s face through the window is not wearing its usual grin, and the fine hair at the base of my scalp rises for no apparent reason.

I open the door, and he enters but doesn’t say anything, instead looking at me as if expecting me to say something. I raise one of my eyebrows at him in an implied what?

He takes a deep breath, looking like someone not happy about what he has to say.

“Where’s Jay?”

My eyes go to the stairs, before I reply. “They’re upstairs.”

“He’s okay?”

“What’s with all these questions?” My patience is running low, even if I shouldn’t be taking it out on Kai.

I wait, but when he doesn’t say anything I kind of yell. “Talk.”

“Jeremy was at my place, and he’s been beaten up. I patched him up and he should have stayed put, but when I came back from washing my hands he was gone.” I’ve never seen Kai this affected by injuries.

“Was it bad?” A simple nod, that’s not that simple.

Fuck!

“I don’t know what’s happening…”

“I do. That fucker threatened Jay earlier and demanded he go back to him and to bring him his money. Told him he was keeping Jeremy as collateral.”

“What the fuck?”

“Yep, my thoughts exactly.”

“We need to do something.”

“We do. Especially now that I have my parents breathing down on my neck trying to take Arianna away from me. Jay’s situation will be a problem when we go to court.” I jump to my feet and pace back and forth across the room, wishing it was bigger.

“Okay.”

“Nothing’s okay.” I turn his way like a snake ready to bite. That’s why he pisses me off, he never loses his shit like I do.

“Take a breath. I mean let me help.” He goes around the reception area and picks a piece of paper. “Here,” he says after scribbling for a moment. “Call him, he’s a lawyer. The best.”

“I have a lawyer.”

“Just take it in case you need it.”

“Thank you,” I say, before taking the paper. I like him a little bit more.

“If you call, tell him I gave you his name. Be honest.”

I nod. It won’t change from what I said to Adam.