Read Online Longing for Kayla by Lauren Fraser - Free Book Online Page B

ran his hand across his face.
    She jerked her head back. Chris had been in love with her? How could she not have known that? They needed to have a serious talk about running from their feelings.
    “Fuck, maybe I did take advantage of the situation. I knew how much he wanted you and that he would take you any way he could get you. I shouldn’t have put him in that position. Maybe I should just leave, so you guys can work things out between you.”
    “Don’t you dare leave. I was there too, Jesse. Chris was just as into this as you were. I think that’s what has him so messed up. Give him time, he needs to figure out what this all means and come to terms with it in his own way.” She tilted Jesse’s head to force him to look at her. “He wanted you, Jes, don’t beat yourself up about it. He’s a smart guy, he’ll figure out how great this could be if he just gave it a chance.”
    Their eyes met and held until Kayla finally felt like Jesse believed her. Then she kissed him. “Trust me.”
    “I hope you’re right, Kay.”
    She sat down on his lap, seeking comfort through sex. Jesse unhooked her hands from around his neck and set her on her feet.
    “I’m sorry, Kay, but I can’t.”
    “What do you mean you can’t?” Hurt welled up in her chest. “I thought you said this wasn’t just about Chris.”
    “God, Kay. It wasn’t, it isn’t. Lord knows I would love nothing better than to make love to you, but I just can’t do that to Chris. He’s been in love with you for so long, it would destroy him if we were together without him.”
    She placed her hands on her hips. “So, what? If he can’t come to terms with things, then that’s it? We all go our separate ways?”
    Jesse buried his hands in his pockets. “I guess. I mean we can still be friends.”
    “Yeah, sure we can,” she scoffed, unable to keep the bitterness she was feeling from coming to the surface.
    Tears welled up in her eyes. How had everything gone so horribly wrong? Just yesterday they had been talking about her moving in with them and now it seemed as if that would never happen.
    When the first teardrop rolled down her cheek, Jesse stepped toward her. “Come on, Kay, don’t cry. We’ll figure this out, I promise.” He pulled her into a hug, more brotherly than anything else.
    “I just think we need to put a hold on anything sexual between us until we figure out where we stand with Chris. I screwed this up too badly already without adding anything else to the mix. Trust me on this. I know Chris. He’d want us to wait until he gets his head straight.”
    She knew he was right but that didn’t make it any easier to accept.

Chapter Five
     
    It had been five days since Chris had seen Kayla or had any real contact with Jesse. It seemed as if both he and Jesse were trying to avoid each other. He grabbed his car keys from the kitchen counter and gave a cursory check of the room to make sure he hadn’t left a mess for Jesse to clean up when he got home. The last thing he needed was him bitching about what a pig he was.
    They were working opposite shifts this week, so it wasn’t unusual not to have hung out with Jes, but usually they would have had a beer or a cup of coffee together in passing to help decompress. That was one of the best things about being roommates with Jesse. He understood the daily stress of the job.
    As a paramedic, Jesse was often called out to the scene of accidents and crime scenes that Chris worked. After, they’d talk through the cases. Jesse’s medical knowledge helped give Chris an insight into the victims he wouldn’t otherwise have. It’s funny how much you could miss something you didn’t even realize was important.
    Swinging into the police station parking lot, he saw his partner sauntering into the building as if he didn’t have a care in the world. Granger was a typical family man, two kids, married to his high-school sweetheart. He was living the dream.
    Chris wished he could talk to him about