Crazy For Your Love (Jensoo)

20| "I'm Not Sure She Sees It That Way."

|Jisoo|

Jennie and I fell asleep after two. For the first time in too long, I didn't have a single nightmare. I slept hard, but habit has me up at five.

I tuck the blankets around Jennie, pull on my bra, underwear, jeans and a T-shirt, and head downstairs. I don't want to wake her up, and I'm dying for a strong cup of coffee.

The dining room is quiet, but the kitchen staff has set out some pastries, fruit, a selection of teas, a carafe of coffee, and . . . I sniff. Oh, sweet baby Jesus, I smell bacon.

"Good morning, sir," a young blonde says, stepping out of the kitchen. "May I get you some hot breakfast? We have bacon, scrambled eggs, and French toast this morning, in addition to the offerings on the buffet, of course."

I blame my upbringing, but when I'm short on sleep, I don't just crave coffee to get moving. I crave bacon. Or at least I used to, before my appetite abandoned me.

I grin at the server. "Bacon and eggs sound great, thank you." I take a seat at one of the white-clothed tables, sip my coffee, and scroll through emails on my phone as she retrieves my meal. Seulgi sent out third-quarter Kim Brews P&L reports—which I'll open and skim only enough to say I did and send back with my approval. Beth sent me an email with a link to a story about a firefighter who lost his father (also a firefighter) with a note about it.

I've been sitting on this for a month, waiting for the right time to give it to you. It's a story of grief, guilt, and forgiveness. Thought of you. Hope you're well.

My chest goes tight. She's only tiptoed around the subject of the warehouse fire before, but this is definitely less of a tiptoe and more of her taking my hand and urging me to take a full step. A month ago, it would've pissed me off and I'd have deleted it, but now I think I might be ready. I flag it for myself to read later.

"Here you go, sir," the server says. She places a plate of steaming bacon and eggs in front of me, and I thank her before digging in. I feel a little odd eating down here without Jennie, but she already told me I'd be doing breakfast on my own this morning. She and the bridesmaids and mothers will be taking breakfast in Nayeon's suite.

I'm scrolling through Instagram when I hear someone clear his throat. I lift my head as Kai pulls out the seat beside me and sinks into it. Shit. Just the asshole I don't want to see.

"Good morning, Jisoo." He has a steaming cup of coffee and holds it between two hands as he studies me. "I wanted to apologize about last night."

I arch a brow. "Yeah?"

He nods. "Liam's right. I get a little . . . unreasonable where Jennie's concerned. You know how it is, right? She was my first love, and then we grieved over my best friend together."

I nod but take another bite of my breakfast instead of responding. I have so many questions, but I'm not sure I should be getting my information about Jennie and Kai's history from Kai—especially considering the warning she gave me about how he manipulates people.

He blows out a breath. "I don't think I'll ever stop feeling protective of her, and I'll probably always love her, but I do know she's a grown woman who gets to make her own decisions. I'm sorry if I came off a little too intense. I'm going to make an effort to be better. I don't want to be in the way of you two enjoying yourselves this weekend."

Well, hell, that sounds downright mature. "Thank you, Kai."

"You're welcome. Let me know if I can help at all, okay?"

Unlikely. "I don't think we'll be needing anything, but thanks anyway."

He nods. "I know it's hard for her to talk about the past, so if you have any questions, I can fill in details. I want her to be happy."