Even after he left Jimmy's place, Kyle had a hard time computing what had happened. Jessie left. Just like that. She asked them not to contact them. She was married.
And through it all, Jimmy's words spun inside his head. As long as you and Kay are still together, we have hope.
The pressure filled him with fear and it was stupid beyond belief. Him and Kay were fine, better than ever actually. Their relationship was bliss, made even stronger by their trip to Texas. He'd never felt closer or more comfortable with her. And yet... And yet...
What if Sarah was right? What if his mother was right? What if Kay secretly wanted to get engaged and he couldn't see it? The thought made him squirm because he wasn't ready. He liked where they were now and he'd rather they stayed that way for a while. But except for some brilliantly hidden frustration, he couldn't see any other potential threat to their happiness.
There's not threat. It's all inside your head.
And his mind was doing a damn good job at screwing everything up. Nope, he was going to bury all that and focus on reality. On seeing Kay and letting her know what happened. Ask her for advice on Jessie because he sure as hell didn't want to cut ties with her.
He entered the station and took the stairs to the second floor where his division had its offices. The moment he stepped into the open space area his team shared, Kay's laughter made the tension in his shoulders disappear. Seeing her was even better. She'd always looked gorgeous in her uniform, her pants hugging her hips and the shirt unbuttoned just the right amount to be decent and professional, but still smoking hot.
But unfortunately, he wasn't the only one who appreciated the view. He normally didn't judge other people staring, unless it was the guy she was talking to.
Eric Matthews. He'd been in her class at the Academy and was one of her closest friends at work. Kyle knew that, so when the kid had applied for his team, he'd been immediately accepted. And not because he was Kay's friend, but because he had such an embarrassingly obvious crush on her and Kyle liked to keep his enemies close.
It turned out to be a good call since the guy was good at following orders, fairly talented, and now kept at bay by a sense of loyalty to his commander. Not that Kyle was worried or anything. Kay had never even looked at him with anything more than friendly compassion. At anyone for that matter. The naughty glint in her eyes was reserved for him and him alone.
So he forced himself to relax and strode to them. The smile slipped off Kay's face once she saw him and Eric immediately knocked his heels together and brought his hand to his forehead in salute.
"Commander."
"Are you okay?" she asked at the same time.
"Not really. We need to talk." He threw Eric a fleeting glance. "At ease, kid."
"Permission to speak, sir."
Kyle hated to be called sir. He also hated the formality that his position implied, but he kept up appearances, especially in front of him.
"What is it?"
"The captain needs to speak with you about the airport job. You didn't name a second in command and the report--"
He had no time for that administrative bullshit. "You're second in command. File the report."
Eric's mouth dropped open. "Um, really? Because I'm not..."
"What?" Kyle asked sweetly. "Experienced enough?"
That was a bit of a jab at everyone in the office who had protested loudly when he'd been made unit commander at twenty three. Which happened to be Eric's age at the moment. On cue, all the older members of his team started pretending they were very busy with what they were doing. It had taken them precisely two missions to figure out that Kyle had more field experience than all of them. He still hiccuped when it came to proper procedure, but the older members now respected him enough to help out with that.
"You can do it," he said, "and I'll call the captain and tell him you're going to send it over. Have a bit of an emergency."
Eric nodded and a buzz of approval filled the room because they knew emergency was code word for Snitch Gravel stuff. One thing he'd really appreciated was that no one at the station gave a damn about the press and what they wrote. As far as they were concerned, risking your life for strangers was a good thing, no matter the reason. Hell, they all did it every day out of choice.
Kay slipped her hand into his and they both headed to the end of the open area, to his small office. The room small and cramped, had no windows and Kyle usually left the door open, but this time, they needed privacy.
"What happened?" Kay asked, the moment the door shut behind him.
"Jessie left," he mumbled, dropping the assault rifle on the desk and taking his kevlar off. "She and Jimmy broke up."
"What?" Kay's mouth dropped open and her eyes widened in surprised.
Kyle kept removing his gear, pondering over what to tell her next. It was harder than he'd thought.
"Did you know she was married?" he finally asked.
Kay just stared at him, her mouth opening and closing, her fingers playing with a button on her shirt. "No way." She walked to the desk and sat on it. "No freaking way." Her hands shook as she leaned her face in them.
He took that to mean no, so he leaned against the wall opposite the desk, his arms crossed over his chest, trying to rationalize this, find a solution.
"I can't believe she never told me," Kay whispered into her hands. "She was supposed to be my best friend. She lied to me." She raised her eyes, despair in her gaze. "She lied to you, too. How could she?"
The words rubbed Kyle the wrong way, but he tried to see Kay's point of view, too. "That doesn't bother me as much as why she didn't tell us."
"What do you mean why? Wouldn't you have told Jimmy right away?"
"Not if she asked me not to. Not if she gave me a proper reason."
Silence followed his affirmation. Kay frowned as if he'd spoken in Japanese by mistake.
"He's your brother," she finally said.
"I know. But I also know Jessie and I'm sure she loves Jimmy with all her heart. Whatever she's hiding, it's bad."
Kay gritted her teeth. "We were right here. Her friends. Her family. She could've said something." She shook her head, an annoyed frown on her face. "What the hell is wrong with everyone?"
"What?" This conversation was taking a fast nosedive. He hadn't expected Kay to take Jessie's secret so personally, but what did he know about friendships between girls? He just realized it was annoying as hell.
"I..." She waved her hand in a circular motion. "First Christine going crazy and cheating on Sam, then Tom turning into a total douche bag, now Jessie lying to everyone..." Her eyes widened in fear all of a sudden as if she'd finally realized where that left them. "We're the only ones left."
The tremor in her voice pushed away all the annoyance that had been steadily building up inside him. "I know. Jimmy was nice enough to point it out."
And she didn't even know all of it. Sarah had told him Jerry had been ghosting her lately so what he'd hoped would be a promising romance had most likely crashed and burned before it managed to take off.
"How are we the only ones left?" Kay sank her face in her hands again. "I mean I never gave Christine and Sam much of a chance because she wasn't my favorite, and I always knew Angie and Tom had their issues, but Jimmy and Jessie?" She looked at him between her fingers. "They were forever."
Just like us.
She didn't need to say the words for them to float between them.
"What if something happens to us, too?" she asked, her voice small.
"Don't say that." He pushed off the wall and covered the space between them.
Even if she sat on the desk, she was still shorter than him, so she gazed up as he took her face in his hands. Her blue eyes glisten with tears. He would damn everything just to make sure she would never cry.
"We're fine. Better than fine. We're great."
"So were the others before they were not," she whispered, making a very good point.
"None of us are cheaters, I don't have an unhealthy obsession, and as far as I know, you're not harboring a giant secret. Unless you married Danny and forgot to invite me."
She would have normally laughed. The fact that she didn't showed how scared she really was. Her hands found their way into his hair and she pulled him down slowly.
He let her, kissed her back, coming closer until his knees hit the desk. Her grip on him tightened, her fingers digging into his skin as if to make sure he was still there, still hers. He was, he would always be, because he couldn't imagine life without her and never wanted to.
The longer it lasted the more she loosened up, and it was no longer a desperate act to ensure they were still together. It was them again, as unable as ever to keep their hands off each other. And he couldn't help unbuttoning her shirt.
"Lock the door," she whispered in his ear.
He was more than happy to obey. He scooped her up with one arm and backtracked towards the door, his other hand searching for the lock. Enhanced strength had its advantages in moments like this, especially since he knew Kay loved it when he held her up.
His fingers fumbled with the lock as Kay pressed herself against him and kissed him even more fiercely. She even ignored her phone which started reading. And ringing. And ringing.
As much as he hated it, they were at work, so he broke off. "Maybe you should at least check who it is."
For a second, she watched him through desire-filled eyes and he felt like slapping himself for stopping her. She then nodded and pulled her still ringing phone out of her back pocket. Her eyes widened the moment she saw the screen.
"It's Angie." She lowered herself off him as she answered. "Angie? Are you alright?" She frowned at the answer. "I'll be right over."
Kyle tensed, because it didn't sound good. Kay didn't say anything as she buttoned her shirt with impressive speed. When the last button was finally closed, she looked up at him.
"She's back and she was crying. Want to take a guess whether she saw Tom before calling?"
"I'm sure she did." He hesitated for a moment. "Want me to come with or do you need girl time?"
She punched his chest. "Of course I want you to come. And not just because your motorcycle is the fastest way to get there."
He nodded and the two of them hurried out. On the way to Tom and Angie's place, Kay was silent and Kyle wondered what she was thinking, what she would do? He really didn't want to get into a fight between Kay's childhood friend and his brother because he couldn't take sides.
Maybe it's something else. Maybe they haven't spoken yet. Fat fucking chance, but after all the shit happening lately, maybe they'd get this.
They didn't get that. Angie opened the door, her eyes red and puffy from crying, wearing leggings and one of Tom's t-shirts.
"I was so worried!" Kay hugged her so hard, she basically pushed her inside.
Kyle followed as Kay led Angie to the couch. The place was clean and normal looking, but even so, there was an emptiness that hadn't been there before.
"What happened?" Kay turned to him. "Could you make her a cup if tea?"
He didn't think she needed tea, but he was sick of people drinking, so a useless herbal infusion felt like a better idea. It was better to be in the kitchen as well as Angie mumbled words between tears.
"What?" Kay screeched, her hands darting to cover her mouth. "No. How did that even happen?"
Angie swallowed heavily and Kyle walked back into the living room. Fuck the tea, this was apparently more serious than Tom.
"Fire," she finally said. "Their house burned down with them inside."
"All of them?" Kay whispered, tears sliding down her cheeks.
Angie nodded and Kay hugged her tightly. Kyle didn't have to ask. He walked back to the kitchen and grabbed the kettle, his hands shaking with repressed anger. He didn't need more to put two and two together. Angie had been away because her family died. But why didn't she tell anyone? Why didn't she take Tom with her to help her through everything? Why did she have to go face the worst day of her life alone?
"Did you talk to him?"
His words silenced the girls who had been talking. Angie's teary eyes turned to him. She looked exhausted.
"Yes."
"Did you tell him?"
She shook her head.
"Why not?" His voice was much rougher than she deserved, but he couldn't help it. Rage bubbled up inside him, at his stupid brother, at the unfairness in the world, at their inability to just talk.
"He didn't let me." She let out a loud sob. "He said I no longer have to answer to him and that he doesn't care why I was gone."
That would have been a good thing except Kyle could see right through it. "So he doesn't know why you went missing and he dumped you anyway."
"Kyle!" Kay said, her tone filled with reproach.
He didn't care. Tom was going to get an earful and then his ass kicked if he didn't get his head on straight. So he took out his phone.
"What are you doing?" Angie asked, panic lacing her voice.
"What you should've done. Tell him."
With impressive speed, Angie hopped off the couch and latched herself on his arm, pulling the phone away from his ear. "No! I don't want you to tell him."
"Give me one good reason."
"I don't want him to come back to me out of pity. I want him to want it."
"Angie, I love you, but that's dumb as fuck. Not knowing is keeping him away because he thinks he's justified to--"
"I said no!" She let go of him, fire burning in her eyes. "It's my decision, not yours! I don't want him to find out like this."
"So you're going to let him believe you cheated? Because in case you've just met him, that's what he thinks."
Angie shook her head violently. "I don't care. He needs to figure out that I'm more important than his obsession. If I'm not, then he's right and we're better off without each other." Her voice cracked at the last words and she returned to the couch and Kay's arms.
Kay gave him the stink eye and Kyle faltered. Maybe he forgot how people functioned, but it still sounded so stupid to him. Hiding things never helped. Just look at Jimmy and Jessie.
He let the girls whisper to each other and focused on the tea. If Angie wanted them to keep quiet, maybe he should just listen to her. Her relationship with Tom was none of his business after all. And it was the only think keeping him from doing what he thought was best. That and the pain Angie had to be feeling at the moment. She needed her friends, not people berating her. Kay had a point. He was an insensitive ass.
"Maybe you should tell him," Kay was saying as he sat on the coffee table and held the mug up to Angie.
She took it and glanced inside as if awaiting a magical solution. "Please respect my wish. It wasn't that bad, you know. He didn't scream, didn't throw blame, he didn't even mention cheating. He was actually pretty tame. So he'll be back. He just needs to cool down." She then raised her eyes to Kay, a new focus in them. "You should check on your parents. There's no guarantee they're not targeting us all."
Kyle frowned. "Wait, you mean what happened to your family was not an accident?"
Angie shook her head. Kay said something, but he could no longer hear. A weird ringing started in his ears as his mind finally put two and two together. He'd never thought Snitch Gravel would stoop so low, not after three years of constant behavior. But maybe it wasn't enough anymore. Maybe, like the time he beat Sam into a coma, he'd snapped again.
Adrenaline started pumping through him as the need for action took over. He was bad at comforting people. He was good at fixing things.
"Kyle." Kay snapped her fingers in front of her eyes.
"I need to go." He stood.
Surprisingly, the girls joined him and Angie wrapped her arms around him in a hug. He hugged her back out of reflex and could feel her muscles relaxing, as if the contact was doing her good.
"Thank you for coming," she mumbled into his chest, then raised her gaze. "And please promise me you won't mention any of this to Tom."
It was almost impossible to promise that, but he nodded. "It shouldn't be too hard since I'm technically not talking to him."
Angie tightened his grip on him for a second then let him go. She sank back on the couch, hugging her knees to her chest. Kay joined him to the door but stopped there.
"I think I should stay with her," she said, her voice low. "She needs someone."
"Agreed. I'll bring you some clothes. I think I'll crash at my parents' house for a while, too. Just to make sure it's all under control."
Kay nodded, already looking weary. "Love you."
"Love you, too, sweetheart." He gave her a quick kiss and was out the door.
He hurried down the stairs, needing the workout to counter all the mad thoughts inside his head. Angie was way too optimistic, obviously in denial, and this day had already gone to shit. Just as he reached the bottom step, his phone started ringing. Half of him hoped it was Kay, telling him to come back or, even better, Jessie, letting him know that she'd changed her mind about cutting them off.
It was Sarah. Good enough.
"Hey, Sarah. What's up?" He leaned his back against the wall, glad for the distraction.
"Hey, Kyle. Was about to ask you the same. I saw that media shit storm and was wondering how you were handling it."
Kyle frowned. "Didn't Jerry fill you in?"
There was a loud sigh from her side. "Jerry still hasn't called or texted me back beyond 'we'll talk later'."
Great, now Kyle had to kick Jerry's ass as well. "That sucks. Also have no idea because I've been busy with other life altering changes. That therapy you were offering is starting to sound good right about now."
There was a pause at the other end of the line. "Are you and Kay alright?" The concern in her voice made him feel a bit better.
"Yeah, but we're apparently the only ones."
"Shit, I'm sorry."
"That's not even the issue. Jessie left and she doesn't want to talk to any of us..." He stopped. Why on earth was he telling Sarah all this anyway? It wasn't like she knew how important Jessie was to him and what her leaving meant. Even he didn't realize that fully yet.
"Do you want to talk? Not therapy, just normal talking. Though I'm available for therapy as well."
She cared. She was honest. He'd read her from the moment they'd been stuck in that elevator together. And at the time, he needed to share this with someone who wouldn't judge everyone like Kay had. Someone neutral. Someone he could bounce ideas off and figure out how the hell to fix everything.
"Okay. I just need a half and hour and then we can talk."
"I'll text you my address."
And just like that, he found an outlet.
♠️♠️♠️
I'm done setting up everything at this point. Yay for that. Now all I have to do is shift the focus to more interesting stuff. I bet you want to get away from this type of drama and into some more interesting drama.
Okay, I lied. I have one little push left and THEN I'm done with this type of drama. Little push coming soon followed by big push.
I'm terrible, I know.
This chapter provided some insight into Kyle's job and also introduced a delightful new character I will have so much fun using later for no good.
Since I have a day off, more updates may come so fingers crossed for that.