Chapter 125

Emma's POV 

Casey was quick, and soon, they were finished. 

 "It's not even that good." I quipped. 

 "Ouch!" Casey winced and looked in my direction. 

 "Sorry." I apologized. "it's not you, it's him." I added. 

 "Wanna pick out my next tats?"He asked me. How bold of him to. I looked away, out of Casey's window. She stayed on the second floor, and while she was surrounded by really tall buildings, she had such a good view too. 

 "I'd rather not engage in stuff like those." I replied, sassily.

I didn't have anything against Kevin but I also didn't want to admit it to myself. 

 "Never say never." He smiled. 

 "I'm so sorry!" Casey exclaimed. 

I turned back to see spilled ink all over his body. 

 "Now I love this tat." I joked. 

I bit the inner part of my mouth fighting the strange feeling that I felt as Casey helped him out of his clothes, and seeing his toned body. 

He looked so fucking good. Better than I remembered. Not like I'd ever seen him in all his glory. 

 "I'm getting crushed on." Kevin said in a singing voice. 

 "Casey, be professional." I deflected. 

Casey was lost in all our antics, and I didnt think she was too bothered understanding it. 

I gave up and went back into Casey's room. 

I was losing control of my mind. I couldn't comprehend why I had a nagging feeling about Kevin. 

 "Hey." He announced his presence. 

 "Is this part of her studio too?" I asked Kevin.

 "No, I came in here to see you." He replied. 

 "Why are you here, Kevin?" I asked. "I blocked you for a reason." 

 "Long story, Ekma. I got a chance to be, and I took it." He said, sitting next to me.

 "Did it have anything to do with me?" I asked.

 "A hundred percent." He replied truthfully. 

 "I don't think I want you to." I said, I didn't want to be the soft lover girl everyone toyed with, I was tired of seeing my name in that narrative. 

 "You don't get to decide that, Em." He replied to me. 

 "Fair enough." I conceded. 

 "What you get to decide is if you'd grant my request to take you out for lunch." He said. 

I smiled within, but dared not show it outside. I couldn't be seen as the broken girl he left almost a year ago, and the one he met three weeks ago.

 "I'm not feeling up to it." I excused myself, and picked my bags up from the bed where I threw it.

 "I'm sorry, Emma." He apologized, standing in my way. Kevin was still undressed, and we were standing so close, I could feel his breath on my face. 

He smelt sweet. His breath was minty, and he smelled like old spice. 

Kevin looked as sweet as sin, and we were so close, as close as I was to throwing my arms around him, but I held myself back. 

 "Please, Emma." He begged. "Let me start trying to make it up to you." 

 "I think you should be concerned about you, not me." I replied to him. 

 "It's not my fault that I can't get you off my mind." He said. 

 "I've known Casey for only two days, Kevin, just a little shorter than I knew you for" I robbed it in, "I don't think it's fair to be putting her through all these." I said. 

 "Through what? Paying her rent among other things?" He asked, looking at me surprised, "Casey's doing perfect, Emma. Watch out for yourself, and me." 

He took my hands from where they lay by my side and put them on his chest. 

 "Feel my heart." He said when I weakly tried to tear my hand away from him. "That's how I countdown each time to when next I'll see you. I can't sweet talk you into denying seeing other girls since I met you, but one thing I'd swear to is not feeling as much as I felt for you, for them. I just couldn't. I gave up Emma. I gave up trying to find love after you." 

 "Kevin, I'm fresh out of a relationship." I said weakly. 

 "I get that, and I respect it. But I don't want to lose touch with you." He was speaking so sincerely. "I want you to know that I'm always 

close to you, and that I'm a better deal that anyone you could ever get. I want to prove that to you, Emma. But I need you to let me." 

 "I'm not sure I'm ready for this." I confided in him. 

Casey's living room was silent and there was every chance she was listening in. 

 "It's the wrong time and place, Kevin." I said, trying to go around him, but he held me by my waist. 

I didn't fight it, my heart didn't either. 

 "Let's excuse Casey then." He smiled and looked into my eyes. "Where do you wanna be?" He asked me, putting his clothes back on. 

 "At home." I replied instinctively. "My apartment, I mean." I corrected. 

 "Mind having a guest over?" He asked. 

Kevin's smile was so beautiful that it automatically evoked consent. 

I couldn't fight that either. 

 "Haven't got much time to spare." I managed to say. 

 "We'll see about that." He replied. 

I'd barely known Casey, and she'd already known so much about me and my love life. 

 "Thanks." I said and quickly made my way to the door before they saw how red my cheeks were turning. 

 "I see you chose the better pancake." She joked, and I laughed at myself. 

I was gonna explain to her later, or maybe never. 

 "How long is your place from here?" He asked me, breaking the silence we'd been walking in. 

 "About five more minutes." I replied to him. 

Being so close to Kevin, rekindling or trying to rekindle what we had, taking him to my house, it all felt like I was doing something wrong. 

While it felt good to have his company, it also felt like I was cheating on…

I shook the thought out of my head and instinctively reached for his hand. 

I didn't have to look up to see that he had a wide smile on his face.