Page 47 of The Sweetheart
Nolan gave him an affectionate smile pecking him lightly on his lips.
19
Acouple of hours later, Kai was really over it. The night had been… okay. Hanging with Katie was fun. In this setting, she was so much more reserved, but it was cool getting to know her when she wasn’t in her little headspace. Apparently, she was the daughter of an American diplomat, classically trained in ballroom dancing and went to finishing school in France. Reconciling that with the girl who had gone through her kink list in very, very fine detail with him was a wild ride.
Kai finally made his escape when Nolan was lured into another conversation by yet another middle-aged dude, grinning maniacally and guffawing too loudly. Nolan introduced him, but Kai didn’t care to remember his name. All of these guys blended into one that he had formally labelled “douche.” These people were so deeply out of touch with reality that everything they said, all of their fake laughter, grated against his nerves.
Kai caught Nolan’s attention immediately when he stood.
“You okay?”
“Bathroom,” Kai mouthed quietly. Nolan pressed a kiss to his mouth and let him go. It was a lot easier to get lost in the crowdnow that it was mostly on its feet. Dinner was finished, and the self-congratulatory speechesfor all their generosityhad finally ended, thank fuck, and a band had kicked up. Couples had taken to the dance floor, and Kai eyed them jealously because they seemed like the only people genuinely having a good time. Katie floated by with Marcus, but they were so deep into each other that neither of them noticed him.
The quiet of the bathroom was a welcome relief. There were a few other men in there, but they were largely disinterested in Kai. He peed quickly, then stared at his reflection. He’d shed his jacket a while ago, and he wished he could do the same with the corset. It was so binding and starting to pinch uncomfortably. Kai sighed and ran a hand through his dishevelled hair, trying to bring it back to order while he tried to work up the willpower to go back out there. He knew he would have to soon or Nolan would come looking for him.
Outside, he paused, shoving his hands into his pocket and fingering the stashed Lego while he tried to decide what he to do. Did he want to go back to the table or try to find some fresh air?
A loud tut had him turning around to find Marilise standing in his path.
“I don’t suppose your mother ever told you not to linger in doorways.”
Kai gave her an irritated once-over. Wealth dripped off of her, from the gems at her throat and around her wrists to the millions of tiny beads that had probably been handsewn to her gold gown. Not for the first time that night, Kai wished Liam was here but this time to put this bitch in her place.
Katie had been right. Associating with her seemed to bring on the ire of Marilise and her crew, but there was nothing Kai cared less about. Nolan had made it clear he didn’t care to have her good opinion either.
“No, but I’ll run and ask her about it right now.”
“Do, dear, because you’re blocking the way.” She said it pleasantly, but the smile she gave him didn’t meet her eyes. Kai glanced behind her and realized that he was, in fact, blocking the way. A flush of embarrassment hit his cheeks.
He brushed past her and, because he could, he deftly unclasped the tennis bracelet on her wrist. At a different time, he would have taken it, but tonight he just let it fall to the ground. She huffed impatiently, but he was pretty sure she hadn’t noticed. He didn’t look back to check.
Kai spotted Nolan walking towards him right away when he entered the main hall.
“I was just coming to find you,” he said, taking Kai by both hands. “Let’s go.”
“Home?” Kai asked hopefully.
Nolan laughed. “Not yet.” He led him to the dance floor, and Kai sank against him, sighing heavily as Nolan wrapped an arm around his waist and took his hand in his. Kai breathed in the familiar scent of Nolan’s cologne. Cocooned in his arms, the gentle rhythm of them moving around the dance floor soothed some of Kai’s overstimulation.
“You’re tired,” Nolan said close to Kai’s ear.
“Yes.” Kai smiled ruefully, not bothering to deny it.
“Don’t worry. We’ll leave soon.” He spun Kai out, then pulled him back close, grinning at the disapproving look on Kai’s face. Kai wasn’t in the mood for fancy dancing right now. He wanted socially acceptable dance-floor cuddles. “Thank you for coming with me. These kinds of things are not my favourite, but I loved, loved, having you here with me.”
“I’m glad I came. It was kind of cool. I mean, the people kind of suck, but it’s not all bad.”
“They’re not all that bad.” There was humour in his voice, so it was pretty clear that he wasn’t taking it personally.
“If you say so. We should totally bring Liam next time though. That would be a wild night.”
“Yeah, definitely not. That boy has trouble written all over him.”
Nolan had casually led them to the bank of French doors that opened onto a massive balcony overlooking the city. The sun had mostly set, but remnants of light still littered the horizon. This deep in the city, you couldn’t really see that many stars, but the Toronto skyline had its own impressive beauty.
Nolan walked Kai backwards until they were in a darkened corner of the balcony, a large planter blocking them from view of the other guests.
“You’re not wrong,” Kai scoffed.
