Page 14 of Secret Match
Kiwi bit into the sweet milk chocolate and let the taste melt down her throat. Not even the burst of sweetness stopped her jitters. She finished the bar and went to her bedroom and the jewelry armoire to switch out her gold necklace for the silver flying bird pendant.
Done. Then she walked to her kitchen and unplugged her cell phone taking it back to the closet with her.
If she ran, she’d avoid today. She took out her empty suitcase.
If she ran, she’d need to pack a few things.
If she ran, she might never see Gio again.
She unzipped the bag, but dialed her best friend as she muttered to herself, “There is no way.”
Serenity heard her because the phone clicked and she said, “What is wrong? What’s no way?”
Caught. Kiwi took her blouses from the closet and began to fold them neatly as she ignored the tremble in her hands. “Sorry, Serenity. I am packing my bags—I’ve decided I’ll be out of town for a while.”
Her bestie might not be here in person, but her tone carried enough nuance that Serenity asked, “Why? What’s going on?”
“I can’t face Gio.” Wow, she sounded weak just from uttering that sentence, but that was why she’d called. Kiwi stopped folding and sat on the brown carpet of her condo. She leaned against the wall in her closet, her dresses pressing in on her as if they might shield Kiwi from her weakness. “Inviting him to meet my mother was a stupid idea. He makes me act completely out of character.”
Serenity exhaled. “So, you’re leaving town because Gio is coming over to your place? You seemed like you were together, last night.”
“Pretending to be strong is what I do.” Last night had been a double-edged sword. Knowing his name, and that he fit into the House of Morgan, was enough fuel to use in the getaway. She closed her eyes. “I felt bad for him. It seemed like all the family stuff with the Morgans hit him like a ton of bricks.”
“So you stuck with him.”
“Yeah.” Kiwi didn’t like seeing someone kick at a dog or a cat either. She’d hated that he’d been so uncomfortable, but that had nothing to do with today.
Today his family wasn’t around and it would be just the two of them—and then, her mother.
Serenity asked, “But now you’re running?”
“Don’t mix the two things up.” She spoke fast and defensively. No one saw her heart or what was inside her. No one needed to ever know who she truly was when she looked in the mirror.
“Kiwi, you called because you wanted me to check you, right?”
Bingo. She opened her eyes and rubbed her belly as she said, “Yeah. I need to be calm.”
“He took you home because you were sick,” Serenity said. “Did something happen during the car ride?”
“No.” Kiwi pushed a royal blue dress out of her face as she stood up, left the closet, and stretched. She then closed the suitcase though she hugged her waist. “He didn’t even kiss me.”
“Oh!” Serenity said like she’d solved some major crime case. “That’s the problem then.”
Was it? She winced. Last night hadn’t been a date. It was more like she’d been a witness in the House of Morgan. Her presence had done nothing but prove to her that being with a Morgan was a bad idea. Gio's passion in Paris replayed in her mind and she tingled as nothing like that had happened yesterday. She finally let out a sigh. “No… well, maybe.”
Her neck was hot.
Serenity then asked, “But you weren’t feeling good?”
Logic wouldn’t help this. She ached for more and thinking didn’t match how she felt. She took her blouses from the suitcase and hung them back up as neatly as before while she said, “Yeah, I thought I might throw up.”
“Like you do every morning?”
“Yeah.” Morning sickness wasn’t fun, though doctors said most people cleared up in the second trimester. Any week now that would hopefully kick in.
“Would you kiss someone who was on the verge of being sick? Damien held back a little and wasn’t as demonstrative until after I gave birth to our twins.”
Ew. She didn’t need to think about Serenity and Damien or picture them having sex ever. Serenity was like her little sister that had always needed guidance before she’d gotten married. “No, probably not.”
