Chapter 65
Lily POV
It was Kai.
“Kai?” I whispered shaking off his hands from my face as I turned on the bedside lamp. “What are you doing here? Is it not morning yet? How did you get into the house p>
He rubbed at the back of his neck, taking a hesitant step back. “I have a spare key and I… I just wanted to check on you. To make sure you’re safe. I didn’t mean to wake you,” he stammered, his eyes darting around, avoiding my stare.
My eyes narrowed as I folded my arms over my chest. “Safe? You wanted to check on me? At midnight? Kai, I’m in my bedroom, it’s not like I’m outside or anything. You can’t just sneak into my room like this! What if I was naked or something? This is a breach of my privacy p>
“I… I know and I’m sorry,” he said sheepishly. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I just… I worry, that’s all and your door was open, I couldn’t help it p>
“That’s not the point!” I ran my hands through my hair in frustration. “You can’t just come in here whenever it suits you because you have a spare key to the house and the door to my bedroom is unlocked. Showing up uninvited like this… it’s weird p>
“I’ve done it before,” he admitted quietly. “I guess I got used to watching over you. Old habits, you know p>
I froze. “What p>
He had the grace to look remorseful as frustration flickered across his face, he was struggling to find the right words. “I’m sorry, Lily. Really. I didn’t mean to cross a line. It’s just… sometimes I just need to be near you. To know you’re safe. I sit in that chair,” he pointed to my reading nook, “And watch you sleep for a while. I don’t know how to explain it p>
His shoulders were slumped as he spoke. He looked more like a scolded pup than the Alpha he was. I could feel my resolve weakening. I couldn’t be angry with him even if I wanted to.
“That’s I struggled to find gentler words. “That’s not okay, Kai. That’s really not okay p>
“The mate bond p>
“Is not an excuse for violating my privacy!” I wrapped my arms around myself, suddenly feeling naked in my thin pyjamas or maybe because I saw his eyes flickering to my chest.
This wasn’t just his Alpha protectiveness; it was the bond affecting him, just as it was starting to affect me too. I didn’t want to push him away, but he had to understand boundaries.
I leaned forward, with a gentle but firm voice. “Kai, listen to me. I appreciate your concern but if this is going to work, you need to respect my space. If we’re going to take this bond between us to another level, there need for boundaries. If you can’t… then I don’t know how we can move forward p>
His face fell as he took a step toward me but I held up my hand to stop him. “I mean it, Kai. No more sneaking into my room. No more watching me sleep. Promise me p>
Hurt flashed in his eyes as the silence stretched between us before he finally nodded. “I promise and I’ll do better p>
“Good. Now please leave p>
“Lily p>
“Leave, Kai. We’ll talk tomorrow p>
He stared at me for a while with unbelief but after some seconds, he finally nodded.
“Sleep well then,” he said before turning to leave.
I watched him leave, closing my bedroom door quietly behind him and I felt a pang of guilt but I reminded myself it was for the best. Kai needed to understand that my independence wasn’t something I could just set aside, especially after my last experience.
I couldn’t ignore the mate bond, but I also, couldn’t let myself be consumed by it. Not again!
The next day, I spent the entire day waiting for Kai’s call or even a text. At some point, I toyed with the idea of reaching out first but I didn’t want to seem weaker. Experience has taught me that the only way a man can learn is if you put your feet down in certain situations like yesterday.
I had compromised a lot on so many things when I was with Lucius and I wanted to make sure that I don’t make similar mistakes again. The whole of the day passed without any word from him.
Thankfully, the next day was a Saturday and I was supposed to go shopping with Celeste. The shopping did little to dissolve the tightness in my chest and by evening, I was miserable. I kept checking my phone, refreshing our chat every few seconds to see if there was any message from him.
By 6 pm there was still no word from him. Unable to hold it in again, I decided to call.
He answered on the second ring.
“Hello!” he sounded normal.
“Did you forget our appointment or you’re so busy that you want out? You could have just called to inform me instead of leaving me hanging all day.” I said, poised for a fight.
There was a slight pause from his end. “Are you ready? Can I come pick you up now p>
The quietness in his voice drained the fight in me. I’ll look like a fool if I keep yelling. Sighing I replied. “Yes, I’ll be a the park at the student hostel waiting for you p>
“Okay, I’ll meet you five p>
Exactly five minutes later, he arrived. He had a quiet expression on his face – the typical, I am Alpha Kai. When he came down from the car, I expected him to ask me questions, to even demand why I hadn’t reached out since the night after that incident but he didn’t.
He just came and took the overnight bag I had packed and deposited it at the back of the car before opening the passenger side for me.
When he got in, he turned to face me. “Did you have fun shopping with Celeste? And your nails look nice, the colour suits you p>
Not what I expected.
“Yes!” I nodded. “Thank you p>
We drove in silence until we arrived at the penthouse. After taking me up to the room, he took my bag to the bedroom, when he came out again, I was itching for a conversation, anything to lighten the mood. He seemed normal, he was acting normal but I couldn’t help but feel that something was going on.
Or was it me?
“There’s something I need to finish up in the office. I’ll be done with it real quick. Say in the next one hour, I should be home. Will you be alright by yourself p>
“Yeah!” I nodded.
“Okay. Do you want anything? I already ordered proper meals for us for the weekend but if you want anything else p>
“I’m fine,” I said quickly, shifting uncomfortably. You better hurry now, so you can come home on time p>
He flashed me an easy smile. “Alright, see you in an hour p>
A few minutes after he left, I was bored. Mainly from the adrenaline that I’ve worked up since Friday, hoping to fight with Kai… now, I needed to burn it off since I failed in expelling it. I wandered through the rooms, opening cupboards, and drawer and rifling through his things.
There was not much to see and I didn’t want to displace the position of any of his things, especially when I realized that he was a neat freak. There was no speck of dust on any of his things, not even the furniture.
I ended up in his study room. Going through the mini bookcase he had in there, stopping to look at the abstract paintings on the walls…as I wandered, something caught my eye – a partially open drawer with red clothes peeking out from it.
I crossed the room immediately and went to the drawer. What I found inside made me gasp.
My missing blue sweater. The scarf I thought I’d lost at the park. Several hair ties I’d assumed had simply disappeared as hair ties do. Even a sock I’d been convinced my dryer had eaten. All neatly folded, preserved like precious artefacts.
“What are you doing p>