Unsuitable (39 page)

“I’m doing okay.”
Never got over you. Spent the last three years pining for you. But, aside from that, I’m just peachy.

He smiles. And my heart ruptures.

“How’s Jesse?” he asks.

“Good.” I smile. “He starts university on Monday.”

“Which university?”

“Birmingham.”

“What’s he studying?”

“Law,” I say proudly.

He smiles. “And how’s Cece?”

“She’s great. Why are you here?” The words come out sharper than I intended. But I don’t regret them.

I do want to know why he’s here. Over three years and not a word. And then he just turns up on what has been a hard and emotional day, screwing with my head even more.

There’s a momentary look of surprise in his eyes at my blunt question, but he quickly recovers. “I’m here for you.”

My heart shimmies in my chest. “For me?” I take a breath. “I don’t understand.”

“I think you do.”

“No, I don’t.” I shake my head. “So, you’re going to have to clarify for me.”

And I want him to be specific.
Very
specific. Because I don’t want to misunderstand a word he’s saying.

My heart broke for him once before, and it never recovered. I don’t want to give myself hope, only for my heart to break a second time.

“I left to ensure that you’d get Jesse back. To give you both a chance at the life you deserved. I stayed away because it was the right thing to do. Jesse needed you. And I was fucked up, Daisy. I was fucked up when you met me. And I wasn’t getting fixed anytime soon. I’d been that way for so long that it was all I knew. Then, it was over. And I was lost. When you’ve lived on revenge for so long and then you have it, you think you should feel amazing. And you do for that brief moment. But then that passes, and you just feel lost. There’s no purpose anymore, just the memories of everything in the past.”

“You had me.” The words come out more broken than I wanted. I wrap protective arms around myself.

He rakes a hand through his short hair. “I wasn’t good for you. I screwed up. I was sinking into a hole, and I would have only brought you down with me. You needed to focus on Jesse. And, for once in my fucked up life, I wanted to do the right thing. And the right thing was for me to walk away.”

“But for three years, Kas…” My words trail off because I don’t know what else to say.

“I took a long time to get to where I needed to be.”

“And where was that?”

“To becoming a man you deserve.”

“And are you?”

His eyes lift to mine. “I don’t think I’ll ever deserve you, Daisy. No man ever could. But I’m closer to getting there than I was before, and I’m done being without you. I waited until Jesse was a man. Able to stand on his own two feet. Now, he’s at university. And I’m back to claim what was always mine.”

“And what if I no longer want you?”

There’s a flash of panic on his face, but he shuts it down a nanosecond later and is back to his ever-confident self. “Then, I hang around and bug the shit out of you with romantic gestures until you love me again.”

“The Kas I knew wasn’t romantic.”

“The Kas you knew was a dick.”

“Kas-hole.”

I grin, and he laughs. I love the sound.

“I don’t know. I kind of liked the old Kas. What if I don’t like this new, improved version?”

“You won’t know until you give him a try…give
me
a try.” He moves across the shop, coming around the counter, until he’s standing in front of me.

He reaches out and takes ahold of my hand, and I let him.

My skin sizzles, my whole body coming back to life after lying dormant for so long.

“Give me a chance to show you how good life can be with me now. Let me love you. Let me take care of you.”

A flash of my earlier thoughts—about what he’s been doing in all that time he’s spent away from me—cuts into my mind, making me feel cold inside.

I take my hand back from him and wrap my arms around myself again, like a protective shield.

And he doesn’t bother to hide the hurt on his face.

“What have you been doing all this time?” I ask quietly.

“I was in Greece with my parents for a little while. They’ve moved out there permanently now. Then, I traveled around a bit.”

His dark eyes haven’t strayed from mine.

But all I can see is beautiful locations and beautiful women.

Kas with other women.

“There’s been no one else,” he says softly, as though reading my thoughts. “How could there be when I was in love with you?”

Was.

“
Still
am in love with you.”

He steps up close and takes my face in his hands. I blink up at him. My heart somersaults in my chest. My mouth dries, and my skin is on fire where he’s touching it.

“I love you, Daisy. I’ve loved you for the last three years. I want to be with you, and I will do anything to make that happen.”

“What if I have someone else?” I step back out of his hold, and his hands drop to his sides. “You just come here, out of the blue, and say you want me back, assuming I have nobody in my life. Well, I could have a boyfriend, for all you know.”

I’m pissed that he hasn’t even asked. That he assumes that I’m so pathetic that I wouldn’t have moved on from him. That I’d still be single.

So what if it’s actually true?

The fact that he just assumes pushes my buttons.

And, honestly, I want a reaction. I want to piss him off.

Don’t ask me why because the only answer I can give is that it’s because I’m a girl. I’m confused and hurt that he’s been gone for so long. But I’m happy that he’s here. And I’m feeling every other emotion in between.

He doesn’t react. He just stares back at me and asks in a calm voice, “Is there anyone else?”

My face instantly heats because, now, I’m going to have to tell him no. He’ll know how pathetic I am, and I only have myself to blame.

Then, it registers that he didn’t react. The Kas I knew would have reacted.

Maybe he really has changed.

Or maybe…

“You didn’t ask if there was anyone else because you already know there isn’t and that there hasn’t been in all the time you’ve been gone. Am I right?”

He doesn’t even have the dignity to look ashamed.

He just steps back up to me and puts his hands on my face, where they’ve always belonged, tilting my eyes up to meet his. He stares deep into them.

“When I walked away from you, it was the hardest thing I’d ever had to do. The only thing that made it manageable was knowing that I wasn’t letting you go forever. Daisy, I might have let you go then, but I didn’t let you go far. And, honestly, if I’d gotten a whiff of another guy sniffing around, then I’d have gone back on my self-imposed promise to stay away until Jesse was eighteen, and I’d have come here, broken the guy’s face, then carried you back to my house, and never let you go.”

Well…shit.

What am I supposed to say to that?
Unsure, I go with what I always go with when I’m stumped. Humor.

“Should I take it that your stalking ways are still going full force then?”

His eyes spark and grin at me.

I shake my head, fighting a smile.

I really shouldn’t smile right now. Because it’s not funny.

“Honestly, how the hell did you manage to stalk me when you weren’t even here, when you were off traveling the world?”

His brows draw together. “I didn’t say I was off traveling the world. I said, I was in Greece for a while, and then I traveled a bit.”

“And where did you travel to?”

A hint of something I don’t quite understand flickers through his eyes.

“Why do you want to know?” he asks.

“Because you’re acting like you have something to hide, and I want to know what it is.”

“Well”—he clears his throat—“I was in Greece. Then, I wasn’t…and I was here…traveling back and forth between Westcott…and London.” Even though he cleared his throat, his words still come out gravelly.

And my eyes widen to saucers. “Oh my God! You’ve been here all this time!” I step back, stunned and also hurt.

I feel like he’s betrayed me—although I’m not quite sure how.

He follows me forward, his hands landing on my shoulders. “Not the
whole
time. I did go to Greece. I stayed there for six months. Then, I came back.”

“You’ve been here for three years! Jesus, Kas.” I shake my head.

“I stayed away for as long as I could. As long as it took to get my head straight. Then, I came home. I wanted to be closer to you. If I had to wait to have you, then I was going to be close to you while I did so.”

“Jesus…” I breathe, staring up at him. “I don’t know whether to be freaked out that you’ve been basically stalking me for the last three years. Or feel bowled over with emotion at the fact that you couldn’t stay away from me.”

I have the sudden urge to start singing The Police’s “Every Breath You Take,” but I don’t because that would be weird.

And how could he be here for all that time and me not know?

Or maybe, subconsciously, I did know, and that was why I could never get over him.

Kas gives me a sheepish but hopeful look. “Can we just go with bowled over?”

The look on his face is…so boyish that I can’t help but smile. “You have serious issues, Matis.”

“Just one. And she goes by the name Daisy.”

I give him a playful scowl.

And he smiles, but his expression quickly turns serious. “I want you to be my issue. And I want to be yours. I want you to be my everything. And I want to be your everything.” His hand lifts to my face, cupping it. “I want a life with you, Daisy. Try again with me,
please
. Just say yes. Just tell me you still love me and say yes.”

Pressing my cheek into his hand, I close my eyes, reveling in the feel of him. I already know my decision. I knew it the moment I turned around and saw him standing there.

I open my eyes and smile. “I still love you, Kas. And, yes. Yes, a million times over.”

His face breaks out into the biggest and most beautiful smile I’ve ever seen. Then, his lips are on mine, and he’s kissing me. I never want him to stop.

And, now, I know he will never stop. Because he’s here to stay.

It wasn’t our time before. But it’s our time now.

I once thought of Kas and me as totally unsuitable for one another. We were unsuitable.

But, now, we’re perfect.

Okay, well, maybe not perfect.

He’s killed in revenge. Killed for me. And I shot a man dead.

But we’re perfect for each other, and that’s all that matters.

He breaks our kiss, breathing heavily. “So, Thessa’s.” He nods his head toward the front of the shop. “Does that have anything to do with Thessaloníki?” he says with a touch of accent to that sexy voice, making my lady bits perk up. “Or is it just a coincidence?”

A blush covers my face. I lower my eyes. “I just wanted something to remember you by,” I whisper. “Something to remind me that you were real.”

He tips my chin up with his fingers, bringing my eyes to his. “I’m real, babe. And I’m here to stay. I’m never leaving you again.”

And I know he means it.

“I’m never letting you go,” I tell him right before his lips fall back to mine.

I slide my hands up into his hair, and he moans a sweet sound.

He wraps his arms around me, pulling me closer to him until there’s no space between us at all. And I go willingly.

I fall back into him, back into the only place I was ever meant to be.

In Kas’s arms. Where I plan on staying for the rest of my life.

Ac
knowledgments

Writing
Unsuitable
has been a hell of a challenge for me.

Two years in the making. Sixty thousand words deleted. The story line reworked, and the book restarted. Two extended editing dates, and finally, I’m here!

I really stepped outside of my comfort zone to write Daisy and Kas’s book, and I’m beyond glad I did.

Kas is literally
the
most complex character I have ever written. He broke me and then put me back together with his inner beauty. I adore every complex part of him. I hope you do, too.

As always, the biggest thank you goes to my husband, Craig. Babe, you’re my biggest champion and supporter, but more importantly, you’re my best friend. I couldn’t do it without you.

My children, Riley and Isabella, you are both literally the best thing I have ever done. Even if I fail at everything else in life, I will always know that I got something right—the both of you.

My girls, Sali, Trishy, and Jodi—Who knew long-distance friends would turn out to be the best friends a girl could ask for? I love you all.

My editor, Jovana—We’ve been working together for a long time now, and you never cease to amaze me with your awesomeness.

My cover designer, Naj—Your ability to pull out the image that I have in my head and make it a reality astounds me every time.

My Wether Girls—I adore you ladies! Thank you so much for your endless support.

My agent, Lauren, the best agent a girl could ask for—Thank you for always supporting my decisions and getting my books out there, all over the world.

Big shout-out and thank you to all the bloggers who work tirelessly to help promote our books—We authors couldn’t do it without you.

And, lastly, to you, the reader—I couldn’t do this without you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Ab
out the Author

SAMANTHA TOWLE
is a
New York Times
,
USA Today
, and
Wall Street Journal
bestselling author. She began her first novel in 2008 while on maternity leave. She completed the manuscript five months later and hasn’t stopped writing since.

She is the author of contemporary romances, The Storm Series and The Revved Series, and stand-alones,
Trouble
,
When I Was Yours, The Ending I Want,
and
Sacking the Quarterback,
which was written with James Patterson. She has also written paranormal romances,
The Bringer
and The Alexandra Jones Series. All of her books are penned to the tunes of The Killers, Kings of Leon, Adele, The Doors, Oasis, Fleetwood Mac, Lana Del Rey, and more of her favorite musicians.