Page 65 of Selling Innocence
And I knew she would. Even if it hurt her, even if she didn’t know Isla, even though I treated her horribly, the tears that escaped her now were all for me.
The pain in my chest that I hadn’t been able to explain suddenly sharpened, and I finally understood it. It was Kenz burrowing her way into my heart, and I had a feeling no matter how much I resisted, she’d still win.
Chapter Fourteen
Hayden
Being around Kenz had gotten far more comfortable than it should have. It was strange, given I’d worked with plenty of clients for years at a time. In all those instances, however, I’d always maintained a professional distance.
I cared for them, of course, but I knew our places—they were a client, and I was a bodyguard. I worried about them, watched over them, and that created a false sense of closeness no matter what. However, it had always been easy for me to add in the correct distance for both of our sakes.
I couldn’t seem to do that with Kenz, though.
Why not?
“What do you want?” Her voice brought me back to the moment, forcing me to scold myself for getting distracted.
I glanced around to realize she spoke with a woman who worked at a small coffee cart on the sidewalk at the school.
“Nothing, please.”
Kenz pressed her lips together, giving me a look like she’d grown tired of my nonsense. “Well, you’re getting something, so either tell me what you want or you’ll drink whatever I get you.” When I went to answer, she pointed a finger at me to silence me. “And let me assure you, I’ll pick something pink with whipped cream just to punish you.”
I couldn’t stop my laugh at her fierce expression. “You have a mean streak, sweetheart. Fine, I’ll have a café latte.”
Kenz nodded, appearing pleased before she turned back to the barista and ordered both of our drinks. I scanned the surroundings, careful not to let my guard down.
It had been a few days without anything from Lorien, and that made me uneasy. All too often things went quiet just before they went very bad.
Given everything he’d done to obtain Kenz, I couldn’t imagine he’d just given up. So why?
What was he planning?
“It’s so nice to see a father visiting his daughter,” the barista said as she handed over the drinks to Kenz.
Father? Ouch. It wasn’t that I didn’t know how we looked, or that I was unaware of the age difference, but I hadn’t quite accepted I looked old enough to be her father.
I did some math in my head. I would have been around twenty when she was born.
Yeah, I guess I could be her father…
Kenz smiled, the comment not seeming to bother her. Then again, why would it? “He’s not my dad,” she corrected the woman.
But why tell the barista that? What did it matter what she thought?
“Oh he isn’t? I’m so sorry! How rude of me.” The woman rushed out an apology, her cheeks red.
Then again, that was like asking a woman when she was due only to discover she wasn’t pregnant. It was a social misstep that was hard to come back from now.
“It’s fine,” I assured her. It wasn’t the woman’s fault that I was old as fuck, now was it?
Of course, it reminded me of what it looked like when Kenz and I walked side by side. Did that embarrass Kenz?
She didn’t seem like it, but who knew?
Kenz handed me my drink and thanked the barista before we strolled off. She’d already taken care of her morning class and had a two-hour break before she had a meeting with her advisor about her exhibit.
“So what’s that?” I gestured at the large bag slung over her shoulder. I’d assumed they were art supplies, but at her class, she’d only taken out a small sketchbook from the front pocket. What was the rest?