Kai woke up the next morning with Cinder's arm almost suffocating him.

It was pressed over his neck, but not in a romantic way, more in a deadweight kind of way. He slid his hand gingerly under her arm to give his throat more room to breathe, then glanced in her direction and nearly burst out laughing. Cinder was spread out on her stomach with her arms and legs extended like a starfish, her face smushed into the pillow. The idea that someone could find that type of position even remotely comfortable boggled his mind.

This could be a problem for them. Kai was definitely a back sleeper. Maybe the next time he slept over, he'd have to make a little pillow barrier to keep himself in a safe zone from her dangerous tentacles. His heart warmed this little idiosyncrasy that maybe one day they could call "theirs" and have little inside jokes about. That being said, he still clearly needed more space in the bed. He might have to have a chat with her about this.

He rolled the thought around in his mind. It was hard to believe that he'd actually spent the night. Granted, it had transpired because of Cinder's need for comfort and conversation, but it had been fantastic nonetheless. He'd enjoyed every minute of cuddling that she'd allowed him. The conversation had gone quite deep too—it turned out that once Cinder had felt comfortable enough to share her hesitations, a flood of other topics had come pouring out of her. Kai hoped that she wouldn't hold back anymore. He loved this raw, honest version of her that didn't put up so many walls.

He was careful not wake her as he slipped out of bed and over to the bathroom. His internal clock still wasn't letting him sleep past 6:00 A.M. He had hoped that with a little stress relief, he might be able to sleep in more, but now he supposed that it was just sheer habit. The rumpled shirt and pants that he'd fallen asleep in stared back at him in Cinder's mirror, and he took a moment to try to smooth them out. It was futile. When he finally finished freshening up and went to grab his keys off the kitchen table, he hoped that he'd back before Cinder had a chance to wake up.

Finally, luck was on his side just this once. He slipped back in and placed the coffee and bagels on her table. Then he walked to her bed and sat down beside her. His adorable little starfish. Well, grown up starfish. He could see a nickname forming here. Kai ran his hands through her hair just once and gave her a quick kiss on the head. She didn't budge.

Huh. Wasn't that usually supposed to do the trick in all the romantic films? Unfortunately, he wasn't too experienced with cute morning wake-up calls. He tried again. Cinder slightly grunted, but stayed asleep. Time for Plan B. Kai plopped himself onto the bed rather loudly next to her and bounced a little. Then he squeezed himself underneath her arms until he was right next to her.

"Cinder…" he practically sang, hoping to be annoying. "Wake u-up."

Cinder opened one of her eyes and nearly jumped a mile in the air.

"Whoa!" he said, sitting up. "You okay there?"

She breathed heavily. "You scared me!"

"Sorry," he said, not sorry at all. "I did what I had to do. You wouldn't wake up."

"Oh," she said, looking first at the bed, then to him, then to the bed again. "Hi."

"You probably have to get to work soon, don't you?" he asked.

"Not for another hour," she said. "I did a lot of overtime this week so I have a late start today."

He grimaced. "Whoops."

"That's okay," she said. "It smells good. Did you cook?"

"Why cook when you can buy?" he said.

"Don't tell me you don't cook," she said, rubbing her eyes.

"A little, though not nearly as much as I probably should," he admitted. "As you pointed out yesterday, I'm kind of a spoiled brat."

She laughed. "Yeah, you are."

"I got you bagels and coffee, though. That's got to count for something."

"I suppose."

She grinned and leaned to give him a kiss before she stood up and stretched. Kai went over to the kitchen area and began rummaging through the cabinets.

"In the top right hand corner!" she yelled from the bathroom.

He found two plates there and soon located the knives for the cream cheese—which he'd also bought. Maybe it wasn't so romantic, but even if he could cook, he would still want bagels in the morning.

Cinder reappeared from the bathroom with a pair jeans and a sweater that really flattered her figure. He couldn't help smiling. When she met his gaze, though, her face fell slightly.

"I don't usually do things like this," she said. "So, um, I just wanted to let you know that this was a one-time thing."

Kai's heart sank. "What?"

"You know...sleeping over."

"Oh. Did I…do something wrong?"

She shook her head quickly. "No, not at all! I just don't want to build up your expectations. I mean, I really want to be your, well…"

"Girlfriend?" Kai supplied, loving the sound of it on his tongue.

"Yes, girlfriend. I'm glad we're on the same page with that. But I want to take it slow in the, um, physical department."

"Oh."

"I know that probably seems a little traditional in this day and age." She began to ramble. "But it's my personal decision and I hope you can respect that and I feel like maybe I made a mistake inviting to stay over and maybe I led you on because of that and you're a guy and I don't know what your expectations are and does that disappoint you?"

Kai tried to think of how to phrase what he wanted to say. "Like you said, I am a guy, so…I've thought about it, yes, and I can't say I don't want to, but…obviously only if you want to."

"I don't want to. At least not yet." She was clearly nervous.

"It's like I said yesterday, Cinder. We don't have to do anything. I just want to be around you and be with you. I'm glad you told me; it's better this way. Now I won't try something and you'll feel pressured."

She brightened, relieved. "Thanks."

He patted the chair next to him so she would sit down. "Come on, let's eat. Tell me more about why you feel this way."

"So, Thorne wants to have another party this weekend," Kai said through a mouthful of Chinese take-out that he'd just shoved in his mouth. He was at Cinder's house for the third time this week, and he was rather enjoying their more consistent time together.

"A dinner party like last time or like a big party?" Cinder asked, swallowing before answering.

"Nntsr." Kai swallowed too. "Excuse me. Not sure. Do you want to come?"

She smiled slyly. "The last time I went to one of Thorne's parties, I met you. Maybe this time, I'll meet someone even cuter."

Kai scoffed. "Please, how could you look at anything besides this handsome face?"

Cinder tried to poke him with her chopsticks, but dropped a dumpling when he ducked back. He stole it off the table with his hand and shoved it in his mouth. "Mmmm."

"Or maybe, someone with better table manners," she said.

"I am the standard of etiquette at my business functions," he said defiantly. "You just bring out the slob in me."

"You're so annoying."

"Annoying adorable?" he asked.

"Maybe."

"Well maybe don't meet another cute guy at Thorne's party."

She smiled before taking some more food. "Can I bring Iko again?"

"Sure." He paused before adding, "but it's one of those 'let's-meet-Thorne's-new-girl' parties. Will Iko mind?"

"She actually just met someone, and maybe she'd want to bring him."

"Oh okay, I'm sure that would be fine. Thorne is really laid back about that sort of thing."

"Why does Thorne do that?"

"Do what?"

"Have those parties whenever he meets a new girl."

Kai poked at his food. "He doesn't do it with every girl. But I think it's for a variety of reasons. First, Thorne is really social. He doesn't want to give any woman the impression that she's going to be the only person thing taking up all his time. Second, there's less pressure to have deep conversation. If they don't hit it off too much, or if he's unsure about her, it's easier to have other people around to make it less uncomfortable. Third, parties put Thorne at ease, for some reason. He feels like he's in his element when there are people around to impress or even just, I don't know, put him in the spotlight? The guy likes to show off a bit, in case you haven't noticed. Lastly, I'm pretty sure he thinks it puts the girl at ease because girls don't want a guy who isn't proud of them, so they think it's important to meet his friends."

"You're joking."

"No?"

"Meeting a guy's friends if you're already dating is sort of like a ritual. If the girl likes him, she'll think that he's taking the relationship to the next level."

"You came to his party. Did you think he was taking the relationship to the next level?"

She laughed. "No. Thorne just said he wanted me to come to a casual party with some of his friends. It's not like we were already in a relationship."

"Well, maybe that's what he does with the other girls too."

Cinder shook her head. "Sounds to me like it's just a defense mechanism for Thorne to easily jump ship. Like a disguised dumping strategy."

"I doubt he views it like that. He doesn't invite girls over that he doesn't like, or at least think are cute." Kai shrugged and took a drink. "Maybe he's just hopeful that he'll finally meet the right girl."

"Maybe he should stick around long enough to find out if a girl could even have the possibility of being the right girl. It's kind of hard to know that without spending a lot of time together."

"I've never really thought about it like that. It's just the way Thorne operates."

"You're probably a little blinded by the fact that he's your friend."

"Maybe a little," Kai admitted. "I guess he does give that awful friend speech a lot, though. That I have noticed."

Cinder shuddered. "If that's the case, then I really hope the one he used on me has been perfected for this next girl, because oh my stars, he sucks at it."

Kai and Cinder arrived a little late to the dinner party. He'd underestimated just how much time it took him to get to Cinder's part of the city and back to Thorne's, now that she was letting him pick her up. He didn't mind though—the fact that she allowed it made his heart skip with an unspoken triumph. When the incredible smell of something baking wafted towards them from the kitchen, Kai couldn't have been happier. Forget Thorne's party. This was his chance to show off his girl for once. He put his arm around Cinder's waist and escorted her proudly to the others.

His glee was short-lived. When they entered the kitchen, Kai nearly fell over in shock when he recognized Thorne hunched over the stove with none other than Crescent Darnel.

Notes from her file flashed through his mind the instant he saw her.

Vandalism. Theft. Blackmail. Destruction of Property. Restraining Order.

He watched, mesmerized but terrified, as Thorne ladled some of the sauce he was stirring onto a spoon, blew on it, and practically shoved it into her mouth. Her eyes bulged slightly, then she swallowed and bobbed her head enthusiastically. Apparently, whatever he was making tasted good. Thorne reacted by giving her one of his "I'm so charming and awesome" smiles and Kai mocked him silently.

Thorne had been lying to him. "A new girl." Please. Thorne had hidden this intentionally. Kai's shock began to dwindle as anger replaced it.

"Kai!" His attention snapped up as Scarlet bounded over with Kesley. "Can you believe he's cooking? Thorne's really trying to impress this one, it seems."

Kai tried to recover. He had completely forgotten that he still had his arm around Cinder. "Ha…right. Um, Kesley, Scarlet, you remember Cinder, right?"

"How could we forget?" Scarlet said playfully, before giving Cinder a quick hug. "Welcome to the gang."

"Thanks, it's good to see you again." said Cinder. "Have you seen Iko?"

"She and Ran are already here. I think they're chatting in the living room."

"Okay, thanks." Then she turned to Thorne, who hadn't even acknowledged their presence. "Thorne, you're lighting up like the full moon over there!"

Thorne turned around at that and grinned as though they shared some sort of conspiracy. "Hey, that's my line, darling."

He set down his ladle and gestured for Cress. "Cress, you remember Kai." The sly look on Thorne's face told Kai that Thorne knew perfectly well just how much he'd been keeping Kai in the dark. Cress, however, moved closer to Thorne, and looked slightly intimidated.

Kai reached out to shake her hand. "Nice to see you again, Crescent."

"Just Cress, please."

"Sure."

There was an uncomfortable silence, which Thorne broke. "And, this is Kai's new girlfriend, Cinder."

Cinder shook Cress's hand too and the room slowly filled with noise. Kai left Cinder with Cress and Thorne, making the excuse that he was going to get Iko. Cinder seemed happy that he'd noticed she was still missing, so at least he'd done something right in her book. Really, he just needed a moment to put on a cool mask of indifference. Getting Iko and Ran proved to be the perfect diversion, though admittedly he didn't pay much attention to them beyond the standard formalities they exchanged as he led them back to the kitchen.

Iko squealed when she saw Cinder, and Ran went to sit at the table. Cinder finally joined Kai, who tried to be the example of a perfect gentleman.

"Oh Kai," said Cinder, "Cress is so cute."

Oh, she's cute alright, he thought grimly. Gee, I wonder why Thorne decided to go for her. "Yay," he said lamely to Cinder.

"Oh come on, she doesn't seem fake at all, and she's actually quite shy. It's like she balances out Thorne's showiness and outgoing personality."

Yippy, he thought, but the words that came out were, "You don't even know Thorne."

Cinder retreated a step, then listed her head. "Everything okay, Kai?"

He reached for her arm. "Sorry. That came out rude. Let's wait until dinner's over to see how it goes, shall we?"

Throughout dinner, he studied their interactions intently, barely able to concentrate on Cinder or his food. He brooded. The more he watched Cress with Thorne, the more he was sure that she was just as smitten as all the other girls that Thorne tended to bring home. She had a little glow about her that made it painfully obvious: she definitely liked him. And Thorne, with his attitudes about dating? It couldn't end well. What would she do to him when he put her in the friend zone, as he inevitably did with everyone else?

He was so absorbed in watching the two of them that halfway through the dinner he realized that he had apparently been missing out on other drama going on in the room. Cinder swiftly brought him back to reality with a 'can I please speak with you in private' nudge under the table.

"Sorry," he mumbled, as soon as they exited the room. He was too distracted to even come up with a clever retort to the snickers that followed them. "What's up?"

"He's disgusting and I want him out of here," said Cinder firmly.

"Who?"

"Ran, obviously."

"What's he doing?"

Cinder stared at him in disbelief. "Have you not been paying attention?"

"I was, uh, thinking about you," he lied.

"He's such a scumbag. He cuts Iko off every time she wants to talk, and to top it off, he makes derogatory remarks about women. Not to mention, I've watched him try to grope her several times right at the table. She's been making her miserable face all evening, but she's too embarrassed to do anything about it."

"Oh." He ruffled his hair. "That does sound bad."

She crossed her arms. "Kesley noticed. He's practically squirming in his chair to kick him out. I can see Scarlet fuming too. You, Thorne, and Cress seem to be in la-la land though, and considering that Thorne is the host, I'd appreciate it if you'd ask him to get rid of him."

"Are you sure Iko wants him to leave?"

"Oh," said Cinder, "she'll want him gone if she knows what's best for her, which, judging by her choice of companion, apparently she does not. They've actually met before too, can you believe it? This is an intervention, Kai."

Kai was surprised that Thorne hadn't noticed this was going on. He was usually quite attuned to these sorts of things. Kai gave Cinder a quick nod before he squared his shoulders and marched back into the room. Thorne and Cress were laughing at something together while Kesley and Scarlet glowered at Ran. Thorne looked up expectantly at Kai and shot him a wink as he approached the table. Meanwhile, Ran sat with a smug expression as he possessively held his arm around Iko's shoulder. The second Kai saw the expression of unease on Iko's face, he knew Cinder was right.

"Thorne, Kesley, Ran, would you join me for a moment?"

Kesley nearly knocked over his chair as he jumped up. Thorne glanced at Cress but stayed put. "Everything okay?"

Kai plastered a fake smile on his face that he normally reserved for irritating clients. "Of course. Just some guy stuff."

"Guy stuff, eh?" asked Ran, releasing Iko. "Sign me up."

He leaned over and gave Iko a long kiss on her neck and lingered there. Kai saw Thorne's forehead crease as understanding flickered over his eyes when everyone—except Ran—saw Iko's reaction. Scarlet stepped on Kesley's toe and he scowled. Kai had no idea where Cinder was. Behind him?

Kai cleared his throat loudly. "Ran? Any time?"

Ran leered at Iko one more time and finally got up as well. Kai led them out to Thorne's living room. Only Kesley seemed to be hyper aware of why he was out there, and Kai thought he might give Ran a beating. He bounced on the balls of his feet as if releasing nervous energy through the ground would help him calm down. Thorne was eyeing Ran warily, but still looked slightly confused.

"Ran," said Kai, "we're going to have to ask you to leave."

"Excuse me?" said Ran, looking bewildered.

"You heard him," said Kesley. "We don't want you here."

The three of them turned to Thorne. "Right," he said, straightening.

Ran glared at him. "I'm not leaving. Iko invited me."

Thorne smiled coolly. "I've just un-invited you." He pointed at the hallway that lead to the door. "Have a great night."

Ran crossed his arms. "I said, I'm not leaving."

Kesley, Kai, and Thorne simultaneously rounded on him. Kesley, who dwarfed Ran, cracked his knuckles. "Iko deserves respect. Women deserve respect. I'm happy to escort you to your car if you're not capable of leaving on your own."

Ran flinched away from him, like an omega bowing to an alpha. "I'll just go say goodbye to Iko then," he said sourly.

"That won't be necessary," said Kesley. Kai and Thorne exchanged a glance, but it was more Kai glaring at Thorne. He felt partially guilty for having not having picked up on what a douchebag Ran was, but he blamed Thorne because he was obviously too absorbed in his new flavor of the month to notice either. Ran strode into the hallway and Kesley followed him for good measure. After a tense silence, Thorne turned to walk back into the kitchen. Kai grabbed his arm, halting him.

"Sorry man, I wasn't paying attention," said Thorne, pulling his arm away. "It won't happen again."

"Why is she here?" Kai hissed.

"Iko? I'm pretty sure that Cinder invited her. Hey, you don't have to look so pissed, man. Kesley's taking care of it."

"Not Iko. Cress. Why is Cress here?"

Thorne hesitated, then his confidence returned to his face. "Why shouldn't she be?"

"Thorne, it's not appropriate for her to be here. She's my employee."

Thorne laughed arrogantly. "Kai, there's nothing inappropriate about it. Unless, of course, you're planning on hooking up with her later—in which case you'd have a problem not just with company policy but also with me."

"So you're hooking up with her?" Kai couldn't keep the disbelief off his face.

Thorne shrugged. "What's it to you? No, wait,"—he held up his hands and made a face—"it's none of your business."

Kai scowled. "You're my best friend."

"What's your obsession with Cress, anyway? She's a good girl. Hott too." Thorne licked his lips and wiggled an eyebrow.

Kai's left eye was developing a twitch. "Thorne," he said exasperatedly, "I warned you about her."

"Well, thank you for your unending concern, but as I've already told you, there's nothing to worry about."

"So she told you about her past?"

Thorne crossed his arms. "It's nothing I have to worry about because there's nothing going on between me and Cress."

"It certainly doesn't look that way."

"C'mon Kai, you've been around enough of my lady friends to know when nothing serious is going on."

"Nothing serious is not the same thing as nothing going on."

"Look, you've got a new girlfriend and that's all fine and dandy for you, but don't push your crap on me."

"What exactly is that supposed to mean?"

"It means that some of us might have different values than you, and maybe we don't want to be tied down."

Kai huffed. "Stop deflecting my question by using 'we.' Are you with her or not?"

At that, Thorne just grinned his stupid, cocky grin that sometimes made Kai want to punch him. "Oh Kai, you're such a grandpa. Why don't you just worry about yours and I'll worry about mine?"

"Because she might be dangerous?"

"Dangerous, Cress? Just stop. We can't all have squeaky clean backgrounds like you."

"I'm serious Thorne," he insisted. "Stop messing around."

Thorne's grin finally faded and his tone turned grim, which succeeded in giving Kai chills. Thorne wasn't serious often. "If you have a problem with my choice of companion, you can leave too." Thorne pointed to where Ran had walked out only minutes ago.

Kai pushed his face right up to Thorne's. He was slightly shorter—a fact that Thorne never let him forget—but he could still glare at him from almost eye-level. "I'm trying to look out for you. And I'm telling you that this is one person you shouldn't mess around with. Particularly not with her feelings."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"What if she doesn't share your 'lifestyle choice'? What if she thinks you're dating?"

"First of all, she doesn't think that. Second of all, if she does, it's not like she's going to kill me in my sleep or something."

"Are you sure about that?" Kai asked. "You know, since she's clearly told you so much about her past."

Thorne pushed Kai back. "You're out of line, Kai. I'm sure of it because I know you, and if you thought you had a murderer working for you, you wouldn't have hired her. You're just trying to mess with my head."

Why had he hired her? Huy Deshal had been hesitant, but after reviewing her files and giving her a brief interview, Kai had decided that if the law had given her a green light to work, then her background shouldn't determine her future. It was undeniable that she was a hacking genius. Rikan Corp needed her. If she did anything illegal, he had some of the best lawyers in the nation under his belt to deal with it. But now, when he saw her with Thorne, doubt about his decision filled every corner of his mind. She was here now, in his personal life, infiltrating his group of friends. And Thorne—he couldn't see what might possibly happen if he dared to cross Crescent Darnel.

"This is for your own good."

"Who died and made you king? Get out of my face."

"No. Stay away from her."

"You're not the only one who's allowed to get some around here." Kai shook his head in disbelief, but Thorne's expression suddenly turned smug. "Ohh. Oh I see." He snickered. "Poor Kai. That's the problem isn't it? You're just jealous because your girl doesn't put out."

Kai punched him square in the face.

He thought he would get hit right back, so he raised his arms in defense, but Thorne just blinked in surprise, and ran his finger over his lip. A few drops of blood were forming at the bottom corner. He cursed. "Stars alive, I've never seen you punch anyone in your life, and now you choose me. So much for loyalty."

"Don't you dare disrespect Cinder," Kai seethed.

"I didn't realize you were so sensitive."

"You were asking for it. Since when do you say stuff like that?"

"Yeah," said Thorne slowly, after checking his lip for more blood. "That was out of line. I didn't mean it. Sorry."

Kai was caught off guard by his apology. Before he had a chance to reply, though, Kesley came into the room. "Everything okay in here?"

"Yeah," said Kai. "We're fine."

"We'll just be a moment longer," said Thorne.

"Why are you so defensive about Cress?" Kai asked once Kesley had left the room again.

Thorne sighed. "I don't know man, I don't know."

"You like her, don't you?"

"Of course I like her."

"You know what I mean. More than usual."

"Don't make me punch you back," Thorne said warily.

"Answer the question."

Thorne threw his hands up in the air. "I'm just sick of you trying to tell me what to do. I helped you out with Cinder, didn't I? She called you because of me. Heck, you met her because of me. Now just because I'm bringing a girl around you gotta get all weird on me and act like I'm doing something wrong by having fun. Just stay out of it."

"Why don't you ask her what she's done?"

"Why don't you just tell me?"

"You know I can't. I could get sued. I've already said too much."

"Then stop whining about it. I cleaned up my act, you know that. I'm not into bad stuff anymore. And I don't take advantage of women or degrade them like that guy Ran. So let me have my fun even if I don't want to have some big ball-and-chain relationship like you do. That's not what I'm looking for."

Kai shook his head. "Yeah, but does she know that?"

Thorne glanced behind him, then shrugged. "Of course."

"It really doesn't seem that way."

"I'm not starting this conversation again. If I want to hang out with her, I will."

And with that, he stalked off to the bathroom. Kai guessed he was probably going to double-check his lip to make sure he was presentable before joining the others. Kai waited a few minutes to collect himself before he headed back as well.

This was not good. Not good at all.