Page 34 of Lose You Twice

His brows draw together. “Is that bad?”

“No. It’s suspicious.”

“How is clean suspicious?”

“Because it means one of you is deeply unwell, and I’ve seen Grayson’s truck. It isn’t him.”

Kai almost smiles.

I look away before I enjoy it too much.

“You can sit,” he says.

I glance at the couch. “Is there assigned seating? I don’t know your system.”

He rolls his eyes, shaking his head slightly. “There’s no system.”

I nod. “Good to know.”

I sit on the edge of the couch because standing awkwardly by the door feels worse. My bag slips off my shoulder and lands beside me. The front pocket is half-open, so a notebook, a crumpled receipt, one purple hair tie, two pens, and a tiny plastic cat spill onto the cushion.

Kai looks at the cat.

I also look at the cat.

“Why do you have a plastic cat in your bag?” he asks, brows furrowed in confusion.

I’m just as surprised as you, my dude. “It’s a new fad to keep a plastic pussycat with you at all times. Don’t judge.”

“Is it now? Huh, I hadn’t heard that.” He looks at the cat again. “Let me guess, Daisy’s?”

Of course he remembers. He always did remember everything.

It was comforting once upon a time; now it feels dangerous.

“Lily’s,” I say, picking up the cat. “Well, technically. Daisy borrowed it, lost it, and now I’ve found it. You’d be shocked at what I find in my car from time to time.”

“If it’s still the same, you never know what your car could conceal.”

A laugh slips out before I can stop it.

Kai’s expression softens, and I hate how much my heart remembers when I’ve tried to make my mind forget.

“How are they?” he asks.

“The twins?”

He nods.

“Six and terrifying. Lily is all about having control over everything, while Daisy is basically the female version of the Tasmanian Devil.”

“So Daisy takes after you then.”

I shrug, running my thumb along the small toy in my palm. “She says borrowing only becomes stealing if you admit it. They’re in first grade now.”

“Feels impossible that it’s been over six years since I first met them at the hospital.”

I don’t know what to do with that, with the reminder of just how deeply Kai was once woven into my life, so I do what I do best. I keep talking.