The Billionaire's Assistant

Chapter 58

"Where are we going?" she asked, changing the subject.

Jove stopped and looked down at her.

"I was following you," he said with a grin.

Kat thought.

"Rises then," she said, continuing on their path more purposefully. "They're the best."

"Rises?" Jove asked.

"It's close by, you've probably seen it," said Kat. "Or maybe not, cause you dont walk."

Jove rolled his eyes. "What street?" he asked

Kat pointed ahead of them, angling her finger to the right.

"Right up there, like 5 blocks. You know, across from the weird sandwich place."

Jove raised his eyebrows. She was so familiar with the area, her mothers apartment so close by, that she knew local spots much more readily by their odd landmarks than the actual street name.

"And the nail salon with that giant picture of the pug on the back wall?" she tried again.

Jove shook his head, chuckling.

"On Vizzini!" she finally said triumphantly, the streets escaped name returned to her. "Vizzini, and uh, you know. Whatever, the middle of Vizzini."

"I thought you were from here," Jove said with a laugh, pulling out his cellphone and tapping away at it as they walked. "Vizzini and Baker," he confirmed, tucking the phone back into his pocket.

"I know where it is though," Kat said defensively.

"Which is why I'm following you," he answered, scoping her hand up in his for the second time that day. She flushed then gripped his hand tighter, the faces around her becoming a blur as she focused on staying upright with Jove's hand around hers.

They walked hand in hand in silence, Kat unable to conceal the grin that had spread across her face the moment he reached for her hand needlessly, not to protect or to guide, but just to touch, to hold. She turned back after a while to see the escalade creeping about half a block behind them, keeping pace and staying just within sight.

"Is it annoying," she asked him, looking up at the side of his face while she spoke. "To always have to be with them? To never get to be alone?"

Jove shook his head. "Not really. I don't notice it anymore. I just think of it as part of life I guess, too commonplace, barely irritating enough to be called annoying. When I was younger I used to try and give them the slip, but it's never worth it."

"What about on vacation?" Kat asked. "Like the cabin, there was no security at the cabin."

Jove smiled.

"Ambrose?" Kat asked in disbelief. "He was security?"

"Still is," said Jove. "One of the best, he was the guard assigned to my grandmother before she passed. Still stays at the house, serves as security for me and my dad the times we go there. Mostly me. Dad hasn't been up there in ages."

"But he didn't seem like it," said Kat. "He didn't pat me down or anything."

"He's ex M16, born and raised in Brooklyn then served in the UK for 15 years before coming back. He's the best, my grandma loved him. Swore he could make a better cup of tea than anyone else in the world. My granddad tried to talk him into moving back with him when he went but." He shrugged. "He loves that house as much as she did."

Kat nodded. "When did your granddad go back to England?"

"Forever ago," said Jove distractedly, looking back down at his phone.

He typed out another quick message and returned it to his pocket, his other hand still intertwined with Kat's.

"We weren't that close, me and my granddad. I was a lot closer with my grandma." He paused. "Sometimes I think that's why my dad makes an effort at all, he was hurt that my granddad never made an effort with him."

"What do you mean he makes an effort?" Kat asked, still feeling as if she were typing notes on his answers.

"I mean he tries, he tries to talk to me, he'll invite me to do stuff." Jove laughed. "That's as far as he gets, he asks me to go somewhere and shows up, but I guess he doesn't exactly have the best model for a father son relationship. He never really knows what to talk about so he either just critiques me and calls it advice or talks about himself. He tries, but." Jove sighed. "He tries. What about you, what about your mom?" he asked, turning to her. "You said she worked on the northside, you said she's from the Midwest, but what's she like?"

Kat smiled, pleased at Jove's recollection of the details she'd shared.

"She's the best," Kat answered. "She's just the best, she always has been."

Kat's eyes widened, realizing what she'd been responding to.

"We have our issues too though, of course," she backtracked.

"No no," interrupted Jove, laughing. "Just cause my dad is emotionally unavailable doesn't mean you have to pretend your mom is. I really wanna know."

"Then, she's the best," Kat answered truthfully. "She's always understood me, she introduced me to all my favorite stuff, she never has a mean thing to say to anybody, she's just the best. Everybody that meets her loves her."

"Maybe I'll have to meet her then," Jove said casually.

Kat darted her eyes over to look at him, wondering what he meant. He wasn't going to go meet her mother, she knew that. Why even introduce that as an option, why offer it. She knew he was flirting with her, it was undeniable at this point, but it was like he was randomly fluctuating between a wholesome meet the parents vibe and the scent of late night skin and sweat, like he couldn't decide what he really wanted and therefore used his charms indiscriminately.

"Maybe," she finally said quietly. "Up here," she pointed, releasing his hand to gesture to their upcoming turn then busying herself with the apparently involved process of picking at her fingernails in order to avoid her hand swinging familiarly back into his.

She didn't like it, didn't like the way she felt when he acted like they were really together, that they could be together. The sting of false hope, she realized.