Page 77 of Billionaire Unexplained: Kaleb

“How in the hell did she find out that we’re more than just friends?” I asked in an annoyed voice.

I hadn’t even told my mother that Anna and I were dating yet.

Tanner and Devon put their hands in the air. “Hey, don’t look at us,” Devon said innocently. “I think she got the whole idea into her head because she hasn’t seen Anna, either, in the last week. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that you two are crazy about each other and spending all your free time together. Tanner and I knew almost immediately. If you’re not coming into the office, you’re with Anna. Nothing else could drag you away from this place.”

I didn’t bother to deny that I was crazy about Anna. It was true, and I wasn’t going to hide how I felt about her anymore.

She was a very important part of my life now, and I didn’t give a shit who knew that.

“Just don’t encourage her,” I warned Devon. “I have no idea how this will all work out in the end. It’s going to be complicated.”

“You’ll both make it work,” Tanner said firmly. “It’s weird because you haven’t even known each other that long, but I can’t imagine the two of you without each other anymore.”

Hell, I couldn’t imagine that scenario either, but Anna might get tired of having a man who wasn’t always present in her life.

And I literally hated the fact that I might not always be there when she needed me.

“Anna has survived thirty-five years without a serious man in her life,” Tanner said thoughtfully. “She’ll be fine, Kaleb. She’s not the same mentally exhausted and grieving woman who you met at the cabin. She has her shit together. She’s writing music. She’s dealing with her old life again. She needed a break, and you gave that to her. Anna seems rejuvenated and ready to take her life back again. We all know that the grieving process takes a long time, but she seems happy, and so do you. Don’t overthink this situation. Take it one day at a time.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” Devon said in a serious tone. “I think Anna falling through that window was a gift for both of you. You were there when she needed you, Kaleb. But I think you needed her, too. I think you were as mentally burned out as she was when you met. I’m not seeing that anymore.”

“I was still blaming myself for what happened to Shelby, and questioning all of my priorities,” I confessed.

“You over all that?” Tanner asked.

I shrugged. “As much as I can be. Shelby’s happy and healthy. If her past is in the rearview mirror for her, it was kind of ridiculous for me to dwell on something I can’t change. I learned something from that experience, but I’d rather not do it again.”

“All Shelby wants is for you to be happy. For all of us to be as happy as she is right now with Wyatt,” Devon said. “Although I’m not sure anyone can be as happy as she is with Wyatt. It’s almost a little nauseating.”

I raised a brow as I looked at my younger brother. “Is there a little bit of envy in there somewhere?”

Devon shook his head adamantly. “Oh, fuck, no! I can’t imagine ever being so close to a woman that I can’t live without her. I don’t think it’s in me to feel that way. I think it would be suffocating. It’s fine for Shelby, but no thanks. I like my freedom to do whatever I want.”

Tanner shot Devon an exasperated look. “We’ll remind you of that when some woman knocks you on your ass.”

“Never going to happen,” Devon said confidently.

Devon liked women of all ages, shapes, and sizes. He could charm a woman easily, but he’d gotten hurt when he was young, and he hadn’t taken a relationship seriously since.

I doubted that he was pining over that female after all of these years, but the experience had made him throw up walls that I wasn’t sure any woman could manage to scale.

On the surface, Devon could be annoying, but his cynicism hid a very huge heart that was underneath all of that bravado.

“Never say never,” Tanner warned him. “Then you never have to regret saying it later.”

“I’ll never regret saying it,” Devon argued. “There’s some men who just aren’t cut out for a serious relationship that cuts their balls off. That would be me. It’s going to have to be you and Kaleb who gives Mom her grandchildren. I’m never getting married.”

Tanner glared at Devon. “Don’t count on me. I’m not any fonder of serious relationships than you are.”

“But you wanted one once,” Devon said in a more serious tone.

“At one time, maybe I did,” Tanner snapped. “That’s water under the bridge, and it doesn’t mean I want one now.”

If any of us were meant to settle down, it was Tanner.

He’d always wanted kids and a family.

He’d been faithful to the same woman for many years, and he would have bent over backwards for the woman he’d loved.

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