Page 58 of Unbroken

He stood with only a little difficulty and started cleaning up our empty bowls and trash. I argued, but he waved me off.

While he took the dishes to the kitchen, I found my ChapStick I kept in the side table and applied a little before I returned it to the drawer.

“I’ll put them in the dishwasher later,” I said when I heard the water turn on. Devon set the bowls in the sink and dumped the rest of our stale popcorn in the trash.

“You can keep the bags.” He motioned to the reusable grocery bags on the counter as he walked back into the living room, where I stood near the door. “Mom forgets them every time she goes to the grocery store, so she just ends up buying more.”

I smiled and tried not to appear as awkward as I felt. “Tell her I said thank you, okay? That was really, really sweet.”

I hadn’t realized I was staring down at my hands, fidgeting with the string of my sweatpants, until I felt Devon’s large hand cup my cheek and tilt my face up. His thumb brushed against my cheekbone, and I held my breath when he wetted his lips.

All the alarm bells were going off in my head. He was going to kiss me. I knew it, and I was too weak to do anything to stop it.Fuck,I wanted it so bad.

His eyes bounced between mine, maybe looking for agreement,and he must have found it because he leaned forward. I braced myself and held my breath, clenching my hands into fists and preparing to wrap them around his neck when our lips connected.

Except it didn’t happen. His lips made contact, but it was with my forehead, not my mouth.

It was sweet, but the sinking in my gut soured the moment. He dropped his forehead to mine and took a slow, deep breath. We stood like that for several seconds until he said, “Thank you for tonight, B. Just…thank you.”

I nodded, and the movement was awkward with us still pressed together, but Devon didn’t appear to care. His hand shifted from my cheek to the back of my neck, and I tensed when his fingers brushed the spot at the base of my neck and the top of my spine. If he felt it, he didn’t react. He just held me tighter.

“Sometimes I see you,” he said in a low, gruff voice. “And I still can’t believe you’re real.”

I chuckled but understood. “I’m real.”

He hummed deep in his throat, and I wasn’t certain what the sound meant. As disappointed as I’d been when he hadn’t kissed me, I was more bummed when he pulled away and walked out the door.

Tato and I turned out the lights and went to bed. I can’t speak for Tato, but I dreamed of Devon.

TWENTY-SIX

Blakely

“Blakely? Blakely?”I don’t know how many times Dr. Mann said my name before I stopped zoning out, but it was enough that by the time I did look up at him, irritation tightened his lips. It was gone in the next second.

“Sorry,” I muttered. “So sorry. I, uhh?—”

“—seem distracted,” he continued for me, folding his hands over his lap and leaning forward. “Why is that?”

I readjusted the pillow on my lap and recrossed my legs. Dr. Mann was just doing his job, but today it felt invasive. All his leading questions and musings were too much.

But I swallowed my frustration and said, “Work is really taking off. I have a lot of new clients, which is great but also a little overwhelming.”

Dr. Mann was silent for several long seconds, and I eventually glanced back up at him. He’d leaned back in his chair, and his expression was even more assessing than usual. I had to suppress my groan and not toss the pillow on the ground and stomp out.

Just like earlier in the week, I wasn’t telling the whole truth.Yes, work was picking up, and I was still a one-woman show. But it was Devon and our movie night together that were heavy on my mind.

I had made myself completely crazy. Not an hour went by that I didn’t think about him—his deep laugh, kind eyes, and strong hands. How sweet he was to Tato and how quickly Tato warmed up to him. And how much I liked him being in my space.

“I think there’s something you’re not sharing,” he said, and then clarified, “And you don’t have to, but if it’s bothering you that much, this is the time to talk about it.”

“I just…I…” I blew out a breath and mustered the courage to talk about something else that had been happening. “The nightmares have started again.”

Dr. Mann nodded. “The same as before?”

I inclined my head and felt anxiety stirring in my gut and creeping up my throat. “Yes,” I murmured quietly.

“So, you don’t remember them when you wake up?”

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