Page 22 of (Un)Rivaled

Cole nodded. “That’s why she came home. Between losing her job and her stepfather kicking her out of her apartment, she had nowhere else to go. She’s staying with these guys until she can figure out her next steps.”

I didn’t hear the end of his sentence, too busy imagining different ways I could murder those assholes— Jack and David, her stepfather—without going to prison.

Maybe Cole was right. The rational part of my brain wasn’t processing any of this. But I knew Devyn, knew her better than myself. And yeah, she was pissed as fuck at me, but if she just lost her job, she’d be spiraling. She’d worked so hard for so long, and most people didn’t realize why, didn’t realize her dedication to the law was less about the practice and more about making her dad’s memory proud.

“Okay, I get it now,” Cole whispered to Theo.

“Get what?”

“Alex always says I get this primal, murder-y look when something happens to her. Thought she was full of shit until right now.” He shook his head. “Before you grab your murder kit, Devyn is fine. We’ve got her back, and we’ll make sure she’s okay.”

Theo nodded. “It’s not the best situation with the baby coming, but she can stay with us as long as she needs.”

“Wished she’d take us up on a cabin,” Cole muttered. “Or she could have the apartment after Tori and Adam move into their new house.”

“She won’t,” I said, staring at the wall. Pictures from our shared childhood filled almost all the picture frames. The years changed, but most of them were the same—Devyn and I together, no matter what. She was my person, the one I’d always protect. Maybe I’d failed in that mission over the last few years, but she was here now, and knowing her, she’d never willingly accept help.

“Can you lock up?” I asked Cole, tossing him the keys as I grabbed my jacket. My friends muttered something at my back, but I barely heard them, too distracted. I jumped into my truck and left the Lost Tavern behind me.

My body moved on instinct, not even acknowledging where I was headed until I hit my blinker, turning into the luxury apartment complex on the edge of town. It stood out among the rest of the buildings, no matter how hard the builders tried to match the aesthetics of the town, cheap, pre-fab crap that would be crumbling within twenty years. But Calla and Theo needed a place to rent while they finished construction on their forever home, and this was the closest place to town with open apartments.

Luckily, I’d been here plenty of times before, either checking on Calla or for our weekly poker nights. I pulledinto one of the guest spots and raced up to the second floor, banging on their door.

As soon as I heard the doorknob turn, my heart raced in my chest. It was then I realized I had nothing to say and no real reason to be here. There were no words in my mind; I just needed to see for myself Devyn was okay.

As she pulled open the door, her eyes flared in surprise, shocked I would be standing at the door. For just a moment, I saw the girl I used to know, the one who looked at me like I hung the moon. But as soon as it came, it was gone, and her eyes narrowed, her lips turning into a frown. Devyn leaned against the frame, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Oh, honey. You’re home.”

ELEVEN

Gray was standing in my doorway. Well, he was standing inCalla’s doorway, if we were being technical. I’d only been here for a couple of days, and apparently, I was already claiming ownership of her space.

The past week had been a blur. Between moving and cleaning out my old apartment, it felt like I’d left my heart in the city. If I was a crier, I would have bawled when I left the keys on the counter, looking out at the view one last time. It was so hard to take that first step out the door, to accept that part of my life was truly over.

I wasn’t used to feeling this untethered. My life was a careful dance, each step coordinated to the minute. And now, instead of my packed schedule, there was just…nothing: no meetings, no trials, no more late-night investigations. I’d literally spent the last three days binging reality shows and letting Calla fill me in on all the gossip in town. I couldn’t have picked most of the people out of a lineup, but I knew exactly who was warming their beds at night.

“You okay, Devyn?” Gray stepped closer. My name sounded too right coming from his lips, more of a breaththan anything else. My fickle heart pounded in my chest, already sinking into his deep baritone. But no matter what reaction Gray elicited, he couldn’t be trusted, not after everything.

My eyes narrowed at him. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“C’mon, Devy,” he whispered. “Cole told me why you’re here. I had to…” He cleared his throat, but his voice stayed soft. “I wanted to make sure you were alright.”

The sincerity in his words threw me off, burying any snarky comment brewing on my tongue. I stared up at Gray, unsure how I felt about him being here. A large part of me was still so fucking mad at him for exposing us, for making me confront all these feelings I’d been avoiding so well.

But how could I stay mad when it was clear he raced over here, needing to check on me? Beyond Calla, it seemed like no one ever really worried about me, which was mostly my fault. When you spent your life proving to everyone you can handle anything, they tend to believe you.

The sound of a door slamming made me snap back to the moment, moving to the side so Gray could join me inside. He shucked off his wool coat, wearing an old Rebels hoodie. The star emblem was faded, almost unrecognizable after so much wear. I’d never admit it to him, but the same one hung in my closet.

He turned around, placing his coat on the hook and giving me an up-close view of his impressive back. Even with the thick hoodie, his shoulders were massive. His black joggers clung to his ass and thighs, making me almost groan in appreciation. Gray wasbuilt. He’d always been muscular, but this new version of him checked all my boxes. I wanted to touch him, to discover how much he’d changed over the years, to finally map those expertly honed muscles under my fingertips.

But considering the last time we’d spoken, I’d begged him for a divorce, thatmightsend some mixed messages.

As he turned around and faced me, my thighs instinctively clenched. The man was too fucking good-looking; it wasn’t even fair for the rest of us. With his long, wavy hair darkened with sweat and his grey eyes blazing a trail through me, it took everything I had to stand still and not show how I was trembling under his gaze.

Maybe this was a mistake. I never should have invited him in, not when it felt like the room had shrunken ten sizes since he stepped into it. But all my decisions lately had felt like the wrong ones. My life was in a complete and total clusterfuck—downfall, spiral, whatever you wanted to call it.

And now, my estranged husband was staring at me like he still cared.

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