Page 34 of The Last Key
“How do you know so much about all this?” I ask him.
“Those who can’t do…” Brian teases.
“Shut up. Everything in life is easier when you’re not in the middle of it. Think of how easy it was to be objective about Markie Mark and Frannie. Obviously, they were meant to find each other, but they were both acting like scaredy cats.”
“Thank you for that,” Mark deadpans.
The fan in the bathroom switches off, and I know my time is up. “I’ve gotta go. This actually helped. Thanks. Love you guys.”
There’s a chorus of “love yous” and “goodbyes” as I end the call.
Then I stare at the blank screen of my iPad.Do I love him?
I still don’t want to answer that question. But I know I can’t keep pushing these boundaries without knowing for sure what he wants, which means after karaoke tonight, I need to finally talk to him. All this flirting is fun, but I need to know where it’s going. It’s scary as hell, but it’s time to address the massive elephant in the room.
Once I hear Devon go downstairs, I walk back to the bedroom and grab my outfit for tonight—black jeggings and a maroon V-neck tank with a light gray cardigan. Then, I head to the bathroom to wash my face, put on my barely there version of makeup, and tousle my short brown curls. I miss my long hair and still hate myself for cutting it for that jackass boss of mine.
That feels like a million years ago now. Maybe Justin’s right. Maybe I am happier here than I realized.
With one last look in the mirror, I walk downstairs and find Devon standing alone in the kitchen, lost in thought.
Walking over to the far side of the kitchen, I grab a glass out of the cabinet and get some water from the fridge. Devon still hasn’t said anything by the time I’ve finished drinking it.
“You okay?”
His eyes lift and he looks at me for a moment like he’s just realized I’m here.
“Yeah. Sorry. Just thinking.”
My eyes inadvertently go to the counter. “About, um”—I clear my throat—“what you said earlier?”
A smirk plays on his lips, but he shakes his head. “No. I was thinking about what it would be like to have you here every day. If you stayed.”
My heart leaps. “You want me to stay?” Reaching for him, I step closer, resting my hand on his arm.
“I want you to be happy. Selfishly, I hope that’s here.” He tucks some of my hair behind my ear, looking at me intensely.
“Devon,” I breathe as his eyes drop to my lips.
Fingers pressing into his arm, I inch toward him as he does the same until our chests are almost touching.
Our eyes meet again, tension swirling around us, growing thicker by the second.
My breaths grow heavy and my heart beats faster as I look into his eyes, finding a mixture of intensity and vulnerability.
Slowly, he dips his head down as I lift onto my toes.
I’m lost in the moment. All I hear are the sounds of our breaths and my heart pounding in my ears as our lips move closer and closer. So close I can feel his breath on my face.
“Hey! Y’all coming?” Justin calls from the front room.
I jerk my head back and we both step apart, still trying to catch our breaths. The moment is broken, but the tension is not.
Letting him know I liked where that was going, I lean up and kiss his cheek, then squeeze his arm before moving past him out of the room.
My heart’s still beating erratically as I grab my purse and the three of us walk out to the car. He wants to fuck me on the kitchen counter, but he also wants me in that kitchen every morning. I don’t know what this means for us, but I know I want to find out. I need to.
When we get back from karaoke, I intend to pick up where we left off. Preferably in the bedroom.
