Page 35 of Waiting for Devon
“I feel wonderful. I’d like to thank you for suggesting I take Alana with me. I love her more than ever.”
“Does this mean you’re going to speak to your father?” Devon asked, full of hope.
“Yes. I can’t put it off any longer.”
“Good.” She let out her breath. “Because something else has been happening while you’ve been gone.”
“Oh? Problems?”
“Your brother. We’ve shared a few amorous encounters, and if you don’t speak to him about his behavior, he’s going to get even more suspicious. According to Reed, you haven’t been acting like a man in love.”
Shane smiled. “Reed is putting the moves on you? Did you shoot him down?”
“You’ve asked me this before, and my answer is the same. No. Now, it’s worse because…” her voice trailed away.
“No, don’t tell me. You’ve fallen for him.”
“Don’t put words in my mouth. I wasn’t going to say that.”
“We’re caught in a trap I wish to God I hadn’t created.” Shane shook his head. “Well, I’ll handle Reed. Tonight at dinner we’ll put on an amorous show of our own that will erase his doubts once and for all. Then I’ll speak to him privately. As far as Dad is concerned, I’m less sure of the outcome of my meeting with him.”
As Reed strolled into the dining room with Blair later that evening, Shane pulled Devon into a deliberate, heated embrace. Reed stared for a moment before he turned away and took his usual place. During dinner Shane caressed Devon and ignored the angry muscle twitching along his brother’s hard jaw. Feeling guilty and embarrassed, she made an excuse to leave the dining room as soon as possible.
She fled to the stable where she fed Pale Promise an apple and spoke in a gentle voice to the animal. Devon hated the look in Reed’s eyes during dinner. She hated hurting him when all she wanted to do was hold him in her arms and tell him that she loved him.
Blair joined Devon a few minutes later and plopped down on a bale of hay. “What was going on at dinner? Reed looked like he wanted to leap across the table and throttle both you and Shane.”
Much to Blair’s surprise, Devon turned to her with tears brimming in her eyes. “I’m such a fraud, Blair. I’m in love with the wrong brother.”
Blair’s light blue eyes widened in shock. “Well, that does put an interesting spin on things, doesn’t it?”
“Why are you being so understanding about this? I just told you that I’m in love with Reed.”
“I suggest you tell Shane before you break his heart.”
“Break his heart?” she repeated. “He’s not in love with me, either. Shane loves Alana. He spent two weeks with her at my insistence.”
Blair’s jaw dropped. “What in the world is going on?”
“Can I trust you? Please, this is important. I have to tell someone because this secret is tearing me apart.”
“You can trust me, Devon. I won’t tell a single soul.”
Devon took a deep breath, knowing she was risking Blair’s friendship and her own reputation. She launched into her tale, explaining how Jasper and Shane trapped her into this charade. “I’m sorry, Blair,” she finished on a sob. “I never expected this to go on for so long. The only good thing to come out of this is my friendship with you and the clinic. No matter what happens I will not abandon my work there.”
Blair took Devon’s cold hands in hers and answered with simple honesty, “I’m not sorry, not at all. Dad and Shane had no right to interfere in your life, but the truth is, I’m glad they did. You saved my life. I would have destroyed myself if it weren’t for you. You saved Reed’s life, too. I’m glad you love him because he deserves to be happy.”
“Reed is going to hate me when he learns the truth. He will find out, Blair, and when he does…”
“Maybe not. Not if he loves you.”
“He doesn’t love me. In fact, I’m willing to bet he never wants to lay eyes on me again.”
As Reed listenedto his brother berate him for taking advantage of Devon in his absence, he longed to have her within arm’s reach so he could shake her for being so foolish.
“I can understand why you were tempted, Reed. After all, Devon is a very beautiful woman.”
A basic instinct in Reed urged him to challenge Shane’s claim on Devon. “Listen, little brother, if I wanted Devon, I could have her just like that.” He snapped his fingers to prove his point. “I suggest you keep herverysatisfied in bed.”
