Page 58 of Waiting for Devon
“Dr. Brooks, wait.”
She halted. “Yes, Jasper?”
He drew close and took her hands in his. “You will be missed, Dr. Brooks… Devon. I hope you will return someday as a Barrington bride after all.”
Devon offered a sad smile at his sentiment and rushed out of his office.
Striding toward her car, she thought she saw a familiar truck out of the corner of her eye, but tears blurred her vision. As she fumbled with her key fob, someone jabbed a needle in her neck.
“I swear I’mgoing to fire Harry and Smitty. They’re never around when I need them,” Reed complained to a ranch hand helping him repair a section of fence bordering the Barrington property.
“They took off hours ago, Mr. Barrington. Never said where.” The ranch hand hammered a post. “I swear none of us are clear why Sun Rise went on a rampage, galloping across the pasture at breakneck speed and bursting through the fence. Maybe a rattlesnake spooked him.”
“Maybe.” Locating and corralling the frightened thoroughbred had taken up a good portion of Reed’s morning. He’d needed the help of three other ranch hands to get control of Sun Rise when they’d found him several miles off the property.
As he worked alongside his men, concern for Devon fueled Reed’s annoyance with Harry and Smitty. He’d wanted to linger with her in bed, but he knew she had obligations at the clinic, and he had his own responsibilities at the stable. Her silence bothered him. Reed had called and texted her several times throughout the day, but she hadn’t responded. Even when swamped with patients, she always made time to return his messages. A tiny knot of fear wormed its way into his gut. After he finished this task, he would head up to the main house for dinner, and if Devon wasn’t there, he’d drag her out of the clinic.
Hot, sweaty, and tired, Reed entered the main house through the back entrance by the pool. Later tonight, he would like to swim with Devon under moonlit skies and make love with her. He couldn’t wait to feel her warm, supple body beneath his again and hear her moan his name followed by sweet words of love. His erotic visions of her in his bed teased him as he took a shower, and Reed decided a quick romp with Devon before dinner would be an excellent way to start their evening.
He finished his shower, dressed, and headed toward Devon’s bedroom. Reed knocked once on the door. “Hey, Doc, it’s me.”
With a wide smile on his face, he pushed open the door. Shock and confusion collided in him when he stepped inside the empty room. Every trace of Devon was gone. Even the bed had been stripped of its linens. Only her sweet scent remained to tease him. Before he knew what hit him, Reed’s knees buckled beneath him and he dropped onto the floor. Complete silence engulfed him.
As the reality of the bare room crept into his consciousness, Reed screamed in rage and pain, the worst pain he’d ever felt. It decimated his soul. Scrambling to his feet, he tore out of the bedroom and fled downstairs.
Skidding to a halt in the dining room, he faced his distraught sister, his downtrodden brother, and his disappointed father. Reed strode toward Shane. Before anyone could guess his intent, he grabbed his brother by the collar and lifted him out of the highbacked chair. He drew back his fist and threw a punch, connecting with Shane’s nose. An uppercut to the jaw sent Shane sprawling backward.
Reed leaned over him. “Where’s Devon?” he demanded, his voice low and menacing. “What the hell did you do to her, Shane? Aside from making a fool of her? I overheard you confessing your undying love for Alana yesterday in your office.” At the incredulous look on Shane’s face, he continued, “Yeah, that’s right. I heard every word. You led Devon on, forcing her to give up her life in San Francisco foryou. I told her everything. And guess what? She choseme. Devon loves me, not you. Now, where is she?”
Blair burst into tears, and Jasper stared at his eldest son with deep regret.
“Son, you need to sit down.”
“No, I don’t. I need to know what’s happened to Devon. She hasn’t answered her cell phone all day.” Reed gazed at Blair. “Did she move out?”
Unable to speak, Blair shook her head.
“Reed, sit down,” Jasper repeated. “You need to hear the truth.”
He sank into a chair. His gut churned with a sudden sickness.
In a matter-of-fact tone, Jasper related the details of the charade to Reed. Each word pierced him and ripped his heart into shreds. The light and joy in his soul flickered and died, leaving nothing but a deep, searing hatred that filled the blackness.
Reed’s eyes pinned his brother with a terrible coldness. “You disgust me, Shane. The only person you ever think about is yourself.” Pain tore through him and robbed him of his breath. “But her…herI loathe. She made me believe in her. Foolishly made me believe I could have a future with her. Dr. Devon Brooks is nothing but a filthy liar.”
Blair gasped. “Don’t speak about Devon like that, Reed! None of this was her fault.”
“The hell it wasn’t. She had a choice, Blair. She could have told the truth.”
“She did. She told me the whole story a while ago.”
Reed’s entire body turned cold. “So, you knew? I guess the joke really is on me.”
“Devon left this letter for you, son,” Jasper interjected and passed an envelope to him. “Perhaps you should read it.”
Reed looked at his name scrawled in Devon’s familiar handwriting and tore the letter into tiny pieces. They floated to the floor as he stomped from the dining room.
Uncontrollable rage consumed him. For years he’d denied himself the pleasure of loving someone. Fear of being loved only for his money, family name, and position in society prevented him from trusting women. Once bitten, twice shy was his philosophy. With Devon, though, he’d caved. One look from those big brown eyes and he couldn’t resist her. Tired of being alone, Reed allowed himself to dream of a future that included a wife and a home and a family. To learn the woman he’d given his entire heart and soul to was nothing more than a charlatan destroyed him.
