Page 13 of Devil's Advocate
“Belief isn’t just something you observe.It’s something you wrestle with.What you saw last night didn’t match what you were told to expect, was it?”
Jimmy’s mouth opened, then closed again.His lashes dipped, hiding those green-gold eyes, and I could almost hear the noise inside his head — the careful machinery of someone who’d been trained to believe one thing and was just now realizing the world didn’t line up with it.
Before he could find words, the bell over the café door jingled again.
“Lucien!”
I turned to see Sean filling the doorway, his hair sticking up in five directions, T-shirt rumpled, and the wild energy that followed him everywhere.He spotted me and broke into a grin.“Man, thank God you’re up.Or Satan.Whoever’s taking credit this morning.”
He strolled up to the booth, clapped me on the shoulder, then slid right in beside me, reaching for my coffee like it belonged to him.“Truck’s dead,” he said flatly.“We were supposed to pick up those boxes of produce from the farmer’s market before the kitchen opens, but nope.Starter’s shot.I swear that thing’s possessed.”
I blinked, the switch from theology to logistics catching me off guard.“When did it die?”
“About ten minutes ago.I jogged up here hoping to catch you before you took off.”Sean leaned back, groaning.“We’re going to have to cancel lunch service if I can’t get that food.”
Across the table, Jimmy’s mouth opened a little, like he was about to say something.Then he stopped, lips pressing together.
I turned to him.“You okay?”
He hesitated, eyes flicking between us, then nodded quickly.“I just—uh—I have a truck.”
Sean perked up.“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”Jimmy cleared his throat, visibly unsure if he was about to regret speaking.“I’m staying a couple of blocks over.If you want to use it… I mean, it’s not fancy, but it runs.”
For a moment, none of us spoke.My pulse ticked up, quick and hard.Of all the mornings, of all the diners in the city—Jimmy — a nervous angel in a green shirt — just happened to walk in here.
Sean grinned, relief flooding his face.“Man, if you don’t mind, that would be incredible.Me and Lucien will load it up, and you drive.We’ll be done in a flash.”
Jimmy nodded, smiling shyly.“Sure.Happy to help.”
Sean slid out of the booth, already pulling out his phone to call the kitchen.“You’re a lifesaver, dude.”He tossed me a look.“Lucien, are you coming?”
“In a sec,” I said, signaling Daisy for our checks.
When Sean stepped outside, Jimmy turned back toward me, uncertain again, as if the offer he’d just made was bigger than it sounded.
I looked at him, at the sincerity in his face, the hesitant strength beneath it.He didn’t know what he’d just stepped into — or maybe he did, and that scared him more than he could admit.
“Guess you’re stuck with us for a bit,” I said lightly.
He smiled, a little shy curve of his mouth that hit me square in the chest.“I don’t mind.”
Neither did I.
ChapterFive
Jimmy
Iwasn’t sure how it happened exactly.One minute I was finishing my coffee, and the next I was in my truck with two men I barely knew—one of them the devil himself, or close enough to make my pulse trip over itself.
The old Ford wasn’t built for three grown men in the front seat, but we made it work.Sean slid in first on the passenger side, all elbows and easy grins.Lucien took the middle, knees brushing the dash.Which meant his leg—his very solid, very there leg—pressed against mine.
“Alright, Jimmy,” Sean said, buckling up.“Take us down Broad, hang a right at Belvidere, then cut over toward the market.”
I nodded, praying my voice wouldn’t crack.“Sure thing.”
I turned the key, and the engine coughed to life as if it resented the effort.The cab filled with the familiar scent of sun-baked vinyl and motor oil.Usually, I found it comforting.Not today.Not with Lucien sitting so close, the heat of him bled straight through my jeans.
