TWO #3
Embers of one night long ago that still burn inside me, kept hidden, buried, igniting at a whisper of thought.
Like now.
“I know something made you sad, and I want to know what it is.”
He’s… He’s serious. It’s all there—etched in the firm set of his jaw, in the burning focus of his gaze.
He really wants to know why I’m sad.
How am I supposed to tell him when I have no fucking clue myself?
But there is one thing I can tell him. One thing that I know is true beyond any doubt.
“I—It’s nothing.” I sigh, shrugging my shoulders with a wistful smile. “It’s the first time I’m leaving Eli, and I didn’t realize how much it would affect me.”
His eyes turn so soft, his lips tipping into such a warm smile, it makes my chest ache.
“Eli. Your little one,” he murmurs, and hearing Eli’s name on his lips has fierce longing ripping through me.
I want to hear him say it again.
I nod, barely realizing my smile mirrors his.
“It’s Elliot. I just like to call him Eli.”
Devon chuckles, and the sound makes whatever was clenched tight inside me loosen and relax.
It… It feels good.
“I’m sure it suits him very much,” he says, and it takes everything in me not to fucking melt. “Was that the only reason you looked like that? I’d hate to think anyone made you uncomfortable on your first day.”
It’s possible I’m not going to actually survive my first day here if he keeps saying things like that.
“It was, Mr. Kingston. Everyone has been very welcoming.”
“Not Mr. Kingston.” His tone brooks no argument, his voice dropping lower, some of the earlier softness in his eyes morphing into something sharper. “In here, when it’s you and me, you call me Devon. Not sir, not Mr. Kingston. Devon.”
My pulse thunders as I look up at him.
“I just wanted to be—” What? Professional? Detached? Someone who doesn’t remember calling him Alpha while he took me apart?
“I know what you wanted to be. But you won’t do that. Now,” he says, his eyes twinkling. “Let’s try again, shall we?” His lips stretch into a devastating smile. “Good morning, Sam.”
My heart flutters frantically as I give him the words I never got to say to him that morning when I left him still sleeping.
“Good morning, Devon.”
He hums, the pleased sound lingering even after he eventually steps back, and walks to his desk.
“Much better. Has Colin brought you up to speed with everything?”
“Yes, he filled me in on pretty much everything I needed to know to get started. I expect I will be caught up with all our clients and affairs in the next few days.”
“Good. Do I have time for coffee?”
“You do. Your first meeting is not until another half hour. I can get you some if you want.”
He leans back in his black, leather office chair, playful grin still in place.
“Do you know how to operate a coffee machine, Sam?”
Fuck, he’s a menace. A deadly-handsome, dangerous menace.
I quirk an eyebrow at him.
“I’m sure I’ll manage, Devon,” I deadpan, nodding towards to the large, dark cabinet by his desk. “Is it in there?”
He doesn’t say anything at first, just blinking at me for some reason as if taken aback by something.
I frown. Did I say something wrong?
“Um, Devon?”
That snaps him out of whatever came over him, and he nods.
“Yes, over there, on your right. You’ll find everything.”
I smile, already moving towards the sleek, polished cabinet, locating everything easily.
“How do you drink it?”
“Half-black, half-milk, three spoons of sugar.”
The cup in my hand rattles on its saucer, and I have to bite my lip to stop the chuckle that almost escapes me.
“What’s so funny?”
Busted.
I turn around, giving Devon the best neutral face I can muster.
“Nothing.”
The look he aims at me is filled with dark amusement.
“Is that right? Because I could swear you had something to say about my coffee.”
We stare at each other from across the room, before I cave, shaking my head.
“That’s not coffee,” I murmur.
His lips twitch.
“Pardon?”
“What you’re drinking is not coffee.”
“It’s not?”
“No. It’s dessert in a cup. I’m not even sure you can taste the coffee anymore.”
Elbow on the armrest, he props his chin on his palm, eyes boring into mine with an intensity I can’t look away from.
“What can I say, Sam? I like my things sweet.”
“Fuck, you’re sweet.”
The words slip unbidden into my mind, their soft echo making my belly tighten.
Damn it, I need—I need to snap out of this.
I’m almost back to normal when the coffee is ready and I set it down on Devon’s desk.
“Your um… ‘coffee’ is ready.”
“I can practically see the air quotes, you know.”
“That’s the point.” I shoot him a small grin as I move towards the door, relishing the chuckle that reaches my ears. “Do you need anything else from me for now?”
A beat passes where he simply looks at me before he shakes his head with a smile.
“No, you can go.”
The door opens and closes behind me, the morning already busy. Busy enough that, as I sit at my desk outside Devon’s office, buried in work on my computer, I no longer remember the faint rasp in his voice, in those last few words.
Or how my stomach clenched when the door shut and his scent was suddenly cut off.
I don’t remember anything at all.