Chapter 3
Charley hadn’t been kidding—her two plates were piled high with food, which she happily demolished in one sitting.
“See? She won’t leave you a crumb,” Devon stage-whispered, which earned him a playful elbow in the ribs from Charley, who sat beside him at the tablecloth-covered dining table set up by the window.
Stella laughed. “You’re a beast. It’s not polite to comment on a woman’s eating habits.”
“Thanks, Stel.” Charley raised her water glass, which Stella clinked with her own. “But it’s all right. I am carrying my True Mate’s baby, which is why I’m starving all the time.”
Stella had been surprised how comfortable and at ease she felt around Devon, laughing and chatting with him. Maybe it was because they’d been texting for a while now, but whatever the reason, she was so relieved there wasn’t awkwardness between them.
Charley, too, turned out to be very nice and down-to-earth. Stella was glad Devon wasn’t with one of those stuck-up models or actresses as many rock stars usually were. Stella was happy to answer their questions about her job, her life, and her parents, while she mostly asked them about the tour and the album they were apparently working on.
One topic she steered clear of was Devon’s childhood, because she had already read his Wikipedia page. One of the sources was from a tabloid that had somehow obtained his CPS records and reported that he’d had five foster parents between the ages of ten and seventeen. Her heart hurt for him, imagining what he had gone through, and so she avoided any topics that involved the past.
However, it was Devon who brought up the topic first.
“In case you were wondering,” he began. “We still don’t have any new information about our parents or sister.”
“Oh.” Stella chewed at her lip. “Devon, can I ask you something?” She figured it was time to address the elephant—or at least one of the several elephants—in the room.
“Anything.”
“Do you think our parents are still alive? Our biological parents?”
He caught her gaze head-on. “What do you think?”
“I don’t know.” But something inside her told her that they were probably gone, and from the look on Devon’s face, she knew he was thinking the same.
“We—that is, the New York clan—won’t stop looking for them,” Charley declared. “Unfortunately, we can’t find any information from before you guys were found at the station, but we have our top people working on it.”
“It’s a lot, right?” Devon said with a small smile. “Finding out you have a brother and a sister, and that you’re a Lycan all in the span of weeks. I wasn’t sure if you wanted to know.”
She gazed into his blue eyes, trying to imagine their sister—then remembered she didn’t have to because all she had to do was look in the mirror.
A twin sister.
Her hand crept up to her face as she thought of someone out there with her face. “I’m sure we’ll find her,” she said. “If you found me, then it’s just a matter of time.”
Devon grinned at her. “I hope so too.”
They moved on to lighter topics as they day stretched on, lingering at the table after dinner as they had coffee and dessert. The sky outside had grown dark, and the glittering city lights spread out before them like a blanket of stars.
“Oh my,” Charley said with a yawn. “I can’t believe how long we’ve been here.”
“Tired, babe?” Devon slipped a hand to her belly. “Is the baby bothering you?”
She chuckled. “Only with his or her demand for food.”
“We should get home,” he said. “This was really fun, Stella. I’m so glad you made the trip.”
“Yeah, it was.” This had been better than she’d hope for, and part of her didn’t want to leave Devon so soon. “This really was great. And it was lovely meeting you, Charley.”
“Well, I hope you’re not thinking of leaving right away,” Devon said. “You have the whole week, right?”
“My flight doesn’t leave until Saturday.” Five whole days away.
“Do you think you can spend time with us?”
“Aren’t you busy?” she said. “With your tour and all?”
“We have a break this week; I don’t have to leave until Sunday,” Devon said. “And we’re having this party on Friday night with all of Charley’s family.” He looked meaningfully at her as he said the word family, then touched his ring finger.
“I—” Oh. Friday was the big day. “Of course. I wouldn’t miss it.”
“Couldn’t you stay with us?” Charley asked. “Devon’s penthouse is humungous, and we have more than enough room. And you’re so far away from the city.”
“I couldn’t.” She shook her head. “My parents paid for the hotel, I wouldn’t want them to think I was ungrateful.”
“Of course, don’t worry about it,” Devon assured her.
“You should let us take you home at least,” Charley offered. “Or Cliff can do it since he’s already—” Her hands clamped over mouth. “Oh shit.”
Devon slapped a hand over his forehead. “Charley …”
“I blame the pregnancy brain,” she said sheepishly.
Stella narrowed her gaze at them. “What’s going on?”
Devon blew out a breath. “Don’t freak out, Stella … but I’ve had security on you the moment you landed in New York.”
“I beg your pardon?” She used her most authoritative “teacher voice” on him, which seemed to work as he cringed visibly.
“Just as a precaution,” Charley added. “We’re keeping your relationship under wraps for now, but if anyone were to know about you, you’d be hounded by paparazzi. Believe me, that’s not fun, and you’ll never be able to undo it.”
“I guess that’s one more thing we need to talk about,” Devon said. “If you don’t want to acknowledge me as your brother or if you want to pretend this never happened, I’ll understand. Again, it’s a lot to ask.”
“I can’t pretend you don’t exist,” she said. “And I don’t want to.”
The corners of his mouth tugged up. “Me neither.”
“Besides, we need to find her, Devon.” There was no need to specify who ‘her’ was, because from the look on his face, she knew he understood. “What if … what if she’s out there and she needs us?”
A strange, deep longing had formed inside her chest ever since she found out about her twin sister.
“I know.” He sighed. “But, let’s put a pin on that discussion. Just take things slow and really have a good think about this.”
“All right.” Fatigue—emotional and physical—seeped into her, and her body grew heavy. The thought of taking a nearly hour-long subway ride back to her hotel sounded dreadful right now. “You know what? I will take you up on your offer of a ride.”
“Great!” Charley clapped her hands together. “Let me go get Cliff and introduce you.”
As soon as Charley disappeared through the door, she turned to Devon. “I really don’t appreciate being followed.” Even though she hadn’t seen any of his security team, it made her feel uncomfortable.
“I apologize. I overstepped,” he said. “I just wanted to keep you safe.”
“I know there’s no more going back to normal after all this, and I promise you I don’t regret it, but it just kind of hit me—you’re not just anybody.” Though Henry Owens had been telling her this from the beginning, she was really only beginning to understand this now. If they went public with their relationship, everyone in the world would know her name.
“We can still be us,” he said. “I mean, we can continue to know each other, but we’d have to be careful.”
“You mean, we’d have to continue meeting here at Mr. Owens’s office?”
“Not at his hourly rates,” he joked. “But yeah. We wouldn’t be able to go out and have dinner in public or go the movies or whatever—hell, I can’t remember the last time I went to the theater—but I could fly to Vegas, and we can have dinner in a private suite. Or I could fly you here or to LA, and you can come to our place.”
She blew out a breath. “That actually sounds nice. I don’t go out much, to be honest.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, I like to stay home,” she said. “I don’t like noisy bars or crowded restaurants.”
“So, you don’t date or anything?” He raised an eyebrow at her.
She groaned. “Oh Lord, no. I mean, the last date I went on was a disaster. I’d actually stopped trying before that.”
“Really? And who was this?—”
“Stella, Devon!” Charley announced. “We’re back. So, Stel, this is?—”
“You?”
The word spilled out of her mouth before she could stop herself, but who could blame her when he stood in front her, looking oh-so-casual.
The stranger who’d saved her from turning into roadkill on Fifth Avenue.
“This is—wait, you know Cliff?” Charley asked.
“He’s the one who’s been following me?” Stella exclaimed.
“Since yesterday.” The low, rough quality of his voice sent a tiny shiver through her.
“Wait, wait.” Charley waved her hand around. “Explain. Please.”
Stella looked at him, and when he shrugged, she threw her hands up. “I was saving this kid from getting run over?—”
“You were saving a kid?” Devon asked.
“Yeah.” Stella explained what had happened with Ashley earlier that day.
“You nearly got run over by a car?” Devon said, incredulous. “How … God!” He pulled her into a quick embrace. “Cliff, man, thanks for saving her.”
“No prob,” he said. “Just doing my job.”
Devon released her. “See? Aren’t you glad I had someone watching you.” He gritted his teeth. “You can’t go back to that hotel, Stella. What if something happens to you? Is that area even safe? You’re coming home with us.”
“Whoa now.” She put her hands up. “You’re overreacting.”
“You could have been hurt,” he pointed out. “If Cliff wasn’t there …”
“But I wasn’t hurt,” she said. “Devon, please. This is too much. I need some space.”
His expression changed, and his hands dropped to his side. “Stella, I’m sorry, I was just worried about you. I just found you, and I can’t lose you again.”
Charley came up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder, then leaned her forehead on his arm. “And you won’t. You’re not going anywhere, are you Stella?”
“Of course not.”
And she meant it. Devon was her family now. Despite the very short time they’d spent together today, she had felt a bond forming with him. She couldn’t live her life not knowing what happened to their parents or their sister.
“Just let her go back,” Charley said. “And Cliff will take care of her, right?”
Her head snapped toward him as she was reminded that he’d been following her since she landed in New York last night.
He didn’t say anything, but nodded.
“You don’t have to do that,” she said. “Really. You can save your money, Devon.”
“Of course he does, and it’s not about the money.” Charley beamed at him. “Cliff not only works for my family’s security firm so this is his job, but he’s also my big brother.”
It took all her might for her jaw not to drop to the floor. Her head swung back from Cliff to Charley as she took in the similarities in their features. Upon closer inspection, she could definitely tell they were siblings.
Plus, there was the scent thing …
“Did you make any plans for tomorrow?” Devon asked.
“Not really, but I was hoping to do some sightseeing. It’s my first time in New York. I was going to get on one of those double-decker tour buses.”
“Oh, God no, only tourists take those buses,” Charley tsked. “If you want, I can take you around. Show you the real New York.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Obviously Devon won’t be able to join us, but he’s got meetings anyway. Then Cliff can take the day off, since I’ll be with you.”
“Sounds great,” Stella said quickly.
“Be ready around eleven, and we’ll get lunch?”
“Sure.”
“Great. Now, you take care of her, bro,” Charley said to Cliff, patting his massive arm.
“I’m glad Arch suggested you,” Devon added. “Thanks again, man.”
“No prob.” He waved his hand. “Car’s in the garage.”
Devon pulled her in for a hug, then Charley did as well. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Thanks.”
The big behemoth waited by the door, holding it open. Without looking her in the eye, he nodded toward the outside, which she interpreted to mean that she should go ahead, so she walked past him and toward the elevator doors.
The ride down to the basement was silent, and the excruciatingly long drive back to Queens was even more so. Even though she sat next to him in the passenger seat of the black SUV, he didn’t look at her or try to make conversation. He kept his eyes on the road, even when they sat in traffic.
She sat there, stewing. He obviously did not like his assignment—or maybe he just didn’t like her.
A strange pang hit her chest.
What did it matter to her? Except maybe for the fact that they were going to be in-laws, he wasn’t anything significant to her.
Why should it matter if he liked her or not?
Finally, after what seemed like hours, they pulled up to her hotel. When he released his seat belt and reached for his door handle, she said, “Where are you going?”
“Getting the door for you,” he replied gruffly, still avoiding her gaze.
“There’s no need, I can let myself out,” she replied in a brusque voice, then unbuckled herself and slipped out of the car. Even as she scuttled toward the hotel entrance, she could feel his stare burning a hole in her back. A sigh of relief escaped her lungs as soon as she reached the lobby and the door closed behind her.
Charley had said her brother had been watching her all this time. Did he mean to stay outside her hotel as well? Had he done that last night too?
A comforting thought entered her head as she made her way to the hotel elevators: At least tomorrow, he wouldn’t be around, and she would only be with Charley. Perhaps she could convince Charley to urge Devon to do away with her “security” detail from now on and she’d never have to see him again.
Wait…
Devon had hinted that he was going to propose to Charley this week with his family—meaning Cliff would likely be there. After that, there would be no way of avoiding him.
She groaned aloud, and the couple next to her waiting for the elevator paused mid-chat to send her strange looks. “Er, long day.”
They shrugged and returned to their conversation.
Stella was never the confrontational type, nor did she actively despise anyone in particular. Papa and Momma, of course, instilled the idea of brotherly love for everyone around her, even her enemies. But then again, no one had ever acted so rude and standoffish toward her as Cliff did.
Maybe I’m being a naive small-town girl.
This was New York after all.
Or perhaps it was because she had felt him up in the middle of a busy sidewalk.
Oh Lord.
Heat crept up her collar at the memory of what she’d done. He’d smelled so good to her too, but maybe it was a Supernatural thing. Both Charley and Devon had pleasant scents, though neither of them evoked the same feelings as Cliff’s.
When she finally reached her room, curiosity got the better of her, and she crept toward the window. Pulling the curtain back, she peeked outside and spied the black SUV parked across the street.
Her heart jumped in her throat as she quickly drew the curtain closed. She scuttled backward, as if Cliff could somehow see through the curtains. When her heart rate slowed down, she sat on the bed, adrenaline draining from her body. Lying back, she splayed out on the mattress and stared up at the ceiling.
Thankfully, she wouldn’t have to see him again tomorrow. Besides she never noticed he was watching her this entire time, so she could just pretend he didn’t exist.
In any case, she didn’t plan on crossing paths with him again, at least not until Friday. When she did, she planned to treat him with the same aloofness he displayed toward her.