“Sure,” I sigh as I finish adding his car to the schedule for tomorrow. I hope that Uncle Jeff won’t be too off the rails in the morning in mourning. I’m going to have to have a talk with him after the memorial service tonight to fix this drinking habit he seems to have picked up.
I close up the shop and follow Devyn back to the diner; he leads as if he’s walked these sidewalks for years, not minutes. I try not to fixate on the way his shoulder blades move beneath his shirt with each sway of his arms, or the way his broad shoulders taper down into a narrow waist. It is difficult not to feel an attraction to Devyn. No woman with a pulse can deny that. But something about him makes me uneasy in my own skin, not that I had ever felt comfortable in it since my accident.
My body collides with something hard, stiff, and well-muscled. Devyn. I am so lost in my own head that I didn’t realize that we had walked back into the diner, a welcome party of local women all ranging in age and all wanting a piece of him. Obviously, word has spread quickly of our celebrity visitor.
“Is there a room at the bed and breakfast?” Devyn asks openly into the room, his face twisting until Stacy stands from her table to acknowledge his question.
“I'm sorry, we’re booked full with the Sand Dune Festival happening this week.”
Before Devyn even has a chance to respond, the diner fills with random voices all inviting him to stay with them for the night, the week, forever. I’m fairly certain that I hear a marriage proposal among the requests. My ears begin burning and my fingertips itch. I feel as if I’m going to crawl out of my skin.
“He’s going to stay with me!” I shout, and the
room immediately quiets in stunned silence. I’ve never raised my voice before or spoken to anyone outside of this diner unless I’ve been spoken to first. For some reason, my eyes drift to where Cole sits at the counter, his glass of Coke halfway to his mouth as his lips hang parted in shock.
I wait patiently for someone to speak, anyone to speak and break the silence, well, anyone that’s not Devyn. Unfortunately, he’s the one that breaks the stillness in the room.
“What?”
I lack the courage to look up at him, fearing the disgust in his eyes, a snarl in his lip, or an ashen shade to his tanned cheeks.
“I. . .um. . .have a second apartment that I rent out online. The couple that had booked it for this week cancelled at the last minute.”
I don’t look up from my hands but I’m certain the room collectively blinks in unison. They all know me. They know my history, my fears, my lack of confidence.
The silence stretches and I finally glance up, and sure enough, everyone is staring at me as if I’ve grown two heads, but it’s the look on three of the faces that catch me off guard. Cole looks confused. Devyn looks relieved. And Uncle Jeff looks so damn proud with a grin stretched across his face that I can’t help but copy it.
“Thanks,” I hear whispered in my ear and I startle to find Devyn leaning close to me. Way too close. His cologne fills my nostrils with its scent that reminds me of the ocean. Or what I imagine the Pacific Ocean to smell like.
“Um. . .let me just finish up here and I can show you the apartment.” I lean away from him slightly despite my desire to tilt toward him. This man has a potency that draws me in.
“Yeah. I could go for something to eat.”
I’m afraid so could every other female in this room too, and I’m not talking about the food kind.
As I move behind the counter, I try to ignore the gazes. I’ve spent years trying to avoid being the center of attention and now it’s all on me again at my own doing. Devyn takes a seat with Uncle Jeff and Joanne promptly takes his order. It seems as if Uncle Jeff makes a selection for him.
Slipping into the kitchen area, I lean against one of the prep counters and try to figure out what has come over me. I don’t know what possessed me to offer up the only other apartment next to mine. But when an unfamiliar emotion surged through me, I couldn’t help myself. I’m scared to start digging deeper into that feeling.
“Your boy just ordered your special burger,” Joanne says as she slips the order in front of Tucker.
“He’s not my boy. And the special isn’t served until dinner, which we aren’t even going to be open for.”
“Your uncle insisted. Said he’d love the special sauce. I’m sure Tucker can handle it.”
“Joanne,” I say, reaching out for her arm as she tries to pass. The terror in my voice must alarm her because she immediately turns to me and wraps me in her arms. She’s not much older than me, only a decade, but right now she feels more like a mother than a friend. “What am I doing?”
“It’s okay. It’s just a week and he’ll be gone. I’m sure he’ll be too busy in his room talking with his agent or whatever it is that they do.”
“Yeah,” I murmur against her shoulder.
“It was a nice thing you did. Took a lot of guts.”
“No it didn’t, I just felt bad for him. That’s all.”
“Mmhmm. Who knows, maybe he could be some good company for the next week. Get you out of your dry spell.”
Pulling back, I smirk at her, sarcasm oozing from my veins. “It’s not a dry spell on purpose, you know. I’m just scared to put myself out there. And why would someone that looks like him, who is him, want anything to do with someone like me? He’s a celebrity for goodness’ sake. I make children cry when they see me.”