Devin
Devin sat with his feet up on the desk of his office. The cardboard box of comic books was lying in the corner of the room, and he was eyeing it while his hands rested on his stomach.
His office was grand; decorated and designed by professionals who had insisted that they knew what they were doing. Dan, his friend and business associate, the guy who usually took care of the finer details of their business, also insisted that he go with the designers’ ideas. “Creating the right impression is important,” Dan had told him.
So now Devin sat in his boots and leather jacket, behind a large rectangular mahogany desk. The curtains on the windows were thick, with green and gold brocade. The carpeted floor was a lush bottle green as well, while the walls were a rich ivory white. The oil paintings in carved wooden frames that hung on the walls were all different locations and landscapes within Miami.
Devin felt like an imposter in his own office. He probably still needed some time to get used to this major redesign of it. He didn’t believe it suited his nature, his business, but Dan insisted that this kind of lavish show of wealth and prosperity was something Devin needed to portray. They were in the business of intimidation, of bounty hunting and providing security and bodyguards. It was apparently important to demonstrate success. That was how they could gain trust and more clients, and also keep their enemies at bay.
Dan burst through the door of his office just as Devin was about to get up from the leather chair and walk over to the box of comic books.
“What the hell happened?” Dan asked, shutting the door behind him. Devin leaned back further in his chair and smiled at his friend.
“I caught three of them, from The Choppers, tailing me,” he replied in a much more relaxed tone of voice than Dan.
“Tailing you how?” Dan came rushing towards the desk, and Devin finally took his feet off it.
“Just following me, they were waiting for me outside the cafe. But I managed to lose them.” Devin shrugged his shoulders. He couldn’t understand what the big deal was. Dan had always been the kind of guy who tried to stay out of trouble, which was why Devin assigned the business and finances side of things to him, while he took care of the groundwork.
“Do you know what they wanted?” Dan asked, actually looked terrified.
“No. Do you know what they wanted?” Devin asked and then laughed when Dan looked at him, more shocked than he was before.
“Don’t worry, just relax Dan. I’ve asked the boys to look into it.” Devin placed his elbows on his desk and leaned forward.
“Look into it how?” Dan was adjusting his tie; he liked to wear a suit and tie every day, and pretend that he was going to work in a normal office. When in reality, their business functioned out of their old biker club clubhouse, which they had now converted into a makeshift office space. Dan obviously stood out from the rest of the club, none of who were able to do away with their old sensibilities.
“Find out what they want. Do some digging around. You know how it goes,” Devin replied, smiling at his friend’s nervousness.
“You think this is going to start another fight?” Dan asked, pulling at his collar.
“Relax, Dan. No, I just want to know what they wanted. It could be anything.” Devin was still smiling.
“Could be anything, like what? What are the possibilities?” Dan pulled out a chair in front of Devin’s desk and sat down.
Devin shrugged his shoulders again and swiveled around in his chair. “I don’t know… maybe they wanted to just have a chat. Some guy who we brought in for bounty wanted revenge and hired The Choppers for the task. They hate my guts and want me gone. Or maybe they’re just jealous of this office.” He spread out his arms in a grand gesture around the room.
Dan rolled his eyes. “Stop kidding around, Devin. Do you think your life could be in danger?”
Devin laughed again. Dan was a good business associate, but he scared easy. “I don’t even know why they wanted to speak to me. Maybe it’s just a friendly chat. A catch-up,” Devin suggested, and Dan stood up from his chair with a jerk.
“It’s never just a friendly chat with those guys, and you know it. I wish you’d just take it seriously for once so we can be prepared for what’s coming.”
“I told you the boys are looking into it, they’ll find out sooner or later and let me know.”
Dan looked back at him, concerned. “Maybe you should lay low until then - until we know why you were being followed.” He took a deep breath and Devin shook his head as he carved a reassuring smile.
“You want me to hide out here, seriously Dan? I thought you knew me better than that.” Devin stood up from his chair too, and Dan rolled his eyes again before turning and beginning to walk away.
“All I’m saying is that we can be prepared if we know what they’re after. It wouldn’t hurt to just be a bit more careful until we have all the details,” Dan called out over his shoulder before exiting the room.
Devin’s smirk widened at how much like an accountant Dan always sounded.
He sighed and sat back down again, the box of comic books in the corner catching his attention for a second time.
***
Devin found the number of Officer Hampton on his phone. He was one of the many Miami cops who owed him favors. Devin wasn’t very interested in calling police officers for payback. Frankly, he didn’t really need them. But they were good for giving him information when he needed it. They owed Devin their lives, and usually, they were always happy to comply.
“Hampton,” he said into the phone.
“Devin?”
“Do you know why The Choppers are looking for me?” Devin asked, jumping straight ahead to the main point.
“The Choppers? No. Are they looking for you? What happened?” Hampton was talking in a whisper, and Devin leaned his head back on his leather chair. He stared up at the ceiling. If he was honest with himself, he wasn’t really thinking very hard, not about The Choppers. He was heavily distracted by the way Camille, the girl from the comic book store, looked earlier that day. She had said yes to a date - it had cost him, but he didn’t really care. Since then, he had constantly been checking the time to see when he could go and pick her up.
“Three of them were waiting for me outside a cafe today. I managed to lose them, but they were following me,” Devin replied, his mind still partially distracted by thoughts of Camille.
“I have no idea. I’ve heard nothing.” Hampton said, a little louder this time.
“Keep me posted if you hear anything, and tell the others,” Devin told him and hung up the phone.
He knew Dan was right. That would be the most rational thing to do. Lay low. But since when was Devin Rock a pussy? When they were waiting for him outside the cafe that morning, he was unprepared. Now he would be prepared to face them straight on if required. It didn’t mean that he would hide out here in his office until things cooled down, as Dan suggested.
After all, he had a date to go to.
Devin jumped out of his chair and walked into the separate bathroom. He might be a little early, but he didn’t care. He needed to be on the move, he needed to do something. He had checked his sources, set the boys to work… now he would just have to wait and see what happened next. In the meantime, he would busy himself with doing what he really wanted to do - see Camille again.
Devin looked at himself in the mirror and smoothed over his dark wavy hair with moist hands. He splashed some water on his face and clenched his jaws as the water dripped from the rugged angles of his face. He focused on his face, his chocolate brown eyes, and the stubble that was forming on his chin.
He reached for a towel and wiped his face. The thought of changing out of his clothes barely occurred to him. He wasn’t the kind of guy who was keen on making an impression. It was take it or leave it with him. Camille would have to be happy with the same leather jacket, jeans, and boots from that morning.
“Are you going somewhere?” Dan was sitting outside in the lounge area with a few other guys when Devin stepped out of the office.
“Yes, Mom,” he threw back, as he flung his keys up in the air and then caught them a second later.
“We’re all heading to O’Murphys,” Rick said, standing up from his chair.
“I have a few things to do,” Devin replied, thumping his bike brother’s back as he walked past the club.
“What things?” Dan asked. He had taken off his suit jacket now that business hours were over.
“Dan. Just relax man. I’m simply going out. Go with the boys and have a few drinks will you?” Devin urged, giving him another reassuring smile but Dan didn’t look pleased.
“Be careful!” Dan called out to him as Devin stepped out of the doors of the clubhouse. Devin shook his head in irritation. Dan was good, a great business associate, but it was like working with an overprotective mother at times.
Devin got on his old Harley and fitted the helmet over his head. He rode with a specific destination in mind. He was headed for the address that Camille had written down on that piece of paper. He still had it folded up in the pocket of his jeans, but he didn’t need to refer to it again. He found it easily.
He was ten minutes early when he screeched his bike to a stop in front of her apartment building. The complex looked unassuming in a quiet residential neighborhood, with well-lit streets and trees lining the roads. Devin didn’t know which apartment she was in, so he blew the horn twice.
He looked up at the windows; the helmet was still on his face, which was good because he knew his face would betray just how he was feeling. He was excited.
Then he saw her. She had stuck her head out of a lit window on the third floor; her face was silhouetted by the light from inside the house, so he couldn’t quite see the expression on her face, but he recognized that tight halo of curls.
She soon slunk back inside without waving or saying a word. Devin could feel his heart racing again. He couldn’t be sure if she were ready or if she wanted him to wait, or if she had changed her mind…
All he could do was wait, and he did just that. His hands remained on the gears of his bike, as he stood with his feet firmly planted on the concrete, straddling his baby underneath him. He tried to distract himself from feeling so nervous. She was only a girl after all, but he couldn’t help his feelings. Especially not when he saw her step out of the front door and walk down the steps towards him.
Devin removed his helmet as Camille came closer without really looking at him. Could she have been blushing? He thought.
She looked different, to say the least, but absolutely ravishing. Her skin glowed, and the tight red dress she wore clung to her body. Her legs looked slender and long as usual, and she was wearing high heels that clicked against the ground.
Even without her having to turn, Devin could tell that her butt swayed with every step. Her shoulders were bare, and they looked soft and smooth in the dim light of the street. Her breasts looked big and juicy, just as he had predicted even under her sweatshirt that morning.
Devin’s eyes were mostly drawn to her face. Her gold hair shimmered with beautiful tight curls, her large blue eyes were offset by long, black lashes, and her lips were small and painted in the same red shade as her dress. In her hands, she clutched a black purse, which she held close to her hip as she swayed and walked towards him.
“I wasn’t sure where we were going. So I decided to dress neutrally,” she said in that sweet innocent voice of hers that had been ringing in his ears all day.
Devin laughed as he clutched his helmet to his side, and looked at her blushing face. That dress was anything but neutral. It was designed for a very specific emotion, and it was being very successful at it.
“Where do you want to go?” he asked, and he stretched out his hand to her. Camille looked at his hand like she was still hesitating, and then gave over her own to which he pulled to his lips.
He got a scent of the vanilla of her skin again, mingled with a sharp floral scent of her perfume. It almost made him dizzy as he held her hand up to his lips. He kept his eyes focused on her face as he kissed it lightly. Camille appeared to blush deeper and looked away from him, and at that moment, all Devin wanted to do was kiss her. Kiss her so that she would not have to feel embarrassed.
“Do you not have a plan?” she asked suddenly, interrupting his thoughts. Devin had forgotten what they were talking about; he was too distracted by the taste of her skin.
His brows furrowed quizzically “What?”
Camille looked nervous again like she was afraid that she had displeased him somehow. “I mean, where are we going? I thought you had a plan.” She slowly pulled her hand out of his.
“Hop on,” he said, instead of answering her question. Camille looked at him and then at the bike. Could this be her first time on one?
“Here give me your hand and place your foot on the step there.” Devin held out his hand again, and she gingerly took it. This time, Devin gripped it tightly, giving her enough support to climb on.
“Oh my goodness,” Camille squealed and then laughed as she stepped with one foot on the step on the side and tried to swing her leg over the backseat of the bike. Her dress was too tight, but she didn’t seem embarrassed by it. For the first time, Devin could see her having fun.
She tried to swing her leg over again, but failed and then finally decided to sit sideways behind him. Devin felt the pressure of her small, slender hands as she placed them on both of his shoulders.
“You’ll have to hold me tighter than that,” he told her, turning his face to the side. He couldn’t see her anymore, but he could feel her warm breath on the back of his neck as she sat behind him.
Camille didn’t say a word, but he felt her move in her seat so that she was now pressing her body to his.
“Hold on, Camille,” he said in an authoritative voice for her safety and also because he wanted to feel her. He was growing desperate for her touch.
When her arms wrapped around his abdomen, he felt like someone had punched the breath out of him. Her body was close to his.
He heard her breathe in sharply too, but he tried to distract himself by putting on his helmet. He needed to concentrate on riding his bike; he couldn’t allow himself to be distracted by her.
“So where are we going?” she asked again, and he smiled despite the fact that she couldn’t see it due to the helmet now covering his face.
“Hold on tight, and you’ll see,” he replied, his voice muffled by the helmet, but she had heard him. He felt her grip him tighter, and for a second he thought she was going to place her face on one of his shoulders. But she didn’t. Instead, she braced herself for the ride as he revved the engine.
Neither of them exchanged a word after that, not that they even could. The bike was way too loud. Devin was riding through the streets of Miami towards South Beach, the wind warm and salty on their faces. Devin could ride these streets blindly if he had to, but this time it felt new. Everything felt new with her behind him. Even when Camille wasn’t saying anything, just touching him… Devin felt like a different man. A man who would keep her safe by any means necessary.
***
They walked side by side as they entered the restaurant. Devin watched several heads turn to look at them, and he wasn’t sure if they were judging him by the way he was dressed or admiring how sexy Camille was.
She looked nervous beside him as the hostess guided them to the table in the far corner, overlooking the beach. Devin had picked this restaurant for its fantastic view of the ocean. Even in the dark, they could see the waves crashing gently as they sat down at their table for two. A candle was lit between them, and a waitress appeared to present them with the menus.
“I’m Joanne, and I will be your waitress for tonight. Would you like to order some drinks?” she said in a chirpy voice, and Devin turned to look at her. On any other occasion, he would have been quick to appreciate the sharp straight nose, green eyes, short white skirt, and the way the fabric of her black shirt stretched over her breasts, the buttons stretched to the brink of popping open. But instead, he just smiled at her, while Camille was engrossed in the menu.
“A bottle of your best red,” he told Joanne, the waitress, surprising even himself. He wasn’t much of a wine drinker, but something told him that Camille was. And this place just looked like one of those restaurants that didn’t stock beers. Camille looked up at him briefly and tried to suppress a smile.
“I can leave the menus with you so you can decide on your food,” Joanne said, and Devin felt her hand graze his as she placed the menu in front of him.
Camille looked up, apparently noticing, and watched Joanne walk away. “Do they know you here?” she asked, and Devin shook his head.
“Never been here before, why?”
She shrugged her slender bare shoulders.
“I just got the impression that she knew you,” Camille replied meekly and went back to looking at the menu.
“Have you been here before?” he asked.
“No, but it looks lovely. The view is beautiful.” He watched as she turned her head to look at the waves. Her eyes traveled over their motion, and she looked distracted.
“Something tells me you are more than a comic bookstore owner,” he added and wasn’t quite sure where the question had come from.
Camille looked at him, holding his gaze before finally smiling. “I’m an artist in my spare time,” she said and closed the menu.
Devin raised his eyebrows just as Joanne appeared again. Camille was an artist. He knew there was more to her than meets the eye.
“What can I get you?” Joanne asked animatedly. She had a huge smile on her face, and her glittering eyes were focused on Devin. He could sense that she was checking him out - his muscles, his shoulders, and his face.
“I’ll have the Chef’s special steak,” Devin said, not looking at Joanne directly.
“Good choice, Sir. I’ll make sure that he gives your steak his full attention,” Joanne replied with a laugh, and Devin finally met her eyes. Unlike Camille, she didn’t shy away from him.
“You’re very kind.” He handed the menu back to her. Joanne surprised him with a giggle, still not turning to Camille to ask for her order.
“And how would you like your steak, sir? Something tells me you like your meat well done.” She was openly flirting and still ignoring the presence of Camille at the table.
“Medium rare,” he said and turned away from her. In another time, on another day, before he had met Camille… this kind of open flirting would have led to a quick fuck in the staff toilets. But not tonight, not when all he wanted to do was talk to the beautiful comic bookstore owner. Alone.
“Anything else that I can get you, sir?” Joanne asked, emphasizing the last word. She then leaned forward and playfully touched his hand that was casually resting on the table. Devin withdrew it with a jerk and turned to Camille.
“You could take her order,” he said firmly and watched as Joanne’s face soured a little. But she was quick to regain her composure and turn to Camille.
That was when he noticed Camille’s face. It was rigid, and her eyes looked icy blue, even though she had a smile on her face.
“I’ll have the Caesar salad, thank you,” she said bluntly, and Joanne wrote the order down on her notepad.
“That’ll be all,” Devin said before Joanne could ask them any more questions, or waste any more time lingering. He wanted Camille all to himself again.
He watched her as she watched the waitress walking away, and then a few moments later she turned to him. She looked like she was trying very hard to put up a front of casualness; like Joanne’s flirting hadn’t affected her at all.
“She’s sweet. She likes you,” Camille said, and to his surprise, she reached for the bottle of wine that Joanne had placed on the table between them. Camille’s cheeks were flushed again as she poured the wine into her glass and didn’t offer him any. Devin wanted to smile. She was jealous, and he wanted to pull her close to him because of it.
“Who?” he asked as she took a sip of wine. The liquid glazed her lips, and she shot him a questioning look.
“The waitress.”
“What waitress?” He leaned back in his chair, as Camille appeared to suppress a smile again.