Devin
She had seemed so innocent, like an untouched naive flower growing on the side of a mountain, Devin thought. He blinked his eyes in the dark and stillness of his bedroom. She probably was, as innocent as she looked, but where had she found the courage to ask him to strip for her? Where had she found the courage to scream his name while he pumped into her?
Devin felt himself growing hard again, and he turned himself to the side, away from the peacefully sleeping face of Camille, so that he could stop thinking about her for one minute. But he couldn’t.
She had sketched him, right before they fucked again, this time inside the pool. Devin smiled. She was unpredictable.
The sketch blew his mind. She was more than talented and obnoxiously humble. He believed Camille’s art deserved to be showcased and applauded. Her quick sketch of him, interrupted by their fucking, was so good… what could she achieve without distraction?
Devin could hear Camille’s soft breathing beside him. She had fallen asleep in his arms on the deck chair due to exhaustion. And then he had carried her to his bed. He couldn’t remember the last time he had shared his bed with anybody else, but Camille Griffin was something else.
Devin sighed and then sat up in his bed. Try as he might, and he had been trying for quite some time now, he couldn’t fall asleep. He couldn’t stop thinking how beautiful Camille was, and how innocently she was getting tangled into his life. He couldn’t stop imagining what misfortune he might bring to her, how he might end up disappointing her, and his biggest fear was that he might end up exactly like his father.
Camille sighed in her sleep, and Devin turned to look at her peaceful face. She was sleeping naked under the covers, and her face was calm and relaxed. She seemed to feel protected and safe in his presence. Devin clenched his jaws at the thought of that. He couldn’t keep her safe, he wanted to… but his life was too dangerous, he was too dangerous. And Camille had no idea.
Devin got up from the bed and walked towards the balcony doors. He slid open the glass door and stepped out. The night air was cool, and it calmed him a little as he stood there thinking about her. She was a brilliant artist; the least he could do for her was offer her an opportunity. He wanted to, no, he needed to.
His cell phone was on the coffee table in the balcony, and he grabbed it. Evangeline’s phone number was on the top of his call list, and he dialed. She answered only after a few rings, and she sounded like she had been awake as well. Her deep groggy voice was missing, and she almost sounded like she had been waiting for his call.
“Hello, darling,” she said, and Devin rolled his eyes. He didn’t have any more patience for Evangeline, not for the games she always played.
“Were you sleeping?” He asked in a whisper, yet knew full well that Camille couldn’t hear him.
“Not with you, unfortunately.” Evangeline gave a high-pitched laugh, and Devin breathed in.
“I wanted to check with you. I’m planning an art show, for someone, for a friend, at your gallery,” Devin said, pacing across the balcony. Evangeline was quiet on the other end, and he wondered if she had figured out who this artist friend was.
“Evangeline?” He urged and heard her sigh loudly.
“Of course, anything for you, darling. But I will obviously want something in return.” She had dragged her words out lazily. Devin crossed his brows and clenched his jaw.
“What do you want in return, Evangeline? I’m willing to rent the gallery and pay money for it. What more can you possibly want?” He threw the words at her through gritted teeth and realized then that he had been gripping the railings of the balcony tightly with his fists. His knuckles had gone white. He let go, trying to calm himself down.
“I don’t want your money, Devin,” Evangeline replied in her usual seductive voice, and Devin snapped again.
“If you’re thinking we can go back to being what we were before, you can forget about it. I’m not asking for a favor, I’m asking as a business booking,” Devin threw back, and he sensed a shift in Evangeline’s voice when she spoke again.
“You really know how to test my patience, don’t you? Just because you know that I’ll agree to anything you want,” she said in a shrill clipped voice, and then she hung up before he could respond.
Devin stared at his cell phone and placed it back on the coffee table. He was willing to deal with Evangeline’s drama just so that Camille could get a shot at displaying her art. He was willing to do that for he was willing to do anything for her.
In the dead of night, when the grounds around his house were locked up and still, Devin heard the rumblings of motorbikes, not very far away.
He looked out into the dark, but couldn’t see any lights, nothing that would indicate a location. He gripped the railings of the balcony and strained his eyes to look, but he couldn’t see anything. But he could hear the bikes still. It was quite clear that someone was still following him.
Devin turned to look at Camille sleeping on his bed through the glass sliding doors. She had turned towards him, and her eyes were shut and peaceful. Devin thought she had never looked more beautiful. Her hair was in disarray and had fallen over her face. Devin was sure now that he would do anything for this woman. He would protect her from everything that she didn’t even know about.