“No, thank you,” I said. “For my painting.”

Devlin smiled tenderly at me. “I was trying to express how I felt about you… but I think my feelings were too big for the canvas.”

“I think you did a pretty good job,” I said. “In fact… I might have bought it if it hadn’t been a little out of my price range.”

At that exact moment, one of the gallery staff came up to the painting and pasted a little ‘sold’ sticker right next to it.

“Wow,” I breathed. “You have a fan.”

“I think in this case, it’s the person in the painting that had to do with the sale,” Devlin said, with a secret smile.

“Oh, I don’t know about that,” I said, staring at my image and thinking how much more beautiful his vision of me was.

“I do,” Devlin said quietly.

I avoided his gaze and looked around at the crowd. “This is a good turnout… isn’t it?”

“Gordon knows how to put on a show,” Devlin nodded. “And because of it… I might actually be able to make an honest living and focus on my work.”

“It’s what you always dreamed,” I said. “And you finally got everything you wanted.”

“Not everything,” Devlin said.

He didn’t put a lot of emphasis on his words, but the weight of them settled between the two of us. What did I want? What had been my real motivation for coming here in the first place? I wasn’t so sure that I knew myself. But staring at Devlin’s gorgeous blue eyes, I couldn’t see past my own need and desire. I loved him so much that it hurt to be this close to him and feel the barrier that stood between us. Yes, that barrier was of my own making… but he had built the foundation for it without even realizing. Could I really forgive all that happened?

“I should go,” I said.

“Please don’t,” Devlin said immediately. “We haven’t spoken to each other in so long… I just… I just want to talk to you.”

“About what?” I asked.

“About anything,” he said. “How about we grab some dinner now?”

“Now?” I asked incredulously.

“Yes.”

“But the exhibition?”

“Doesn’t mean as much to me as dinner with you,” Devlin said. “Please?”

I thought about saying no, but even as I considered it, I knew that it wasn’t a real possibility. I had missed him too much to turn him down now. I didn’t know if that was weakness on my part or just an admission that this whole situation was out of my hands.

“I’ll go let Gordon know I’m leaving,” Devlin said. “Please… don’t disappear on me.”

He left, and I turned around looking for Leah. She came up behind me with a look on her face that told me she had overheard everything.

“Where did you go?”

“I thought you two might need some alone time… turns out I was right.”

I smiled. “Do you think I’m crazy for going out with him tonight.”

“No… you need closure… no matter which way the pendulum swings,” Leah said. “I’m going to head back to my hotel ok… will you let me know what happens tomorrow.”

“I will.”

I said goodbye to Leah and waited for Devlin by his collection. He took a few minutes but when he returned he was smiling.

“Is everything all right?” I asked.

“Sure,” he nodded. “Gordon wasn’t thrilled about the fact that I was leaving early but he didn’t have much say in the matter.”

“Maybe you should stay.”

“I don’t want to stay,” Devlin said, taking my hand and pulling me out of the gallery.

Even that simple gesture sent a thrill shooting through my body. It had been so long since I had felt him touch me and it brought back all the memories of those nights we had spent together, tangled up in the sheets, our naked bodies pressed together in comfort and familiarity.

We walked around the city and picked a quiet restaurant and a corner table that gave us a little privacy. As we sat down, I got suddenly nervous.

“So… how have you been?” I asked, somewhat formally because I didn’t know what to say.

“Horrible,” Devlin replied.

“Horrible?” I repeated. “Come on… things are looking up for you.”

“How can they be?” Devlin asked. “When you’re no longer in my life.”

“Devlin…”

“I’m not trying to convince you of anything, Zoey,” he said, and then he smiled and sighed. “Or maybe I am, I don’t know. I promised myself I wouldn’t pursue you again. I promised myself that I would leave you alone and let you live your life. I know you deserve better than me. You deserve so much better and yet here I am… being selfish and trying to explain to you that I’m a changed man.”

“I never wanted you to change Devlin,” I said. “I wanted you to be honest with me. My music is everything to me. It’s the one thing I’m passionate about, and it’s the one thing I’m good at. If I couldn’t make music anymore… I don’t know what I’d do. So I understood why you felt you had no choice but to deal drugs… what I can’t understand is why you chose to concoct this elaborate story to cover it up.”

“I was scared you would leave me.”

“Because you dealt drugs?”

“No, because admitting I dealt drugs would prove once and for all that I was beneath you. Remember how things were at the beginning… you yourself told me that our lifestyles were too different to work together. I was scared that you would go back to that conclusion.”

I did remember that conversation. I remembered all the parties that Devlin used to host every week. It had been his way of relaxing and letting go of the stress of his life. But as I recall, I couldn’t remember the last time he had hosted a party.

“You stopped partying,” I said, mostly to myself.

“What?”

“The parties,” I repeated. “You stopped having them.”

“Oh… well yes.”

“Because of me?”

“Well yes,” Devlin nodded. “But not because you forced me too. It was just that after I met you, I realized I didn’t need the parties anymore. I wasn’t actually enjoying myself as much as I did when I was with you. I had everything I wanted already… that is before I screwed it all up and lost you.”

“You know what,” I said. “I’m not really hungry at all.”

I saw Devlin’s expression fall and I knew what he was thinking.

“Let’s go back to my apartment,” I said.

Devlin’s eyebrows rose, and he stared at me for a moment. “Are you… sure?”

“Yes,” I nodded. “Come on.”

This time I took his hand and dragged him out of the restaurant. We didn’t talk much on the ten-minute walk back to the apartment, but I could feel the expectation and the uncertainty build up between us. We got to the door, and I opened it and walked in with Devlin following close behind me. This time, he seemed nervous, but I was surprisingly calm.

“You can close the door,” I told him.

Devlin turned and closed the door. He turned to me slowly, and I could see on his face that he was unsure what I wanted from this.

“Come closer,” I said.

Again, he did what I wanted wordlessly. I reached up behind my back and unzipped the dress, letting it fall to the ground around my feet. I saw Devlin’s eyes flicker over my body and I knew he wanted me… as much as I wanted him. I unhooked my bra and pulled it off. I saw Devlin’s intake of breath, and I felt a curious sense of power flood through me. I pulled off my panties and kicked them away.

This time, Devlin didn’t need my command. He walked over, grabbed me by the hips and pulled me towards him. His lips hit mine at the same time, and instantly we were locked in a passionate embrace that was filled with the heat and urgency of absence.

I clawed at him, trying to peel away the layers of fabric that separated us. I felt his buttons pop as I tore at his shirt to reveal the hard wall of muscle underneath. Then I fumbled with his belt buckle, as one hand stroked his erection. He barely got his pants off before he swung me around, bent me over the sofa top and pushed inside me with one swift move. I was so wet that he slid inside me easily and I gasped out in unrepentant pleasure.

He fucked me hard, with his hands wrapped around my body, cupping my breasts and anchoring me to his body. I could hear the slap of flesh on flesh every time he slammed into me, and it sounded like music… a different kind of music but music all the same. I could feel his orgasm come slowly, but he forced himself into a slower pace until he had prevented its coming.

Then he turned me around, pushed me back against the couch and fell on top of me. I let my hands run down his cool, smooth chest and I realized how much I had missed this… and how much I had longed for it on all those lonely nights I’d spent on Seth’s couch. But this was not all I craved. It wasn’t all about sex. Sex was just the best way in which I could express the depth of my feeling for Devlin. It was everything… and I knew now I couldn’t live without him.

We came together and afterward, with my head resting comfortably on Devlin’s chest, I breathed him in and sighed in relief.

“That painting you created of me… it really was beautiful,” I said, kissing his chest. “I wish I could see it every day.”

“You can,” Devlin said surprisingly.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“I bought the painting,” Devlin told me. “It’s mine.”

“I… you bought your own painting?” I asked.

He smiled. “I put it up without thinking that anyone would actually be interested in buying my work. When I realized that my pieces were popular, I wanted to take it down before someone decided to buy it. Except that Gordon refused to do that because it meant foregoing his cut of the painting. So I paid him off.”

I shook my head. “But why?”

“Because I thought that you and I were really over,” Devlin admitted. “And I realized that that painting might be the only thing I would have left of you. And I knew I couldn’t give that up… no matter how many thousands I was offered.”

“Wow,” I breathed.

“I love you, Zoey… and that’s never going to change. The only thing that is going to change is that from now on I will tell you everything… full transparency… always.”

I nodded. “Good… because this time we have to do it right.”

“I agree… no more mistakes and no more lies,” Devlin promised me, as he stroked my hair and kissed me gently on the lips

And despite everything… I believed him. “Hey,” I said, cupping his face with my hand. “I have an offer for you?”

“Oh?” Devlin asked, and he sounded intrigued. “What is it?”

“I just moved into this apartment,” I said.

Devlin looked around as though he were seeing it for the first time. “It’s nice.”

“Thanks,” I said. “So anyway… I just moved in, but I can’t afford to stay here alone. I need a roommate.”

“Oh yeah?” Devlin asked, with a knowing smile.

“You know anyone who’s interested?”

“What are your requirements?” Devlin asked innocently.

“Someone… tall, handsome… good in the sack,” I said.

Devlin laughed. “I know a guy,” he said. “He lives in a basement at the moment.”

“We can’t have that,” I said. “Tell him there’s a room for him here.”

Suddenly Devlin’s face grew serious. “Are you sure?” he asked. “Are you really sure?”

I nodded with certainty. “Yes,” I said. “I’m sure about you.”