Breakfast was the most fun I’ve had in a long time.

Ryder, Tyler, and Devon were bantering back and forth. Angela, Emerson, and I couldn’t contain our laughter as they threw each other under the bus with stories from growing up together. From the sounds of it, Devon was the instigator most of the time and seeing as how he started with the stories as we waited for breakfast, it doesn’t appear he’s grown out of it.

As we walk out of the restaurant, Devon takes my hand in his and pulls me to the side. Emerson shoots me a smile over her shoulder as she slides up next to Ryder and heads toward her car.

“So, I have to leave when I get back to Ryder’s house, but I was hoping that I could call you later this week and maybe we could make plans to see each other again. Soon.”

The confidence he spoke with last night and this morning has vanished. He’s as nervous as I am about starting something if the sound of his voice is any indication. And the look on his face is the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen. He’s biting his lip and avoiding eye contact.

“I’d like that,” I reply, pushing up onto my tip-toes and kissing him gently on the cheek. I feel him smile as my lips pull away, but they’re not gone for long.

Devon quickly turns his head, and when his lips brush against mine, I’m tempted to pull his face in closer. I’m not that brave, though. Instead, I allow myself to shrink back to my normal height and wrap my arms around his waist.

No words are spoken as we spend a few minutes wrapped up in each other. He traces shapes on my back, and I close my eyes and breathe in his scent. I want to remember it until the next time we see each other, whenever that may be.

My phone chimes, interrupting out perfect moment. Ignoring it, I pull away and smile at Devon. He must be able to read my thoughts because he reaches out his hand and I take it. Walking hand in hand to meet up with our friends, he gives mine a light squeeze before jumping up in Ryder’s truck.

As they pull away, Emerson puts her hand on my shoulder and guides me to her car. She and Angela try to distract me from my thoughts of Devon on the drive to my place, but my one-track mind refuses to cooperate, zoning out on them as they make plans for the six of us.

Something about bowling. Beer. Nachos.

The ride is all a blur. When we pull up in front of my apartment, Angela places her hand on my shoulder to shake me from my daze.

“Thanks, guys. I’ll see you tomorrow, Em.”

“Call me if you need to talk,” she replies.

“Or me!” Angela hollers.

My apartment feels empty as I close the door behind me. Hollering out for my roommate, I’m met with only the echo of my voice. Her car was in the parking lot, but I’m not surprised that she’s not here. She and her boyfriend spend Sundays together every weekend.

Church in the morning followed by brunch with his parents. His family is high society here in Sunnyside. Unless you are on the straight and narrow, committed to the Lord in all aspects of your life, you are a sinner. I’ve met them once. They deemed me a sinner and tried to convince Audra to move out. I have a feeling once our lease is up in a few months, she’s going to.

Her boyfriend, Keegan, has a strange power over her. His opinion becomes her opinion. Before she met him, she was as fun and outgoing as I was. There was only one difference between us. She was a virgin. She still is. That’s part of the deal of being with him. No sex until marriage. No living together until marriage.

To each their own, I’m not judging them, but it seems like in this day and age, people would be more open-minded to the lifestyles of others and the choices they make. Not Keegan and not his family. If you have sex before your married, you’re a sinner. They don’t want to be associated with you. There’s no room in their life for people who choose to act in a certain manner.

So, I’m not part of Audra’s circle anymore. The friend that I used to spend most of my time with, that I graduated college with, my roommate of over two years, barely has time to talk to me let alone watch a movie or get food with me.

That’s fine.

I have other friends.

There’s Allison and Megan. Now I have Emerson and Angela. They accept me for who I am and don’t judge me for the choices I’ve made in the past. They’re real friends. Supportive. Caring.

Flopping backward onto my bed, I stare at the ceiling, but all I can see is Devon’s gorgeous face. Chiseled. Strong. His beautiful eyes looking at me as we laughed over eggs and hash browns. Audra would like him, I think. If she gave him a chance. He seems like a good person.

Funny.

Intelligent.

Sweet and charming.

Reaching for my phone to text Audra, I find a waiting message from Allison. I wonder what happened to her last night. I feel bad because I ditched her. Sort of. If I hadn’t, she would have found a way to keep me from being alone with Devon. Being with him meant I couldn’t be with her and that’s what she wanted. A wingman. And, normally, that’s me. I’m always helping her, by her side when she needs me, but last night I was selfish, and I don’t regret it for a second.

Before I can even compose a text to Audra, Allison replies.

Rolling my eyes, I don’t bother replying, instead quickly type a text to Audra asking her when she’s going to be home and crawl under my covers. My belly is full and now I need sleep.

* * *

“You’re lying. Why won’t you tell me what happened?”

Allison won’t drop the subject. I’ve told her everything, twice, down to the last detail, but she won’t accept the fact that we didn’t sleep together. Is it that hard to believe that two people can talk for hours and don't have to have sex to enjoy each other’s company? Apparently it is for Allison.

“Look, I can repeat everything again, but my story isn’t going to change,” I reply, grabbing a Diet Coke from the fridge in the break room. “We didn’t have sex. Is that clear enough for you?”

“Why the hell not? He’s sexy and it’s been a while for you. I’m sure he was more than willing judging by the way he was checking you out the other night. He barely spared me a glance.”

And there it is.

Her jealousy.

The oh-my-god-how-could-he-pick-you-over-me side of Allison. It doesn’t show itself often, but when it does, it tends to stick around for a while. It pisses me off that she thinks she’s better than everyone else, but at the same time, I can understand why. She’s gorgeous, has a killer body, and isn’t afraid to put it on display. She knows she’s hot. I’ve tried to explain it to her, that she tries too hard when it’s not necessary, but she doesn’t get it.

Guys want a challenge. It almost like a game to them. If the game is easy to win, why play?

“Look, I have to get back to my desk. Tyler left me a huge stack of stuff to get done today. We have new clients coming in all week and I want to be prepared.”

“Fine,” Allison pouts. “I should probably get back too. Ryder wants to have a meeting with me this afternoon. Emerson won’t tell me why, but I have a feeling things are shifting around here, if you catch my drift.”

“Would that be so horrible?” I ask.

She’s been Hunter’s assistant since she started, over three years ago. A little change, variety, is a good thing sometimes. You don’t want to become complacent as your job.

“No, but I don’t think he’s asking me if I want to switch. I think it’s a decision from the top. Megan does too.”

Stopping in the middle of the hallway, I pull her to a stop next to me. “Why would you ask Megan what she thinks?”

“Why not?”

“She has nothing to do with the politics of the office.” I’m attempting to keep my voice low, but my anger is rising.

Megan has nothing to do with what goes on around here. The fact that she’s asking her opinion means she’s also talking to her about it, about everything, and potentially stirring up trouble. Not for me but for Ryder.

“Yeah, but she knows Ryder better than anyone, and I wanted to know why he was calling me in his office. I figured she might have an idea.” She’s being defensive, but she’s also avoiding eye contact with me. She knows what she’s doing.

“And what did she say?” I ask, feigning interest.

“She said she figured he was going to make me switch with Emerson so there weren’t any favoritism issues.” Her use of air quotes as she says favoritism isn’t necessary.

The secret’s out about Ryder and Emerson, not that it was much of a secret to begin with. Sure, at first it was pure speculation, but it didn’t take long for people to notice that something might be going on.

“Even if that’s what’s happening, it’s none of her business. You’re trying to stir stuff up and you know it.”

Smirking at me, she shrugs her shoulders as she walks away. “Life is too boring.”

“Ms. Justine,” Helen calls after me as I’m about to take a seat at my desk.

Following the sound of her voice, I look over my shoulder to find Helen standing behind me. Her voice is muffled by a bouquet of flowers bigger than her head.

Thrusting the flowers at me, I take them from her and she walks away without a word. Looking around, I see Allison and Emerson both staring at me from their respective desks. Emerson has a warm smile on her face while Ally’s smile is more devious.

Carefully setting the arrangement down, I search them for a card as I smell each flower. Red, yellow, pink and peach roses. Two dozen of them. No card. No indication who they might be from, but there’s only one person I can think of that might send me flowers. Devon. If they’re from anyone else, I’d be surprised.

The rest of the afternoon I try my best to focus on my work. I have a lot to do in a little amount of time. Tyler and Hunter are leaving next Monday for a conference. Before they go, we each have things that need to be accomplished. Preparations are in full swing, projects need to be finalized and meetings need to be rescheduled. The office will be quiet while they’re gone, just us girls left to keep the ship afloat.

Oh, and Ryder, but if Ally’s meeting goes the way I think it might, he’ll be working with her all week, attempting to get her up to speed on how he operates.

My eyes keep drifting to the roses, their crystal vase, perfectly positioned on the corner of my desk. Thoughts of Devon and the night we spent talking about anything and everything keep distracting me from my work. Most of all, I find myself running my tongue across my lips, remembering the way his lips felt as they brushed against mine.

Five o’clock comes and goes. Emerson and Allison pack up and leave for the day while I stay behind and attempt to finish a few more things. Two press releases for Tyler to approve first thing tomorrow morning and I should be done for the night.

My phone chimes as I’m organizing stacks on Tyler’s desk. Reaching into my pocket, I pull it out to find a waiting text from Devon.

Is he hinting at something?

They were from him. A sense of relief washes over me, his words bringing a smile to my face.

My message goes unanswered. I hope he doesn’t think I was laughing at him. I was laughing at the situation. Things like that always happen to me. I’ll put time and effort into something important and then shit doesn’t go the way I want it to.

Quickly packing up my things, I contemplate taking my flowers home, but instead leave them where they are. They brighten up my desk and my mood. Knowing they’re from Devon will keep a smile on my face while I work. Hopefully they won’t be as much of a distraction tomorrow as they were today.

“Ms. Justine.”

Helen’s voice startles me as hit the button to call the elevator. Her head pops up over the top of her desk and she holds out a tiny envelope for me.

“What’s this?” I ask as I take the envelope and flip it over.

“I found it on my desk. I opened it and it appears that’s the card that goes with your flowers.”

“Oh,” I reply, shoving the card in my purse. “Thank you.”

“Have a nice night, dear,” she says as I step into the elevator. When I turn, there’s a naughty smirk on her face. The elevator doors close between us before I have a chance to ask why.

It has to be the card. What did he write?