Chapter Seven

Devon and Breck piled into the car, hoping no one from the bar and grill followed them out. They wanted to get their food and leave, following their spur-of-the-moment performance. He loved shit like that, though. It made people smile and have a good time, if only for a short while. Yeah, fun times.

“You owe me, man,” Breck complained.

“Oh, come on, you love it.”

“Ordinarily I do, but I wasn't in the mood tonight.”

Devon glanced over at his buddy, taking in his surly mood. “Sorry.”

“Just ask next time.”

“You okay?”

Breck hesitated at first, but nodded. “Yeah, some minor family bullshit going on.” The pitch of his voice deepened.

That tone meant Devon shouldn’t say anything more, so he nodded and cranked up the radio while they headed to his home.

As the men were sitting down to eat, there was a knock at the door. Breck looked at Devon. “You expecting anyone?”

“No, be right back.” Devon put his food down and strode to the door. Peeking through the sheer curtain on the window near the door, he struggled to keep from cursing.

His bandmate, Troy, stood outside holding Cindy's hand as she stared at the front door, but Troy was looking directly at him.

“Shit,” Devon breathed. He moved out of sight, hand on the knob, then he dropped his head forward until his forehead met the door.

Someone knocked again.

“Hey, is everything all right?” Breck put a hand on Devon's shoulder.

Without moving, Devon sighed. “Troy and Cindy are here.”

“Shit.”

“Exactly what I said.”

“You gonna ignore them?”

“No, I needed a minute to get it together.”

Breck looked at him with a frown; he knew of their history in great detail. “Do you want me to go?”

“No.” It was a simple word but the desperation in it took him by surprise.

“All right, man. I'm here for you. Gonna go back to my food.”

Face still pressed against the door, Devon said, “Ok.” Once he heard Breck walk away, he stood straight. Taking a deep breath, he pulled the door open just as his friends were turning to leave. “Hey, guys. What's up?” Thankfully, his voice was strong.

Troy’s and Cindy's heads turned, and they both smiled.

“We didn't think you were home. Good to see you. It's only been a couple weeks, but it feels like forever.” Troy was before him, hand out.

Devon grasped it, and they shook hands. Slowly, hesitantly, Devon glanced next to his friend and saw Cindy.

Her smile was weak, but she stood tall and strong. And beautiful.

He admired her strength, his heart thumped in his chest, and his breath quickened.

“Did we come at a bad time?”

Devon tilted his head at her words. “What do you mean?”

“You took a long time to answer the door,” she said, quietly.

“He was most likely taking a shit, leave the man alone.” Troy chuckled.

Devon nodded and let out a sigh of relief. “So, what brings you two by?” Lacking the strength to invite them in, he stepped out and closed the door behind him.

“Oh, sorry! Do you have company?” Cindy stared at the door as if she could see through it.

“I do.” He should've told them it was Breck, but he bit his tongue and went to sit on the large Adirondack chair on his porch. “Have a seat.” He motioned to the wooden swing hanging across from him.

The couple sat down, hands still entwined. It had to be just as uncomfortable for them as it was him; they hadn't spent a lot of time with just the three of them alone in the past two years. “You taking care of my girl?” Devon asked.

“Your girl?” Troy's head jerked up, and his words were a bit on the defensive side.

Devon leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, and looked at them while tension filled the air. “Let's not pretend this isn't awkward for any of us, and let's get to the point. But first, Cindy will always be my girl; she'll never be my lover, but always my girl. We have a history, but you two have a future.

“You, Troy, will always be a good friend. Nothing will change those two facts, even after all the pain I've gone through, because yes, this wasn't easy for me. I can't imagine this has been easy for either of you, but you had each other to lean on. I've had no one.” Devon heard a cough from the other side of the window.

Cindy's head popped up to see what he saw—a dark figure behind the curtain.

“Sorry, I've been away from my dinner date for too long.” Devon chuckled.

Troy was grinning, and Cindy's mouth fell open, and then she frowned and lowered her head.

“Nosy motherfucker, come on out. I know you're listening,” Devon hollered at the house.

Cindy gasped, probably thinking his “date” was a woman, and he was being crude.

The door opened and the couple stared as Breck walked out.

“Dude, talking shit about how you went through it on your own. I was here with your sorry ass, every day, hearing you bitch, moan, and whine.” Breck glared at him as he shook hands with Troy and then leaned down and pressed a kiss to Cindy’s cheek. “How have you both been these past couple of weeks?”

“We're doing well.” Cindy smiled.

Breck took a step back and leaned against the support post.

“So, you know everything?” Troy asked Breck.

“Yep, so trust me when I say he wasn't alone in this.”

“Yes, you were here for me, and I appreciate that, but you weren't a warm body in my bed that I could cuddle with while I unloaded my feelings.”

“All you had to do was ask.”

Devon could hear the smile in Breck's voice, and when he looked up, his friend winked at him.

“I'll keep that in mind.” He chuckled and nodded, thankful for the tension breaker.

“Don't get mad at us,” Troy started, “but we came to ask you something.”

“What?” His defenses went up. It was an automatic reflex for him whenever someone said, “Don't get mad.”

“Have you dated anyone since...” Cindy trailed off.

Devon relaxed slightly, since that wasn’t what he expected. He’d thought the worst—them asking him to back off from their friendships.

“Sure, there have been a few women.” He jumped in before she could say more.

Breck coughed, trying to disguise a laugh. “I don't think one-night stands count, and there were more than a few, if we're being honest here.”

“Don't they count?” Devon looked at Troy.

“No, man, they don't.”

“Then no, I haven't dated anyone.”

Cindy's brow furrowed.

He didn't like that. “Cin, you okay?”

“I am.”

“Does he make you happy?” Devon angled his chin toward Troy.

Cindy looked between Troy and Breck.

“Don't feel weird, we're all friends here.” He reminded her.

For the first time since they arrived, Cindy removed her hand from Troy's. She stood, walked to Devon, and knelt in front of him. Putting her hands on his knees, she looked directly into his eyes. “Troy makes me very happy, and I love him more than I can explain. I want you to believe that so you don't have to ask again. I want there to be no doubt.”

He considered her words for a moment, and dropped his hands to the tops of hers, rubbing her knuckles. “That's all I ever wanted for you, Cin. I want you to be happy.”

An evil grin spread across her face.

“Uh-oh, I know that look. What are you up to?”

Her smile lit up her face, and he loved that she was happy, he'd do anything she asked.

“We want to set you up on a blind date.”