next morning I watch as Devlin packs the suitcase he’s been living out of since we left for New York what seems like a millennium ago. After going straight to Tracy’s murder scene, we’d come here to be with Brandy, then almost immediately headed off to Idaho.
It’s been a whirlwind, and now that Blackstone’s out of the picture, Devlin’s ready to get back to his own place. And me…
Well, I’m feeling at loose ends.
“Come home with me,” Devlin says.
“I want to be with you,” I tell him. “You know that. But I don’t want to leave Brandy alone right now. She’s fragile.”
“Is she scared Christopher might come back?”
I shake my head. “No. We all agree the odds are low, and she knows you have security watching the house. But she’s been through hell and she’s my best friend.”
“I get it,” he says. “And I’ll miss being here. But I miss my house, too. And my closet.”
I laugh. I can’t argue with that.
“Well, you should know that Jake’s going to be a wreck if the house empties out. He’s been in doggie heaven with everyone here. Another reason for me to stay.”
He comes and sits beside me on the bed. “You’re a good friend. To both of them.”
“You really don’t mind?”
“Are you breaking up with me?”
I cock my head and give him that look.
“Am I going to have to resort to cold showers?”
“Definitely not.”
“Then I think it’s just fine. Truly. But you still have to come with me to my place today. I have something for you.”
I perk up. “Really. For me? What is it?”
“If I told you, it wouldn’t be surprise, would it?”
It’s silly to be so happy over something so small, especially when I don’t even know what the surprise it, but it’s been a stressful few days, and the thought that Devlin has gotten something for me in the midst of chaos makes me undeniably happy. “Thank you.”
He laughs. “You haven’t even seen what it is yet.”
I lean forward and kiss him. “It doesn’t matter. You thought of it. You were thinking of me. It will be amazing.”
He cups the back of my head and kisses me again, this time using his tongue to urge my mouth open. The kiss deepens, and I start to lose myself in it, to crave more. Then he pushes me away with a devilish grin. “That’s something to look forward to.”
“Jerk.” But I’m smiling as I say it.
We play twenty questions on the way to his house. I don’t manage to guess what it is, though I have learned that it is bigger than a breadbox, it’s not alive, and it’s something I want. Beyond that, I’m clueless.
We’re in his Tesla, and he pauses before the turn onto his street. “I want you to close your eyes, and I’ll tell you when you can open them.”
I do what he says with complete obedience. I feel the car move, and as we go down the street, I notice when he turns into the driveway. The car stops, and it’s only then that he says, “Okay. Open your eyes.” I do, then turn to him with a frown. All I see is his garage door.
“Unfair. You got me all riled up about nothing.”
“Oh ye of little faith.” He takes the clicker for the garage door and taps the button. It starts to scroll up and, to my delight, Devlin taps a button on the radio and Beethoven’s Ode to Joy starts to play, making me laugh.
The sound catches in my throat though when I see what’s being revealed. My Shelby, looking as brand new and shiny as the day that Uncle Peter presented her to me. I sit in shock for a moment then turn to look at Devlin. “She’s fixed. You fixed her?”
Devlin knows better than anyone how much Shelby means to me. She’s part of our history, and I realize as I’m looking at her in the garage that I’m crying. I turn back to him, a tear-stained mess. “You’re amazing.”
“I told you I was going to fix her. Did you think I was joking?”
“I didn’t think it would be this fast.”
“Well, she’s part of the family. We had to make sure she had the best, most expeditious care possible.”
I don’t know what to say, so I just gaze in wonder at my beautiful car. Then I turn and gaze in wonder at the man I love, almost unable to believe that with the life I’ve had, I managed to get so