Page 19 of Forever Yours
“Which one do you like?” he asked, coming to stand next to her, his shoulder almost brushing hers.
“That one.” She pointed to a dark blue. “Everyone wants to brighten a basement, but I say let it be.” She looked at the color again then pointed to a deep green. “This one is nice, too. Dark doesn’t mean a cave. It can be warm, and with the right fixtures around it, very cozy.”
He watched her smooth her short hair, much like she had outside the community center a few days ago, and realized she was designing what she’d wanted her room to be as a kid. He felt his heart squeeze in his chest and ached to reach out and pull her into a bear hug and never let her go. He stepped away from her, shaking himself out of this impulse to save her. She didn’t need saving. Whatever had happened, she’d already saved herself—he recognized that strength in her.
“I like the forest green,” Gabe decided, looking at Devlin.
Her face bloomed into a smile. “Me too.”
“So, we have carpet and paint, what’s next?”
“I’d wait until you get those done. After that, you can tell what the character of the room will be, and you can pick out furniture and everything else later.” She pivoted her head, her eyes meeting his. He was startled to realize for the first time that she was almost as tall as him. “If you have the time, that is.”
Gabe studied her face, the arch of her brow, the curve of her cheeks and the tiny slope of her nose. “I have nothing but time,” he said with the most truthfulness he’d used in quite a while. He felt like time was irrelevant when he was with Devlin. A year ago, a minute ago, a second ago. It all rolled up into a timeless capsule that would be forever theirs.
The sound of an announcement crackling on a speaker snapped Gabe out of his reverie and he noticed Devlin move away from him.Damn whoever needs a manager in aisle seven.But he was thankful for it at the same time. He had no right to have these thoughts about her. Or them.
“All right, that should do it for now,” Devlin stated, hiking her bag higher on her shoulder and turning to the front of the store. “I think five gallons of paint should do just fine, maybe an extra gallon for touch ups later. You know the square footage for the carpet order?”
They checked out and walked to his car to unload the purchases they were able to take today. He slammed the trunk and turned to Devlin.
There was that long, questioning silence again. Gabe lifted his hand, trailing it along the fringe of her short bangs. Her breath was coming out in small puffs into the cold air, dancing across his cheek. She moved her hand to the front of his jacket, quick, then stepped back. He could sense something in her, a softening that hadn’t been there a mere hour ago, but the feeling was gone before he could catch it and he wasn’t ready to chase after it just yet.
“Well, thank you for helping me shop. The vintage tile will look much better than anything I would’ve picked.” He was surprised to realize that he didn’t want this time with Devlin to end. “Did you want to grab an early lunch? I know a little place just up the road.”
Devlin lifted her eyes to his, her expression unreadable.
“No,” she responded after a moment, and Gabe’s hopes deflated. “Thank you, though, for offering. I have plans for the rest of my day.”
“Okay. Well…”
Devlin reached around him and grabbed his phone that was tucked into his back pocket. Her fleeting touch on his ass set him aflame and his jeans became an uncomfortable level of tight.Damn.
She held the phone in front of his shocked face, the phone unlocked, and she tapped in a quick staccato then held it out to him, seeming reluctant to let it go when he took it back. “Here’s my number. I know Prudence is your designer, but if she’s busy and you need help, let me know.” Devlin turned and walked to her car before he could say anything, her skirt whipping around her legs in the wind.
He was bewitched by the fact that in addition to her jeans and blue Chucks, she also wore skirts in winter. The more time they spent together the more details he noticed, and the more his attraction grew. He watched her get into her car and realized they hadn’t talked about the one thing that was both binding them together and pushing them apart—the shop between them—but figured they’d get to talk about it at some point before the next meeting. They’d seen each other enough times this last week that he was expecting to be thrown together for yet another random reason. At least he’d get a chance to re-group his emotions when he went to the cabin without her there. Out of sight, out of mind.
Chapter Seven
“Devlin, you have to come with.” Prudence stood at Annabelle’s kitchen island having just poured two glasses of wine. “You sure you don’t need anything, AB?”
Annabelle held up her whiskey in reply. “I’m good for now, thanks.”
“I can’t go,” Devlin insisted again. Prudence had been trying to steer the conversation into going to the Atwood family compound for the better part of an hour and Devlin was recycling all her excuses, trying to think of a new way to say no. “Now that I know Gabe and I will be competing for the building, I need to stay here and get everything in order.”
“Grey’s family’s cabin is beautiful. It would be worth it to go just to see it.” Prudence tried a different tactic.
“It is,” Annabelle agreed.
“I’m telling you, though, the cabin is the best place for you to be to get everything done. Just think of it, an entire week dedicated to getting this sale.” Prudence handed her one of the wine glasses then sat in a chair that matched the mid-century modern leather sofa that Devlin and Annabelle occupied in the living room of Annabelle’s condo. “No work, no distractions.”
“Now you’re distracting me!” Devlin exclaimed. “You can’t keep ignoring my question of why you set me up like that at the store with Gabe this morning. I was supposed to be meetingyou.”
“Oh, Dev, it wasn’t a set up. Not really, I mean.” Prudence looked sheepish. “Okay, it kinda was.”
“I knew it!”
“Hear me out, though. I was just trying to get you both to a neutral place where you could talk.”