Devin“You’re going to what?”“I have a week free, so I’m coming to London to see you, baby.” Megan beams down the phone, and I stare at her, stunned.First, Levi shows up unannounced, and now Megan is coming over. I should be excited to see my girlfriend, so why am I dreading it?I force a smile on my face and nod, “That’s great Meg, I can’t wait to see you. You do know Levi is staying with me. He arrived early from Australia.”Megan rests her chin in her hand and smiles, “I know, he told me when I called earlier. It’s okay, you know Levi, he’ll be out and about doing his own thing. I doubt he’ll be in our way.”I smile and shake my head when she crinkles her nose at me adorably. “I miss you.”“I miss you too. I can’t wait to get there and crawl into your arms and have you do dirty, dirty things to me.” I grin and lean back against my pillow, stretching out on top of my bed. It’s almost three in the morning in London and the afternoon in Singapore.“Oh really, why don’t you tell me w
The next morning came sooner than I had hoped. I woke up to the sound of my stomach rumbling when the smell of something sweet mixed with coffee hit my nostrils. I peel my eyes open and look around my bedroom. The sun is beaming through my floor to ceiling window, temporarily blinding me. With a groan, I roll onto my back with a huff. I sit up and rub the sleep from my eyes. Is that music I hear? I decide to get up and investigate after I pull on a pair of shorts. I follow the smell toward the kitchen. Levi seems to have the same idea because I see him walking over in the opposite direction, tying his hair up. We both stop when we see Mira in the kitchen, standing at the stove cooking. Not only is she cooking, but she’s dancing and singing along to an upbeat number.Levi smiles and gestures with his head toward Mira. I nod and follow him into the kitchen. We lean against the island, keenly observing her. My eyes skim down her sexy legs. She’s in an oversized grey t-shirt that’s two si
“Do you want to come with me?” She offers with a warm smile, and I nod. Of course, I’m going, as if I’ll leave her alone with my dickhead, womanising big brother.I change into a pair of denim shorts and a white Ralph Lauren polo shirt. When we walk over to the elevator, I see the wariness on Mira’s face, and I lean over and whisper in her ear. “Are you okay?” She turns her gaze up to me, and I can see as clear as day that she’s not okay. She is still nervous and scared. “You’ve got this.”She offers me a small smile and nods. The doors slide open and she sucks in a deep breath, Levi and I walk in, and I nod encouragingly at her. Mira hesitates, but takes a step into the elevator and walks in. I push the button, and she turns to face the door; her shoulders are rising and falling quickly as the doors slide shut. When the elevator moves, I slide my fingers into hers, she looks down at my fingers intertwined with hers. Mira’s fingers close around mine, and I squeeze her hand. Levi is sc
Mira I felt crippled. When that guy forcefully pulled me back and squeezed my arm with his vice-like grip, all I saw was Scott, and my legs had turned to jelly. I thought for sure my knees would cave. After what I suffered from Scott, any time I’m around physical violence, it takes me right back to that mental state I’ve been fighting to get out of for the past two years. The crippling fear and anxiety leave me temporarily incapacitated. The old me, before Scott, would have fended off arseholes like him with no problem. I would have scratched his eyes out, but now, I seize up, and all I want to do is run away and hide in a corner somewhere. I’m eternally thankful to Levi and Devin for jumping in and protecting me, but I still hate the idea of needing protection. I don’t want to feel weak and helpless. I don’t want to be anyone's damsel. I wonder if I’ll ever get over it and go back to my old self again. I wonder if I’ll ever trust a man enough to let him into my life long enough to
DevinI sit on my bed after Mira walked out and stare at our handcuffs clutched between my fingers. I was an arsehole to her when all she was trying to do was help me, and now I feel like shit over it. I was angry. Hell, I’m still mad. I don’t know what right I have to be annoyed with her when she’s done nothing wrong, but I fucking am. I resent the fact that my brother can touch her whenever he wants. I resent that he got to hold her and comfort her when it should have been me. Mira’s mine. She’s always been mine. She’s my Tinks. I know it’s stupid, and if she decides to pull me up on my shit and ask what I’m fuming about, I wouldn’t have a leg to stand on. I wouldn’t have anything to say.Because what fucking right do I have? I’m not her keeper. I’m just her old best friend. I don’t even qualify to be her best friend anymore, either. Wyatt has replaced me. I’m the ‘could have been’, the first kiss, the first to taste her, th
The next morning I woke up at the arse crack of dawn and went for a run to clear my head and help aid the hangover I was sporting from indulging in too many glasses of scotch. I don’t even drink that much usually, and I haven’t in a very long time, but last night it was well and truly needed. I needed to numb the parts of me that hurt whenever I thought about her. And it did the trick, for a few hours till I fell asleep and she popped up in my dreams. While she’s infuriatingly stubborn at the best of times, lately, she’s the lead in one too many of my wet dreams.And now, I must scrape together the willpower to go and face her, all the while knowing she’s seeing my brother and pretend I’m none the wiser, so we can get the handcuffs on and get through this presentation. I have no idea how I will get through the day, but I am curious to see if she will mention anything about Levi or keep it from me.Well, here goes nothing. I step up to her front door and ring the doorbell. Ayla answers
MiraWhat did I just do?The moment my lips go and impulsively crash down on Devin’s, my mind goes into hyperdrive. Between Devin saving my life from almost getting ploughed down by that car and seeing that he still wears the chain he bought as a gift for my fourteenth birthday all those years ago. I couldn’t contain my emotions, and something inside took over, and before I knew it, my lips were on his.Way to go and make shit worse, Mira. A big fat thumbs up to you, doll.Thankfully my senses come rushing back, and I pull away before he can react to the kiss or it goes any further. I hold my breath while I wait for Devin’s reaction when his eyes flutter open, and he looks just as stunned as me. His lips part and those deep brown eyes are exploring mine. “I’m so sorry.” I apologise pathetically and slide off the hood of the car. My legs contest, but I catch and steady myself. That did not just happen. I did not just kiss Devin
“So, how does all of that sound to you, Miss Wickham?”I look between Devin and the author, and I can already see the wheels in her head turning. She’s considering it. Well, of course, she would. We’re offering her every author’s dream on a platinum platter. I take a moment to study her. Pale blue eyes, creamy white skin, wild curly copper hair. Gosh, I can imagine how hard it must be to maintain those frizzy curls. “I can promise you that you won’t ever get an offer this good anywhere else. Publishing your book independently is great, but only if you have good background knowledge of how to market your book, so it reaches the right audience. And that’s where we excel, Miss Wickham. We’re the best in the business for a reason, and we believe your book has tremendous potential.” I add after Devin, giving her that further nudge she needs to fall right where we want her.“If I’m honest, it all sounds too good to be true,” Samantha states, flipping through the presentation, her eyes marv