Don't Go Baking My Heart

She caught Devon watching them as if he just couldn’t fathom why they were doing any of this. She blew him a kiss when his mother and sister was otherwise occupied with Leah, enjoying how he hastily looked away. Oh yeah, she knew how she looked in this bathing suit, and even if Devon would never come out and say anything, he was looking.

Having a mini photoshoot was always fun, but Reba definitely enjoyed laying on her blanket when she was done, sunglasses shading her eyes, allowing her to properly gape at Devon when he tossed off his shirt because okay, yes.

“Fuck,” Trina said.

“Seconding that.” Ayo, who was usually a little less vocal than Trina, pulled down her sunglasses to overtly stare at Devon’s chest.

Reba didn’t know when Devon found time to work out—he must have fit it in his busy schedule somehow—because his chest was a thing of beauty. She sipped the cocktail Trina had so graciously poured her from the bottle she had stashed in her basket of goodies, eyes drinking in the smattering of hair on his chest, that treasure trail, the abs that weren’t too overly defined but looked positively lickable.

He swung Leah around in the water, her delighted squeals warming Reba’s heart the way seeing his arms bunched warmed her pussy. Reba crossed her legs because it was damn inconvenient for her body to do this to her now when she didn’t have an outlet to ease some of this pressure.

“Can you imagine him throwing you around in bed with those arms? Because I sure can.” Trina fanned her face. “So, what’s his deal, anyways?”

Reba shrugged. Why did they think she would know? She assumed he was single but had no way of knowing anything further than that unless she asked.

She had the basics from Cherisse. Thirty-five, which made him eight years older than her. Worked at an architectural firm. And now she knew he lived on his own. Everything else she had gathered about his personality had been from their brief interactions.

“He’s the serious sort,” Reba said, draining her drink.

“Yeah, that mouth looks like it could be real serious with my p—”

“Ma’am, you have a man,” Ayo pointed out.

Trina shrugged. “We’re not on speaking terms right now, so it’s not clear if I do.”

Reba rolled her eyes. Trina and her boyfriend were always going through something. She should just cut him loose and be done with it. Who needed all that stress in their life? Reba didn’t care how much Trina gushed about the makeup sex. It didn’t seem worth it to her. She loved a good makeup sex session herself, but once things kept going to shit, she was out. And doing this song and dance thing for ten years? No way.

“Maybe if he saw me talking to Devon, he’d get his shit together and make an honest woman of me.”

Trina and Aaron had been on-again, off-again since secondary school. As far as Reba saw it, that was too long to be messing around with someone with no clear plans to mesh your futures together. And the likelihood of Devon posing for a photo with them was exactly zero, but she wished Trina luck if she tried to do that to make Aaron jealous.

Devon came jogging over to his sister and mother, Leah’s hand clasped in his, water dripping off his body. He glanced their way, and Reba called out, “We got cocktails if anyone wants!”

Devon draped his towel over his broad shoulders. Reba could feel Trina vibrating next to her. She got it, truly she did. The way his hands gripped the ends of the towel…damn.

“We’re good, thanks,” he called back.

“Speak for yourself.” Ms. King got to her feet and wandered over.

Reba laughed and prepared a drink for her. Ms. King knew how to have a good time. Maybe she would rub off on her son, persuade him to indulge a little tonight. She doubted it, but if no one else was going to, Reba would try her best to get him to engage in a little fun at least.

They packed up their stuff a little after two and went back to their respective beach houses. Reba was feeling super relaxed from the water and her drinks, but she realised she needed to let Ms. King know what was going on in case she decided to turn in early tonight. Reba couldn’t have that at all. She’d missed her opportunity while they had been down at the beach, and even though she felt kind of drowsy right now, she had promised Keiran and Cherisse.

After showering off the sand and seawater, changing into one of her casual rompers, and taking her plait down so her hair could dry, she trekked back over to the Kings’ beach house. Devon was sitting in one of the chairs, glaring down at his phone.

“You know, Maxi’s going to be on your ass if she sees you out here checking work emails,” she said by way of a greeting.

Devon looked up at her, expression not changing one bit. Damn, if she wasn’t as confident as she was, he could give her a complex. Most people were happy to see her. Was Devon ever happy about anything?

“You’re going to tell on me?”

“Hell yes. You need to be present. It’s a beach weekend getaway. Forget work.”

“You say it like it’s that easy. I can’t just turn off that part of my brain.”

“Well, at least try for your mom.”

He pursed his lips but tucked his phone away in the pocket of his board shorts. “Fine.”