Don't Go Baking My Heart

He…wasn’t so sure. Another thing throwing him off. Yes, it had been two years since he had been intimate with a woman, but it didn’t make sense that Reba was the first to break his drought. They didn’t have a single thing in common.

His brain was forcing him to try to make sense of this again. She had told him that wouldn’t work—he couldn’t dissect her. But her effect on him wasn’t something he could just let happen without at least trying to pick it apart.

He’d told her about that list he had, and she was right. She didn’t fit a single one of the things he was looking for in a partner. Whatever was going on here was truly baffling.

Keiran: oh. She’s planning it with mummy? How interesting…

He ignored Keiran’s reply and went back to the presentation. At least this was something he could control. Putting in the work, ensuring the best proposal for them to win the bid—even with Vic’s mess trying to derail the entire thing. That wouldn’t happen on his watch.

Lunch rolled around, and instead of pushing through on his work, he called Jeremy. He’d left his desk and gone up to the roof. His office felt suffocating all of a sudden. He’d gotten a good deal done, yet thoughts of her kept creeping in. He needed air.

The talk with Jeremy at the amusement park had been a bit stilted at first, but Devon had been honest about his fuck-up. Jeremy had always been a straight talker, so making excuses wasn’t going to fly with him. He had screwed up their friendship, and even though he’d acted as if he didn’t need anyone because his work came first, he’d missed the guy.

The man knew him better than anyone. Devon didn’t like to overshare in general, but Jeremy was a good listener the few rare times he did open up. He’d been there when his relationship with Monica had imploded, had tried to talk Devon through what had gone wrong. Jeremy had also seen The Reba Effect in full action and had figured something was amiss. He didn’t ask outright, and Devon hadn’t offered any details. He hadn’t shot down any of Jeremy’s questioning looks, though—just ignored them while Reba and her friend Trina had been chatty.

“I’m in trouble, I think,” Devon said the minute Jeremy answered.

“Does trouble have pink hair and the devil’s grin?” Jeremy’s teasing tone was as annoying as he remembered.

He looked out at the city down below. The surrounding buildings ranged from older structures that could use some sprucing up to food places that offered various options to the workforce that occupied offices, such as the one that housed Dax Designs. A variety of architecture that spoke of a mixing of the past with more modern looks.

“Yes,” he replied.

“I knew it. You didn’t want to say anything, but I’ve never seen you like that, man.”

Devon walked over to the small garden someone had set up in a corner of the roof, a little way off from the tables and chairs where people who worked in the building liked to come for lunch. He couldn’t identify the flowers that grew out here, but an effort had been made to add some colour to the roof. When he had first started at the company, the space had been simple, with a few tables and chairs for anyone who needed a breather away from the cold offices. Now it had been transformed into a more relaxed spot.

Not that he came up here a lot to eat lunch. He was fine doing so by his desk before diving back into work.

“Like how?”

“That woman’s got you under her spell. You really went on a Ferris wheel? I’m not gonna lie, I’m surprised. She’s not your usual type at all, but I approve.”

Why did everyone seem to think he and Reba would be good together? Sex was one thing—he couldn’t deny their chemistry there—but they were so different. “You don’t even know her.”

“Maybe, but any woman that’s got you a mess like this gets a thumbs up from me.”

“I’m not a mess.”

“It’s your version of a mess, but a mess all the same,” Jeremy pointed out.

“I’m rethinking this newly reformed friendship,” he deadpanned.

Jeremy laughed. “You called me.”

Yes, he had. “She doesn’t fit anything on my list. I haven’t tried the risk analysis yet, but…”

“Not that damn list again. Bro, just delete that thing. And these damn analysis spreadsheets? They might work for career goals and whatnot, but with people? It can get tricky and messy real fast. Looking for certain things in a partner is fine, but you need to be open to the possibility of meeting someone that just rings your bell, even if they’re not what you were looking for. Look at me and Darcelle.”

“Darcy’s too good for you.” Jeremy’s wife was almost as tall as the both of them and a total sweetheart who could still kick anyone’s ass if they crossed her.

Devon had witnessed Jeremy falling hard. It had been baffling yet hilarious at the time.

“Yeah, you don’t think I know that? It’s why I’m grateful every day she chose me.”

Devon looked back out at the hills around the capital city of Port of Spain. “I just want to stop this distraction. It can’t be that hard. Once this baking thing is over…”

“You are so hopeless, I swear. Forget the list. Just enjoy whatever this is.”