I stood there, stupidly silent, as the men chatted. My mind was still on the kiss Devon had laid on me. I hadn’t been paying attention to our surroundings just before he’d kissed me, but what ifhehad? And what if he’d seen Rick and Darren approaching and had used the opportunity to try and help me get a little bit of revenge against my ex by trying to make him jealous?
Even if that was the case, shouldn’t I be grateful? One of the biggest reasons I hadn’t wanted to come tonight was because of seeing my ex with his husband. So even if it was a little petty, what was wrong with reminding my ex what he’d given up?
I tried to tell myself there was nothing wrong with it, but as Devon’s warm fingers closed around mine so he could lead me inside the hotel as he and Darren continued to chat, I realized everything was wrong with it.
Partly because I didn’t give a shit about Rick or what he thought anymore.
And more importantly, because I wanted it all to be real.
The hand holding, the kiss, the date… Devon.
But I knew deep in my heart it was nothing more than pretend, and fuck if that didn’t somehow manage to hurt even more than the night two random thugs had destroyed my life.
Chapter 5
Devon
The only thingthat might have actually competed in the lust department with Sebastian’s sweet taste was the graceful way he moved his body.
Because that in itself was making me wonder what he’d look like stretched beneath me, his pale skin glowing with sweat as I drove into him over and over.
I’d never been to the ballet before and had only ever seen bits and pieces of it on television as I was skimming channels, but I’d been enthralled from the moment Sebastian had stepped onto the stage in his skintight black tights and leotard. I’d also been sporting a serious boner which, fortunately, the table hid.
I’d been right about Sebastian’s body. On the one hand, he had a certain delicacy about him, but on the other, his muscles rippled and bunched with every complex move he performed, so I knew he was incredibly fit… more so than me, probably.
Shortly after we’d arrived at the hotel, Sebastian had excused himself to go backstage to get ready for his performance. He’d been strangely quiet from the moment I’d kissed him, and I wasn’t sure if he was pissed about that or because I’d announced that I was his boyfriend. I’d definitely overstepped with that particular lie, but I couldn’t regret it. Notwhen I saw Rick basically oozing jealousy. Even if the fucker knew the whole thing wasn’t true, he still hadn’t liked seeing someone else gladly accepting what he’d so casually thrown away.
Of course, I would have preferred that the asshole and his soft-spoken husband hadn’t interrupted my exploration of Sebastian’s luscious mouth and sinful tongue at all, but if I had my way, Sebastian and I would be picking up where we’d left off as soon as we got home.
Afterwe had a long talk about his apology for kissing me first.
Admittedly, I hadn’t handled that well. I’d honestly just been too startled to even have time to react. If Sebastian hadn’t been so upset by the whole thing, no doubt I would have been all over him and we wouldn’t have made it to the fundraiser at all.
“Such a talented young man,” I heard Darren say softly next to me. I glanced at him to see that he was watching Sebastian with the same level of appreciation as all the other guests.
“He’s not doing any of the impressive shit,” Rick muttered snidely. “These people paid good money for this performance and he’s just taking it easy. He’s making me look like a fool.”
“You?” Darren asked before I could tell the asshole to shut his mouth or I’d shut it for him.
“Me… my company, I mean,” Rick stuttered. I could practically see the shit squirming under his husband’s curious gaze.
Thankfully, both men fell silent and I was able to watch the rest of Sebastian’s performance. I hadn’t seen him limping since he’d gotten up on the stage, but I doubted he miraculously felt better. I knew nothing about dancing, but I had hurt my own ACL playing high school football, so I knew how excruciating the injury could be.
Sebastian received a standing ovation when he was done. He smiled and thanked everyone, but I didn’t miss the pain in his eyes. As he exited the stage, the lights came back on and people began talking excitedly amongst themselves. Several of the guests at our table began praising Rick for his ingenuity in getting Sebastian to give a private performance for the benefit. The asshole preened under the attention.
It took about ten minutes for Sebastian to appear in the main room. He was once again dressed in his tux. His eyes met mine through the crowd and I swore I saw relief in them when he saw me, but the emotion was shuttered so quickly I started to second-guessmyself. I made small talk with the people at the table we were at for a few minutes before I excused myself to go to the other side of the room where Sebastian was signing autographs. The first thing I heard when I reached him was a woman telling him what a shame it was that he’d decided to retire from dancing. The pity in her voice was cloying and I remembered how he’d told me not to feel sorry for him right before I’d kissed him.
Sebastian kept a smile on his face and made some kind of polite comment in response, but I could see in his eyes that he was on edge.
“Excuse me, do you mind if I steal him away for a few minutes?” I said to the lady as I eased between her and a gaggle of people surrounding Sebastian. “I’d like to congratulate my man on his amazing performance,” I added as charmingly as I could.
“Oh yes, of course,” the woman said. “What a handsome pair you two make,” she continued as she patted Sebastian’s arm. I put my arm around Sebastian, but he remained stiff and that fake smile never left his lips. It wasn’t until the woman’s husband shooed her off and the other guests gave Sebastian some space that he pulled away from me and turned so his back was to the room. I saw him pull a prescription bottle from his pocket. He downed one of the pills.
“What are those?” I asked as I motioned to the bottle.
“Nothing,” he responded curtly.
Okay, so he was definitely pissed at me. “Listen, Sebastian, I’m sorry if I overstepped—”
