“You’ll see.”
We arrive at the university gym where the gala is being held, and he helps me out of the car and leads me inside. There are so many people here dressed up and looking amazing. The gym is decorated to the point you wouldn’t know this was a gym to begin with. It’s amazing to see what they did to it.
“I’ll be right back. I need to check on a few things,” he says, pressing a kiss to the side of my head before walking away.
I wander through the crowd of people and off toward the side, slinking off into the darkness. I lean against the wall when I hear his voice.
“Are you being a good girl?” My insides turn to ice as I look over my shoulder and see the mask. My mouth opens, but no words come out. He raises his hand and motions for me to come to him. I almost don’t, but something inside of me causes me to walk. I move toward him and down the dark hallway toward the locker rooms when he pushes me roughly against the wall.
“Have you missed me?” he asks. I can’t move. I don’t dare breath. What is he doing here? What if Devon sees him here? He’ll kill him. I have no doubts about that.
“You … you need to stay away from me,” I warn him. He laughs, and it vibrates through me. “I mean it.”
“There’s no way I can stay away from you,” he says, his gloved hand coming up to my cheek. I suck in a breath, unsure what to do.
“You can’t do this. Not anymore,” I tell him. I can’t. I can’t do this to Devon. It’s wrong. I live with him. He told me he loves me.
“I can do whatever I want.”
“I have a boyfriend,” I tell him as his gloved fingers caress my cheek.
“Do you think I care?”
“Maybe not, but I do.” I can feel my insides trembling at the thought of him touching me and the fact that Devon would end his life.
“I don’t see anyone.”
“He’s here. You have to go. Now,” I tell him in more of a demanding tone. His hand slips from my cheek to wrap around my throat, and I shudder.
“For now. Not forever,” he tells me. He leans in and presses a kiss to my lips through the mask before he backs away and walks down the hall. I take a second to control myself before walking back into the gym. I head straight for the champagne, too.
Grabbing a glass, I move toward the center of the room, where he can’t get to me if he didn’t leave. After a few minutes, Devon comes back smiling.
“Why are you so happy?”
“Everything is turning out the way I wanted it to.”
“Oh yeah? Are you going to tell me what the gala is for now?” I ask him.
“Just listen,” he urges as his dad takes the stage. Everyone quiets down as he begins to make a speech. When he’s finished, he announces what the gala will be benefiting tonight, and my heart drops.
“You heard it right. Children’s Keepers. All the money made tonight will go to Children’s Keepers. So pull out your checkbooks and let’s have a great time tonight.” A tear slides down my cheek as I turn to look at Devon. The smile on his face is perfect, but slowly begins to fade as he watches more tears roll down my cheeks.
He reaches up and cups my face, wiping the tears with his thumbs.
“You did this?” I ask him. He nods his head. It’s the foundation that helped me when I was younger. The foundation that put me into foster homes. When I was younger, they didn’t have the funds to find good families for everyone. In fact, they barely made enough to keep the business running, and I alwayswished that they had more. Not every foster home I was in was bad. There were a few good ones there, and it was because of Children’s Keepers that I was able to get into the good ones.
“I told you I’d do anything for you.”
“How… how did you know?” I never told anyone about that. Never mentioned it to Megan or anyone, for that matter.
“You think I don’t know you, Caydence? I do. More than you think.” Tears continue to roll down my cheeks as Devon pulls me into his arms. I let him hold me, keeping close to him. I wrap my arms around his waist and just take a minute to appreciate what I have in him.
He presses kisses to the top of my head, but never lets go of me until I pull back first.
“I don’t know how to thank you,” I say softly. Music begins to play, and he smiles.
“Dance with me.” I let out a soft laugh and nod my head. That’s the least I could do after what he’s doing tonight.
