Chapter 23

TWENTY-THREE

TULLY

Even though I knew I’d see them again in ten days, saying goodbye to Dev and Lellie was awful.

It was the end of our time as a little trio. From here on out, we would only ever see each other in quick visits, snatched here and there in moments cobbled together from two very busy lives. I wasn’t sure how long Dev would be content with that before he decided it wasn’t worth the trouble. I wasn’t sure what I’d do if he did.

Over the next week, I threw myself into work. Learning the client Orris had given me was none other than Miles Dumas had been a shocking revelation. He represented a staggering sum of money, which meant if I could earn his loyalty, I could pretty much guarantee my shot at making partner when the time came.

It was exciting, and if I had to be separated from the people I cared for—okay, fine, from the people I loved —then I was happy to have challenging work to lose myself in. And if Dev’s words about moving to Majestic and practicing law there not only fed my dreams at night but also popped up with increasing frequency during my waking hours, too… well, I would just have to get over it.

I couldn’t possibly give up everything I’d worked so hard for in my career to hang my shingle in a tiny town in the middle of nowhere just because I fancied myself in love with a man I barely knew.

That would be ridiculous.

How would I pay for Nolan’s tuition if I were scraping by in Majestic? How would I pad my emergency fund and make sure I had plenty of retirement savings so I’d never wind up like my father?

And for all that Dev had floated the idea of my moving, he hadn’t said why he wanted me to move. Was it for Lellie’s sake or for his?

I’d learned enough about Dev to realize he wasn’t the happy-go-lucky drifter I’d let myself believe he was two years ago, but the reality was far more complicated. It seemed Dev had been keeping the whole world at arm’s length for years. The chances he’d want to leap right into something long-term with me were vanishingly low.

And if there was one thing I knew for a fact, it was that the more time I spent with Devon McKay, the more I wanted him. One small taste had ruined me for two years. I didn’t think I could do “casual” with him.

“Shall we finish this conversation over dinner? It’ll give me an excuse to try the new steak place at Bishop Arts that Tomas recommended. Besides, I wanted to ask you about an idea I have for a charitable trust.”

I blinked up at Miles, who was sitting across the small conference room table, having just signed a stack of documents while I was distracted.

“Oh, uh… yeah. Sure. I guess it’s getting to be that time, isn’t it?” I glanced out at the warm, hazy glow of early summer evening. It wasn’t the same crystal clear sky that Wyoming boasted with its cool evening breezes. Dallas’s summer nights were like a steam room cranked up to its hottest setting, the air still and stifling. A nice air-conditioned restaurant with a cold cocktail sounded just about right, especially if it would help distract me long enough for Dev to get through Lellie’s bedtime and his final check on Trigger and the new foals.

After that, I knew I would finally be able to hear his voice instead of swapping quick texts here and there as time permitted during our busy workdays.

I gathered up my laptop and the stack of signed documents before securing them in my desk. As I led Miles toward the reception area, I saw Orris stepping out of his office. Thankfully, he was too far away to engage with me, but he was close enough to recognize Miles and give me an approving nod.

I wanted to roll my eyes. The more I’d spoken to Miles, the more I’d realized there was no chance Miles would have continued to use the same attorney as his father, especially not if that attorney was Orris Dunlevy. Miles had turned thirty and inherited all the money from his family trust, which meant he could finally separate financially, and he’d wasted no time in doing so.

Orris hadn’t gifted me a client; he’d done his best to pair Miles with someone in the firm who was young enough to have a shot at keeping the business in-house. Miles had very progressive ideas that were not at all in line with his father’s or Orris’s traditional views. Had Orris paired him with anyone else at the firm—with the exception of Katie, if she’d still been there—we would have probably lost his business.

As we made our way down to the parking garage, Miles offered to drive me to the restaurant and bring me back for my car. “I’ll just leave it,” I explained, still distracted by thoughts of the political situation at work. “I live close enough to walk to work tomorrow.”

He drove a Porsche Taycan. Just when I was prepared to compliment his choice of driving an electric vehicle, he said, “If I’d known you were going to ride with me, I would have brought my sports car.”

“Oh. This is plenty impressive for me,” I said with a laugh, appreciating the sleek interior of the expensive car.

“No, I meant because you’d be sitting closer,” he added with a wink.

Oh. Ohh .

Dev had been right.

The thought made my chest ache with the need to call him and tell him so. To hear him tease and reassure me.

I let out the expected huff of laughter out of habit, but I realized that this was the first time in a long time I had absolutely zero interest in the beautiful single man flirting with me. None.

Meanwhile, the simplest thought of Dev’s wavy, dark hair and the sun-streaked laugh lines next to his eyes that reassured me he still smiled sometimes, even though he’d been carrying the guilt of his brother’s death for so long, made my heart race and my breath hitch.

I was so gone for the man.

When we arrived at the restaurant, I was pleasantly surprised to run into our mutual friend. Tomas was with his sister, waiting for a table. After greeting them and exchanging pleasantries, I could tell Susanna wanted to ask about Dev and Lellie, but she wasn’t sure if it was an appropriate time to ask.

“I’m going to Majestic this weekend for a concert,” I said. “Any news yet on the case… results ?”

She shook her head. “I expected to see them already. Should be anytime now. I’ll let you know as soon as I know.” She smiled and squeezed my arm. “Have a wonderful time, and tell Dev and Lellie I said hi.”

After promising to connect with Tomas for lunch or an early morning run in the park soon, we separated and were seated in different areas of the restaurant.

Miles shot me a sheepish smile. “I’ll admit I’m glad you didn’t invite them to join us. I like Tomas; he’s a great guy. But I was looking forward to having you to myself.”

His flirtation made me uncomfortable, but it wasn’t blatant enough yet for me to confront him about it directly. “I know you wanted to discuss your idea for a charitable trust, and I love a professional challenge.”

He nodded and agreed, and for a while, I thought that was it—that he’d received my message without my having to speak more frankly about it.

We ordered dinner with a bottle of wine and began discussing Miles’s charity goals. He was generous and intelligent and had clearly been thinking about his charitable plans for a long time.

“It was one of the reasons I was anxious to get my hands on my share of the trust,” he confessed. “I’d like to get these initiatives started, but I wasn’t sure what kind of legal structure would allow us to also fund some political lobbying. If we’re going to try and make it easier for LGBTQ+ folks to adopt from the foster system, we’ll need to change hearts and minds in Austin.”

As he continued to expand on his plans, I thought this would be a charity endeavor Dev would want to support. And with big money behind it from Miles Dumas, Dev and his wealthy friends’ addition could really make an impact.

Would Dev ever consider moving back here if there was something like this to work on? Something that sparked fire in his chest and helped him forget the things he didn’t love about living in Texas?

The answer was obviously no. Not only were his parents here, but Dev would never move Lellie back into the Scotts’ orbit again. It would make it too easy for Mrs. Scott to pull something like she had at the clinic.

Miles apologized with a smile. “Sorry to keep going on and on. I was hoping to get to know you as well. Tomas told me you run and you’re a killer poker player. That’s about all I know besides your excellent reputation at the firm.”

I let out a small laugh. “Tomas only says that because he’s a terrible card player. It makes him feel better to think he only loses to me because I’m that good.”

“Sounds about right. So what else do you do for fun? Do you like to dance? Go to the clubs?”

“Yes, definitely. I like to travel. I enjoy swimming and fishing if I can get away long enough. I read… about fifty-fifty nonfiction stuff and sci-fi. I can’t stand legal thrillers because they’re both unrealistic and too realistic, if that… if that makes sense.”

I hesitated. Nothing I’d said was particularly personal, but in light of his earlier flirting, I felt like I’d crossed a line and agreed to treat this as a date.

I quickly backtracked, adding, “And I love my work. I’m on the partner track, which means most of my waking hours are spent at the office. But I don’t mind because I truly do like what I do, and I work with some fantastic people.”

He waved his hand dismissively. “You don’t have to sell me. I already signed the engagement letter, Tully. You’re obviously a great fit for what I have in mind as far as the legal work goes. And I hope I’m not crossing a line if I admit I’d like to see you more than just professionally.”

His smile was self-conscious but kind, not to mention alluring as fuck.

And it did absolutely nothing for me.

“Miles.” I shook my head. “I’m…”

Miles’s smile fell a little. “Involved? Not interested?”

I shrugged and exhaled. “I’m not sure what I am, but I know I’m not available. If I were…” I smiled at him. “I’d throw cash down right now and ask for a ride in your sports car.”

He threw back his head and laughed easily, letting me know I hadn’t jeopardized our business relationship with my rejection. “Fair enough. I understand.”

Miles took another sip of wine before suddenly asking, “It’s not Tomas, is it?”

“No,” I said on a laugh. “God, no. Although we did hook up in law school. We’re just friends now.”

“Do you want to talk about your situation?” His eyebrows lifted. “Shit. It’s the guy in the reception area that day, isn’t it? The one with the baby. Is he married? Is that the complication?”

“Not married,” I said quickly. “But he lives in Wyoming, and I live here.”

“Ahhh. I see.”

“Yeah.”

The server brought our bill. Thankfully, Miles understood the firm would be paying for it and didn’t argue when I handed over my company card.

He took another swallow of wine. We’d been so busy talking we hadn’t finished more than half the bottle between us. “You going to leave me as soon as I’ve engaged you as my attorney?”

“Of course not,” I said, trying to reassure him.

He lifted his eyebrow. “It would be okay if you did, Tully. Life’s too short to make big decisions based on a job that will never love you back.”

“Says the guy with millions,” I said, feeling comfortable enough now to be casual with him without giving him the wrong impression.

He nodded. “Agreed. And if you’d said Antarctica instead of Wyoming, I might have worried about your ability to earn a living there.”

He had a point. And it stayed in the forefront of my mind all the way to Friday when I finally, fucking finally , boarded the jet to Majestic.

As soon as I stepped off the small set of airplane stairs and onto the tarmac Friday night, I inhaled deeply. Sage-scented air filled my lungs, and an early evening breeze cooled across my face. The giant sky blazed deep blue with clean pink-white clouds moving lazily by. The peaks of Three Daughters stood stalwart in the distance, and a Fletcher Ranch–branded pickup truck was visible through the fence between the tarmac and the small parking lot by the private aviation building.

Unfortunately, Kenji’s slender form was the one standing next to it instead of Dev’s muscular frame.

I threw the strap of my computer bag over my shoulder and yanked up the handle of my rolling suitcase. Even though Dev and Lellie weren’t there, something about being back in Majestic felt like coming home to me far more than landing in Dallas nearly two weeks ago had.

The weight of my firm’s expectation, of the grief of losing Katie, of the singles’ scene, and of the unpredictable expectations of my own family back home all faded away, at least temporarily.

“Hey,” I said, flashing Kenji a big smile. “It’s good to see you. Thanks for coming to get me.”

“It’s even better to see you. Dev’s been in a funk since our plane took off last week.”

His words should have worried me, but I was too selfishly happy that I hadn’t been the only one upset by our separation.

The drive to town was pleasant. My eyes took in our surroundings hungrily while Kenji caught me up on plans for the weekend.

“Dev would have picked you up, but he and Landry are at the concert venue meeting some of Zane’s crew. Silas is helping Way with mayoral duties related to the summer’s first AdventureSmash race. Tonight’s concert is part of the kickoff for the event.”

As we got closer to town, I was shocked by the crowds. Tourists swarmed the streets, and cars were parked everywhere. Colorful event banners were strung across Poke Street, and flower baskets hung from the decorative streetlight poles.

Majestic looked maj—… well, I wasn’t going to say it.

It looked amazing. Warm, inviting, vibrant, and fun. Everyone was dressed casually, a mix of summer dresses and adventure wear.

I could see why people loved it here, and I was happy to imagine Lellie growing up in such a charming place.

“Dev wasn’t kidding when he said the population swells in summer,” I said.

“It’s even busier now than it was last summer. Silas and Way worked hard over the winter to prepare. They got zoning approval for two new hotels, but only one of them was finished on time. The other should be ready before the GrandSmash at the end of the summer. Foster and Way managed to lure several state government meetings and conferences here over the winter, which will help fill the rooms this first year. Then I think Way will finally be able to hire an event outreach coordinator.”

While I cared about Majestic and about the success of this great place, right now, I didn’t want to hear about any of it. All I cared about was seeing Dev… and Lellie, of course, but Kenji had mentioned Jo Blake was keeping Lellie overnight at the Fletchers’ big ranch house to avoid the concert noise and crowds in town near her own place.

After stopping to give our information to a security guard, we pulled down a dirt road that approached the back of an enormous white concert tent on a large parcel of land just outside of town. We parked in a dirt lot with several semitrailers and pickup trucks before heading to find Dev.

The pavilion was already full of concertgoers, with more streaming in. It was early enough that no one was rushing frantically. Tons of people were wearing shirts and hats with the distinctive black-and-red ZB logo for Zee Barlo. I still couldn’t believe Dev was friends with a famous singer.

While Zee Barlo had only been well-known for a couple of years, it had been two years of skyrocketing fame thanks to his attractive face, fit body, and approachable, boy-next-door social media presence. He seemed to have the magic ability to evoke the influences of Johnny Cash, Taylor Swift, Bob Dylan, and Harry Styles all at the same time, which meant he had rabid followers from a wide swath of the musical spectrum.

We went behind a barricade and approached a kind of portable building acting as a backstage area attached to the stage. Silas called out to Kenji from nearby, asking a question related to the race, so Kenji quickly took his leave. “Just go in the trailer and find the dressing room with Zane and Dev in it. If you don’t find them, ask someone to point you in the right direction.”

It took my eyes a moment to adjust to the darker interior from the sunset outside. Before I could focus, I heard a shout and was forcibly held back from continuing inside by a man taller than me and about twice as wide in the shoulders—or at least he appeared that way in the darkened corridor.

“State your name.”

I blinked. “T-Tully Bowman. I’m here to see Devon McKay. He’s friends with?—”

“ Dev ,” the security guard barked, keeping his eyes on me. “What did I tell you about keeping me in the loop? For fuck’s sake, where’s Lou?”

Dev hurried out of a narrow doorway, muttering his apologies. “I told you he was coming about ten times, Ryan, but I didn’t think he’d get here until after eight.” He met my eyes and grinned widely. “You’re early.”

The man let me go, and I lunged into Dev’s arms, embarrassingly shaken up by the confrontation with the security guy.

Sandalwood mixed with hay surrounded me as Dev hugged me with his whole self. I melted against him and inhaled a ragged breath.

“Fuck,” Dev breathed against my ear. “I needed you.”

For an instant, I thought he meant he’d needed me for something specific, that there’d been a situation like lack of childcare or a legal issue. But then I realized he’d meant it the way I would have meant it if I’d dared to say it out loud.

“I’m here,” I murmured.

The words for now remained unspoken but very much present.

He turned his face to kiss me, and my heart thundered as his mouth possessed mine and his hands came up to cradle my face. I ran my hands up and down his back, over his ass, and into his thick hair, reacquainting myself with the feel of him.

An annoyed throat-clearing interrupted us. The large bodyguard narrowed his eyes at us. “Believe it or not, this is a place of business.”

“Ryan, Jesus.” A man poked his head out of the doorway Dev had come from. I recognized the swing of his sun-streaked brown hair as he leaned out and waved us toward him. “Come in. I don’t have much time, and I’m dying to thank you in person for saving Lellie.”

The bodyguard made a disgruntled sound in his voice. “You’re supposed to be resting, Zane.”

I glanced at Dev, worried we were intruding. Dev shook his head. “Zane’s just in the middle of an exhausting tour, and his medical advisor wasn’t happy about adding in this show at the last minute.”

“It was hardly the last minute,” Zane said before grinning at me. “Ignore Ryan. It’s his job to keep me safe, and for some reason, he thinks that includes protecting me from heat stroke and exhaustion. Which is ridiculous since I’m fine .”

He angled this last part toward the bodyguard and made sure his voice was loud enough to carry.

Dev took my hand in his and held it tightly as we moved down the narrow corridor to the small dressing room. Thankfully, there was a small love seat for us to sit on and remain out of Zane’s way after exchanging pleasantries.

He was a lovely man, more beautiful in person than he appeared in the media. I shouldn’t have been surprised to learn he was personable, but I was. He definitely wasn’t stuck-up or too important, and he was surprisingly not surrounded by tons of people fussing over his hair and wardrobe. He wore jeans with a faded red T-shirt with a scripted Majestic Rocks on it over an outline of Three Daughters.

He must have caught me looking around in surprise because he laughed. “This is much quieter than normal. Rowe and Bash haven’t arrived yet, Landry wandered off to find Silas and Way, and the security team is feeling a little squirrelly, so they’re keeping me isolated from everyone else.”

Ryan’s voice came from outside the open dressing room door. “Protected,” he corrected in a mutter. “Isolated, my ass.”

“Fine,” Zane snapped. “ Protected . From people and, you know… fun.”

“Or danger,” Ryan muttered in a lower voice. “Puh-tay-toe, puh-tah-toe.”

Zane rolled his eyes and turned back to me. “Anyway, ignore him. There’s some stuff going on that has his hackles up, but I’m sure it’s fine.”

“ Fine ,” Ryan muttered again. “Jesus fucking Christ.”

I glanced at Dev, who just shook his head as if to say, “Don’t ask.”

As soon as Zane took a seat on the stool in front of the mirrored table, an older man came bustling in to begin applying makeup. He was noticeably silent and behaved like he was more of a set piece than a team member.

“I met Lellie earlier today when we arrived,” Zane said. “She’s adorable. I told my manager to block out some time over the holidays to come play Santa. Dev can’t be trusted to do it right.”

He winked, which sent the makeup guy into a round of soft curses.

“Do you have many more tour dates between now and then?” I asked, unsure of how to get to know one of Dev’s friends while he was moments away from performing in front of thousands of people. Small talk seemed a bit awkward under the circumstances.

“Oh yeah. We’re heading to Europe next week for a bit, then we’ll be back doing some recording in the studio. The Shaky Knees festival is in October in Atlanta, which I’m excited about because I’m from Georgia and still have family there. Lots of my friends from high school will probably come and say hi.” He turned to Dev with an affectionate smile. “I was hoping the guys would come and join us there, too, to say hi to my Gran, but now that Dev has Lellie, I’m not sure how much travel he’ll want to do.”

“As long as I have a nanny by then to help out, I can probably swing it,” Dev said. He hadn’t let go of me, and I tried not to hyperfocus on the feel of his thumb stroking the back of my hand.

“You should come, too, Tully,” Zane said with bright eyes. “I’ll get Kenji to arrange it. If you can stay a few days, you can come out to my family’s place in the sticks. We’ve got plenty of room.”

Ryan made a disgruntled sound from outside the doorway, but Zane pointedly ignored it. The makeup guy left and was replaced by a younger person who started adding product to Zane’s hair while he seemed not to notice.

“We can go to the Varsity for a frosted orange. Have you ever been to Atlanta?”

I shrugged. “I went once a few years ago for a legal conference, but I didn’t see much other than the scene in Midtown.”

Zane groaned. “Ugh, so good. Piedmont Park and the gym at Ansley Mall. Fuck. Sooo many sexy guys. Our friend Kayzo from Yale lives there. Dev, we should see if he wants to come backstage at Shaky Knees. Or maybe we can plan an after-party like we used to.”

Ryan leaned his head through the door to glare at Zane. “Are you doing this on purpose? Are you trying to bait me?”

Zane waved his hand in the air. “It’ll be fine. I’m sure the current… situation… will resolve itself by then. Once we’re out of the country a couple months, they’ll drop it. Don’t worry so much.”

I glanced at Dev, who shot me a look that promised to explain it later. Ryan disappeared from the doorway just as Kenji breezed in with Silas and Way.

The following few hours both flew by and seemed to last forever. Zane was amazing onstage, especially from our location in a roped-off section right up front. He charmed the crowd, alternating between high-energy choreographed numbers and heartfelt ballads sung while propped on a stool with his guitar in hand and fingers teasing the frets and strings.

Through it all, Dev’s hands never stopped touching me. He held my hand or stood behind me with his arms wrapped around my waist. He threaded his fingers into my hair or leaned in to press a kiss against my ear while whispering something. It was heaven and hell.

By the time he took me back to the ranch, it was late. The cool night air breezing through the windows chilled my sweat-damp skin as old country classics crooned softly through the speakers.

We didn’t say much on the drive, simply held hands when Dev didn’t need his for the steering wheel and glanced at each other from time to time.

Words remained unspoken as we got out of the SUV and made our way into the barn and up the stairs to Dev’s place.

The hush of his apartment was a welcome change from the noise of the concert and crowd. Dev pulled me into his bedroom and closed the door before pressing me up against it with a kiss. His hands moved quickly to the hem of my shirt and yanked it over my head.

Within moments, we were both naked and writhing against each other, kissing frantically. The warm pressure of his body against mine, the soft rasp of the hair at his chest, groin, and legs… the sound of his hitched breaths, and the beer-tinged taste of his tongue in my mouth all drove me out of my mind with need.

“Dev,” I begged, cupping his ass cheeks and pulling his hips closer so I could feel his cock against mine.

“What do you want, sweetheart?”

The endearment swooped into my gut and twirled, sending goose bumps skating across my skin.

“I want to be inside of you. I have a debt to pay.”

This was a shallow version of the truth. What I truly wanted was to be soul-deep inside of him, permanently etched like an exquisite tattoo of intricate and loving words wrapped around his heart.

We moved into the bedroom, kissing and touching until he was on his back in the middle of the bed, with my slick fingers teasing his hole and my mouth trailing kisses around the hardening peak of a nipple.

Dev’s fingers tunneled into my hair, blunt nails scraping lightly against my scalp. I took his nipple into my mouth and tugged. He sucked in a breath and arched up, giving me the opportunity to slip a finger inside of him. After teasing both of his nipples, I moved down and began doing the same to his cock, using my lips to toy with his foreskin the way I knew he liked.

His channel clenched around my fingers as I continued to stretch him out. Dev’s usually hazel eyes looked all brown and piercing. I couldn’t look away.

“Missed you so fucking much,” he said in a voice almost too low to hear. “Need you.”

I took a last deep suck of his cock, running my tongue along and around the shaft before pulling off. A groan rumbled in his chest as I moved up to kiss him on the mouth. His warm hands moved across my back and ass as he murmured against my mouth for me to get inside him.

By the time I moved between his open thighs and pressed my cock head against his hole, I was overwhelmed with emotions. How was it possible this was happening? That he felt the same way I did?

And more importantly… was that enough?