Page 41 of The Sweetest Devotion

I bit my lip. “You said I could hit you whenever I needed something.”

“And?” he pressed. I could hear the grin in his voice, letting me know I wouldn’t have to spell it out for him.

“I need my oil changed,” I whispered.

Ah!

Jadyn swatted me for that remark, doing her best to cover her mouth and not be heard laughing.

Keith chuckled.God, that chuckle. “You silly. Let me, uh, drop a pin and you can pull up on me.”

His fingers were magically fast, as not a minute later my phone pinged with a text from him listing his home address.

Hishomeaddress.

Shit, this was real.

There was no backing down now.

I swallowed, trying to get my bearings. “Guess I’ll be seeing you shortly.”

“Guess so.”

We hung up and I took in a mouth full of air, unable to believe I’d planned a sneaky hookup.

Jadyn looked on at me like a proud mother. “Well, let me get out of your hair. Sounds like you’re about to be busy.”

“Did I really just do that?” I had to ask.

Truthfully, I was boring. Not usually this bold and outgoing.

“Yep,” Jadyn responded as she sat up and began gathering her things. “And don’t you back out, either. Do something for you. Have some fun. And report back.”

Do something for me. Easier said than done. The alternative to this was staying in line and in my place. A reality that left me feeling a little more than pissed-off.

But to go and hook up with another man?

I didn’t think I would do it. Even after I was showered and pulling up to his address an hour and a half later.

Keith didn’t live too far from where Jay stayed. Maybe a few blocks away at the most.

His home was small, intimate. It was all one story and a bright baby blue coloring to the stucco walls. His green healthy lawn was cut and his bushes by his front step were evenly trimmed. I tried to imagine Keith outside, being domestic and tending to his home and I found myself smiling.

Yeah, he was a man’s man, good with his hands.

“You came all the way here,” I said to myself. “Might as well see it through.”

I opened my door, set one heeled foot on the ground, and then the other. Slowly, I got out of my car, shut the door, and turned and faced the house. It was still sunny out, a cheerful day where I could hear children playing nearby and teenagers shooting basketball. There was something idyllic about this street, about this area where Keith lived. A stark difference from my impersonable suite at the Residence.

I went up the front walk and advanced to the front door. Keith must’ve heard me pull up or was nearby, because before I could step onto the front step and ring the bell, the front door opened and he appeared in the doorway.

T-shirt. Joggers. Tattoos. Baseball cap.

Keith.

I didn’t dress up for him. That wasn’t what this was about. To keep it casual and under wraps, I dressed like I was out for errands in my pale pink cigarette trousers, white cami, and matching white heels. If Keith thought my look was too serious and plain, he didn’t let it show as a corner of his lips curled up.

“Took you long enough,” he let out as he stepped to the side and made room for me to enter into the unknown.

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