Page 39 of Saving the CEO

Lord, I was supposed to help Devin feel secure in my love, but all I’ve done is shake his trust. What do I do now?

Scarlett raised her eyes to gaze at the dark sky above. A surprising number of stars were visible, with several lined up together to form a constellation. She was reminded of the verses she’d read that morning from the Book of Psalms about the Lord counting all the stars in the sky and knowing each one by name. Surely God who had such infinite wisdom could help her out of this mess. She just wished she knew what the solution looked like.

The door suddenly swung open, startling Scarlett. Devin’s tall frame, in a tan sweater and dark jeans, filled the doorway. His blue eyes swept over her with worry. “What are you doing, Scarlett? You’ve been standing there for five minutes. Why didn’t you ring the doorbell?”

She cringed, realizing he had likely seen every one of her tortured expressions via the video doorbell’s camera. Stuffing her hands into the front pocket of her hoodie, she greeted him with a pained smile. “I was going to. I just wasn’t ready to face you yet.”

His brows furrowed as he pulled her inside and shut the door. “I know I’m not the friendliest person on the planet, but I didn’t think I was that unapproachable. What are you talking about?”

“I hurt you, Devin. And I ruined the best thing to have ever happened to me. I don’t know how to come back from that. I don’t want things to be weird between us, but how can they not when I told you no?”

“I distinctly remember you saying ‘not yet.’ That’s very different from saying no.”

“It was still not a yes,” she replied adamantly.

His smirk gave way to a dry laugh. “If you’re trying to rub it in that you turned down my marriage proposal, you’re succeeding.”

“That’s not what I meant—”

He cut her off with a shake of his head. “You don’t have to explain; I understand. I moved too fast. Blame it on my eagerness and impatience. I’m not one to sit around and wait for things to happen; I make them happen. But I realize now that I can’t make you trust me. That will have to come with time. Like I told you before, I can wait.”

Scarlett’s eyes widened to hear his words of assurance. “You really are amazing, Devin. How can you not be taking this personally? If I were you, I’d be devastated.”

“Again, you’re doing a really good job at making me feel better about the situation.” Smirking, he placed his hands on her shoulders and held her gaze. In a kind, patient voice, he continued, “I don’t break that easily, Scarlett. I’m also learning to have faith—in God, in you, and in us. You turning me down just shows me how much harder I need to work to show you that I take our relationship very seriously. I’m in this for the long haul. I love you, and I’m committed to you. You’ve made my every dream come true. I want to help make your dreams come true, too.”

She had no idea what she’d done to deserve Devin’s support, but she wouldn’t take it for granted. His love was such a tangible reminder of God’s grace to her. Rewarding him with a teary smile, she wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tight. “You know, you’re totally winning at this boyfriend game. It must be all the amazing dating advice I gave you.”

“Are you trying to take credit for my natural talent?”

With her ear to his chest, she felt the rumble of his laughter as much as she heard it. It was a sound she’d never tire of listening to. “How about I take credit for drawing it out of you? I happen to bring out the best in people,” she added as she drew back to face him.

“I’ll give you points for that.” His eyes sparkled with humor as he grabbed her by the hand. “Come on, there’s something I want to show you.”

They climbed the carpeted staircase, passing a large chandelier with raindrop-shaped lights that hung from the high ceiling. Once they reached the second story, Devin led her to the first room on the right. Light from the hallway illuminated the dark room, but Scarlett didn’t understand what was inside until he flipped on the light.

She covered her mouth in shock. The scene before her looked like a photo from one of her Pinterest boards. Black soundproof foam panels covered most of the red-painted walls of the rectangular space. Sitting against one wall was a large table with all the equipment needed for book narration: a computer, headphones, and a microphone outfitted with both a pop filter and a windscreen. The setup was everything she hoped to have one day for her own home.

She turned to Devin. “What is all this? Why do you have a recording studio in your house?”

“Because I apparently have a girlfriend who narrates books for a living now.” His blue eyes narrowed. “When were you going to tell me this important detail? Or were you planning on keeping your identity as S. Haze a secret forever?”

Her brows rose. “How did you know that’s me? No one knows my pseudonym name, not even my sisters. I can’t believe you figured it out.”

“I did have some clues to go on, but I would have appreciated hearing it from you first. Why did you keep this from me? Do you not trust me?”

The hurt in his voice made her chest twinge. “No, it’s not that at all. I just wanted to have my act together before I told anyone. This is such a big leap of faith for me, and I have no idea how it’s going to pan out. I didn’t want to get an ‘I told you so’ lecture before I even started.”

“Hey, I’m not your sisters. I’m here to support you, Scarlett. I listened to your narration last night and was impressed with your work. You have listeners clamoring for more from you. I know you can do this full time. That’s why I got this room together. No woman of mine should be stuck doing her recordings in a closet.”

She couldn’t help but laugh at his incredulous tone. “There’s nothing wrong with the closet! I’ll have you know that some of the biggest podcasters record in their closets. Soft surfaces like clothing are great at absorbing sound, which is good for the acoustics.”

“I doubt it’s as good as what you have here. More importantly, this room is big enough to hold two people, so I can come listen to you whenever I want.”

“Oh, I see how it is.” She playfully poked a finger at his chest. “You want early access to the books I narrate. Is that what this is about?”

“Perhaps, but the main reason is so I’ll have you close by.” Taking a step closer, he gathered her into his arms and rested his chin on her head. “Now that I’ve found you, I never want to let you go. I can’t imagine my life without you in it.”

Her heart swelled. Devin was everything she could have asked for in a man, and more. “You’re really racking up the brownie points tonight, Mr. CEO. Thank you so much for this studio and for your sweet encouragement. You’re already making my dreams come true, Devin. My love tank is so full, I don’t know if there’s room for more,” she joked as she pulled back to smile at him. “You might need to hold off on those words of affirmation for a while.”

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