Page 24 of Conveniently Theirs

“I don’t understand.” Devin stands and stares into the distance before meeting her gaze again. “No, I do. We threw so much at you. You’ve been through—ah, sweets. I’m so sorry.”

The exasperated look she gives me before she stands gives me an odd sense of hope.

She pokes Devin in the chest. “Don’t worry about me, Devin Reed. Yeah, these days have been interesting. Maybe I’m a little shell shocked by it all. Maybe the lack of sleep after drinks, and wine, and—oh my god—champagne doesn’t help.

“Although, you have to admit having a fake wedding that turns out to be real is hilarious. Maybe not. I don’t know. Seems like it should be the other way around with the wedding ending up not real.” She snickers, covers her mouth and takes a slow breath before resting her palm over the spot she’d been poking.

“My laughter got out of control. It happens sometimes. More people probably hyperventilate during panic situations though. No, I’m not in a panic over this. Josh can show you the best way to help me recover. It’ll be okay. Okay?”

After a moment he nods and glances at me. “We need a new environment.”

Oblivious to his statement, Keni continues, “In fact, you know Josh and I being really married might be better. We won’t have to lie to Uncle Harold. Anything that has to do with being a legal couple will be much easier. Don’t you agree?”

Still holding my gaze, Devin answers. “Yes. Much easier. Now, we need someplace to relax. Todiscuss going forward from here. I did a little research. Trust me?”

My man is always prepared. That’s a part of why I love him so deeply. He keeps my scattered thoughts and ‘ooh shiny’ brain centered when it needs to be. There is—and forever will be—only one answer. “Always.”

With the gas tank filled and a Styrofoam cooler of snacks, water, and sodas, Devin drives us northwest out of the city. Once we’re away from the congested traffic and the flatter desert stretches to the distant mountains he turns on the radio, effectively curtailing any serious discussion. That’s fine with me—for now. My headache’s returned so I lean back and let the two in the front seats chat about the landscape. The hum of the tires and the soft voices of my loves wrap me in comfort and I fall asleep.

thirteen

Devin

Maybe traveling two hours away from the city was a bit much, but towns and points of interest aren’t necessarily close together in the wilds of Nevada. I needed for us to feel that distance from the concerns of real life while we discuss the options for ournewreal life. Josh fell asleep only about fifteen minutes into the trip so Keni and I kept our conversation on unimportant topics.

When I slow for the town of Beatty, he wakes, declares his headache gone, and nearly presses his nose against the window to stare at the town. “Hey, this reminds me of that movie with the cars. The town I mean. It looks like from the movie.”

“It does,” Keni exclaims. “No wonder it feels kind of familiar.”

I know the movie but have nothing to add so find a parking spot and we exit the sedan, stand on the sidewalk to stretch out the kinks. By unspoken agreement we don’t talk about the wedding or the tension simmering between us. The sexual tension. I have one hell of a time keeping my cock at rest as we explore the small town and Kendall is near. Or across the street. Or simply in my thoughts.

I’m in a shitload of trouble.

Josh has had to make subtle adjustments as well. Keni seems oblivious to her effect on both of us. Or perhaps not. She brushes against me far more times than the narrow aisles of the historic downtown or avoiding groups of tourists would account for.

It’s a relief to leave town and head toward Death Valley. We stop at a place called Hell’s Gate and get out of the car to admire the view of the valley spread before us. Keni takes pictures with her phone and I attempt to stay out of most of them. Then it’s my turn to take pictures of them, claiming they’ll be able to use them as honeymoon memories.

Excluding myself from the photos increases the pain in my chest. If I don’t confess my feelings soon, I may never be able to. I watch the two of them walkhand in hand toward another overlook spot. Maybe it’s already too late.

“I wish I had a better camera,” Keni says when they return to where I’m waiting by the car. “This area is amazing and deserves clearer photos than my phone takes.”

“We’ll come back better prepared, darlin’.” Josh lifts her hand to kiss her palm.

I can’t watch so I stare at the road. “Ready for the next stop? It’s getting late and I’d like to find a good place for star watching before it’s too dark. We can enjoy our picnic as the sun goes down.”

Keni bounces in her seat so much she fumbles with her seatbelt. Reaching over, I make sure she’s secure then force myself to clutch the steering wheel with both hands.

“I can’t believe you remembered I wanted to see the stars without the city light pollution.”

“I remember… everything,” I mumble. She doesn’t hear but Josh must because he reaches over the seatback to touch my neck. Unfortunately I don’t find any comfort from his caress.

It’s tempting to simply drive back to Vegas and forget about my confession, but I’ve promised Keni the stars. So I take my planned turn off and we travel up a well-maintained gravel road to an observationpoint. Because Keni refuses to sit on the ground once it gets dark, we eat our sandwiches while sitting on the car hood.

I watch her face as she watches the stars appear. Josh hands her binoculars I’d encouraged him to purchase in town and she scans the sky. “It’s amazing. So vast, so many stars. Now I really do wish I had a good camera. Or maybe a telescope. A camera mounted on a telescope. That’s it. That’s what I want.”

“Then we definitely will come back with better equipment,” Josh says.

She lowers the binoculars and kisses Josh’s cheek. “Thank you.”

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