Page 29 of Along Came Summer

“Hardly.” She retorts tartly and holds up her arm that’s handcuffed to Devin. My gaze shifts from her eyes to look at the handcuffs and back at her again while I chuckle amusedly, scratching my jaw thoughtfully.

Don’t worry, baby girl. I will get you out of those handcuffs and into my arms where you belong.

“Oh, of course, mum did tell me about your little situation with the handcuffs when I spoke to her earlier.” I nod, and Mira involuntarily follows behind Devin when he walks toward the kitchen counter and sets his keys, wallet and phone down. My eyes remain locked on hers while she walks by me. “How’s that going?” I taunt.

Devin snaps back at me before changing the subject to question how I got into his apartment, and I tell him our mother gave me the code when I couldn’t get through to him.

“Also, you might want to call Megs. She’s already called me seven times when she couldn’t get through to you.” Devin groans audibly and rubs his forehead in agitation before he reaches over to pick up his phone off the kitchen island and turns it back on. I watch in amusement, crunching away on my apple when he winces as the notifications pour in once his phone comes to life.

“Fuck, she called me like eleven times and sent twenty text messages.” He fumes, shaking his head while he reads the messages from his girlfriend.

“Take it from me, bro, she didn’t sound like a happy puppy. I’d give her a bell if I were you,” I advise him as I finish my apple and toss it in the bin by the kitchen island. Devin looks over at Mira, a pleading look on his face, and Mira fixes him with an irritable glare and shakes her head.

“Don’t even suggest I hide again. I will hurt you,” she threatens him and then scowls at me when I chortle. The two of them start bickering back and forth about them being handcuffed and Megan not knowing about it. So, I sit back and observe in amusement. Reaching over, I take a handful of Skittles from the sweet jar on the kitchen island, toss the sweets in my mouth and chew while they continue to squabble with each other. Devin pleads with Mira to hide while he calls Megan because he knows full well she will throw a fit if she finds out he’s handcuffed to another woman. And if she knows who Mira is… or ratherwasto Devin, God help him.

Maybe I was a bit too hasty in assuming there was something going on between them. But there definitely seems to be some kind of unspoken understanding between them. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but there's something behind Mira’s gaze when she looks at him. It’s the same look she would get whenever his name came up when we were in Thailand. Devin looks at me and scowls when he sees me leaning against the kitchen island, stuffing my face with his Skittles.

“You know Megan, Levi. How will she react to this?” he questions, holding his arm up and gesturing to the handcuffs.

I make no effort to hold back my amusement and laugh. “Oh, you’re a dead man walking, little brother.” I answer with a shake of my head. “I do not envy you one bit. She’s going to castrate you and serve your bollocks as a delicacy at one of her lavish dinners without a doubt.”

“See!” Devin grumbles, turning his attention back to Mira and jabs his thumb in my direction.

Mira shrugs indifferently, “You can kiss goodbye to your cajónes then, because I’m not hiding again, Dev.”

“Tinks—”

And off they go again. Mira scolds him about lying to his girlfriend and tells him he should man up and just tell her the truth. Devin argues all the reasons he can’t, but Mira doesn’t want to hear any of it, and I’m getting bored listening to them jabber on about it so I jump in.

“While I agree with Mira about not lying to your girlfriend, I also wouldn’t recommend you tell her and would suggest you think long and hard about the can of ugly worms you’ll open if you tell her about this.” Devin’s brows draw together, and he looks from me to Mira. I notice the bobby pin in her hair and smile, “I can get those cuffs off if you want?” I offer, straightening again.

“How?” They ask simultaneously, and I take a step toward them, folding my arms over my bare chest.

“All I need is a bobby pin or a safety pin.” Devin and Mira share a look while they mull over my offer. They go back and forth deliberating until they finally opt for taking it off for the weekend and put the cuffs back on Monday before they go back to work so that everyone will be none the wiser.

Once I get the validation from them both to proceed, I stroll over to Mira first. She’s watching me, her eyes never leaving mine as I lift my hand to pull the bobby pin out of her hair. My fingers glide through her silky strands until they find the pin, and Mira swallows thickly, observing me closely while I gently draw it out of her hair.

Standing this close to her, I’m once again surrounded by the sweet-smelling notes of her perfume, and I breathe it in, making myself dizzy with it. Mira’s eyes follow the pin when I bring it to my lips to extend it. My fingers curl around her hand, and I lift it to locate the keyhole to pick the lock. That tangible spark is still there, sizzling between us. Mira questions where I learned to pick a lock, likely to try and disperse the wordless connection we're sharing through our eyes. “In school, where else?” I respond with a smirk resulting in some bickering between us all as I continue with gentle movements and a steady hand to successfully unlock the cuffs from around her wrist.

Mira sighs in relief when the metal loosens and comes undone around her dainty wrist. As it falls away, I notice the red mark it left on her skin, and my thumb lightly skates across it, which causes Mira to draw in a quick breath. She recoils from my touch before she steps away, putting a safe distance between us and gingerly rubs her wrists.

Devin is preoccupied, tapping away at his phone and mumbling to himself as I go up to him and unfasten the handcuff from around his wrist. No sooner is the handcuff loosened, before he makes his move to leave.

“I’m going to call Megan. Tinks, you can take one of the guest bedrooms, make yourself at home. Levi, I assume you’re already settled in?” Mira and I both nod in confirmation, and Devin utters a goodnight before turning and retiring in the direction of what I assume is his bedroom, leaving Mira and me standing in the living room.

Finally, I’m alone with her.

The air surrounding us thickens the moment Devin leaves the room. I turn my attention to Mira, who is watching me from across the room. I hold her gaze for every inch and wet my lips as I rest my back against the kitchen island, waiting and gauging her next move.

If I know her and I think I do, she’s going to either make an excuse and go lock herself in the guest bedroom or she’ll find some way to distract from the tension sucking the air right out of the room and make small talk. Breaking eye contact she makes a beeline toward the fridge and I watch, smirking while she opens the doors and takes out a bottle of water.

Thirsty are we, baby girl? Has your throat also gone a little dry after seeing me again? Because I feel like I have swallowed a fist full of sand, looking at you.

Smiling, I walk over to the refrigerator to grab a water bottle for myself. My chest presses against her back when I reach over her, and I feel her go impossibly stiff and almost choke on her mouthful of water. “Is it just me, or is it insufferably hot tonight?” I say, dipping my head to speak quietly into her ear.

“It’s definitely warm.” Comes her breathy reply as she closes the refrigerator doors, leaving us in the dim lighting of the living room.

“Join me out on the terrace. The view is breathtaking.” I invite her, my lips brushing against the shell of her ear.

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