“He really is. And he’s such a nice guy.” I sighed. “He deserves so much better than me.”
Henry rubbed my arm. “Nonsense. If he’s smart, he’s probably on his knees out there, thanking God that he gets to be with you.” He swayed his head from side to side. “And, since he’s already on his knees, maybe I should go check on him.”
I slapped his chest again. “Shut up! Leave him alone.”
Henry chuckled, throwing his hands up in defense. “Okay, okay.”
Devon spoke up, interrupting our conversation. “Show’s over. I’m bored. Levee, get your clothes and let’s go.”
“I’m not going anywhere. Come get us in the morning.”
Devon’s eyes flared wide. “Us?”
“Sam’s going with me to LA. He can ride back with you after the show.”
“Awesome,” Devon mumbled.
I wasn’t sure what Devon’s problem with Sam was, but he’d made it blatantly obvious he had one. He’d always been protective of me. It was his job, after all. Literally. But our relationship was more than just employee-employer. Over the last few years together, Devon and I had forged a friendship that had eventually evolved into more of a brother-sister bond. I loved and hated it all at the same time.
It would have been nice to have an employee who just did what I said. But I loved knowing that Devon was always there for me, no matter what the task.
“So, who wants a beer?” Sam asked as he came back inside wearing a wrinkled hoodie and holding a six-pack of brews.
“Where do you keep magically producing beer from?” I inquired.
“I have a stocked fridge in my shop out back.”
“And the hoodie?”
His eyes flashed to Henry. “My Jeep. I didn’t think it was safe to come back in without a shirt.”
“Smart move,” Henry said, walking over and pulling a beer from his hand. He winked as he twisted the top off and tipped it to his lips.
“Okay. As very entertaining as this has been, can you two please leave? It’s late, and Sam and I were just about to take a shower.”
Henry’s mouth was full, and he lifted a finger as he swallowed.
“No, you can’t join us!”
“Why are you so hateful?” Henry grumbled.
“Take him home. Please,” I begged Devon, who was glowering at the whole situation—and especially at Sam.
“Levee, we need to talk. Stewart isn’t going to be happy about you being here. We don’t know this guy, and a lot of things are going down for you right now. We need to keep this among the family for a while.”
I walked over and stopped in front of him, craning my head back to meet his eyes. “A lot of things are going down for me right now, but Sam has had a front-row seat to everything for a while. There’s nothing he doesn’t already know.”
“Levee—”
“Devon, I’m good. I swear. I know you’re worried, but there’s no talking me out of this. Now, please, just take Henry and go. I’ll see you in the morning.”
He stared down at me blankly for several beats before rolling his eyes and calling out, “Henry, we’re pulling out.”
Henry set the beer down and headed toward the door, pausing to give me a hug. “I’ll see you in the morning.” Then he shouted over his shoulder, “Night, Sam! Call me if you change your mind.”
I groaned.
Sam walked over, draping his arm around my waist, and called back, “Will do! Goodnight.”
As soon as the door clicked behind them, my whole body sagged. “God, I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. That was…interesting.”
I laughed. Interesting didn’t even come close to it. But as I nervously peeked up through my lashes to get a read on Sam, he was sporting a huge smile.
“It was fun, Levee. Don’t look so worried. It’s going to take more than Henry Alexander trying to get in my pants to run me off.”
“I’ll make him quit. I swear. I’m not sure I can promise the same about Devon though.”
“Stop.” He folded me into his chest and kissed the top of my head. “You’re stuck with me.”
I breathed in deeply, praying that that was true.