A Devoted Heart (The Heart's Temptation Series Book 2)

by Genevieve Matthews

  “It’s so sensitive,” she says.

  I look up at her and smile. Her breasts rising and falling with each breath. She closes her eyes and lays completely relaxed and sated on the couch.

  “We’re not done yet, beautiful,” I say.

  “Of course not,” she says as she smiles at me playfully. “I needed a minute after that life-changing orgasm.”

  “I like the sound of that.” I’m pulling my pants off when the phone rings again. “Seriously, who the fuck is it?”

  Catey leans over to the coffee table where she dropped her phone when we came in. “Two missed calls from Bree.”

  While she’s looking at the screen I hear her phone ding, this time indicating a text message.

  “Holy shit!” Catey says.

  “What?”

  “Bree’s having the baby!”

  Catey jumps up off the couch and grabs her clothes. Seriously, horrible fucking timing. I pull my pants back on and try to walk off the painful hard-on I’m sporting right now. Looks like the rest of our fun will have to wait for another time.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Cate

  2005

  Standing in front of my floor length mirror, I slip the long, light-pink ball gown over my head and shimmy so it falls over my body and brushes across the floor. I contort my arms behind me to zip it up the back but I only get as far as my shoulder blades. It’s at this point that I decide to attack it from the top. My fingers are just long enough to pinch the top of the zipper and pull it all the way to the top.

  My hair is up in an elegant crown braid with a few tendrils coming down around my temple. I skipped a necklace and went with a small pair of drop earrings to keep the look simple but sophisticated. I slowly twist at the waist and listen as the skirt swishes and billows around my legs. It’s official…I feel like a princess.

  I’m about to walk out into the living room to show my mom the finished product when I hear a car pull up with a loud muffler next door. I walk over to the window in time to see Brogan walking out of his house to meet his football buddies. He’s dressed in a suit with a matching black-and-white tie and handkerchief peeking out. He looks so handsome, I can’t help but stare. He has a big smile on his face as he greets his friends and jumps in the passenger seat. I watch until the car pulls away and I’m left staring at an empty driveway.

  I don’t have time to wallow in any emotional reaction that I might be feeling because I hear the doorbell ring from the other room. I quickly check my reflection once more, grab my clutch and walk out to meet my date for the night.

  Andrew Miles is standing inside the door with my mom when I walk out. He looks really nice and I’m definitely excited to be going to prom with him. It doesn’t give me that special feeling inside when I look at him. I don’t have that good butterfly feeling that I would have if someone else happened to be at my door today. That special someone who drove off with his football buddies to meet his flavor of the month.

  It doesn’t bother me as much as it probably should. Brogan is no good at relationships. Not that you really have to be when you’re a senior in high school, but he seems to struggle more than most of the guys I know. I don’t understand why he chooses the girls he does to date. They don’t have anything in common aside from how attractive they both are.

  I’m determined to enjoy myself tonight so step one in accomplishing that is to push these thoughts of Brogan out of my mind.

  I look up at Andrew and he looks a little nervous and unsure of himself. I walk right up to him and give him a hug.

  “You look so nice, Andrew,” I say as I step back and admire his suit.

  “You look so pretty. Pink is definitely your color.” He smiles and hands me my corsage. It’s a beautiful small flower arrangement with four miniature Cymbidium blooms, lily grass, and ribbon. There are small flecks of pink in the center of each flower that complement my dress.

  I hand the white rose boutonniere to my mom and easily slip mine over my wrist. “You both look stunning,” my mom says as she pins the flower onto his suit jacket.

  She makes us stand in front of the fireplace and takes our picture. Andrew is really sweet and indulges my mom as she takes more pictures than any one person could ever need for anything. Not to mention how long it takes her to get the camera in perfect focus before she’ll take the picture.

  Before long we’re in Andrew’s car and headed to dinner. We’re meeting Bree and her date at the restaurant and then we’re all going to the dance together. Bree is my best girlfriend and has been since we were little girls. It has never been a competition between Bree and Brogan as to who is the better friend, because the friendship I have with each of them is uniquely its own.

  I don’t know that I can ever be completely honest with Brogan about the feelings I have deep down inside of me. A lot of those feelings are for him and they are really confusing sometimes. Bree is the one that I can talk to about everything that confuses me in life, including Brogan. And let’s face it, we’ve had a lot of conversations about Brogan over the last few years.

  The restaurant is a cozy, nautical-themed place sitting right on the lake. They have the best clam chowder and seafood for miles. I love the crab legs, but that isn’t really the best choice of a meal considering how we’re all dressed tonight.

  Bree and her date, Scott, are already at the restaurant when we arrive. Bree looks stunning in her floor-length, fitted, lace gown. Her hair is down and flowing around her shoulders in soft waves. She’s never realized how pretty she is, but I can tell from the look on her date’s face that she knocked it out of the park tonight.

  “You look so beautiful!” I say as I give Bree a hug. “Hey, Scott, you’re looking very handsome tonight as well.”

  “Thank you. Andrew and I knew we’d have to keep up with two beautiful ladies tonight so we wanted to bring our A-game.”

  “That’s very smart of you,” Bree says.

  We’re seated by a table next to the windows where we have the perfect view of the water. We’re all friends so the atmosphere is relaxed and fun.

  “I think we should all get the lobster,” Scott says.

  “I love crab legs but I’d make a mess out of my dress,” I say.

  “They have plastic bibs you can wear! Throw one of those on and no one will ever know.”

  “Okay, I’ll do it if you do it.”

  “Oh, I’ll do it. I won’t think twice about it.”

  “Let’s all do it,” Bree chimes in. “Senior prom is a special night. Let’s celebrate.”

  When the waitress brings the food, we all put on our plastic bibs and get to work cracking the shells on either the crab legs or the lobster. Every now and again a stray piece of shell shoots across the table but no one is seriously injured. It makes for a few moments of uncontrollable laughter that ends with a few tears escaping down my cheeks or an accidental snort from one of us.

  After dinner we head to our separate cars and drive to the high school. It’s already bustling with activity when we pull into the school parking lot. Andrew holds out his arm for me to take and I wrap my arm around his. Together we walk into the gym.

  Our prom theme this year is “Hollywood.” There is a red carpet for all the students to walk on when they arrive. A black backdrop in the gym covered with stars and a large banner that says “Hollywood” takes up an entire wall. Two life-sized Oscar statues create the backdrop for where the pictures are taken. And there are large, white balloons hanging from the ceiling that look like fancy, crystal chandeliers.

  Looking around me, I’m so happy I made the decision to come to prom after all. I didn’t think it would matter to me one way or another if I came or not. But now that I’m here, I’m glad I didn’t opt out of this experience.

  I had a fantasy for my senior prom. Brogan would finally come to his senses and realize that we have something great together. We have a perfect chemistry and a bond through friendship that has been growing for years.

  As we’v
e grown older I’ve thought at times that he feels more for me than he lets on, but nothing has ever come of it.

  I was actually sitting in math class when I overheard Tatianna, one of the girls on the cheerleading squad, squealing to her friend about how Brogan Lockwood had asked her to prom. I felt like such a fool for thinking I would get my happily-ever-after.

  I was about to bolt out of class early and hide out in the girl’s room when Jake interrupted my thoughts and chose the absolute worst possible moment to ask me if I had a date to the prom yet. I was so flustered all I could do was tell him that I wasn’t planning on going.

  A week or so later I had plenty of time to think things through and I decided I wasn’t going to let Brogan ruin any more of my senior year. So when Andrew asked if I would go to prom with him, I happily accepted. We’ve never been more than friends, but he’s a really sweet guy. Someone I could definitely have a memorable senior prom experience with.

  Andrew and I walk right over and get our picture taken. Before long we’ve found a large group of our friends, including Bree and Scott, and we’re all dancing the night away.

  Inevitably the music changes pace to a slow song and I feel the tiny flutter of butterflies in my stomach for the first time all night. Andrew very sweetly asks if I’d like to dance so of course I accept.

  He holds me close and looks right into my eyes as we start to sway to the music. His friendly demeanor changes to something more romantic. I don’t really have a lot of experience with these situations so I rest my head on his arm so I can break the eye contact that is leaving me slightly uncomfortable.

  Instead of calming down, my eyes meet Brogan’s as he dances with his date a few feet away. My stomach flips and I can instantly feel my heart pounding in my chest. He doesn’t smile at me, but he doesn’t break eye contact either. His look tells me he’s not thinking about the girl in his arms right now. And all of the sudden I need to turn away before that look engulfs me and turns me into a soppy pile of mush at his feet.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Brogan

  2005

  Prom wasn’t a big deal to me. I didn’t put a lot of effort into making it perfect, I wanted to be a part of it. I know a lot of my friends get all worked up about who they’re going to ask, what they’re going to wear, where they should go to dinner.

  I looked at it as a big party where I could hang out with my friends. I didn’t think it really mattered who I took to prom as long as we were all together once we got there. It would almost be funny how wrong I was, if it wasn’t such a mess.

  I’ll never be the one to deny that I have a whole mess of issues in my life. I know for some people, like a lot of my friends, in fact, life up to this point has been a very easy feat. And we all make decisions we regret, but I seem to make more of them than most people.

  I tell myself that the choices I make are for the benefit of others. And I do believe that for the most part. But Catey is the one person in my life that I hold on a pedestal. She’s the good stuff, always has been. So when you’ve had experiences like I have, where people up and leave, you do what you think you need to in order to keep the good that you have left.

  I’ve always been comfortable with the decisions I’ve made with her, until this exact moment. Until the moment when I watched as another guy took her hand in his and twirled her around like a princess before pulling her close with a smile.

  The look they exchanged made me break out in a cold sweat. I wanted to launch myself across the dance floor and take his place. I wanted to be on the receiving end of that look. It was surprise passion and the innocence of it pulled at my heart. Like suddenly she realized that maybe it could be something with him. And I knew that no matter how many good intentions I had, I couldn’t let him have her.

  I watch as she excuses herself once the dance is over and walks off of the dance floor. Instead of heading towards the punch, she turns and walks out of the gym. Her date is busy socializing with a group of friends so I disentangle myself from my date and go after her.

  It’s dark in the hallway outside of the gym and for some reason the lockers look really eerie all lined up down the never-ending hallway. I see a patch of yellow light and then it’s gone. She must have gone into the girls’ bathroom.

  I’m leaning against a locker when she comes out a few minutes later. I make myself known right away so I don’t scare the bejesus out of her.

  “Catey,” I say.

  She jumps a foot, grabs her chest and lets out a screech. So much for not scaring her.

  “Brogan, what the hell! You scared the shit out of me.”

  “Sorry, I wanted to check on you. Are you okay?”

  “Yes, I’m fine.” She’s straightening the skirt of her dress as she answers with an angry tone.

  “I saw you leave and didn’t know where you were headed. Why are you using these bathrooms instead of the ones in the gym?”

  “I needed a minute. I’m coming right back in.”

  “Okay.”

  “Okay,” she says. The anger has left her voice and she takes a deep breath as she answers me.

  “So are you having a fun time?” I ask.

  “I am. How about you?”

  “Yeah, we’re having fun.”

  “Well that’s good. I better head back in before Andrew starts to wonder…” She’s walking past me and I react. I grab her arm to keep her out here with me for another minute.

  “Don’t go yet.”

  “Okay, what’s wrong?”

  “Nothing. Well, that’s not true. There’s always something wrong with me, isn’t there?”

  She crosses her arms in front of her chest and looks at me. After a minute, she softens. Her hands find my suit jacket and she straightens the lapels and adjusts my tie.

  I grab her hands to hold them to my chest before she can pull them away. And then I step forward and remove any space between us. I can see the surprise on her face as she realizes my intentions. Before I can change my mind, I take her face in my hands and press my lips to hers.

  She doesn’t respond at first but she doesn’t pull away either. I move my lips slowly on hers, parting them as I deepen the kiss. As soon as I feel her arms go around my waist I lick inside her mouth. I feel her tongue meet mine as her lips begin to move, following my lead.

  I feel like I’m having an out of body experience. It’s like everything around me has disappeared and all that I am right now is this kiss. This kiss that is so fierce I can almost feel her lips swell against mine as I enjoy every sensation in this moment.

  When she pulls away, I feel dazed, like I’m floating on a cloud, before finding my way back to solid ground. We’re both breathing heavily and I have an overwhelming desire to go right back to where I was. I lean in to take more of her kisses but she stops me with her hand over my mouth.

  As her fingers press against my lips I can feel that she’s trembling. The haze of desire that I’m in quickly dissipates as I realize she’s holding back tears.

  “I’m going to go back into the bathroom,” she says as a tear slowly falls down her cheek, “and when I come back out, you’ll have rejoined your date.”

  “Catey…”

  Her fingers press against my mouth to stop me. “Please,” she whispers.

  “I didn’t mean to make you upset. Let me fix it. How can I fix it?”

  “Go back in time and ask me to the prom instead.” Her eyes hold mine for another moment before she turns and walks back into the bathroom.

  Feeling like a total asshole, I walk back into the gym. Tatianna immediately stomps up to me, with her hands on her hips says, “Where the hell have you been?”

  “Just using the little boys’ room.”

  “Well I’m ready to dance. You left me standing over here without a dance partner for ten minutes!”

  “I’m going to get some punch. Would you like some punch?”

  “No, I don’t want any punch. I told you very clearly what I want.”

 
“Well I need some punch. Sorry, I’ll be with you once I wet my whistle.”

  I turn and walk off toward the punch tables. I don’t want to spend another moment with Tatianna. I want her to disappear and take her grating, high-pitched voice with her.

  “Just stay at the punch table! I’ll find someone else who can appreciate me.”

  I don’t even bother turning around or responding. If she’s telling the truth, my night is looking up. I don’t have any intentions of moping around tonight. The new plan for the evening is to find my boys and then find some ways to distract myself.

  As I walk through the crowd of people I can’t help thinking about Catey and that kiss. I don’t know if I kissed her because of how she makes me feel, or if I kissed her because I wanted to be the one, not Andrew. I know I’m a selfish bastard sometimes, but I can’t help myself. Our relationship is complicated, but I won’t deny how much she means to me.

  I pretend not to notice, but I see her as soon as she comes back into the gym. She has a smile plastered to her face and no one else would know how shaken up she was a few minutes ago. Because of me.

  She’s looking around the gym and for a minute I think she’s looking for me. I have my hopes up that she is and I think about how this night could have turned out differently if I had the balls to ask her to prom in the first place.

  Andrew walks up behind her and touches her arm. She lets him lead her away from me and I have an overwhelming urge to throw the punch in my hand at the wall. Instead I grip the cup tightly and let everything around me happen.

  I let myself feel every emotion that’s going through me right now and for the first time I tell myself that I’m going to make things right between us. I’m going to stop pushing her away and finally admit to her how I feel.

  Knowing that I have a plan helps the storm inside of me settle and I try to focus on enjoying the rest of the night with my friends. As for Tatianna, she’s on her own.