Devon looked at her, feeling guilty for rejecting her and for making her cry.
"Just leave me alone, okay?" Alessandra said, tears now flowing.
"No. Let me help you." Devon unlocked the door and pushed the door open for her, making sure to allow her enough room to pass. She snatched the key card out of his hand and moved to close the door. He held it open.
"I'm sorry." He said, holding his head down.
Alessandra waited until she heard him lock his hotel room door before she threw herself on the bed and cried.
What were you thinking? Why did you let Sammi talk you into this?
*
Alessandra stood by the closed door, looking out through the keyhole for Sammi to arrive.
"It's me. Let me in, girl," Sammi whispered into the door jam.
Opening it, Alessandra made sure to stay out of view of Devon in case he was watching through his keyhole.
"What happened?" Sammi wiped Alessandra's tear stained face. "Tell me everything."
Through her sobbing, Alessandra told her everything, including how angry she was at herself for agreeing to do something so incredibly ridiculous and out of character for her.
"He said no?" Sammi's eyebrows quirked up. "You're kidding me?"
Alessandra stood up, still wearing the negligee Sammi had given her. "Look at me. I look ridiculous. What was I thinking?"
"You can't let this one incident break you. You've been through worse. So what if he wasn't into it. Maybe, he's married or gay or something. It's my fault. I should have researched first before I sent you in there. Anyway, if he can't appreciate you then forget him. There's plenty of guys out there that will jump at the chance to be with you." Sammi's attempt to cheer Alessandra up was failing.
Alessandra stared at herself in the mirror, a scowl on her face. "He's staying right across from me, remember? I'm going to run into him and then what? You know how stupid I feel right now?" Alessandra threw herself back on the bed, face first, hitting her palms on the bed in frustration.
"Get up. It really isn't that bad. What did you say he told you again?" Sammi sat on the edge of the bed, biting her lip as she tried to remember.
Alessandra rolled over. "What?"
Sammi rolled her eyes. "What did he say?"
"I told you already. You really want me to say it again? He said he didn't want me." She grabbed a pillow and put it on her face.
"Stop that." Sammi yanked the pillow from her and tossed it toward the headboard. "What else did he say?"
Alessandra sighed. "I don't know. Something about he didn't want me like this. Why?" She sat up.
Sammi considered for a moment, while Alessandra tried to figure out where she was going with this question.
Alessandra noticed the look on Sammi's face. “Wait, what are you getting at? You think it was some kind of secret message. Just don't. He said he doesn't want me. Instead of trying to read into it, why not just take it at face value? It is what it is. Now, I just need to figure out how to not run into him.”
Sammi sighed. She didn't want to admit that Alessandra was probably right, but being hopeless when it came to all things men, she couldn't help but wonder if her intuition was right. Could there have been more to what Devon said? She didn't want to get Alessandra's hopes up, but she'd spent a lot of time studying men and considered herself a good friend to many, and something about the way he looked at Alessandra told her that he was into her. She didn't care about what he'd said tonight.
“I'll be back. You get some rest and get out of that outfit.” Sammi tried to sound playful, so as not to warn her that she fully intended to have a conversation with Devon to see where his head was at.
“Whoa. I know that look. What are you thinking? Please, don't do anything silly. I really just want to forget this happened and try to enjoy the rest of this week. Just me, my books, and the beach, understood?” Alessandra warned Sammi.
“Understood. Now, get some rest.” Sammi closed the door behind her and sprinted down the hallway to her room.
*
Alessandra wrapped herself in her bathrobe and made herself comfortable on the bed. That's where she intended to remain until she was sure that Devon had left the room for the day.
I can't believe I let Sammi talk me into this, Alessandra thought. She spent the next several hours going over their last conversation again and again in her mind. She couldn't recall a single time when she'd ever done anything remotely similar for any man she'd ever met.
Just as she was drifting off to sleep, she heard a conversation in full swing. Although she couldn't make out the conversation, the tone spoke of a couple that was enjoying each other’s company. She sat up, tilting her head to hone in on their conversation, but could only make out whispers and laughter.
Is he with a woman? You have got to be kidding me!
She shot up, tiptoed over to the door to look out. Devon had his arms around a tiny blonde woman, who had on more makeup than she did clothing.
What the hell?
The woman cupped her hand on Devon's ass, giggling. He turned to her, lifting her up to him. Alessandra closed her eyes. She couldn't look.
They closed the door and Alessandra's heart sank when she heard them lock it behind them.
What a jerk!
She sank down to the ground, feeling like a fool for ever believing that he was worth her time. She sat on the floor the rest of the night, trying to make sense of how quickly she allowed things to spiral out of control for her.
The last sound she heard was the sound of her own whimpering. She hated that he had that kind of control over her emotions so soon.
*
“You sure you don't want to come with me? There's a lot of single business owners in attendance.” Sammi wished she could do something to cheer her friend up, but after learning that Devon was just like every other man in the world, she was out of options as far as he was concerned.
“I'll be fine. I'm going to get out and enjoy the sunshine and probably do some shopping. I'll be okay. Just go on and I'll meet you for dinner later.” Alessandra hugged her.
They rode down the elevator together, discussing which restaurant they'd meet at for dinner. When the elevator doors opened on the main floor, the first person they saw was Devon.
“Give me a break.” Alessandra looked at Sammi.
“What do you want to do here? Slap him or run?”
Alessandra sighed, before hopping off the elevator. “Run. Now.” She turned and careened through the lobby, making sure to stay out of Devon's line of vision, nearly running into a woman near the front door.
“Oh crap!” The woman jumped out of the way. “Watch where you're going, bitch!”
Sammi stopped in her tracks. “What? Who you calling a bitch?”
Alessandra signaled for her not to engage, but it was too late. Both she and the woman, who Alessandra recognized as the woman she'd seen going into Devon's room the night before, were laser focused on each other.
“Sam, leave it alone,” she urged her. Looking over at Devon, she added, “He's not worth it.”
Both Sammi and Alessandra walked away in frustration without Devon ever noticing that there was any commotion going on at all. He was engaged in conversation with other guests and didn't once turn to look in their direction. Alessandra didn't know if she was more disappointed that he didn't notice her or relieved that he hadn't seen their heated exchange.
As they walked out the door, they could hear the foul mouthed bimbo with the fake boobs and the long extensions, yelling obscenities at them. It wasn't until they were halfway down the block when Devon finally emerged from the hotel in a harried rush to catch up to Alessandra.
“Hey,” he started, grabbing her arm. “Why are you running away from me?”
“What?” Alessandra yanked her arm away from him. “Why are you chasing us? Won't your wife be upset?”
He laughed, placing an arm around Alessandra's waist. “Gina isn't my wife.”
; Sammi moved to speak, but thought differently after seeing the pained expression on Alessandra's face.
“Do you want me to stick around?” Sammi asked Alessandra, but her eyes were on Devon's. “If he gets out of pocket, I’m here.”
He looked back at her, saying, “I'll take good care of her. You don’t anything to worry about.”
“I'm sorry, but forgive me for not believing you, Devil.” Sammi squinted in his direction.
“I'll be fine; go ahead,” Alessandra urged her. “I'll catch up with you later.”
Turning to Devon, she said, “Get your hands off me. I think you should probably go talk to your wife or whatever she is to you. She’s watching us.”
“I told you, she's not my wife. Well, not anymore and why do I have to tell her anything?” Devon moved closer to Alessandra, throwing her slightly off balance, confusing her. He placed both of his hands on her hips. “Why are you mad at me? What did I do?”
Alessandra pulled herself back from him, breathing deeply to calm her nerves. “Look, I saw you with her. You... You... I don't want to talk about this. Just go to her. She obviously cares about you and just let me try and enjoy my vacation in peace. I don’t need the drama. I have plenty of my own – thank you.”
“She's not my old lady,” Devon informed her.
“Old lady?” Alessandra didn't know what to say to get rid of him. “Is that a pet name? Looks like I dodged a bullet because I’d never let you or any man call me his old lady.”
Devon sighed, putting his hand on his forehead. “Okay, look, I never made you any promises. We shared a meal and, then, you show up at my door naked and, well, what did you expect me to say?”
She glared at him. “Unbelievable. Can I go now?”
Devon studied her for a moment, before moving aside, saying, “Go ahead. Have a nice vacation.”
Alessandra could feel the heat rise up in her body. She wanted to smack him for being a jerk, but she realized she was almost as much to blame as he was. After all, she was the one who had invited him to breakfast and she did show up at his room unannounced, but she still felt like he played a part in it too. He flirted with her just as much as she'd flirted with him.
*
“Ready? Got everything?” Sammi walked into Alessandra's hotel room, ready to leave for the airport. “The shuttle will be here in a few minutes.”
“I'm so ready. Let's go.” Alessandra hesitated a moment, looking at the room across the hall from her. She hadn't seen or heard Devon since the morning after the most embarrassing moment of her life.
“Jerk.” Sammi stuck her tongue out like a schoolgirl at Devon's door. “You missed out, asshat.”
“Samantha!” Alessandra nudged Sammi with her suitcase. “Let's go already.”
As the girls wrestled with their luggage, waiting for the elevator to come up to their floor, they joked and laughed about the events of the week. Neither of them noticed that Devon was walking toward them, dressed in jeans that fit just right, a black T-shirt and leather jacket covered with a grim reaper insignia and patches.
“Ladies.” He greeted them. Both women nearly toppled over at the sight of him.
Sammi moved to give Devon a piece of her mind, but the way Alessandra and Devon were looking at each other would have defeated the purpose. They were definitely into each other and, although they had a plane to catch, she thought it more important to let them mend fences than for her to read him the riot act. She'd waited a long time for Alessandra to look at a man that way. Ever since her breakup, she'd written off men, believing them to be manipulative and egotistical. She didn't want any part in anything that would only lead to heartache in her experience. But, now, she looked at Devon with stars in her eyes. She liked him and had been genuinely hurt by his rejection of her.
Alessandra answered him. “We have a plane to catch.”
Looking disappointed, Devon answered, “You're leaving now?”
“I have to get back to work.” Alessandra looked at her curiously. Sammi mouthed that she'd wait for her down the block.
“When can I see you again?” Devon sounded disappointed.
“I thought you never wanted to see me in the first place. Remember? You asked me to leave you alone?” She couldn't hide her own hurt feelings.
“I didn't ask you to leave. I just didn't understand where this horny bimbo thing came from all of a sudden.” He laughed, raking his hand through his hair.
Her eyes narrowed. "What did you just call me?" Heat rose in her body. No man had ever called her that and she was not about to let anyone call her that now. "You know what? I'm done talking to you. Get out of my way."
Alessandra grabbed her bags and walked as quickly as she could to catch up to Sammi, but Devon was hot on her heels, trying to stop her.
"Wait. Wait a minute. I was just messing with you. Stop!" He called out to her as he tried to grab her arm to stop her, but she sped up and his attempt failed.
Sammi turned to scowl at Devon just to show support for her friend, but she had no idea what the problem was. As she rushed to pick up her pace and carry her bags at the same time, she asked, "What is going on? Why are we running away from him? What did he now? I told you if that if he got out of pocket, we’d take care of that."
Alessandra was so angry she couldn't formulate words. She shot Sammi a warning look and marched on, not looking back at a visibly upset Devon, who remained on the block they'd just left, standing with his hands on his head and stomping his foot.
Sammi looked back again. "What did he do, Al?"
"I can't talk about it now. Let's just go. Where is a damn cab when you need one?" Alessandra asked in frustration.
"Well, if you hadn't decided to talk to the Mr. Delicious Devil, we could have jumped on the shuttle and already been at the airport," she reminded her, but Alessandra was in no mood for it. She glared back at Sammi.
After another block, Alessandra came to a sudden stop, nearly making Sammi trip over her feet. She sat down on her suitcase and put her head in her hands before angry tears erupted.
"Okay. You ready to talk to me now?" Sammi knelt down beside her to listen.
Alessandra scraped the tears from her reddened face and nodded. "He's such a jerk and I don't know why I'm so upset. It doesn't make any sense. It's not like we were in a relationship or anything. Oh! He just makes me so mad. What an ass! He acted like I was some kind of desperate tramp. I got my own. I don’t need his. He doesn’t know me."
Sammi tried to stifle a laugh, but listening to Alessandra rant about a man she really didn't know was comical to hear. Alessandra had always been very practical and did things in exactly the same way every single day of her life. Sammi thought it funny that a little nudge out of her comfort zone seemed to turn her into a whole other person, someone not very different from herself.
"You know who you remind me of?" Sammi asked laughing.
"Shut up! I don't want to hear it." Alessandra started to laugh too. She recognized who she'd become and didn't want to admit it just yet. Sighing, she asked, "Why did I let you talk me into this?"
"Because you love me and you needed to get out of that feeling-sorry-for-yourself mode. You are gorgeous." Looking at her tear stained face, she clarified, "Well, not now, but normally you're gorgeous."
Alessandra scoffed.
"What I'm saying is that you were in a rut - a really sad and boring rut - and you needed to snap out of it. So what if this one man is a jerk. They all are! Don't act like that's new information. And, the reason it bothers you so much is because you like him. I get it. He's hot and mysterious and hot. Did I say hot? But, honestly, you took it too far," Sammi explained.
"What? You talked me into this?" Alessandra protested, standing up.
Sammi put her hands up. "Whoa. I told you to seduce him, not to develop feelings for him. Feelings are bad. They will get you in trouble. Never let your feelings get the best of you. That’s a guaranteed ride to Disaster City."
Alessandra didn't want
to admit it to herself, but Sammi was right. She had started to develop feelings for Devon and she didn't know why. Other than a nice breakfast together, they hadn't really spent any time together. She wondered if her vow to give up men made her forget how to read men and, more importantly, how to read her own feelings.
"Can we just go home?" Alessandra sighed, looking down the block for a cab.
"Let's do it. Forget Miami ever happened," Sammi agreed, walking out into the busy street to hail a cab.
*
Devil's Ride Page 3