Little Conversations (5 page)

Devin fought a chuckle at his statement.  “Seriously!” she
cried, struggling to keep a straight face.  “Pelicans get these stuck on their
beaks and then can’t swallow.  They starve to death!  Or animals get them
caught around their necks and, as they grow, they get strangled.  Didn’t you
watch Happy Feet!?” Devin feigned complete outrage and shock.

Ronin cracked a half-smile.  “I must have missed that one,
honey.”  

The door opened and Amy and Joanie walked in like they owned
the place. 

“Okay, girlfriend, the party’s here!” Joanie called out. 

“Dude, Ronin,” Amy said to her older brother’s friend. “I
know you and Dev are suddenly like all buddies and everything, and we
loooooooooove that you bought the booze for us, but this is a girly night.  No
boys allowed!”

Ronin ruffled her hair, which never ceased to annoy Shane’s bratty
little redheaded sister.  “Luckily for you, small fry, I have no desire to
drink your fruity little frou-frou drink.”  Ronin chuckled and headed for the
door.  “You girls be careful and give me a call if you need anything.”  With a
wink, he was gone. 

T
he call
came four hours later.

Ronin was hitting the hay a bit earlier than usual.  The
guys had to leave at the crack of dawn to get to the job site.  Hopefully Shane
was getting a little sleep and not just knockin’ boots all night.  He could be
quite a bear when he was tired.  Although, getting laid generally made his
disposition a little better, so he might not be all that bad tomorrow with no sleep. 

His thoughts drifted to Devin’s face when he opened the
door.  He’d been surprised to see her there, and had instantly been very aware
of his undressed state.   But Devin had been quite perceptive of it also.  She
looked like she’d just been struck by lightning.  Her chest heaving and
struggling for breath, her mouth falling open in a perfect little ‘o’ shape. 
Her eyes burning with such clear desire.

All in all, he’d really enjoyed her response.  Probably more
than he should have.  As he had stood there by the door, so aware of the little
white towel loosely tucked around his waist, he made no effort to quell her
thoughts, shifting so his arms looked even broader when he crossed them over
his chest, leaning against the doorway to stretch his torso. 

And after he got dressed, when he came back into the living
room to see her crawling around on the floor, to see her on her hands and knees
with that lovely little ass up in the air, he could have wept.  That little
white skirt and firm tan legs.  The way her neckline had dipped low to reveal a
scrap of the lacy pink bra beneath it.  The way her eyes had gone soft and smoldering
when he slowly buttoned his shirt.  God, she was so damn cute.  Her teeth had
caught her lip, very nearly causing him to groan aloud and making it that much
more difficult to close his zipper over his rapidly swelling cock.

More than anything, at that moment, he wanted to pick her up
and fuck her senseless right then and there. 
To hell
with her feelings for Jake.
 

Ronin shifted in his bed, knowing he had to stop this line
of thought.  He was so wound up just thinking about it that he’d never fall
asleep at this point.  He’d never felt such a strong pull towards someone
before, not even Kim with her model looks and well-crafted seductive style. 
Kim who so easily deceived him.  Devastated him.  Before he’d even known it,
she’d taken everything he thought they were, everything he thought they were
going to be, and rejected it—rejected him.  She’d destroyed so much before he’d
even realized it.  He’d truly felt he would never recover, that his ability to
trust was completely crushed. 

But in the short time he’d known her, Devin had started to
fill that void.  Permeating all the little cracks and crevices Kim had left,
swelling to fill the emptiness. 
Fuck
, he needed to be careful.  She
still very much wanted to be with Jake.  Even if she was attracted to Ronin,
she’d drop him in a second if Jake came back to her. 

Ronin punched his pillow and shifted in his bed, willing his
thoughts to stop running rampant.  He closed his eyes, thinking of all he had
to do tomorrow on the job site to pull his mind from Devin.  Finally, he began
to relax and felt his consciousness started to fade.  Just as he started to
drift off, his iPhone rang from his bedside table. 

“Ronin?  It’s Joanie.”  Her voice was quiet on the other
end, but he could hear the worry in her voice.  “Um, could you come and …  Shit,
we need your help.”  

Ronin sat up in bed, instantly alert.  “What’s wrong,
Joanie?”

“Well, we’re at this party and all, and Devin’s having a
meltdown in the bathroom.”  She paused for a moment.  “Jake and Melanie showed
up.  Devin’s not handling it well.  She’s asking for you.”

“Fuck.  Where are you at?”

“Some guy named Jeff’s place.  Just the other side of the
bridge, on the right.”

“I know where it is.  I’ll be there in about ten minutes. 
And, Joanie?  Just keep her in there.  She’ll hate herself if she goes out
there and makes a scene.”

Ronin quickly threw on some clothes and climbed in his
pickup.  It was almost ten-thirty at night, but was still faintly light, as was
typical of Montana summers.  He wondered how much of the strawberry vodka crap
Devin had drunk and how bad of shape she was in.  His foot hit the gas as he
got to the straightaway on the edge of town, racing along the last few miles to
the bridge. 

He’d told Joanie ten minutes—he’d made it in seven. 

Ronin pulled into the big, circular driveway of the old
farmhouse.  Kings of Leon blared through windows that had been opened wide to
let in the cool evening mountain air after the heat of the day.  Ronin walked
through the front door to the usual party sight.  It was relatively calm yet,
but things were still gearing up.  Kids who looked barely old enough to drive
were milling around, ready to party hard on through the night.  A couple young
guys stood at the kitchen counter playing some sort of beer pong type of game. 
The stereo blasted
My Party
as people mingled, laughing and joking
around—and, of course, drinking like there was no tomorrow. 

A keg dominated the open kitchen area and Jeff, whose
parents owned the house, was frantically pulling a few fragile items off the
shelves to save them from the growing rowdiness in the room.  It wouldn’t matter,
though.  His folks were going to kill him anyway when they got home, if for no
other reason than the cloud of smoke that hovered in the living room.  Jeff’s
older brother had been buddies with Ronin in high school before going away to
college.  Ronin knew from experience that their mom could smell that shit a
mile away. 

Ronin weaved his way through the crowd towards the stairs,
guessing that Devin had sought the upstairs bathroom to get away from the main
group.  This bunch of kids was a bit younger than the one that usually ended up
at his place, and he garnered a level of respect as they parted like the Red
Sea for him to walk through the room.  Hell, he easily classified as a
heavyweight against all these scrawny high-school lightweights.  Ronin had
barely an ounce of fat on him, but he easily outweighed the biggest of these
kids by a good fifty pounds. 

“Hey, Ronin,” a kid would occasionally mumble in awe as he
walked by.  A few future party skanks shot him inviting looks through their
lashes.  But Ronin was on a mission. 

Taking the steps two at a time, he began to walk down the
upstairs hallway and his gut lurched.  Standing outside the bathroom, obviously
trying to hear what was going on inside, was Jake.  Ronin eyed him
suspiciously, and Jake’s head turned.  With a startled look, Jake saw Ronin
standing there and blanched. 

Ronin spoke in a dangerously quiet voice, so as not to tip
off the girls on the other side of the door.  “Where’s Melanie, asshole?  Does
she know you’re up here?”

Jake’s expression flitted between anger at Ronin’s crude
address and fear of the bigger man’s obvious anger with him.  “She’s in the
backyard, with some friends.”

Ronin’s jaw clenched.  “I suggest you go find your
girlfriend
,
then.”

“Devin’s in there.  She’s upset,” Jake said without
thinking.

“I know that, fucker.  Why the hell do you think that is? 
GET. THE. FUCK. AWAY.”

Jake backed away from the door at the threat in Ronin’s
eyes.  At the top of the stairs, he stopped.  “I don’t really want to hurt her,”
he said quietly. 

Ronin just glared at him until, without another word, Jake
descended the stairs. 

Ronin stood at the door for another moment, willing his
fierce anger to calm.  The more he knew of the guy, the more he wanted to kick
his ass. 
Someday…
  He took a few deep breaths to regain control, and
then he knocked. 

“It’s Ronin,” he said quietly, standing outside the closed
bathroom door. 

The door cracked open and Amy peeked out.  Seeing nobody
else in the hallway, she opened it farther to allow Ronin to enter the small
bathroom.  Joanie sat with her arm around Devin who had her face planted in a
towel to muffle her sobs.  As Ronin knelt on the floor before her, Joanie
pulled back a bit.  Devin raised her bloodshot eyes, her mascara trailing down
her face, and Ronin wished desperately that he had mopped the floor with Jake’s
face and thrown him down the stairs instead of letting him walk away.  Devin threw
herself at Ronin, and his arms wrapped around her shaking body, pulling her
close. 

“Shhh.  It’s okay, now, baby,” he crooned softly.  “I’ll get
you out of here.”

“I’m so glad you’re here,” Devin whispered in a shaky
breath.

Ronin rocked her for a moment, letting her tears fall and
absorb into the soft, faded denim of his shirt.  He looked over Devin’s head to
see the concerned expressions on the faces of Joanie and Amy. 

“Let’s get her out of here, girls,” Ronin said softly.

He scooped Devin into his arms and waited for Amy to open
the door.  She walked down the steps before him, attempting to clear a path
through the crowd.  Ronin followed, Devin’s face buried into his neck.  Joanie
grabbed their purses and jackets, joining them downstairs a few seconds later. 

“Ronin,” Joanie warned quietly as she walked up behind him,
“keep an eye out for… you know.”

“Took care of him already, Joanie,” he said over his
shoulder, just loud enough for Joanie to hear. 

She nodded back at him thankfully. 

Amy pushed her way through the crowd, easing the way for
Ronin and Devin.  The kids glanced at them with curious looks at the sight of
him carrying Devin.  Some gaped, some looked away, some whispered to their
friends.  But Ronin didn’t pay attention to a single person in the room as he
continued on out the front door. 

“I’m taking her back to my place,” he told the girls decidedly
as they reached his pickup.  “Don’t want her to be alone.”  Ronin looked over
and Joanie and Amy.  “Either of you need a ride, or are you sticking around
here for a while?”  The two girls glanced over at each other. 

“Um, nah.  I think we’re okay,” Amy said.  “I’ve got my
car.  We’ll head back into town in a bit.”

Ronin nodded as he slipped Devin’s numbly responsive body across
the driver’s seat to the middle of the truck.  Then he climbed behind the wheel,
pulled her closer to his side, and headed home. 

Devin drifted off as Ronin drove slowly back to town, his strong
arm around her in an attempt to calm her loneliness and grief.  He looked down at
her a moment after he pulled into his driveway and stopped the pickup.  Her
eyes were closed, her lashes spikey from the tears, her cheeks flushed from
crying.  She looked so lost… afraid… alone.  Every time he saw her so
vulnerable, it awakened a need to protect her—and to beat the ever-loving hell
out of Jake. 

He leaned his head back against the bench seat of the truck
and looked out into the night.  The raw edge of what Kim had done to him had
never completely healed and, from time to time, the sharp pang cut into him
like it had all happened yesterday.  But Kim had been quite some time ago.  He
hadn’t even seen her in probably two years.  Devin was still facing her demons,
in the flesh, every day.  He could see them in her eyes tonight when she focused
on him before her. 

He wanted her, painfully.  She was delectable—so refreshing
and cute, adorable and funny.  But he felt the need to protect her, to keep her
from being hurt like this anymore.  They were both so fucked-up over other
people, and he was sure he’d likely hurt her if things ever went beyond
friendship.  He didn’t want to hurt her… ever.

But friends?
  They could be friends.

“C’mon, baby,” he whispered to her, rousing her enough to
sit her up.  “Let’s get you inside.”

Devin’s eyes cracked open and focused dazedly on his face.  “Where
are we?” she mumbled.

“We’re at my place.  I’ve gotta get some sleep for work
tomorrow, but I don’t want you to be alone.”  

Her brows drew together in a frown.  “I’m sorry.  I shouldn’t
have asked Joanie to call you.  I didn’t know you were sleeping.”

“No worries.  I’ll get plenty of sleep.  I think I might kinda
like having you here with me anyway,” he smiled softly down at her.  “Now, quit
apologizing and sit up for a minute while I get out.”

Devin did, and Ronin reached for her once he stood.  He
helped her from the truck and put his arm around her waist to steady her as she
climbed the steps.  He guided her through the living room, the kitchen, the
hallway.  In his room, he sat her on his bed and slipped off her jacket and
shoes before motioning for her to lie down.  She sighed in comfort, rolling
onto her side, facing away from him.  He slipped into the warm bed next to her and
spooned against her, wrapping her in his arms. 

“Thank you, Ronin,” she whispered as she dozed off.  His
arms tightened slightly in response.