Page 2 of Devon (Krsnik Clan #5)

WHEN DEVON RAN AWAY, Ryan moved to go after him.

Why wouldn’t he? That was his mate, and for some reason, he was so distraught to find out they belonged together that he was running from Ryan.

Kendrick grabbed Ryan’s shoulder and kept him where he was.

Ryan frowned and pulled, but his brother wouldn’t let go.

“Don’t,”

Kendrick said.

“But he’s leaving.

I have to go after him and talk to him.”

He had to convince Devon to at least give him a chance and to listen to him.

“It won’t change anything even if you do.

Devon needs time.”

Ryan had no idea what Kendrick was talking about, but from his expression and the way he was speaking, Ryan could tell there was something there.

“You know Devon?”

Kendrick dropped his hand. “I do.”

He was trying very hard not to look at Ryan, which told Ryan what he wanted to know, or part of it anyway.

Whatever was happening with Devon, Kendrick knew what it was and didn’t want to talk about it. “Tell me.”

Kendrick shook his head.

“We should go home.

Jonas is probably waiting for us.”

“He should still be asleep.

It’s early.”

“I texted him when we left Clay and Rowan’s house.

He’s awake, and he’ll want to know about this.”

“Why would he want to know about it?”

“Because you’re my brother, and you met your mate.

I’ll never know how it feels from your point of view, but I’ve been where Devon is.”

Kendrick’s words made Ryan feel guilty.

Kendrick was right. Kendrick was human, like Devon. Ryan knew nothing of how Jonas and Kendrick had met, but Kendrick did know what Devon was feeling. He’d been in his place. He also knew Devon.

If Ryan wanted a chance to understand what was going on, he needed to talk to Kendrick.

“Come on,”

Kendrick gently pushed.

Ryan glanced back in the direction in which his mate had disappeared, but there was no sign that Devon had ever been there.

Ryan desperately wanted to know where he’d been going and what he’d been planning on doing with his day, but he wouldn’t get answers to those questions. He also couldn’t go after Devon. Not only did he not know where Devon had gone, but he also suspected that Kendrick was right and that Devon needed time. He probably wouldn’t appreciate it if Ryan hunted him down like prey.

When Ryan finally moved toward Kendrick, his tiger tried to rebel.

It wanted to go after Devon and make their mate happy, but there was no way for them to do that right now. They didn’t know what the problem was or what Devon needed. It was best for both of them to keep some distance until both Devon and Ryan could wrap their minds around what had happened. It wasn’t like the village was big, anyway. Ryan was sure he could find Devon if he went looking for him.

“Is there a problem with Devon being my mate?”

he asked as he and Kendrick walked toward the house.

“I don’t think so.”

“But you’re not happy for me.”

“Why wouldn’t I be happy for you?”

“I don’t know.

You tell me since you know him and I don’t.”

“It’s complicated.”

Kendrick pushed open the front door and gestured at Ryan to go in.

“Things usually are in the village.

Everyone who lives here has been through a lot, including him.”

“Who are we talking about?”

Jonas asked as he appeared from the kitchen.

He was holding a closed stainless-steel mug and sipping from a straw.

Ryan was careful not to look too closely at whatever was in the mug.

He knew, but I didn’t mean he wanted to see it. He was curious, though.

“I thought you got your blood from my brother,” he said.

Jonas wrinkled his nose.

“Usually, I do, but I lost blood yesterday, and I wanted to be sure I didn’t take too much from Kendrick.

Besides, he was gone when I woke up.”

Kendrick was next to Jonas instantly, wrapping an arm around his waist and leaning close to kiss his temple.

“You shouldn’t be awake.

You need more rest.”

“I’m fine.

The bed was empty without you in it, though.”

Kendrick kissed Jonas on the lips, seemingly not caring that he had to taste blood.

Ryan looked away, both to give them privacy and because it made his stomach churn. He had nothing against Jonas, but he didn’t know how Kendrick did it. Ryan supposed that if Jonas was his mate, he wouldn’t have a problem with it, either. He was glad that Devon was human, though.

He’d never really thought about meeting his mate.

He was young, even for a shifter, and he’d thought it would be decades before he did. Meeting his mate hadn’t factored into his plans for his future. He’d worked and had put money aside until his father had demanded all of it for rent. Ryan had known his life would be different in the village, but he hadn’t expected it to be so different that he’d end up bonded.

Not that that was about to happen.

Devon could barely even look him in the eyes and had run from him. Ryan wanted to talk to him, but maybe he should find answers before he did. He didn’t like going into conversations completely in the dark, especially when the person he was talking to knew at least something about what was happening.

He eyed Kendrick and Jonas.

They were softly talking, and Jonas kept glancing at Ryan. It was obvious that Kendrick had told him about Devon and what had happened with him. He knew that Devon was Ryan’s mate, and for some reason, there was pity in the way he looked at Ryan now.

Ryan wanted to snap at both of them to stop it, but he reminded himself that he was here because they’d welcomed him into their home.

It wouldn’t do anyone any good if he snapped at them. In fact, it would be disrespectful, and Ryan didn’t want to hurt his brother or Jonas.

“Did you have breakfast?”

Jonas asked.

“Before leaving the house,”

Kendrick confirmed.

“But if you want some company while you eat, I can sit with you.”

Jonas nodded.

“Please.

Ryan, why don’t you come with us?”

Ryan wrinkled his nose.

“What are you planning on eating for breakfast? Is that it?”

He tilted his chin toward the mug.

Jonas grinned.

His fangs glinted in the sunlight. Ryan shivered when his mind flashed to other fangs that had gone for his throat. He was lucky to be alive.

“I need regular food, too,”

Jonas reminded Ryan.

“I was thinking pancakes, if I can convince Kendrick to make them for me.”

“How about cereal?”

Kendrick offered.

“Pancakes are better,”

Jonas said with a pout.

When Kendrick leaned in to kiss him again, Ryan rolled his eyes.

He was glad to see that Kendrick was happy and in love, but he didn’t want to watch his brother make out with his mate.

He loudly cleared his throat.

“I wouldn’t mind pancakes.”

Kendrick frowned.

“You already had breakfast.”

“And maybe I want a second breakfast.

I’m a bit hungry.”

Ryan patted his flat stomach.

Kendrick stared at him for a moment before chuckling.

“I forgot how much teenage boys eat.

We’ll have to go to the grocery store soon.”

Ryan suddenly felt guilty.

“I can do that for you.”

He had some money in his bank account, just not enough to survive on his own.

“I didn’t say it as a dig against you.

I want you to eat a lot. I want you to be comfortable here. This is your home as much as it’s mine and Jonas’s.”

Ryan could tell that Kendrick was serious and that he truly believed that.

He was touched, but that didn’t change the fact that it wasn’t his home. It was his brother’s home, and while Ryan was grateful to be allowed to stay and even more so to have Kendrick back in his life, eventually, he’d have to stand on his own two feet.

He also didn’t think that he would truly ever feel like it was his home.

It wasn’t meant to be. Eventually, he’d have his own home, full of his stuff, and he could set it up the way he wanted. In the meantime, though, this was much better than sleeping on the streets like he would have if Kendrick hadn’t come to pick him up.

“Come on,”

Kendrick said as he clasped Ryan’s shoulder.

“Let’s get those pancakes ready.

How many do you want?”

“I don’t know.”

“Well, you’ll have to think about it quickly.

Jonas tends to eat every pancake that hasn’t been claimed.”

This might not feel like Ryan’s home, but Kendrick and Jonas did feel like family.

DEVON’S HANDS WERE still shaking as he drove toward the closest town.

When he’d slammed into his car, he’d hesitated to drive. He hadn’t been sure it was a good idea, considering how shaken he was, but he hadn’t wanted to stick around. He was afraid that Ryan and Kendrick would come looking for him.

He didn’t know if they had.

Probably not. Kendrick was no doubt telling Ryan everything that Devon had done and warning him to stay away. It was what Devon deserved, so why did it hurt so much?

Devon had a mate.

He was human, but for some reason, fate had decided that he would be the perfect person for Ryan. It didn’t make sense. Ryan being related to Kendrick especially didn’t make sense. How was this possible?

Devon glared at the sky through the windshield.

He didn’t know if fate actually existed. He didn’t know if they were like a person or just a presence watching over shifters and other paranormal creatures, but he didn’t care. He needed fate to stop meddling.

He hadn’t asked for a mate.

He would’ve been happy sticking with having a boyfriend. He’d never expected to have a mate because he was human, and he’d been more focused on surviving and keeping Melissa and Haley safe. He didn’t care about mates or about fate. He just wanted someone to love him and care about him. He thought he could have that with Kendrick, but he’d been fooling himself.

He wouldn’t make that mistake a second time.

He might be Ryan’s mate, but that didn’t mean Ryan had to be with him.

Sure, Ryan wouldn’t find another mate, but he didn’t need to have one. He could be happy with a normal relationship like most humans were. Having a mate had to be overrated. Devon shouldn’t believe all of that stuff about mates being perfect for each other and whatnot.

There was no way he was perfect for anyone, let alone Ryan.

Ryan had been so cute when he’d looked confused.

Even though Devon knew he’d done the right thing by leaving, he’d wanted to stay. He’d wanted to spend more time with Ryan, get to know him, and show him that he could be a good mate.

He couldn’t be.

He was leaving the village. That meant leaving Ryan, too, and even though they’d barely met, the thought broke Devon’s heart.

He leaned into the feeling.

The pain was what he deserved after what he’d done to Kendrick. He didn’t understand what Ryan had done to deserve to be saddled with him, but Ryan would be fine eventually.

Devon just had to avoid him until then.

He knew that Ryan would try talking to him.

He was a shifter who’d just met his mate. Of course he would try to convince Devon to be with him. Devon wouldn’t blame him for that, but he couldn’t listen to whatever Ryan had to say. He was weak and cruel, and Ryan didn’t deserve that. Devon had to stay as far away from him as he could. It would be the best thing he could do for all of them, but especially for Ryan.

Devon would stop feeling the pull toward Ryan, especially after he left the village.

It would be more complicated for Ryan, but that was why Devon needed to start staying away from him now. The less time they spent together and the less they knew each other, the easier it would be for Ryan. It was the least Devon could do. He’d make the process of rejecting his mate as smooth and easy as he could.

For Ryan.

Devon was still shaken when he found a parking spot on a side street, but he felt better.

Now that he was away from Ryan, it was easier for Devon to think clearly. This was the right thing to do. He would avoid Ryan, find a job, and spend as much time there as he could, and once he had enough money to land on his feet, he’d leave. He might have to leave his car because, technically, it belonged to the clan, but he’d find a way around that.

Maybe he could buy it from Clay and Rowan, but that would mean telling them why he needed to do that and explaining that he was leaving, which wasn’t something he was planning on doing.

He was tempted to just disappear one night and never come back. It would hurt Melissa and Haley, but wouldn’t it be better for them to get a fresh start like that?

Devon didn’t want to tell people he was leaving because they’d try to stop him.

They couldn’t see that things would be better for them without him. It would hurt for a bit, but eventually, they’d realize they were better off without him like his parents had.

He squeezed his eyes shut.

He couldn’t start thinking about that. He had something important to do, which was to find a job.

He got out of his car and looked around.

He’d gone from living in a city his entire life to living in a small village, but this town was neither of those things. It was small but bigger than the village, and it was quaint. Devon almost expected people to pop out from the bushes and start singing like in the movies.

No one did, even as he neared what he thought was the main street.

He’d driven on it on his way in, but all the parking spots had been taken. Now that he got a better look, he wasn’t surprised.

This seemed to be the street where all the businesses were.

He saw a pet shop, one that sold things for babies, a bookstore, and a small Italian restaurant. There was also a coffee shop that had a help wanted sign in the window.

Devon’s heart raced as he made his way toward the coffee shop.

He’d never worked as a barista, but he was sure he could learn. He just needed someone to give him an opportunity.

His hands were sweating as he walked inside.

He’d never had the money to go into coffee shops and order stuff to drink. He glanced up at the sign, his sight swimming when he saw how many options there were. How was a barista supposed to remember how to make all of them?

“Everything okay there?”

the man behind the counter asked.

He was older than Devon, maybe in his late thirties.

Ryan blinked.

“I’m fine.”

He cleared his throat.

“I saw that you were looking for someone to work here.”

The man finished drying his hands on the towel he was holding and offered one to Devon.

“I am.

I’m Alex.”

“Devon.”

A door behind the counter opened, and a man came in.

He was younger than Alex, probably close to Devon’s age, and had dark eyes and hair flopped over his forehead. There was a piercing in his eyebrow, and he was whistling.

Alex sighed as if this was a common occurrence.

“Nicholas.”

“I already told you to call me Nic,”

Nicholas said, wrinkling his nose.

“When you call me Nicholas, it makes me sound like I’m a hundred-year-old.”

“Stop whistling.

It bothers some of the customers.”

“You mean the customers who don’t know how to have fun?”

“Nicholas.”

Nic raised his hands.

“Fine.

I won’t whistle again.”

He glanced at Devon and smiled.

“And who’s this?”

“This is Devon.

He’s asking about the job.”

Alex turned back to Devon.

“How about you shadow Nicholas for half an hour and see if this is something you want to do? If it is, I’ll hire you.”

Devon blinked.

He’d thought it would be much harder to find a job.

“I don’t have any experience.”

“Neither did I until I opened this place,”

Alex said with a smile.

“I don’t need you to have experience.

I just need you to be willing to work.”

“I’ll take care of him,”

Nic drawled.

That sounded ominous, but Devon was pretty sure that Nicholas was flirting with him.

He didn’t know how that made him feel, so he looked down at his feet until he was sure that Nic wasn’t staring at him anymore. He didn’t have experience being flirted with. When people had hit on him when he’d lived on the streets, what they wanted had been clear. Devon had always said no. He hadn’t wanted to survive that way, although he would have if that was what it took to make sure that Hailey was okay. He’d been lucky.

When Devon glanced back up, Alex was visibly exasperated.

“Get back to work,”

he ordered Nic, who saluted him and winked at Devon.

Devon’s cheeks flushed.

He really needed the job, but that meant that he’d have to learn to deal with Nic.

He wasn’t sure how to do that.

RYAN COULD FEEL KENDRICK and Jonas watching him.

They’d been doing it since they’d walked into the kitchen. Kendrick even kept glancing at Ryan while he was cooking pancakes. Something was going on, and Ryan was a bit afraid to ask what that something was. Instead, he’d focused on the plate in front of him and the pancakes on it.

They were pretty good.

He hadn’t known that his brother could cook, but then, there were many things he didn’t know about his brother. He wanted to find them out, but at the same time, he was afraid to ask.

He glanced up, only to see that Kendrick and Jonas were staring at each other.

It was clear from the way they moved their heads and from how their expressions changed that they were communicating silently. Yes, something was wrong, and Ryan suspected he was about to find out what.

He waited, expecting one of them to say something.

He wasn’t surprised when Jonas was the one who finally brought it up.

“One of us needs to say something,”

Jonas said.

“I’ll do it,”

Kendrick told him.

Jonas arched a brow.

“Then do it.”

Kendrick turned to Ryan and opened his mouth, only to snap it shut.

He frowned. He was starting to freak Ryan out, and Ryan needed him to stop.

“Just spit it out,”

he begged.

“I don’t care who tells me whatever you’re so anxious about, but you’re making me anxious too.”

Kendrick rubbed his face with a hand as he sighed.

“I’m sorry.

I never meant to freak you out, but there’s something you should know about Devon.”

Ryan’s stomach dropped.

He’d known this would have something to do with his mate. Why else would Kendrick be behaving so strangely right after Ryan had met Devon.

“I’m listening.”

As little as Ryan wanted to hear whatever this was, he needed to know.

Devon was his mate, and whatever was about to come out of Kendrick’s mouth would change the relationship Ryan would have with him. Hell, Ryan may not have a relationship with Devon at all after this, depending on what Kendrick was trying very hard to skirt around.

“First, I want to tell you how I met Devon,”

Kendrick said.

“You know I’m a hunter, but you probably don’t know what I did before becoming a clan member.”

“I don’t know anything about you.

You left me ten years ago, and I didn’t hear from you again until now.”

Ryan wasn’t saying it to hurt Kendrick.

It was just an observation.

Kendrick grimaced.

“Right.

Well, I became a hunter and started working with other hunters. There was a group of them guided by a guy named Cornelius. We were all human, and we’d all been affected by the Kudlaks and what they do. We knew that we’d be stronger if we banded together so that was what we did.”

So far, Kendrick hadn’t told Ryan anything he didn’t expect.

Ryan was curious, though. He wanted to know more about his brother and the life he’d lived. He probably wouldn’t have gone through any of that if their father hadn’t pushed him away.

“Cornelius wasn’t a good person,”

Kendrick continued.

“I’m sure he had his reasons, like all of us, but over the years, he became hard and uncompromising.

One day, we found a group of three people hiding in an abandoned house. Two of them were Kudlaks. The last one was human. One of the Kudlaks was a child.”

Ryan swallowed.

He didn’t like where this was going, but he couldn’t leave. He needed to know.

He noticed Jonas reaching for Kendrick’s hand.

Kendrick allowed his mate to link their fingers together and gave Jonas a grateful smile that made Ryan feel like he shouldn’t be watching them. He glanced down at his plate, relieved to see that Kendrick’s attention was once again on him by the time he looked up.

“Cornelius ordered us to kill both Kudlaks and take the human with us,”

Kendrick explained.

There was pain in his voice, and Ryan prayed that his brother hadn’t gone through with that. He didn’t think so, but how would he know? He hadn’t known Kendrick in ten years.

“The human—Devon—protected his family.

He put himself in front of Melissa and Haley. He refused to let us touch them, let alone hurt them. He was only seventeen, and the three of them had been living on the streets for a while. Melissa and Haley weren’t related to him. They still defended each other as if they were family.”

Ryan could only imagine.

He was glad that Devon hadn’t been alone. He hated that his mate had lived on the streets, especially since he’d been so close to having to do the same.

“Anyway, to make a long story short, Clay and Rowan stepped in.

Melissa, Haley, and Devon ended up at the village with a bunch of us hunters who didn’t want to stay with Cornelius after what he did. We don’t care that Haley and Melissa are Kudlaks. They never hurt anyone.”

“Of course they didn’t.

Haley’s a child,”

Ryan said, even though he’d never met her.

Kendrick nodded.

“She is, and she’s very sweet.

Both she and Melissa are protective of Devon, just like he’s protective of them. They live together even now.”

“Not that I’m not happy to learn more about my mate, but I’m not sure where this is going.”

“I’m telling you this is so you can understand Devon better.

He lived on the streets by himself until Melissa and Haley took him in. Even after they did, their lives weren’t easy. It’s better now that they live in the village, but Devon never told anyone everything that happened to him.”

Kendrick eyed Jonas again.

“Whatever it was, it can’t be good.”

“That doesn’t explain why he latched onto you the way he did,”

Jonas grumbled.

Ryan had no idea what that meant.

“I’m sorry?”

“Devon convinced himself he was in love with me,”

Kendrick explained.

“I think he saw me as someone safe.

I’m human like him, and I’m a hunter. He got a crush on me and tried to convince me to be with him.”

Ryan couldn’t imagine that, mostly because Kendrick and Jonas were obviously happy together.

“What about Jonas?”

“We hadn’t met yet when it started,”

Jonas said.

“But Devon kept pushing even after Kendrick told him I was his mate.

He tried to convince Kendrick that I was lying and that he couldn’t be my mate because he and Devon belonged together. He made a fool of himself, even when both Kendrick and I were honest and blunt.”

Ryan frowned as he thought about the way Devon had reacted earlier.

He’d seemed fine after Ryan had told him he was his mate, even though he’d clearly been freaking out. It had gotten worse after Ryan had introduced Devon to Kendrick, though. Devon had been told that he was Ryan’s mate, and Ryan was the brother of the man he was in love with. Anyone would freak out, even without adding Jonas to the situation.

“Devon has been through a lot,”

Kendrick said gently.

“I don’t hold what happened against him.

He needed to feel safe, and he thought he could have that with me.”

“He was pushy and immature,”

Jonas said in a hard voice.

“We’ve all been through a lot, but we don’t do what he did.”

“He’s only just turned eighteen.

You and I are both older. Hell, most of the hunters and Krsniks in the village are older than Devon. I know you don’t like him, and I’m not asking you to become his best friend, but maybe you could give him a little grace, considering everything.”

Jonas crossed his arms over his chest.

His expression was stubborn, which Ryan suspected was his answer. He wasn’t surprised. He’d have been offended, too, if he’d been in Jonas’s place. Even after Devon had found out that Kendrick was Jonas’s mate, he continued pushing.

“Nothing ever happened between the two of you, right?”

Ryan asked Kendrick.

He was afraid of the answer, but he needed to know.

“No.

I never wanted him that way,”

Kendrick said.

“He reminded me of you, to be honest.

I think that’s one of the reasons I allowed him so close. It was like I had my little brother back. He needed help, and I missed you. I’m not telling you this so you can judge him harshly. I just feel you need to know why things will be tense and awkward. Devon finally understood what Jonas and I were saying, and he’s been avoiding both of us since then. As far as I know, he’s been avoiding most of the people who live here. I was surprised to see him outside today.”

Ryan leaned back in his chair.

He was glad he knew all of that, but he had no idea where it left him.

WORKING AT THE COFFEE shop wasn’t easy, but it also wasn’t the most complicated thing in the world.

Devon struggled to keep pace with Nic, but Nic had tried to make it as easy on him as he could.

“That’s it,”

Nic said as he put the coffee down on the counter and pushed it toward the customer who ordered it.

“You hand them their coffee, smile at them, and move on to the next customer.”

Part of Devon wished he had something he could take notes on, but another part didn’t want to look like a dork.

“Wouldn’t it be easier if you weren’t both taking orders and prepping them?”

That was how things worked in big coffee shops.

Devon had never really had the opportunity to use them, but he’d watched plenty of them and had even got respite from the cold a few times. It never lasted long, but it had been good.

“Which is where you come in,”

Nic said with a smile.

“Once I’m done training you, one of us will take orders, and the other will prepare the coffee.

You can start at the till.”

It was a relief.

It meant that Devon would have more time to learn how to make all the coffees. At the same time, he’d have to remember how much every coffee cost and to learn how the till worked.

He swallowed as he glanced at it.

He was nervous and worried, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t do this.

“You’ll be great,”

Nic said as he patted Devon’s shoulder.

“I was nervous my first day, too.

You’ll learn. People in this town are nice, and they usually don’t have a problem waiting a bit longer because you’re still learning the job. Besides, manning the till is the easy part. Wait until you have to learn how to make every single drink we sell.”

Devon sucked in a breath.

“I’m not sure that’s the best way to make me want to work here,”

he muttered.

“You have to work here.

I like Alex just fine, but he’s old and grumpy.”

“I heard that,”

Alex called out.

He was in the back room, but the door was open.

Devon cringed, but Nic didn’t seem to care. He was still smiling, something that seemed to be his default.

He smiled at the customers.

He smiled at the kids with their moms and at the older gentlemen. He smiled at the hordes of grumpy teenagers, at Alex, and more so than anyone else, at Devon. He hadn’t stopped smiling at Devon since Devon had started working with him. Devon wasn’t sure what to make of it. He didn’t want to encourage Nic because he wasn’t here to stay, but even if he was, his heart was still bruised. He could do with a friend, though, and he hoped that was what Nic would eventually become.

The thought made him frown.

He was planning on leaving. What would he do if Nic was his friend by then? It would be hard enough to leave Haley and Melissa. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to if he added a friend to the mix, but at the same time, he couldn’t be an island, not here at the coffee shop. He needed Nic to be friendly and to show him the ropes. He was going to be working with him, so there would be no avoiding spending time together.

He couldn’t tell Nic any of that, though.

Nic would probably poke and prod until Devon told him everything, and Devon wasn’t about to reveal what he’d done to someone who didn’t already know. He didn’t want Nic to look at him differently. He had enough of that at the village.

So he couldn’t tell Nic what had happened, and he couldn’t tell him that they couldn’t be friends.

That meant that he’d have to be friendly until he was ready to leave. It shouldn’t be hard considering the way Nic behaved. Devon just wished he could allow their friendship to deepen.

“Anyway,”

Nic said.

“You got all of that?”

Devon felt overwhelmed, but he nodded anyway.

He was pretty sure he had gotten all of it. Doing it would be different, but he’d deal with that when he had to and not one second sooner.

Nic clapped his hands.

“Good.

That means that tomorrow, you can come in and start working the till.”

“Shouldn’t Alex make that decision?”

“He’ll be fine with it.”

Devon bit his lower lip and glanced toward the open door of the back room.

Alex had said that as long as Devon was willing to work, he’d be happy to hire him.

“Anyway, our shift is over,”

Nic declared.

“Hannah and Jackson will be here in minutes, and we can leave.”

“I thought you were the only one working here.”

Nic laughed.

“Oh, no.

I mean, there’s Alex, but the shop is his, so he has to be here all the time. Hannah and Jackson usually work shifts together. I’ve been working with Alex until now, but he keeps grumbling that he’s busy and has better things to do than help me.”

Nic leaned closer to whisper in Devon’s ear.

“If you ask me, he’s a slacker.”

Devon was pretty sure Nic was flirting again, although he could be wrong.

Maybe this was just how Nic was. Maybe he was just a friendly kind of person. Devon didn’t think he’d ever been flirted with, so it would make sense that he didn’t recognize it. He also wasn’t used to having friends, and he suspected that the line between friendship and flirting was easily blurred.

“I heard that,”

Alex said as he stepped behind the counter.

“And I do have better things to do, like running this place.”

Nic grinned and shrugged.

“Whatever you say, boss.

So? Is Devon working tomorrow?”

Alex’s smile softened when he turned to Devon.

“If you haven’t scared him off, maybe.”

“I’m not scared,”

Devon quickly said.

“I can come tomorrow.”

“Good.

I’ll have a contract ready for you when you get here at eight-thirty.”

“Why does he get to come so late?”

Nic complained.

“I have to be here at five.”

“That’s because you already work for me,”

Alex told him before turning to Devon.

“You’ll have to come in earlier once you start working here, though.

I hope that’s not a problem? Nic usually has the early morning to after lunch shift. If you’d rather come in later, we can move things around so you can work with Hannah or Jackson.”

Nic grabbed Devon’s arm.

“He’s going to work with me.”

Devon wasn’t exactly eager to get up that early, but he was fine with it.

“I can work with Nic,”

he confirmed as he gently tried pulling his arm away.

Thankfully, Nic let go.

Devon kept his focus on Alex as he said goodbye. He had to go back home, and while he wasn’t looking forward to it, at least he’d be able to leave tomorrow. He wasn’t sure how long he’d have to work there until he was ready to leave the area, but it was a start. It was a first step in the direction of being able to, and he felt relieved. He hadn’t been sure he could do this.

“Hey,”

Nic said as he rushed after Devon as Devon left the coffee shop.

“I was thinking we could see each other later.”

“What for?”

“Well, we’re friends, aren’t we?”

Devon blinked. “We are?”

“We just worked together for two hours.

Sharing shifts makes us family.”

Devon couldn’t help but laugh.

“We just went from friends to family.”

“You know what I mean.

I like you, Devon.”

Devon swallowed, but his mouth was dry.

“I like you too, but I have to go.”

Nic looked disappointed.

“Yeah? Well, I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“You will.”

Devon still didn’t know what to think of Nic, but he was going to need help, and he could tell that Nic wouldn’t hesitate to give him that.

It made him feel slightly guilty because he was still planning on leaving, but he didn’t have a choice.

He sucked in a breath when he reached his car and settled in the driver’s seat.

He felt the tension leave his shoulders, and he allowed himself to really think about the implications of what had happened today.

He had a job, which meant he’d earn money.

It wouldn’t be a lot, but eventually, it would be enough for him to be able to leave. It probably wouldn’t even take long since he didn’t have to pay rent or anything like that. As soon as he had enough set aside, he’d finally manage to leave Kendrick and Jonas behind.

Along with Melissa and Haley, the only family he’d ever had.