Page 16 of Private Exhibit (Gentleman Hackers #4)

DEVON STARED hopelessly at one of his computer screens.

He was still logged into the Gentleman Hackers chatroom, but there was nobody with whom to chat. Oliver was also logged in, of course, as was Grim , but Oliver was giving Devon some privacy while Grim was being his usual, silent self.

There was the hack to work on, but Devon was no longer in the mood. He glanced at the Rosses' letter, feeling that pang of rejection all over again. Devon shook his head. Work was the last thing on his mind. What he really wanted was a breath of life. Of beauty. Of peace.

He glanced at the time. It was late enough now that all the rush hour traffic would be gone, but not so late that he'd be cutting into his usual bedtime if he went out for a while. He wasn't keen on being around people, but at least it wouldn't be as bad as it was on the weekends.

Devon secured his computers, got up, and went to his room.

He changed back out of his pajamas and put on regular clothes, then went to the washroom and brushed his teeth for good measure.

Devon avoided the mirror, knowing what he'd see there.

A plain, uninteresting face that apparently not even a mother or father could love.

He swallowed down the heavy feeling in his throat and went to grab his shoes. “I'm going out.”

Oliver's head shot up from behind his monitors. “Out?”

“Yeah.”

“You usually never go out on a work night.”

“Tomorrow's an optional workday, apparently, so I don't have to go in. Besides, I need…” Devon paused, trying to find the word. “Something.”

“Right-o.” Oliver half rose out of his chair. “You want me to go with you?”

Devon shook his head. “I think I'm just gonna go for a walk.”

Oliver hesitated before he said, “Alright. Don't forget your phone.”

“Got it,” Devon said, tugging it just far enough out of his pocket for Oliver to see, then pulled on his shoes. Devon paused there. He took a deep breath and yanked the door open.

Devon yelped, nearly running into someone standing there, hand raised to knock. It took him a moment to recognize the man—the context was all wrong—but once he did, Devon felt his stomach turn.

Oh gods . It was Dr. Gerard. There. At his apartment. How? Why? Devon could barely look at the man's face, not wanting to even dare guess what Dr. Gerard was feeling, especially after all that anger earlier in the day.

“Oh no,” Devon gasped. “Did I do something wrong? Please don't fire me. I can do better–”

Dr. Gerard slowly lowered his arm as his brow creased in a frown. “Sorry. I got your address from the hospital,” he began, cutting Devon off, then his frown deepened. “Why would I be here to fire you?”

Devon squirmed. “I don't know.” He paused. “Why are you here?”

“I…uh…” The man rubbed the back of his neck, then blew out a heavy breath. “I don't–” He shook his head. “Sorry. Were you going out?”

“Yeah. Um. I was just going for a walk.”

“Mind if I join you?” the doctor blurted out in a rush.

Devon blinked. “You want to go for a walk with me ?”

“Yeah,” Dr. Gerard whispered. In a voice so low that Devon could barely make out the words, the man added, “Gods help me.”

“Oh.” Devon gulped.

“Dev?” Oliver called from across the room. “You alright?”

“Fine,” Devon gasped, whirling around to see Oliver studying their unexpected visitor. “Um. Oli, Doctor Gerard. Doctor Gerard, my roommate, Oliver.”

The two men nodded at one another, then Oliver disappeared back behind his computers while Dr. Gerard looked down at Devon. The doctor coughed, then took a step back. “Shall we?”

Devon felt a blush take over his face as he hurried out into the hallway and pulled the door shut behind him.

Dr. Gerard held out a hand. “After you.”

Devon ducked his head and turned towards the elevators.

The ride down was silent, as was the walk across the lobby and out the front door.

Dr. Gerard stayed just behind Devon the whole time, letting him lead the way, but Devon was just as aware of the man as if he'd been right in front of him.

He swore he could feel the doctor's presence.

Like his skin or his soul somehow knew how many inches away the man was at all times.

“Are we going anywhere in particular?” the doctor asked as they stopped at the street corner.

Devon felt his face go hot. “I wanted to go pick a new favorite plant,” he mumbled.

“A new favorite plant?”

“Yeah.” Devon risked a peek at the doctor's face.

He thought he saw genuine curiosity there instead of annoyance or condemnation, so he went on.

“Every time I get a new job, if I get to keep it for more than a day or two, I pick a new favorite plant along my route to work. Which is actually kinda hard because there are so many beautiful plants all over the city, but I like to pick a favorite anyway. It gives me sort of a touchstone, I guess. Something to look forward to. Of course, I really hated all my other jobs because they were too noisy and crowded, so I really needed that moment of peace and beauty to keep me motivated, but now…” He trailed off, feeling himself blush all over again. “Sorry. I'm rambling.”

Dr. Gerard looked down at him. His face was hard to read, but it wasn't as severe as it had been. If anything, Devon thought he saw a hint of a smile there. “Don't stop,” the man whispered.

Devon quickly turned away to hide a smile of his own, then crossed the street when the light changed. “Doctor Gerard?”

“Call me Andy,” he murmured, his tone almost making the statement sound like a question.

Andy. Devon pressed his lips together, fighting the urge to grin. It felt so wrong to think of the man by his first name. It was too intimate. Too personal. The man was his boss, after all. Yet it gave Devon a thrill nonetheless. Andy. Andy. Andy. “Andy,” he breathed. “Alright.”

After a beat, Andy asked, “What were you going to ask me?”

“Huh? Oh.” Devon frowned and shook his head.

“I forget–” He gasped. “Oh!” Devon turned towards the curb, staring at the building across from them.

The structure was enormous, taking up the entire city block.

Big windows stretched all along the facade, showing off the wares of the various shops on the ground level, but there were no doors that Devon could see.

Just a tall, wide archway that opened into an inner courtyard.

Presumably, all the shop entrances were in there.

But that wasn't what caught Devon's eye.

“What is it?” Andy asked.

Instead of answering, Devon blurted out, “I need to see it closer.” He hurried to the nearest crossing, raced to the opposite side of the street once it was safe, and headed for the building.

As he drew near, he noted the archway was adorned with clinging vines, adding color and texture to the structure, making it look like a living tunnel as he stepped through it.

He entered the building's inner courtyard, open to the sky, and stopped with another gasp.

“Oh,” he whispered, staring up at the jacaranda tree in full bloom. “It's so pretty!”

He slowly circled the tree, reaching up to carefully brush his fingertips through the lower-hanging growth. The vibrant greens and purples brought an instant smile to his face.

It was so cheerful. So alive.

Devon felt Andy watching him the whole time. The awareness made him blush, but he couldn't make himself walk away. The simple beauty of the tree was too perfect to miss.

“You know, they have these in the hospital gardens,” Andy said quietly.

Devon whirled around to face him. “They do?”

Andy nodded. “I used to take…Well, I used to go sit out there sometimes, between patients. There are gardens on every level. All a little bit different, if I recall. You could go explore them on your lunch breaks.”

Devon felt his chest swell with excitement.

He'd caught glimpses of the terrace gardens every time he'd been to the hospital, but only from the street, gazing up at the building.

The gardens were only accessible from inside the hospital itself.

Any time he'd been there as a patient, all he'd wanted to do was get out as quickly as possible, so he'd never bothered lingering long enough to seek them out.

But now he had a good reason.

“Yeah,” he agreed, eager to take Andy's suggestion. “Yeah, that'll be really nice.”

He turned back to the tree and gazed up at it again. This was just what he'd needed. Something colorful and pretty to cheer him up.

“Devon?”

Devon gasped. It wasn't the first time Andy had used his name, but somehow, it felt like it was, and it sounded so achingly intimate in that voice. Of course, that was probably just him hearing what he wanted to hear, but still. “Yeah?”

“What's wrong?”

“What do you mean?”

“You looked…sad.”

“Oh.” Devon pulled his shoulders in, stopping short of hugging himself. “I just had a rough evening, that's all.”

Beside him, Andy visibly tensed. “An attack?”

“What? Oh. No.”

“Was it the fight? I'm really sorry about that, by the way. I should have apologized earlier.”

Devon shook his head. “No, it wasn't that,” he said. He paused, tempted to ask why Andy hated Dr. Crawford so much, but he didn't want to see the man angry again. “I just got some sort of bad news.”

“What kind of bad news?”

Devon waved a hand. “You don't want to hear about all that. It's a long story.”

After a tiny pause, Andy murmured, “I've got time.”

Devon shivered, feeling the man's voice all down through his body. “I know you're just saying that, but I appreciate it.”

Andy frowned. “I mean it.”

Devon shook his head. “I know I'm boring and weird, and it was really nice of you to come out with me like this, but–”

“Devon,” Andy interrupted him, the sound of his own name making his skin tingle all over. Andy paused, holding his gaze, then breathed a curse and shook his head. “Gods help me, there's nowhere I'd rather be right now.”

“Really?” Devon blurted out.

“Really.” Andy looked up at the tree, a thoughtful expression flitting across his face, then looked back down at Devon again. “Let's keep walking. See what else we can find. We can stop by here again on the way back. How's that sound? And, if you want, you can tell me about your evening.”

Devon gulped. It sounded like the man really meant it. But how could he? Other than Oliver, nobody ever wanted to spend time with him.

He thought of that awful letter again.

Devon winced. Maybe he could tell Andy all about it. Something about the man made him feel safe. Like he could unload all his problems, and Andy would hold him up. Keep him steady. Devon had no idea if he was imagining it or seeing what he wanted to see, but the feeling persisted.

“Alright,” he agreed.

Andy smiled. A genuine, actual smile.

The sight made Devon tremble all over.

“After you,” Andy murmured.

Devon blushed and ducked past him, heading through the archway and back out onto the sidewalk. He reoriented himself, facing the direction of the hospital, and headed down the street, so aware of Andy beside him that he thought he might burst.

It was so simple and so absolutely perfect.