Page 22 of The Devil

I check the time on my Rolex, and seeing there’s only two hours left before Jenna starts work, I let out a sigh.

I’m going to be late tonight.

I grab a couple of waters, sodas, and beers, then head back outside. As I near the veranda, Santiago says with a chuckle, “If Dominik gets Grace pregnant one more time, she might kill him. I think she’s reached her limit with four kids.”

“I actually had a vasectomy,” Dominik informs us. “Snip-snip and the problem is gone.”

I set all the drinks down on the open chair and take a few steps backward, crossing my arms over my chest while I glanceat the surrounding area, taking note of where the guards are stationed.

“I want five kids, then I’ll think about stopping,” Cassia mentions.

She has to make sure her line continues after the bratva wiped out her entire family years ago.

Santiago looks at everyone as he says, “Adan and Nadia keep us busy, but my Ciara wants another, and what my wife wants she gets.”

“I’m turning thirty-eight,” Leo mutters as he helps himself to a beer. “Haven brought it up the other day and used it against me, saying we don’t have all the time in the world and should start having kids.”

“So, are you?” Cassia asks while grabbing a bottle of water.

“Yeah. She’s stopped contraception, so we’ll probably try to get pregnant once I return home.”

“Can we change the topic?” I ask.

“Why? You don’t like talking about babies?” Santiago teases me.

“No, I don’t.” I glance at the lake.

For a moment, it’s quiet before Leo says, “Catch us up on what’s happening with the MC club.”

Santiago starts grilling the meat while I share everything I know, and by the time we eat, it’s already eight o’clock.

I feel uneasy as I look at the other alliance members, and no matter how hard I try to focus on the conversation, I can’t stop thinking about Jenna.

It’s like I’m having withdrawals, and I need to lay eyes on her to take the edge off.

Chapter 7

JENNA

When nine o’clock comes and goes, my heart sinks.

It doesn’t look like Mr. Oliveira is coming tonight, which sucks. I was going to try to talk to him today. I even wrote a little note in case I chickened out at the last minute.

I ate all the pastries he gave me yesterday, and the washed container is sitting on the counter in front of me.

God, I was so full from gorging on the pastries that I slept like the dead for eight hours. I haven’t had such a good day in a very long time.

Seeing Mr. Oliveira every night for the past week, I couldn’t help but form a crush on him. I’ll never act on it, but it feels so amazing, and I’m constantly excited to see him again.

I picture him coming into the store and asking me out on a date. We’d go to dinner at a fancy restaurant. The kind that uses fabric napkins. He’d only have eyes for me, and that would make me feel special.

A dreamy smile curves my lips as I get lost in my fantasy.

When we’re done eating a five-course meal that has my stomach bursting at the seams, he’d take my hand and we’d walk through town for everyone to see I’m not as weird as they think.

Mr. Oliveira would pull me to a stop in the middle of the sidewalk, and slowly, he’d lean down until our mouths touch in a sweet kiss.

My cheeks grow warm as I keep replaying the scene over and over in my mind.