Secret Heir (Dynasty #1)(62)

Dani answers for me.

“Yes, Jazmine would love to go to the party with you, Devon.”

Now, it’s my turn to feel embarrassed.

He smiles back at me, and I find myself thinking that he really does have a great smile. He doesn’t have dimples and it’s not so beautiful that it’s difficult to look at, but then again, he’s also not an asshole who’s likely to break my heart in two.

“Great. Do either of you girls need a ride there, too?” he asks Dani and Keller.

“Nah, I drove here,” Dani replies.

“I hitched a ride with B, but it looks like his car’s gonna be full with all his groupies, so mind if I catch a ride with you?” Keller asks Dani.

“Sure, no problem.”

And with that, the two of them are walking off, leaving me alone with Devon.

I catch a glimpse of Raph over Devon’s shoulder and I notice that he still hasn’t moved and that he’s still staring. His eyes narrow as he notices that Devon and I are by ourselves and I almost hear the cogs in his mind whirring as he probably realizes that we’re going to the party together.

To my horror, I see him start to walk towards us, no, more like stomping. Layla is still next to him, but he isn’t paying her a shred of attention and she looks furious.

I quickly grab Devon’s arm to steer him off the field and he looks perplexed by my sudden rush, but goes with it.

Devon’s arm drapes around me casually and I stiffen at the touch, but there’s no way I’m about to give Raph the satisfaction of seeing me push Devon away. So, I lean into Devon instead as we walk off the field.

“Is this okay?” he asks after a second.

I catch a glimpse of Raph, who has now been intercepted by Baron, and Baron is clearly trying to talk some sense into him.

Not that Raph has any right to be angry. None at all.

“It’s fine,” I reply. “Great, actually.”

“Hey, D—got a death wish?”

I tell Devon to ignore the taunts from the other players as we walk off the field, but I’m not sure I believe my own advice, because Raph really does look like he’s about to murder my date.



Devon is the perfect gentleman during the drive from Gramercie back to the beach just beneath Regency Mount, where the party is tonight.

He doesn’t try to hit on me and doesn’t make a single inappropriate comment as we chill together at the beach party. We hang out with Dani, along with some other guys from the soccer team, who all look at Devon as if he’s a dead man walking. Then we dance a little on the makeshift dance floor, and sit by one of the bonfires. The whole thing feels so normal, like the typical high school date that I’ve missed out on all these years and part of me is really enjoying it.

But despite myself, I can’t deny that I can’t fully enjoy myself because part of my mind is elsewhere. It’s on Raph. Just like he was on the field and at school, he’s the center of attention at the party. Star player and team captain—everyone is congratulating him and paying their respects to the king. What the fuck ever.

He’s surrounded by at least half a dozen girls at all times and I don’t fail to notice that Layla never leaves his side.

I don’t know what Baron said to him back on the soccer field, but whatever it was, has stopped Raph from murdering Devon, although I do catch him glaring at my date several times throughout the evening, as if he would very much like to kill the guy. The whole thing is so twisted, that it just pisses me off even more.

“So, I’m guessing you know this but I’m kind of taking a big risk by being here with you tonight,” Devon says, as we sit by the bonfire, watching the flames flicker and dance.

“Oh you are?” I reply in a teasing tone.

“Yeah, I mean Raph’s been giving me the look of death all night.”

“You noticed that, huh?” I say, with a grimace.

“Kind of hard not to and I’m sure soccer practice isn’t going to be much fun for the next few weeks.”

“Sorry.”

“But I guess what I’m trying to say is that it’s worth it. Because I like you, Jazmine, and I want to get to know you better.”

His words surprise me and at the same time I don’t know how to respond. I mean, Devon is good looking, funny and seems like an all-around decent guy. But do I like him? Do I want to get to know him better? I have no clue. My stomach doesn’t flutter when he’s around, my heart doesn’t pound like crazy. But he also doesn’t irritate the hell out of me or make me feel like I’m standing on the edge of a cliff about to fall to my death. He’s open, honest and uncomplicated. He’s being up front about how he feels and what he wants from me—and maybe that’s the most that I can expect.

The uncertainty must show on my face.

“Look, I’m not sure if something’s going on between you and Raph …” he starts.

“There isn’t,” I interject quickly. “I mean, he used to hate me and now he doesn’t and that’s it.”

Devon pauses for a moment, then nods.

“Okay, well, if you ever want to hang out—on a date or otherwise, I’m here,” he says then.

“And in particular, if you don’t have a date to the Fall Ball yet, then I’m also here,” he adds.