Devereaux Billionaires Complete Series: Books 1-4

by Mallory Crowe

  At the slightest thought of Evelyn being alone with him, in his bedroom, his cock surged to attention. Luke clenched his fists and took a deep breath, urging his body to come back under his control.

  He shouldn’t be this distracted by her. For the most part, she’d stayed out of his hair all day. Except for popping in one time to ask where the bathroom was, she hadn’t bothered him at all. Even so, Luke found himself hopping on his treadmill three different times to clear his mind, and from the feel of his erection at the moment, the physical exertion hadn’t done much to calm him down.

  As though he conjured her up, Evelyn popped her head in his doorway. She leaned her hip against the frame and glanced at the paperwork in front of him. “Are you planning on staying much longer?”

  “I was planning on waiting until I got the phone call,” he said.

  “I’m thinking it might still be a while.”

  “Are you spoiled by government hours—leaving right at five o’clock every day?” Not that Luke enjoyed working late, but he wasn’t about to tell her that.

  Evelyn held up her hands. “Hey. I have no problem working late. It’s the not eating part that’s getting to me. I brought some snacks that held me over for lunch, but I was thinking about ordering something in. Any good recommendations?”

  See, now if Michael were here, he’d know the best places to order in from. Luke had no clue. If Cali wasn’t there to take care of food orders for him, he’d usually end up leaving and grabbing something on the way back to his place. “I know a bunch of places we can eat out,” he offered. He didn’t want to go to a sit-down restaurant with her, but he didn’t want her to starve either.

  Evelyn shook her head. “I’m hungry, but I still have to work out after this and I don’t want a big meal before that.”

  “I promise, I’ll tell you everything I learned from this phone call. There’s no reason for you to stick around. I can call you a cab right now to take you to the gym.”

  She smiled at him. “You’re not getting away from me that easily, Luke. Just tell me what you want to eat for dinner.”

  Hell, Luke didn’t know what he wanted. No, scratch that. He knew exactly what he wanted, and that was the problem. “We should get out of here.” He stood. Get out of the deserted building and onto the crowded streets. He didn’t care where they ate, as long as it wasn’t quiet or romantic in any way.

  “Sure,” said Evelyn. “Let me just grab my things.”

  Luke rubbed his temples. He could do this. Just a few more days or weeks and she would be gone. And maybe after a day or two, she would lose whatever strange spell she seemed to have over him.

  Without waiting for her, he gathered up his computer, workout bag, and the documents he’d need that night and headed for the elevator. He stood next to the buttons and stared down the hallway.

  And then it struck him. He knew exactly why he was so fascinated by the FBI agent. It had been too long since he’d gotten laid. Ever since Emma had almost been murdered, he’d been too distracted from his usual pursuits. Of course the smoking hot Evelyn Price would be constantly starring in his R-rated fantasies. As soon as he could ditch her tonight, he’d dial up one of his exes. There were a few he’d parted with on good terms, and as long as they were still single, most of his past flames were up for a few more orgasms.

  And Luke swore to himself that as long as he was with those other women, he wouldn’t imagine Evelyn’s gorgeous fuck-me lips screaming his name once.

  Evelyn thought Luke would immediately usher her into a car to grab some food, but instead he led her around the corner and approached one of the many street vendors lined up along the busy street. Evelyn shook her head emphatically and halted.

  Luke smiled over his shoulder. “Come on. This is quick and one brat won’t be enough to keep you from working out.”

  “Nope. Hell no. I am not eating a hot dog out of a vendor cart.” She’d done a lot of reckless things in her time at the agency, but she’d never had a death wish.

  Luke set a hand in the small of her back and led her closer to the cart with a line of about five customers who apparently had no concern for what they put into their bodies. She stared wide-eyed as the quick working man behind the cart handed out hot dog after hot dog.

  “They’re brats,” said Luke as they were the next customers in line.

  “Is that better somehow?” She grimaced as another one of the vile things was sold in front of her.

  “Well, it sure tastes better.”

  Luke dragged her up to the cart and the man behind the cart beamed down at them. His skin was dark brown from his days standing out in the sun, but his bright grin and frenetic energy showed that even though he was in the midst of the dinner rush, he wasn’t close to being tired. “Luke! Long time no see! Who’s this pretty lady?”

  Evelyn opened her mouth to reply, but Luke answered for her. “This pretty lady is Evelyn. She’s working with me for a little bit. Evelyn, this is Jake.”

  She smiled up at him and his face fell. “And here I was hoping you finally found a woman to make an honest man out of you!”

  Evelyn snorted. “It would take an army of women to make an honest man out of this one.”

  Jake shook his head. “Nah. This one’s already had an army. All he needs now is one special one.” He shot her a knowing wink before he turned back to Luke. “What can I get you two today?”

  “Two brats and two waters.” Luke reached in for his wallet. In a flash, Jake had the brats in buns and a thin paper wrapping and handed them over. Luke had his hands full, so Evelyn took them. She noticed Jake never had to say the price.

  Luke just handed him over one bill that Jake tucked into his apron before he ushered Evelyn over to the toppings. “You can put anything you want on there except ketchup. That’s not allowed on brats.”

  Evelyn raised a brow. As much as she did love ketchup, she wasn’t about to put it on a brat. But she decided to give Luke some grief about it. “Isn’t it just like a normal hot dog?”

  The look he gave her was of pure disdain. “I take it back. You let me handle your toppings.”

  He wrapped his fingers around her wrist to hold her brat still as he put a neat line of mustard along one side. “There. You get the basic. I don’t want you to get too overwhelmed with your first New York brat.”

  “Well, I appreciate you looking out for me.” She smirked.

  He smiled back at her and for a moment, they stood there, motionless. The pad of his thumb rubbed against the sensitive skin right beneath her palm, and Evelyn’s breath caught in her throat.

  But just as quickly as the strange moment started, it was over. The man who’d been in line behind them gave Evelyn the stink eye for holding up the toppings area and she stepped aside so he could get in as Luke piled topping after topping on his own brat.

  As soon as his was about twice the size of hers, Luke tilted his head to an empty bench across the sidewalk. She managed to keep her shoulder bag perched in place as they maneuvered through the pedestrians without spilling any of the toppings. Evelyn did a quick once-over of the bench to make sure that none of the pigeons had used it as a completely different type of seat before she sat and handed Luke his brat.

  He set her bottle of water between them as he took a massive bite out of his brat. At that rate, it wouldn’t last more than thirty seconds. But he paused to savor the food, closing his eyes as he finished chewing.

  “I didn’t realize food poisoning tasted so good,” she muttered.

  He took one last swallow and motioned toward her own untouched brat. “Just quit your bitching and eat the damn thing. You won’t die.”

  “Probably won’t die,” she clarified. “There’s a difference.” He glared at her and she decided it was time to bite the bullet. Or brat, in this case. The thing was massive and it didn’t make matters any easier that Luke stared intently at her.

  She sighed before she opened wide. She made sure she got a bit of bun, brat, and mustard in the
bite, but the second she bit down, juice squirted on her face. She quickly dabbed at her cheek with the napkin, wondering whether the whole experience could be any more undignified, but then the taste hit her.

  Good Lord. It was moist and perfectly seasoned, and the bun was warm and scrumptious.

  She moaned as she finished the bite and Luke laughed. Evelyn rolled her eyes, but she didn’t even try to hold off before she took another bite. “Why does everything so bad for me have to taste so good?” she asked when she was about halfway through.

  Luke took one last bite of his own brat. “That’s just the way of things.” He leaned back on the bench.

  He looked so at home here in the middle of the city, eating the gross (if fantastic tasting) cart food. She felt as if she had a giant spotlight shining on her, saying, “Outsider! Outsider! She isn’t welcome!”

  “I’m surprised you like it here so much.” She leaned back, forcing herself to go slower and savor the rest of her meal.

  He appeared surprised. “Why’s that?”

  “Your family is from Georgia. You were raised there. That’s a far cry away from the busiest city in the country.”

  Luke’s gaze scanned the busy street. “I don’t know. I think this pace is better suited for me. Michael might end up moving back home at some point. If Lori agrees to it. That whole scene fits him better.”

  “And you’re a lifer?”

  He turned those blue eyes back to her without answering. “What about you? You going back to Texas first chance you get?”

  “You know it.” Evelyn took a deep swig of her water. “I was making a difference down there.”

  “Until you were shot.”

  Tension crept through her muscles. “Why bother asking questions if you already know the answers?” she snapped at him.

  “Because sometimes reactions say more than words ever could.”

  She tightened her lips. “So did you get the reaction you wanted then?”

  “More of one than I was expecting. I kind of thought you were a robot. It’s nice to see that you’re more normal than I thought.”

  She snorted. “Normal because I don’t like being shot?”

  “Normal because you’re pissed off you were shot. I imagine I’d feel the same.”

  “You have no idea.” She doubted Luke had ever felt as powerless as she had those terrifying few moments after the bullet ripped through her thigh. Knowing she was trapped and that if she moaned in any way or breathed too deeply, the next bullet would be going through her head.

  She ate the rest of her meal in silence as she tried to push the painful memories away. There was no point living in the past. She chose to live for the present. Or rather, the future. The future without Luke Devereaux in it.

  “So do you work out a lot?” Luke downed the last of his water bottle.

  She’d always enjoyed exercise, but she’d taken that love to a whole new level during her recovery process. The faster she was back to one hundred percent, the better chance she had of being transferred out of the white-collar division. “Every day,” she told Luke.

  “Well, we’re done with dinner and there’s still no call. Do I have your permission to go home or are we going to work out together?”

  Evelyn stiffened. Seeing as how her workout equipment was all at her apartment, she’d rather avoid that scenario. But if she backed down now and let him take that call alone, she’d be admitting that she didn’t need to be here full-time. That she could let things keep playing out like they had been.

  But she wasn’t about to do that. She was here to make sure this investigation got wrapped up. To make sure the Thirteen Stars were completely disbanded and held accountable, so she could get back to where she belonged. So she wasn’t about to admit defeat here and now on her first day with Luke.

  “You don’t want to work out with me,” she warned.

  He leaned forward and she realized that she’d made a horrible mistake. “Oh really? Think I can’t handle it?”

  Great. Now she’d activated his competitive side. “Oh, I think you can handle it. Far away from me, though.”

  “So I’m free for the night?”

  “No! I’m going to be there for the damn phone call, Luke.”

  “So we are working out together?” She opened her mouth to say no again, but he cut her off. “Because you normally work out right now and we’ve got nothing better to do. Unless you have any bright ideas?”

  She had at least fifty reasons why she didn’t want to work out with Luke, and every single one had to do with not wanting him in her space. But she wasn’t about to admit it. “You don’t even have workout clothes with you,” she settled on.

  He held up his duffel. “I always have workout clothes with me. I have a treadmill in my office.”

  “We’re not working out,” she repeated.

  He cocked his head and considered her for a moment. “Do I make you uncomfortable, Agent Price?”

  Those blue eyes were on her like a spotlight and she racked her brain for a good lie. Because he did make her uncomfortable. Incredibly, intensely uncomfortable in the worst way. “Of course not.”

  “Then give me the address and we’ll go.”

  “You’re not a member of my gym.”

  “I’m a member of whatever gym I want to be. You just give me three minutes alone with the manager and I’ll be in.”

  She snorted. “I doubt that. I’m the manager. I have a home gym.”

  “The exclusive club Evelyn? Well, now I really want to go.”

  So maybe her competitive streak was starting to be a problem. Evelyn twisted the key in the door to her building. Luke was eerily quiet behind her as she stepped into the old walk-up complex, but she figured there was nothing to say. He was taking too much joy in getting this personal look into her life.

  She didn’t break the silence as they made their way up the three flights of stairs to her studio. Not that there was anything too shocking about her living conditions, but it was still hard to have one of the richest men in the city seeing the small space she was able to afford. If she’d been willing to room with one of the other agents, she could’ve been in a nicer neighborhood or had the kind of apartment that guaranteed at least five minutes of warm water in the morning, but she liked her privacy.

  She also liked her space, but that bridge had already been crossed.

  Evelyn paused as she reached her door and glanced over her shoulder to Luke. “No rude comments, okay?”

  He actually looked insulted. “I’m a lot of things, but I’m not a dick. Do you expect me to laugh in the face of a tiny apartment?”

  “I give you some credit,” she admitted. “I didn’t expect you to laugh out loud.”

  She unlocked the door and held it open, twisting around to carefully study Luke’s reaction. She knew her space wasn’t about to get its own photo spread in Good Housekeeping, but it was hers and served its purpose well.

  The studio apartment was seven hundred square feet and every inch was put to use. Except for the bed in the far corner and the kitchen area, the entire floor had been converted into a gym with a treadmill, punching bag, and a weight set with an Olympic bar and plates going up to forty-five pounds.

  Luke let out a small whistle. “I feel like I understand you so much better now.”

  Evelyn rolled her eyes. “Big talk, pretty boy. You won’t have as much of a sense of humor after you have me for a trainer.”

  He set his briefcase on the corner table barely big enough for one person to eat at while she shut and locked the door, throwing the deadbolt and chain in place.

  “I can change in the bathroom.” She headed past him. It was the only area in the apartment that had a door. Her workout clothes were already laying out for her on the bed. She spread them out every morning so she had no excuse to skip a day. Evelyn snatched the sports bra and shorts from the bed and paused. There wasn’t a shirt out. Shit. She knew exactly where all her oversized t-shirts were. In the laundry bin sh
e’d dropped off at the cleaners that morning. Pickup was scheduled for after six, but she’d completely forgotten.

  “Everything okay over there?” asked Luke.

  Evelyn sighed. Looked as if she was working out in her sports bra today. Sure. Why not? Really, what else could go wrong? “Everything’s fine,” she muttered as she escaped to the bathroom. Grabbing a hair tie, she pulled her curls into a tight ponytail and stripped off her business suit.

  The skintight shorts stopped just under the curve of her ass and the bra covered more than most bathing suits, but it was still more (or was it less?) than she was comfortable with. Damn it. Back in Texas, she had a washer and dryer right in the basement of the house she rented. The house that was over three times the size of this place and cheaper.

  So what if her outfit was revealing? When she was lifting, she wanted to see her body to make sure she was working the right muscles. And what was the harm in Luke seeing her? It wasn’t as though she didn’t have the body to pull off the tight clothes. Thanks to her borderline obsession with getting back to her old position, she was in the best shape of her life. Actually, she could even see some abs emerging, which was funny because she’d tried to get abs her entire life.

  At least there was some silver lining to having a bullet tearing through her thigh and throwing her career on its axis. She’d go out there knowing she looked good, kick Luke’s ass in training and then have a damn good night’s sleep. Easy.

  As soon as she opened her bathroom door, all her plans crashed down around her. Luke didn’t look like a billionaire CEO anymore. He’d changed out of his suit and into a black t-shirt that hugged the muscles in his shoulders and chest in exactly the right way and his loose sweatpants fell perfectly against his toned ass.

  And then he turned around and his eyes raked over her body. For a brief second, neither of them said anything. Luke looked like less of a corporate man and more like a...man. A man who was just as silent as she was.