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Bex’s smile dimmed a bit, but she nodded a goodbye, turning back to the dishes as I ran out the door.
I scrambled into Dev’s truck, which idled at the curb of my apartment building, and buckled my seatbelt, heaving the first full breath I’d taken all morning. It smelled like him, like fresh cotton with the slightest undertone of sweat. Not gross sweat, the good-smelling sweat that only hot, athletic people could pull off. It was in their beautiful genes, probably linked to the one that made them like green juice while I craved milkshakes despite the havoc they wreaked on my lactose-intolerant body.
“Okay, now I’m ready,” I exhaled as I turned toward Dev.
“Alright, now if there’s one thing I know how to do, it’s avoid tense relationships. Seeing as moving out and joining the military isn’t an option at this point,” he paused, raising his eyebrows until I shook my head in confirmation, “We’re moving on to plan B.” He reached between us, lifting a travel mug with a triumphant grin, “Step 1. Caffeine.”
I popped the lid of the mug, moaning when I smelled the spices wafting out of the cup. Dev made the best homemade chai, grinding the spices himself and warming it on the stove. The recipe was supposedly a family secret, and Dev only doled out doses on special occasions.You’ll appreciate it more if it’s an occasional surprise,he always said when I begged for it. But he was right, because just the smell had me on the verge of tears as I inhaled the comforting spices. I must’ve sounded more pathetic than I thought on the phone if he had taken the time to make it.
“Step 2,” he continued as I sipped sparingly on my chai, “Mindless errands.”
* * *
“Buying a house is not a mindless errand,”I told him half an hour later as I shot glances at the giant house next to us. I’d thought we were going to buy laundry detergent or shop for gym supplies. Maybe go grocery shopping or get him another pair of athletic pants, since that was pretty much all he wore.
“It’ll definitely require all your focus,” he argued with a grin, sliding his sunglasses onto his face.
We walked across an expanse of grass behind a real estate agent as she listed off the attributes of the property. The land was about an acre, with neighbors far enough away that they didn’t feel suffocating. The large, modern colonial was similar in style to Alex and Ames’s house, with an open floor plan and a modern kitchen. We walked through the bedrooms and bathrooms, making note of our favorite and least favorite parts of the house. It was beautiful but large, and slightly too modern for Dev, who preferred comfort over style.
The next house was older, a sage green Victorian-style home with a steep black roof and tall, thin windows. The door and window accents were black, and the house was cute while also giving off a distinctly creepy vibe. It reminded me of the types of houses you saw in scary movies, where the unwitting family moves in and keeps climbing into dark attics and opening locked chests and then acting surprised when their asses got haunted.
Going along with the haunted theme, the landscape needed tending, weeds running rampant in the garden beds surrounding the house. Inside, the floors needed refinishing, but the fixtures were surprisingly updated while maintaining the antique style of the exterior. Despite feeling like the house belonged in a horror movie, I loved it.
“Dev,” I told him as we stood in the backyard, looking at where nature had overrun what had likely once been a nicely manicured yard, “If I win the lottery tomorrow, I’m buying this house. I’ll put in a greenhouse over there -” I pointed to a flat, empty piece of land in the back corner of the lot, “- and a giant garden bed here. I’ll grow all the unique flowers that are impossible to buy wholesale and sell them atIn Bloomand frolic among the petals and be that sad, single lady everyone thinks is a witch because she lives in the creepy house and spends too much time in the garden.”
Dev laughed at my detailed plans, pointing to the opposite side of the yard. “You could stick a gazebo there.”
I pointed a finger at him, nodding. “Nowthat’swhat I’m talking about. Gold star. I might have some in my purse.”
I reached into my bag, pulling out the stickers I kept around for the children who came intoIn Bloomwith their parents - along with just general scrapbooking and/or decorative needs - and made a big show of sticking it onto the back of his hand for safekeeping.
After Dev indulged my pipe dream and associated antics, we made our way back to the truck, quickly writing off the second house as an option. Even if it was adorable, it definitely wasn’t meant for Dev. It was too drafty and creepy for a guy as friendly as Dev, and no amount of redecorating would change its core.
After the Victorian, we took a break for lunch, food reinvigorating us for the next round. We hit a couple other houses, none worth noting. They were either too small for five people to comfortably hang out in or had neighbors that were too close.
Considering the necessity for discretion in Dev’s line of work, he couldn’t risk nosy neighbors paying close attention to his late-night comings and goings or the “equipment” he might have to move between his car and his home. The realtor didn’t even blink when I purposefully winked while telling her that Dev’s “work” required “privacy,” and I wondered if she was involved in the darker side of their business. I mean, mafia members - and those that worked for them - needed houses too.
We reached the last house of the day just as the sun began to set, driving back toward the forested land where we’d toured the earlier Colonial and Victorian homes. We drove closely behind the realtor as we made our way up the long driveway, my feet propped up on the dashboard as I pretended to massage my tired feet.
“This looks a lot more fun when the house-hunting is reduced to a thirty-minute tv show,” I grumbled from the passenger seat, the novelty of looking at houses having dropped off after the third dud.
“Got your mind off other things though, didn’t it?” Dev asked smugly from the driver’s seat, raising a brow in question.
He was right. I hadn’t thought about Bex since the first house, too focused on the task at hand. I quickly shoved Bex aside in my mind before she could creep too fully into my thoughts, concentrating on the latest house as it came into view. It was a white stone, cottage-style home, with large windows allowing glimpses into the first floor.
Dev parked in the driveway, and we walked up a short stone path toward the curved doorway, the black door a stark contrast to the rest of the house. We ducked under the low-hanging branches of a cherry tree, and I touched a branch as I murmured to Dev, “Imagine how gorgeous it would be in the spring, with the cherry blooms.” He hummed in agreement, following the realtor as she led the way into the house.
The inside was just as beautiful as the outside. It was an open-concept space and managed to toe the line between cozy and spacious, allowing enough room for hosting our group with ease without feeling lonely. I could imagine Dev in the living room, looking out the windows into the backyard, where I saw more flowering trees and decorative bushes creating a small garden oasis. I could see him cooking in the kitchen while I sat on the countertop beside him, Alex and Ames sitting in the breakfast nook while Bex set the dining room table a few feet away.
The bedrooms were upstairs, all of them with the same personality as downstairs, cozy and comfortable but spacious enough to not feel stifling. The bathrooms were updated but not flashy. While the house was on quite a bit of land, it was surrounded by greenery and landscaping, making it feel like a cozy cabin in the woods rather than a serial killer’s target, though a serial killer would have stumbled onto the wrong fucking house if he came after Dev.
“It’s close to Alex and Ames’s house, right?”
Dev nodded. “About ten minutes away.”
And that sold it. After a quick glance at me for confirmation, Dev turned toward the realtor with a grin. “Buy it. Whatever it takes, this is the house.”
She took the command with ease, which solidified the inkling I’d had that she was acquainted with Dev and Alex through the less-legal side of their business.
