Law #2: Don't Play with a Player: A Sweet Office Romance Story (Laws of Love) by Agnes Canestri (web ebook reader .txt) 📕

I suck in a breath and lower my gaze to his chest.

“I know I wrote that, but it’s not true. I shouldn’t have acted the way I did.” My voice wavers, but I steel myself to continue. Devon deserves my full-fledged disclosure. Even if my stomach is frozen in fear at his potential refusal, I’m going to come clean with him. If there is one person I’m ready to abandon my shell for, it’s Devon. “I know I’ve been wrong about Morgan and Hayley—”

Devon jerks back. “Wait, how do you know that?”

I play with my fingers instead of giving an answer.

Devon lifts my chin till our gazes meet. “Who told you that? Was it Ellie?” His voice isn’t angry but insistent.

“No…and yes. I heard it from Chelsea, who heard it from Katja, who heard it from Ellie, who heard it from you.”

“Ah, so it was a very straightforward gossip chain then.” He rolls his eyes. “At least it delivered you the correct information, unlike that previous rumor.”

“Why didn’t you correct me when I accused you unjustly, Devon?” I blurt out.

“I was caught off guard. You accused me of sleeping with Morgan. And then you jumped out with Hayley’s story.”

“I’m so sorry, Devon,” I mumble.

He shakes his head. “Don’t be. Though your allegations were entirely false, I realized I deserved your harsh words.”

“No, you didn’t!”

Devon rubs his neck. “No, I did. Not for what I did with Morgan or Hayley, but for how I lived my life before meeting you. I’ve been a selfish jerk. I toyed with others’ feelings. Unwittingly, yes, but I still did. I hurt women. Many.”

“You’ve changed, Devon. I know that.”

I brush a finger on his cheek, and he flinches as if my touch burns him.

He pulls back from me and sighs. “Yes, I did. But that isn’t enough. I’ll never be a truly wholesome person like you. I can’t make my past undone. Laia, you’re the purest and most wonderful creature I’ve ever met. You deserve someone better than me.”

My jaw drops as the meaning of his words settle in.

Devon didn’t lie because he was offended by my unwarranted incrimination. He kept me in the dark because he thought he wasn’t the right one for me.

I want to snuggle up to him, but the umbrella is in my way. I grab it from him and drop it to the ground.

“Why did you do that?” Devon asks.

“Because I want to do this.” I launch forward and snake my arms around his neck. I raise myself to my tiptoes and pull my face so close to him that my forehead caresses his chin.

The rain, which has turned from a drizzle to a downpour, cascades down on us, the licks of water drenching us and tickling our skins.

I tilt my face upward as he bends down. Our lips align but don’t touch.

“I’m not the man for you,” he whispers, a painful glimmer in his eyes. “Lord knows I want to be him. But you need someone more—”

“Hush,” I press a finger on his mouth. “You’re exactly what I need. And the only person I want. You don’t have to change or improve in any way. You’re perfect for me. Please forgive me for not believing this before.”

Chapter 50

(Devon)

Laia’s lips curl up, and she breaths the three magical words into my mouth softly. “I love you.”

My eyes widen. “Do you mean this?”

“Yes, Devon. I don’t want anyone else but you.”

Her words swirl in my head, coating my soul with a joy I didn’t think possible.

Laia thinks I’m good enough for her. She wants me. She loves me. Me!

My arms close around her hips, and I lift her gently in the air.

She gasps then giggles. “What are you doing? I’m too heavy!”

“You’re not. And I can’t stop the joy that overcame me. Not when I know that you love me. Because I love you too, Laia. More than anything in this world. If there is such a thing as soulmates, I’m sure you are mine.”

Without lowering her to the ground, I slowly close the gap between our lips. She cups my face, and our mouths mold into one.

The suppressed longing sweeps over me. It’s like a current that first percolates timidly, but with each shared breath it grows stronger. Before I know it, the sweet pleasure of her embrace enters every crevice in my soul, canceling and mending all the sorrow and past hurt.

The gushing rain rumbles around us with rhythmic cadence. Its music creates the perfect underpinning for our hammering heartbeats.

Suddenly I feel like dancing. I feel wholesome and happy with Laia in my arms.

I swirl Laia around slowly as if we were swaying to the storm’s melody, while we fight a playful battle to demonstrate who missed the other more.

I think I’m almost winning it when Ellie’s cheerful yell breaks our bliss.

“Here you are!”

We both turn our heads to my sister standing a few feet away under a red restaurant umbrella.

I lower Laia to the ground but don’t release her.

An ear-to-ear smile stretches on Ellie’s face as she winks at us. “Please, carry on. It was better than a blockbuster movie. Far more moving. I swear you looked like the couple on the cover of The Notebook.”

Laia’s cheeks blush, but her arms remain around my torso.

I’m glad she doesn’t feel bashful about showing her feelings anymore, because I’m sure not shy to shout to the whole wide world that I want to be with her.

“Did you worry about us?” I ask my sister. “You shouldn’t have. Your masterplan went down perfectly.”

Ellie wipes her forehead in a theatrical gesture. “Huh, I’m relieved. As time passed, I wondered whether you might’ve missed Laia and actually set out to check the bus schedule.”

“No, Devon found me,” Laia replies. She throws me a slanted glance, then grins at my sister. “And I was lucky because he forgave my stupid behavior.”

“There was nothing to forgive.” I wink at Laia. “And I’m the lucky one.”

Ellie giggles. “I guess my comparison wasn’t that far off. You