Devious: The First Sneak Peek
Prologue
Wednesday
“Mr. Bradford asked me to tell you that he’s running late this morning and that he would be with you shortly, Miss Abbott. In the meantime, he thought that you would be more comfortable waiting in his office,” Amy, the personal assistant to the elusive Sebastian Bradford, said while Jamie sat there, rubbing her temples with her fingertips as she thought about just how close she came to breaking last night.
She almost did it.
She almost googled him, but thankfully, her internet provider decided to cancel her internet account at midnight, preventing her from doing anything more than glare at her computer until she finally gave up and dropped face-first onto her bed with a pathetic groan. That’s where she stayed, releasing a long-suffering sigh every so often to pass the time as she stared at the wall, counting down the minutes until it was finally time to leave.
She should just ask her, Jamie thought, swallowing hard as she dropped her hands away and-
He would never know.
It was just one question.
Possibly two…
Three at the most, Jamie told herself as she grabbed the large bakery box filled with donuts and apple fritters off the chair next to her and released a shaky breath. She was just going to make small talk, ask about the weather and if his assistant just happened to mention what happened to Mikey, then there really wasn’t much that she could do about it.
She-
“Thank you,” Jamie murmured instead, knowing without a doubt that Sebastian would find out and she would lose her only chance to interview him.
She had two more days to land this interview and if she didn’t…
She honestly had no idea what she was going to do, Jamie thought as she did her best to return Amy’s smile as she shifted the heavy box in her arms and made her way into the large, expensively decorated office. She needed to stay focused, Jamie reminded herself as she placed the heavy bakery box down on the coffee table next to a plate of Rice Krispies Treats.
“Please, make yourself comfortable,” Amy said with a warm smile as she stepped out of the office, closing the large, ornate doors behind her while Jamie stood there, debating her next move.
She should just ask him the interview questions and get this over with, Jamie told herself as she took her time selecting a Rice Krispies Treat, absently noting the blue dot on the plate as she took a bite of the tasty treat. It would definitely be the smart thing to do, Jamie thought with a heartfelt sigh as she took another bite and found herself wondering if that was almond extract that she was tasting.
Definitely tasty, Jamie thought as she made her way around the office, taking in the scenic photos hanging on the walls and bit back a disappointed sigh when she didn’t see anything that would clue her into what happened to Mikey. Not that it mattered, Jamie thought as she took another bite. She was here to get an interview, not to find out what happened to Mikey and as long as she remembered that, she would be fine, Jamie told herself as she took another bite of the slightly salty treat.
“I’m sorry I’m late. My meeting ran longer than expected,” Sebastian Bradford, the incredibly handsome man that she was here to interview and the reason why she’d spent the night staring at the wall, said as he walked into the large office.
“It’s fine,” Jamie said, finishing off the last bite of the surprisingly tasty treat as she reached into her bag and pulled out the list of questions that she was supposed to ask him even as she told herself that this was for the best.
“I didn’t know Shamrock Bakery made Rice Krispies Treats,” Sebastian said, throwing her a curious look as he opened the bakery box she’d carried for five blocks and helped himself to an apple fritter.
“They don’t. They were here when I got here,” Jamie said, watching Sebastian frown as he glanced down at the plate and-
Why was he swallowing hard as he slowly looked back up at her, Jamie found herself wondering. That led her to wonder why it was suddenly really hot in here.
“How many did you eat?” Sebastian asked, swallowing hard only to curse when she said, “Just one.”
“Any allergies?” Sebastian asked as he quickly made his way across the large office and grabbed hold of her hand.
“None that I know about?” Jamie said, wondering why he was dragging her back towards the office doors.
“Amy, who dropped off the brownies?” Sebastian asked, making her frown.
“Your brother dropped them off while you were in the meeting.”
“Which one?” Sebastian asked as Jamie went to pull her hand away only to have him tighten his grip.
“Braxton. He made sure to mark the plate before he left,” Amy said seconds before her face dropped as she shot a panicked look in Jamie’s direction. “Oh, my God, I forgot about the brownies when I showed her in. I’m so sorry, Mr. Bradford. Should I call an ambulance?”
“It’s too early to tell,” Sebastian said, releasing a heavy sigh as he rammed his fingers through his hair while Jamie stood there, unable to help but wonder what they were talking about.
“What brownies?” Jamie managed to get out before she found herself dragged back into his office.
“I missed a family dinner last night and it appears that my mother managed to talk my brother into dropping off a plate of chocolate fudge brownies for me this morning,” Sebastian explained as he led her across the office and into a large bathroom that was at least five times bigger than hers.
“Nothing you just said makes sense,” Jamie said, still trying to figure out why they were talking about brownies when he suddenly released her hand, picked her up and set her down in the oversized bathtub.
“Here,” Sebastian said as he grabbed the small trash bucket near the sink and handed it to her. “You’re going to need this.”
“Why exactly am I going to need this?” Jamie found herself wondering as she stared down at the empty trash bucket in her arms.
“Because that wasn’t a Rice Krispies Treat that you just ate,” Sebastian said as he opened the medicine cabinet and began loading his arms up with Pepto Bismol, Advil, Benadryl, and-
Was that burn ointment? Jamie found herself wondering as she watched him place everything down next to the tub.
“What was it?” Jamie asked as Sebastian made his way out of the bathroom only to return a moment later with a small bottle of ginger ale and a bottle of Gatorade.
“One of my mother’s homemade fudge brownies,” Sebastian said with a sympathetic wince as she sat there, thinking about what he told her the other day about his mother’s cooking and-
Oh, God, no…
“Should I be worried?” Jamie asked, doing her best not to panic as she watched him grab hold of the chair in the corner and dragged it closer.
“Probably,” Sebastian murmured absently, tearing a whimper from her as he reached over and grabbed hold of her arm and turned it over, drawing her attention to the hideous red blotches now covering her skin. “The hives are still in the early stages, so I wouldn’t worry about it yet,” he said, shrugging it off before he released her arm with a sigh and sat back.
When she could only sit there, staring at him in disbelief, he grabbed the bottle of Gatorade. “Now, where were we?”
“You were explaining why you called Braxton your brother?” Jamie said, shifting her hold around the trashcan so that she could scratch her arm.
“Did I call him that?” Sebastian murmured, throwing her a curious look.
Narrowing her eyes on him, Jamie said, “Yes.”
“Are you sure?” Sebastian asked casually as she watched the way that his lips twitched before he managed to pull it back.
“Look,” Jamie said, pausing to take a deep breath before she did something that she would probably regret before she continued, “I’m not normally a violent person, but I will hurt you if you keep doing this to me,” making him chuckle.
“I suppose we could talk about Braxton today,” Sebastian murmured, sounding thoughtful as he took another sip.
“And Mikey,” Jamie said firmly as she tightened her hold around the trashcan.
“What if that last story was as far as Mikey goes? What if I told you that we parted ways after that and that she moved on?” Sebastian asked, sending her a curious look that had her eyes narrowing dangerously on him.
“I will hurt you,” Jamie managed to get out, earning another chuckle.
“Fair enough. Now, where were we…”
Chapter 1
September
She could go to hell, Sebastian decided as he sat there, glaring down at the iPad in his hands as the small teenage girl who had been ignoring him since she got home this afternoon dropped down next to him on the bed and-
Forced him to move over so that the little brat could hog his pillow.
That was followed by Mikey releasing a satisfied sigh as she went back to ignoring him, which was fine. More than fine, Sebastian told himself as he angrily swiped to the next page because he didn’t miss her.
Not even a little bit.
He also didn’t start counting down the minutes until she was supposed to come home the moment that she stepped foot on that bus or thought that he was going to lose his goddamn mind when she decided to take a job at the baseball training camp to help with the second summer session and stayed longer. That was followed by not caring when he found out that she was spending the last two weeks with her Uncle Eric in Florida because he didn’t miss her.
Not at all.
He also didn’t spend the entire summer thinking about just how badly he wanted to pull her back into his arms again. He was too busy working at the Fire & Brimstone, helping Aunt Kasey, grabbing shifts at Bradford Construction, and doing his homework for the AP classes that he signed up for this year to think about kissing her again and-
She could definitely go to hell, Sebastian decided when the little pain in the ass shifted more violently than he felt was necessary, forcing him to move over so that she could get more comfortable. Refusing to let the little brat know how just much he’d missed her, Sebastian ground his jaw shut as he glared down at his iPad only to bite back a curse and swiped back to the previous page when he realized that he had no idea what he just read.
Determined to ignore her right back, Sebastian focused on the book that he was trying to read and pretended that he wasn’t painfully aware of the little bed hog sitting next to him. If she wanted to pretend that kiss never happened, then that was more than fine with him.
He could take a hint.
For the past week, he’d been going out of his damn mind counting down the minutes until she came home and when Uncle Reese’s truck finally pulled up in front of Uncle Jason’s house this afternoon…
Christ, he forgot how to breathe.
She was so goddamn beautiful. He hadn’t been able to take his eyes off her and when she smiled…
He hadn’t been able to move fast enough.
He was out of his chair and shoving Mathew out of his way seconds later, unable to take his eyes off her while he made his way across the backyard. He’d watched Mikey smile when her little brothers ran towards her, demanding extra kisses and hugs, watched as his uncle, aunts, and cousins descended upon her and when he finally reached her…
He’d been forced to watch as the little bastard watching him from across the room gave him that deeply disturbing smile that he’d been wearing most of the summer before he pulled Mikey into his arms for a bear hug. Her feet barely had a chance to touch the ground before Braxton was there, giving her a hug. That was followed by being forced to stand there as the little bastard pulled her back into his arms for another hug before he could.
When Jonathan finally set her back down on her feet, Sebastian opened his mouth only to end up releasing a small grunt when the little brat pushed past him with a satisfied sigh as she made her way to his freshly vacated chair. From that point on, he’d been forced to watch her as she talked to his brothers, sister, and cousins and teased smiles from his aunts and uncles all while she ignored him. When it was finally time to leave, the little brat plucked the Coke out of his hand as she made her way back to Uncle Reese’s truck, leaving him wondering what the hell was going on.
Now, he was forced to sit there, glaring down at his iPad while the little brat talked to Jonathan and Braxton about everything that happened this summer. They talked about camp, the past two weeks she’d spent in Florida, starting school tomorrow, and all the things that Sebastian didn’t give a damn about at the moment before finally announcing that she was going home.
While she took her time climbing off his bed, only pausing long enough to steal his sweatshirt, Sebastian forced himself to sit there, struggling against the urge to throttle the little pain in the ass. He-
“I almost forgot,” Mikey said, grabbing the backpack that she’d tossed on the floor before she took over his bed and made her way across the room. “Happy birthday,” she said as she pulled a small present from her bag and tossed it to Jonathan.
“What do we have here?” Jonathan murmured to himself while Sebastian sat there, glaring at Mikey while she zipped her backpack back up with a heartfelt sigh.
“I’m sorry I missed your birthday,” Mikey said, absently gesturing to the present in Jonathan’s hand while Sebastian sat there…seething.
“It was a lovely day,” Jonathan said with a satisfied sigh as his gaze landed on Sebastian.
“It really was,” Braxton murmured in agreement from the top bunk as he rolled onto his side so that he could enjoy the show while Sebastian was forced to watch the little brat pull on his sweatshirt as she headed for the window.
“See you tomorrow,” Mikey said without another look back, leaving Sebastian with no other choice but to glare at her while he watched her climb out of their bedroom window and-
“She does know that you’re twins, right?” Braxton asked, making Sebastian’s eyes narrow dangerously as he forced himself to glare back down at the iPad in his hands.
“I believe it’s been mentioned a time or two,” Jonathan murmured, sounding thoughtful.
There was a heavy sigh and then…
“I knew this would happen,” Jonathan said while Sebastian sat there, determined to ignore the little bastard.
“What’s that?” Braxton asked, not because he actually cared, but because the little bastard was starting to fit in nicely with his family, which meant encouraging Jonathan for the hell of it.
“I’m glad you asked,” Jonathan said, forcing Sebastian to grind his teeth as he glared back down at his iPad. “I was afraid that Mikey would come to her senses.”
“I was afraid of that, too,” Braxton said with a heartfelt sigh that would put any Bradford to shame.
“That’s the only thing that would explain why she decided not to come home this summer. She didn’t want to face him. Not after she realized that she could do so much better,” Jonathan said, making the muscle in Sebastian’s jaw clench as he debated shoving the little bastard in the closet.
“That does make sense,” Braxton said while Sebastian sat there, determined to ignore the little bastards because he didn’t care.
Not. At. All.
Mikey had clearly moved on and that was fine with him. More than fine. He didn’t need the little pain in the ass in his life. In fact, now that he thought about it, he was relieved that she’d moved on since it now meant that he didn’t have to deal with the little pain in the ass driving him crazy anymore. He could go back to the way things used to be before she came into his life and-
He’d waited long enough.
“You’re pathetic,” Braxton said with a heavy sigh and a sad shake of his head that Sebastian chose to ignore as he yanked his sneakers on while he stumbled towards the window.
“I’m embarrassed for him,” Jonathan said, sounding amused as Sebastian crawled out of their bedroom window and-
“Shhhh.”
-glared when the little brat slapped her hand over his mouth.
He watched Mikey raise a finger to her lips and softly whispered, “Shhhh,” as she took his hand in hers and led him to the edge of the roof. Without a word, she released his hand and climbed down the roof onto the one below. For a moment, Sebastian debated letting her go only to end up biting back a sigh and followed her.
As soon as Sebastian’s feet hit the ground, Mikey was taking his hand in hers again and leading him towards the front porch and-
Had him sighing heavily when she used the stairs to climb onto his back before gesturing for him to get moving as she laid her chin on his shoulder with a heartfelt sigh. She really was a pain in the ass, Sebastian thought, grabbing her legs and adjusted her on his back before he did what the little brat demanded and headed across the street. Two minutes later, he unceremoniously dumped her by the stack of pallets that Reese piled next to the house and kept going.
“Aw, don’t be like that!” Mikey said as he climbed onto the stack of pallets, pulled himself onto the roof and headed for her bedroom window.
Determined to ignore the little brat, Sebastian climbed through her window, angrily toed off his shoes and made his way across the bedroom and grabbed one of the books he’d left on her nightstand before she left for baseball camp and dropped down on her bed. He ignored the sounds of Mikey climbing in through her bedroom window, the adorable grumble she made when she hit the carpeted floor, the satisfied sigh that quickly followed when she got to her feet, and focused on the book he’d read already only to end up glaring when the little brat took it upon herself to drop down on the bed between his legs and lean back against him with another satisfied sigh.
“You may now tell me how much you missed me,” Mikey said as she gestured for him to get on with it before she plucked the book out of his hands and tossed it aside.
“I’m not talking to you,” Sebastian said even as he wrapped his arms around her, amazed by just how good it felt to hold her again.
He felt whole for the first time in months.
“Are you going to tell me how much you missed me?” Mikey asked, tilting her head back so that she was looking up at him.
“Are you going to tell me why you ignored me?” Sebastian asked as his gaze flickered to her lips before he realized what he was doing and forced himself to look away.
“To keep you on your toes,” she said, nodding solemnly.
“You really are a brat,” he said, wondering if she had any idea how much he’d missed her.
“You already knew this,” Mikey reminded him as she dropped her head back against his chest and closed her eyes on a soft sigh. “Well?”
“Well, what?” Sebastian asked as a soft caress drew his attention to find Mikey gently caressing the back of his hands with her thumbs.
“I’m waiting,” Mikey pointed out as she took her time slowly running her thumbs back and forth over the back of his hands, making it difficult to focus.
“Who said that I missed you?” Sebastian asked only to narrow his eyes on the little brat and tighten his hold around her when she moved to leave.
“That’s what I thought,” Mikey murmured, sounding quite pleased with herself as she settled back against him.
“Did you miss me?” Sebastian asked after a slight hesitation.
“I really did,” Mikey said, nodding solemnly. “Most days, I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown, struggling to fight back the tears whenever I thought about you.”
“Which is why you decided to torment me for the hell of it as soon as you came back,” Sebastian pointed out, pulling his hands away so that he could cover hers and entwined their fingers.
“It’s what I do best,” Mikey said with a heartfelt sigh as she pulled her hands away, abruptly shifted onto her side, slamming her elbow into his side in the process and tore a pained grunt from him as she reached beneath her pillow and grabbed something before dropping back against him with a satisfied sigh.
“Brat,” Sebastian said with a glare aimed at the small teenage girl that drove him crazy only to frown when she suddenly shoved a small box with a red ribbon wrapped around it in his hand.
“Happy birthday,” Mikey said, gesturing for him to open it.
“What is it?” Sebastian asked, reaching for the red ribbon and pulled it free before Mikey took it upon herself to pull the cover off and toss it aside, revealing a printed letter welcoming Sebastian to a book of the month club, letting him know that he was a platinum member and could expect a new book every week in the mail for the next year.
“Do you like it?” Mikey asked, tilting her head back so that she could send him a questioning look.
“I love it,” Sebastian said, reading the rest of the letter before he looked up and met beautiful green eyes as he reached up and ran his fingertips along her jaw. “But that’s not what I wanted.”
“What did you want?” Mikey asked on a soft whisper as she watched his gaze drop to her lips.
“This,” Sebastian whispered softly as he leaned down and-
Found himself frowning while he tried to figure out why Mikey suddenly bit out a curse before diving off the bed, and there really was no other way to describe it, and hit the carpeted floor with a pained grunt and did…did she really just roll under the bed? Yes, yes, she did, Sebastian thought as he leaned over just in time to see Mikey disappear beneath the bed with a softly whispered, “You’re on your own!”
Having a really bad feeling about this, Sebastian swallowed hard before he looked over his shoulder and realized that this was how it was all going to end when he spotted Uncle Reese standing in the doorway, looking incredibly pissed as he slowly shifted that glare that had Sebastian’s life flashing before his eyes from the floor, where the little brat abandoned him, to him. Forgetting how to breathe, Sebastian-
Wondered why that murderous glare suddenly turned pitying when it landed on him.
“Sebastian,” Uncle Reese said, his pitying look turning confused while Sebastian sat there, trying not to make any sudden moves. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”
“He couldn’t stay away,” came the announcement with a heartfelt sigh from underneath the bed that had Sebastian’s eyes narrowing as he moved to glare down at the little brat only to once again find himself wondering why Uncle Reese was sending him a pitying look.
“It’s getting kind of late and you have school tomorrow. Why don’t you guys call it a night?” Uncle Reese suggested, looking at a loss for words as he gestured awkwardly in his direction with a sympathetic look that left Sebastian…confused, mostly because this was normally the time when he was forced to make a run for it.
Swallowing hard, Sebastian watched Uncle Reese open his mouth to say something else only to close it, send him another pitying look before shaking his head and left, closing the door behind him.
“What the hell just happened?” Sebastian asked, unable to take his eyes off the door while the adorable little pain in the ass crawled out from beneath the bed.
“I saved you,” Mikey said with a heartfelt sigh that had his eyes narrowing.
“When you dove off the bed or when you told me that I was on my own?” Sebastian demanded as he crawled off the bed, grabbed his shoes and sent her one last glare before he headed for the window.
“Aw, don’t be like that,” the teenage girl determined to drive him out of his mind said as he yanked on his shoes.
“You’re evil,” Sebastian said as he climbed out of the window and onto the roof.
“You forgot your birthday gift,” Mikey said, making Sebastian bite back a sigh as he reluctantly turned around and-
Groaned when Mikey reached over and cupped his face in her hands as she leaned in and brushed her lips against his.
Over the past two months, he’d thought about kissing her a lot, thought about just how good it felt to hold her, the way her lips felt against his and…
Nothing, absolutely nothing, felt better than this.
Christ, he could happily kiss Mikey for the rest of his life, Sebastian thought, slowly moving his lips against hers, savoring the feel of her lips against his as her fingertips caressed his jaw. She sighed softly against his lips as her fingertips ran down his throat and-
“Goodnight, Sebastian,” Mikey whispered as she brushed her lips against his one last time before she pulled away, leaving him kneeling there, watching her as she walked away.
“Goodnight, Mikey,” Sebastian murmured, watching as she turned off the light before she dropped down on her bed with a soft sigh.
Releasing a shaky breath, Sebastian reluctantly made his way back across the street and-
He couldn’t wait to kiss her again.
Unable to stop smiling, he climbed through his bedroom window only to find Jonathan waiting for him and-
“This is going to be so much fun.”