Second Chance Summer: Menage Romance Novel (Midnight Cove Menage Book 1) by Marie Carnay Page B

his brown eyes. “Have you two been seeing each other? Behind my back?”
    Color rose up Summer’s cheeks and she broke their stare. “I can be with Blake whenever I want to. I don’t need your permission.”
    Devin dropped her arm. “Damn it, Summer.”
    He turned away from her and tramped over the drop cloth to her painting. His head swiveled as he took it all in. The shores of Midnight Cove. The ocean in the middle of a storm. The tiny boat tossed back and forth.
    His breath came out in a loud rush. “You painted all this today?”
    “In the last couple of hours, yeah.”
    “Wow…Summer…It’s breathtaking.”
    She bit her lip. “Thanks.”
    “Sorry I snapped at you.”
    “It’s okay. Sorry I’m painting in your bar.”
    He nodded and ran his hand through his hair. The dark strands stuck up in all directions and he turned back to her.
    “It’s okay. It’s more than okay. It’s great. I haven’t seen you paint in years.” He glanced at the floor and nudged the drop cloth with his foot. “I forgot what a mess you made.”
    Summer winced. “Sorry?” The last thing she wanted was to hurt Devin’s chances with the place. The space was spectacular. Bright and airy with tons of natural light. A kitchenette tucked into one corner. Plenty of wall space. “So you’re going to rip everything out? Build a bar?”
    “Yeah. We’ve got to do something with it.”
    “And you’re working with Ivy?”
    Devin nodded.
    Summer exhaled. Now or never. “She said you two used to date. What happened?”
    Devin’s jaw tensed. “She told you that?”
    “Mm-hmm.”
    “What else did she say?”
    “Not a whole lot. Just that I should stop sticking my nose in. Messing everything up.”
    Devin let out a curse and shook his head. “She’s wrong.”
    “Is she? You seemed awfully mad just now.”
    Instead of answering, Devin turned back to the painting. Silent. Brooding. He crossed his arms and his t-shirt stretched over his back. His foot tapped up and down on the drop cloth and every few seconds his jaw would tick.
    Shit . If she’d known he’d freak out, she’d never have set up in the space. Blake had convinced her it was fine, but…Devin didn’t think so. One look at him and it was obvious. He held back a whole mountain of anger.
    “It’s okay, Dev. I can pack up.” Summer crouched and grabbed an open tube of paint. “I’ll just lean the canvas on the wall to dry. Everything else I can take back to my room at the Inn. I’ll just—”
    “Stop.”
    She paused, cap halfway on the tube. “What?”
    “I said, stop.” He turned to her and before she could ask again, he was hauling her up by the arms and digging his fingers into her bare skin.
    “I don’t—”
    “Neither do I.” His lips slammed into hers and his hands tugged her close. Oh. Ohhh . Her breasts mashed into his chest and as he let her arms go, he wrapped himself around her. She was stuck in his grip. Powerless to do anything but tremble.
    First Blake, now Devin. Summer’s heart had whiplash. She didn’t know whether to push Devin away or relax into his arms. Would Blake be mad? Did he want her all to himself?
    She didn’t know what Blake wanted. What she wanted. Or Devin. Was she just a trip down memory lane for him? A weekend fling?
    She pushed against his chest until he loosened his grip. “Why’d you break up with Ivy?”
    He released her. “What does that matter?”
    “I want to know.”
    Devin stepped back and pinched the back of his neck. His arm bulged and flexed as he kneaded his muscles. “We didn’t work out. That’s all.”
    “Why not?”
    Devin huffed in irritation. “This is ridiculous. I’m not talking about Ivy.”
    “Please, Devin.” Summer stepped toward him. She knew every question pushed him out of his comfort zone. Talk about feelings? Devin Rogers? No way. But she needed to know.
    He glanced up. “Tell me why it’s so important.”
    Summer frowned. “It just is.”
    “That’s a bullshit