“Kat, you in here?” I asked as I walked into the bathroom. “I hate to bother you, but everyone is seated at the meeting.”
“Yeah.” Her voice was unsteady. “I’ll be right there.”
She opened the stall door, her face pale, her forehead covered in sweat.
“Are you okay?”
“It’s the sushi I ate last night. I think I got a touch of food poisoning. And my head is killing me.”
“Oh no. We can reschedule,” I offered, knowing we would be hard-pressed to do so.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” she snapped, running the water and soaping her hands. “I’ll be right there.”
“Okay,” I said, turning on my heel.
“Is there something you want to say to me?” she asked.
“Pardon?”
“I said”—she turned from the counter and crossed her arms in front of her—“it looks like there is something on your mind. Let’s hear it.”
She clearly had some sort of confrontation in mind as her dark blue gaze scoured my appearance like I was beneath her.
I shook my head. “Nope, just waiting to start this meeting.”
“Sure? Because from where I’m standing, it seems like it.”
“Kat, is there something I’m missing here?” I said, both annoyed and stunned at her uncalled-for aggression. “I don’t have an issue here.”
“Good,” she said as she walked past me, the air around her filled with an unspoken insult.
“What. The. Hell,” I mouthed, walking after her.
An hour into the meeting Kat was leading, I got a text.
King of Woo: Hey, beautiful.
Me: Hi.
King of Woo: How’s your day going?
Me: Sucky. Full of suck. A suck fest.
King of Woo: Let me make it better. Plans tonight?
Me: I was just going to watch scary movies and pass out candy.
His answering text was the thumbs down emoji.
Me: You have a better plan?
King of Woo: Can you get together a last-minute costume? There’s a pub party tonight. Nothing big, but I would love it if you could come.
Me: I think I can dream something up.
King of Woo: I’ll pick you up at eight.
Me: See you then.
“Abbie?” I met Kat’s icy gaze that led the rest of the room to stare in my direction.
I was being called out like the distracted kid in class, which I was at the moment, but I’d covered her ass enough times to expect the same. I didn’t work for her, and at some point, I might have to make that clearer.
Lucky for me, I was good at multitasking and met her challenge head-on. “We’ll be implementing all of it next quarter along with the new software. It’s clearly outlined,” I reminded her, making her call-out redundant.
She continued the meeting I’d spent hours preparing for—prepping her for.
It was going to be one of those days.
“Okay, woman, I’m here,” Bree called from down the hall. “I don’t have long. I have to get back to work and scan the ca—” her words stopped as she took in my costume.
“What do you think?” I asked, proud of myself for being able to throw together the perfect outfit on such short notice.
“What do I think? Are you serious?” she said, setting her purse down, her scrubs tarnished with a blood stain that I didn’t want the story behind.
Bree looked me over with wild eyes. “This is a date, not a costume contest. Where’s the sexy?”
“Where’s the what? I’m a witch,” I answered, though it was clear with the black silk cape and matching hat I’d managed to swipe last minute from the drugstore.
The Goodwill down the street just so happened to have a pair of black wedge loafers with a buckle on top of them. I’d only paid four dollars for the perfect complement to my costume. I got lucky.
“That nose. Jesus.”
“Hey,” I defended, “it took me an hour to do my makeup. It’s real latex like they use in the movies.”
“Oh, you look like the Wicked Witch of the West,” she said with a laugh.
“So, what’s the problem?”
Bree shook her head in disbelief. “I don’t know, babe. Look in the mirror and see if you find yourself irresistibly sexy.”
“I’m a witch. Witches aren’t sexy,” I said slowly as if we were having a communication problem. Maybe I did need to get her hearing checked. I turned and studied the nose with a giant wart on the tip when it hit me. “Oh shit,” I said, realizing what she meant.
“Yeah, you don’t have to worry if tonight’s the big night. You could wear an adult diaper and be safe.”
“I wasn’t even thinking along those lines,” I said helplessly.
“I know, babe. But this is a date.”
My face was rapidly paling beneath the green mask. Nowhere in my mind had I thought to seduce my new boyfriend with my costume. I could have picked any number of things and made it sexy, but I saw the witch hat and thought it a no-brainer. The dick nose I’d glued to my face with a giant wart attached would ensure I remained celibate. Had I done it on purpose?
“He’s going to be here in twenty minutes! I don’t have enough makeup to redo my face!”
“Damn, girl,” she said, letting her laughter consume her. “It’s fine. Just get it off and we’ll go heavy on the eye makeup. Do you have something black and low cut in here?”
I heard the scrape of hangers on the rack as she went through my clothes while I tried to remove the nose. Tugging at it to no avail, I moved in closer to the mirror and saw a giant black hair hanging from the wart. Cursing my stupidity, even in my haste to find a last-minute costume, I began to panic when the nose wouldn’t budge.
“Oh shit, Bree! It won’t come off! I used too much adhesive!” The pain was becoming unbearable as I pulled and pulled on the nose, my eyes watering, and tears spilling over my cheeks. The side of the appendage was the only thing to give, but it still sat proudly erect on my face. “Shit! Shit! Shit!”
“What?” Bree said, emerging from my closet with a low cut black dress that showed tons of cleavage.
“I can’t find the remover. I think that’s why it was discounted. It was missing a tube!”
Bree began laughing hysterically as I went through every trash can in my bedroom.
“Nope, not in here,” I said in a panic as she doubled over. “You bitch, stop laughing and help me!”
“I will,” she said. “I will, swear to God, just give me a second.” She composed her face. “Okay,” she said, walking toward me before she broke down again.
“BREE!”
“Sorry,” she said, trying to keep a straight face.
“God, I hate you right now,” I said, my chin wobbling.
“Don’t freak, we’ve got this.”
Twenty minutes later, the doorbell sounded while Bree and I studied my reflection.
“This is insane. Just tell him I had a wardrobe malfunction and I’ll meet him there.”
“You look good,” Bree said, smiling, but I could tell she was still on the verge of losing it.
I narrowed my eyes. “I’ve got an eerily realistic looking witch face and my tits are hanging out!”
“But you have amazing tits,” she said. “You’re fine. Own it.”
“I don’t even want to borrow it. This is too weird. Just please get the door and tell him I’ll meet him there.”
“No way,” she said. “You look fine.” She fastened the cape around my neck and fluffed up the collar. “See?”
I tilted my head, my nose in my peripheral. A surprising amount of hope surfaced. “Just get the door.”
“Proud of you, hoochie.”
“Go,” I snapped, downing the rest of my wine. Taking a deep breath, I walked into my living room where Cameron and Bree chatted about her job.
“I’m scanning candy all night. Though I don’t see the point. Most parents toss their kid’s candy these days and replace it with stuff they buy from the store.” Her eyes connected with mine. “There’s our witchy slut.”
His eyes bulged when he caught sight of me.
“Screw it, I’m not going,” I said, turning on my heel.
“Hey, beautiful, where are you going?” Cameron’s light laughter echoed behind me as he caught up with me. “No, you don’t,” he said, turning me to face him. His eyes roamed over my costume. “You look perfect.”
“You sure?” I asked as Cameron stared at my monstrous nose. “I can go shower now, but the nose won’t come off.”
“Leave it, I’m impressed,” he said, scanning me. “You did this?”
“Right?” Bree spoke up behind me. “She nailed it. She looks awesome, sexy even,” Bree said before she bit her lips. I mouthed an “I hate you” as she covered her mouth with her hand. “Well, I’m outta here. Candy to scan,” she said. “One four three,” she shouted toward me before she shut the door.
“One four three, asshole!” I shouted back and heard her laugh on the other side.
“One four three. That’s I love you,” Cameron said behind me as I grabbed my purse.
“Yeah, it’s our thing.” I sighed. I was humiliated and hated that the night was starting out on that foot. Even behind my mask, Cameron noticed.
“Hey, hey,” Cameron said, forcing my eyes to his. “Why are you upset?”
“Because I look like a witch,” I answered, making zero sense.
“You look like a witch on Halloween going to a Halloween party,” he said, his perfect brows pressing together. “What’s the problem?”
“It’s not sexy,” I whispered, widening my eyes as I pulled my cape tighter around me.
“Okay, so you won’t be one of the thousands of women wearing a thong and fairy wings. Trust me, I’m good with that.”
“Really?”
He leaned in, attempting to kiss me, and had to tilt his head painfully to reach my lips. “Yeah, really, but I already hate this fucking nose.” He gave me as much of a kiss as he could before he pulled away and smiled.
“You look so handsome,” I said. Cameron was dressed in a black turtleneck, blazer, and slacks. “What are you?”
“Ted Bundy,” he answered with a wink.
“You have got to be kidding me!”
“I am. I’m a warlock,” he said with a chuckle as I rolled my eyes.
“Not funny.”
“It’s a little bit funny. And I thought serial killers were your heroes.”
I cringed at that. “They aren’t.”
“Then it’s a good thing I dressed as a warlock. I knew you would play witch tonight,” he said, ushering me down the stairs. “We should catch a cab. It’s too cold to walk.”
“Okay,” I said, taking him in, my little meltdown getting in the way of a more thorough appreciation when he’d arrived.
“Hey,” he said, catching my lingering gaze and giving me a knowing wink.
“Hey,” I said back.
My cape shifted a little, and his eyes did a slow perusal of my dress. “Definitely fucking gorgeous, ‘sexy even.’”
“You’re just saying that to make me feel better. I totally geeked out with my costume.”
“You did, but I don’t mind talking to these beautiful tits all night.”
I slugged him with my purse as he pulled me to him with a curt laugh. “God, you’re something.”
“Something?”
“Yeah,” he said, biting his lip. He leaned in and flipped up the edge of my nose to kiss me.
I flinched. “Ouch.”
“Oh, man, this is really on there.”
“Yeah,” I agreed, deflated.
“I’ll work around it,” he promised before he gently took my lips.
“Mmm,” I whispered as he pulled away.
His eyes glittered over me as he shook his head and gave me the smile I met him with.
“What?”
“You.”
Hands clasped, my warlock led me into a black-lit pub and navigated us through a sea of brilliant white teeth. We were halfway to the bar when we heard Cameron’s name shouted.
I watched as the man sauntered up wearing a chemical lab suit and a shit-eating grin.
“Who the hell are you supposed to be?” Cameron asked as they clasped hands.
“Who do you think I am, bitch?” he replied with a panty-dropping smirk.
“Ah,” I said, giving him a nod as he held out his hand for me. “He’s Jessie from Breaking Bad.”
The man took my offered hand and kissed the back of it. “She’s far wiser than you,” he said to Cameron before smiling at me. “I’m Max.”
Max was handsome in his own right, a little shorter than Cameron, but was just as massively built. Where Cameron was dark, Max was a bit lighter in hair and eye color. His were a beautiful light brown.
“Max, nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Likewise, Abbie, love your costume. You went all out, didn’t you?” Cameron nudged his side, and Max looked over at him with a “What?”
“It’s fine,” I whisper-yelled to Cameron over the high-octane house music. “Thank you, Max.”
“Want some punch? It’s killer. Or maybe some meth?” He pulled two bags of blue candy from his pockets.
“Nice,” Cameron said, shaking his head with a grin. “And this man works for the government.”
“CIA,” Max said.
“Liar,” Cameron said with an eye roll.
“Can’t ever let me look good, can you, asshole?” Max groaned in jest.
“First of all, anyone who works for the CIA wouldn’t openly admit it,” Cameron said. “And there’s really nothing intelligent about you. I should know, I lived with you for six years. The smartest thing you ever did was light that cesspool you called a bed on fire.”
“That was an accident,” Max retorted.
“I rest my case,” Cameron said with a laugh.
They sparred like Bree and I did, and I felt comforted that Cameron had his own version of her.
Cameron leaned in and exchanged hushed words with him. Though I felt like I was intruding, he refused to let go of my hand. Max nodded and eyed me before he clapped Cameron on the shoulder. “Relax, man, it’s a party. I’ll get you two a drink. What are you supposed to be anyway?”
“A warlock,” Cameron said as if it were obvious—which it was anything but.
“You look like Professor Hinkle,” Max said as Cameron flipped him the bird.
“We both had Hinkle our first year at UChicago,” Max explained. “Hinkle had a rare form of narcolepsy. Rumor had it, whenever he laughed too hard, he knocked out. I spent my whole first year trying to make it happen.”
“You’re such an asshole. That’s probably why he failed you,” Cameron mused.
“He didn’t fail me. I got a better grade than you.”
“Calm down, I believe you.”
“You should, you were drunk that whole first year,” Max said.
Cameron looked my way with an explanation. “I was homesick. I was coping.”
“Yeah, coping. You coped all right,” Max said, chuckling. “Living in a sea of shredded co-ed thongs.”
With that, Cameron’s grin was wiped from his face, yet my smile emerged.
“Really?” I arched a brow as Cameron glared at Max, who cleared his throat.
“Yep, this guy was a momma’s boy through and through. I thought he was going to cry when she left him at the dorm our first day.” He put his hand on Cameron’s shoulder. “But I loved that woman. Emma was one of a kind.”
Unspoken words passed between them, and I knew then Max was my new favorite person. Anyone could read between the lines that underneath the jokes and playful ridicule lay respect and genuine affection.
“I thought you were going to get us drinks,” Cameron said.
“I’m on it.” Max wandered off through the crowd while Cameron managed to grab us an empty two-seater booth at the corner of the dance floor. He sat down and tugged me into his lap.
“So,” he said, tracing the hem of my neckline with his finger before flicking his eyes to mine. Do you have a curfew tonight?”
“Nope.” Leaning in, I took a whiff of his cologne, which was incredible, a mix of all things man.
“Good to know,” he said as he circled my wrist with his fingers. A low pulse began to beat as I leaned into him. His eyes zeroed in on my cleavage. “This dress is cruel,” he murmured. “Would it be totally inappropriate if I motorboated you?”
“Yes,” I said, running my hands through the hair at the back of his neck. “I like Max,” I said, nodding my head toward him just as he looked our way and grinned. “What does he do for the government?”
“He’s a contractor, like you.”
“He’s probably having more fun than I am at the moment. I can’t wait to start my new job. The one I have now is becoming a pain in the ass, and I have a love/hate relationship with the staff I’m working with.”
“It’s a good thing you’re moving on then.”
“My eyes are up here, Coach.”
Cameron leaned in, attempting to make good on his motorboat threat, and I pushed his face away.
“What is it about boobs?”
“Do you want an intelligent Freud type of answer or the truth as I know it?”
“Is there an intelligent response, Professor Hinkle?”
He gave me a side eye. “I knew it was trouble putting you two together.”
I glanced at Max. “I told you I’d get the dirt. Player, huh?”
Cameron winced.
“I plead the fifth,” he said, looking up at me through thick black lashes. “Those are the rules.”
I wrinkled my four-inch nose, and he pulled me closer. “Is it bothering you?”
“No. Of course not. I always assumed it, honestly.”
He frowned. “And why is that?”
“The way you look. And a man doesn’t get as confident as you are by not having a collection of sexcapades.”
He flashed me his pearly whites. “Sexcapades?”
“Were you the frat guy?”
“Maybe,” he said as he turned us around and leaned in. “Abbie, it was a long time ago.”
“I know. I’m cool with it. Just curious.”
He tried to read me for jealousy that wasn’t there, but I told him anyway.
“I’m not really the jealous type. I had a moment or two when I was younger, but I grew out of it. I think once you reach a certain age, you realize how pointless it is.”
“Well, if it helps my case, I stopped thinking with my dick a long, long time ago.”
“I’m sure. But I’m guessing when you were a player, you were still a gentleman.”
“I was,” he said with the twitch of his lips.
“Let me guess, you mopped up their tears with their ripped thongs after the ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ speech before you made them breakfast.”
“I make good waffles,” he assured with a wry grin.
“I love waffles,” I said with a sigh.
It was clear we were both in the mood for waffles.
I stared down at him as he tugged off my pointy hat and ran his hands through my hair. His attentive fingers slid through my strands as he simultaneously rubbed my back.
“You’re really good at that.”
“At what?”
“Making me feel good.”
“Abbie, you are not a thong girl.”
“I know, and I’m proud of that fact. But I can’t say I haven’t been there. You know, chances are you were just a phase to them too.”
Surprise covered his features. “You’re taking up for them?”
“Absolutely. Maybe they used you for a night. We aren’t all shrinking violets. I’m willing to bet when most of them pulled on that thong, they weren’t thinking about their Sunday school lessons. They knew exactly what they were doing. It brought you to your knees, didn’t it?”
He pulled me tighter to him. “Yeah, it did.”
Max returned with two pints of punch and set one down in front of me. “Thank you,” I said as I turned to Cameron, who took a sip of his and shook his head before he took the glass out of my hand. “Uh, don’t touch that fucking glass. What is in this, Max?”
“It’s called the Kitchen Sink,” Max yelled. “Fuck if I know. After the first glass, it goes down like water.”
“You don’t say.” Cameron looked at me pointedly. “Don’t drink that.”
“Loosen the reins, Coach. We aren’t driving.” I took the punch from his hand and swore I exhaled fire.
“Whoa,” I said with wide eyes.
“Maybe just sip it?”
I nodded.
Max was oblivious as he scanned the crowd. “I asked Rachel to come. I’m going to look for her. She’s supposed to be dressed as a little devil.”
“She won’t show. You’ve been trying to get her for a year,” Cameron said.
“Oh, ye of little faith,” Max said, leaning in to make sure I heard him. “Don’t listen to him. She loves me.”
“I have no doubt,” I said honestly.
Cameron and Max had the watchful eye and attention of every long legged, big breasted woman in the bar. I caught a couple of them staring and smiled when I noticed a few of them had on thong leotards and wings. I squeezed Cameron a little tighter to me, and though he didn’t know why, he returned the affection and squeezed back. Jealous type or not, he didn’t want that, and I fell a little more for him because of it.
Max leaned in with a menacing expression. “I should warn you now, when this man drinks, he tends to love everyone.”
“Are you alluding to the time he almost kissed a man?” I asked.
Max’s jaw dropped an inch. “He told you?” he yelled over to Cameron. “You told her?!”
“Yep,” Cameron said as he looked at me with a mix of pride and amusement.
“Fuck, man, you threatened my life to keep a lid on that.” Max turned to me. “Oh, he must like you.”
“I’m not as wicked as I look.” Cameron’s fingers pressed into my hip.
“Cute,” Max said. “I’m off. If you see a pint-sized devil with an amazing ass, lasso her over this way if you don’t mind.”
“Will do,” Cameron and I both said in unison.
Max wandered off, and I questioned Cameron. “Why won’t she show?”
“Max is her boss,” he said. “She won’t cross the line.”
“He clearly isn’t in it just for sex,” I said, scanning the crowd for his little devil.
“How do you know?”
“If he’s been waiting for a year, he’s obviously in love with her,” I said with a shrug.
“I think so too. It’s a shitty situation. He can’t exactly fire her so he can date her.”
“That sucks. My brother can give him pointers. He’s slept with his whole surgical team,” I said dryly.
“And how’s that working out for him?” Cameron asked, taking a sip of his punch.
“He’s still breathing.”
“Are you two close?”
“He’s a good brother as far as brothers go. A little overprotective. I’m sure at one point he’ll try to threaten you. We still fight like we did when we were kids, and he still embarrasses the hell out of me.”
“In that case, I can’t wait to meet him.”
We shared a smile, and that was becoming routine for us.
“I’ll spare you that for now, while I still like you.”
I studied his face. “You’ve got a little green around your mouth.”
I wiped it away as he stared up at me. “When I met you, your face was a little lighter shade than this.”
“You noticed that?” Damned nightly facial mask. “Well, it was slob day.”
“Slob day?”
“Yeah, no makeup, no dieting. Just roll out of bed and brush your teeth kind of day.”
“Where do I sign up?”
“You could never be a slob, Cameron. You’re too pretty.”
“Yeah, but does this blazer make me look fat?”
“Har har,” I said as he stood with me still in his hold.
“Dance with me, witchy woman,” he said as he led me to the floor.
We barely fit in the small space. Cameron subtly moved his hips and I followed along.
After a few minutes of silence, he pulled me close and whispered in my ear. “You might not be the jealous type, but I hate the fucking thought of anyone else touching you.”
A few hours later, my body was buzzing along with the music. Despite Cameron’s protest, I drank two pints of the Kitchen Sink and was feeling no pain. I kept my wits about me as the party cranked up, and so did the heat from the number of bodies in the pub. Cameron stayed glued to my side, ever attentive, making sure I was happy and comfortable. He even waited outside the bathroom for me like a true gentleman.
By the end of the night, Max and I were chummy, and Cameron and I were worked up for each other from hours of grinding our bodies on the dance floor. I wasn’t much of a dancer, but I could fake my way through it. The man loved to dance. Not only that, he had rhythm—a hell of a lot of it. He wasn’t a show-off, but he was good at it.
I caught a few more women eyeing him, which made my chest swell with pride, but he kept his eyes trained on my hideous nose. After working up a sweat, I was finally able to get the latex off and it sat at one of the empty pint glasses at our table.
The bar was sweltering when I exited the bathroom after thoroughly washing my face. My hair was slightly tangled, and I’d done my best to comb through it with my hands. I looked a wreck, but my date didn’t seem to give a damn as he greeted me.
“There’s my girl,” he whispered, cupping my chin before he placed a kiss on my nose. “You ready to go?”
“Sure.”
“Hungry?”
“Starving, actually.”
“Let’s go.” Cameron led us through the bar as we searched for Max to say goodbye. He was in a deep conversation with a little devil and gave us a half wave.
“I guess we’ll meet her some other time,” Cameron said with a look over his shoulder.
“You think he’s okay?” I asked, looking Rachel over before he pulled me out the door. She was beautiful, and from what I could tell, she appeared upset. Max looked like he was on the verge of tears.
“That didn’t look good. I hope everything’s okay.”
“I’ll check on him later.” And I knew he would. Cameron was the type.
“Maybe we should go back.” I stopped my feet, haunted by the amount of pain in Max’s eyes when he had been all smiles moments earlier.
“You can’t fix that. They have to work it out, Abbie.”
“I know, it’s just . . . he told me more about them when you were getting our drinks. She has a son, and Max loves him. I just wish we could help.”
Cameron’s eyes glittered over me.
“What?”
“I love the way you care about people. It’s such a good thing. It’s like your heart is too big for you.”
“So, I’m not a witchy woman?”
“Of course you are,” he said with a smirk. “You ripped my head off when I woke you up Saturday.”
“It was early.”
“It was noon, you big poser. When we first met, you were all dolled up early for our coffee dates,” he said with a laugh as we walked outside to discover it was sleeting. The brisk air hit us, and we both sighed in welcome.
“Wait here, I’ll get us a cab.”
“Okay, good, because I’m melting, melting!” Cameron rolled his eyes and jogged to the street, successfully flagging down a taxi. Once he gave me the signal, I burst into a sprint to meet him there.
Cameron grinned as I met him at the door. “That was cute.”
“What was cute?” I asked as I slid into the seat to make room for him.
“That little dance you just did.”
I bit my lip as he shut the door, his hair covered in glistening water.
“Oh.”
“Oh?” he said, confused. He spoke to the driver, “Hollywood Grill.”
We took off like a shot away from the curb as I spoke under my breath. “I wasn’t dancing.”
“What?” Cameron asked. “What were you doing?”
Meh. Next subject.
“I love Hollywood Grill. They have good chicken fried steak, though Bree said it’s shit, but that’s like the state dinner of Georgia I think.” I snorted at my own joke.
“Don’t change the subject. What was that back there?”
I grimaced. Damn Kitchen Sink punch. “I was running.”
“You were what?”
“I was running.”
Despite my warning look, his laughter didn’t stop until we got to the diner.
Hollywood Grill was a ’50s style eatery and the best place to soak up a night of drinks in Wicker Park. When Bree and I moved to the neighborhood, we used to frequent the diner often after our late nights. It had been years since I’d been there. I missed my good-time girl and shot off a text to her telling her so as I sat with my good-time guy, who was still grinning at me.
“So that was running?”
“Would you drop it?” I scorned. “I think we’ve had enough fun tonight at my expense.”
“We have, but there isn’t a chance in hell I’m dropping it.”
“I have a running affliction,” I said, sipping my water.
“A . . . running affliction,” he parroted, his expression showing he wasn’t buying it.
“Yes, a running affliction,” I reiterated, hiding behind my menu.
Cameron faced the wall in an attempt to hold in his laugh, and I kicked him under the table with my pointy shoe.
“Ouch,” he said, giving me a wary glance.
“You deserved it.”
“So, tell me, how long have people been calling an ambulance when that happens?”
“Cameron,” I warned as he burst into another fit of laughter. “You’re such an ass. I’ve been made fun of for the way I run my whole life.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, sobering. “Well, have no fear, beautiful. Running just so happens to be one of the things I’m good at.”
“So you’ve told me,” I said, pretending to scan my menu. “Some of us aren’t that graceful.”
“No one is when they start,” he said sincerely.
“I’m a little bowlegged. It’s always been hard for me,” I admitted, my face flaming.
A beat of silence. I didn’t look at him.
“You know with running, there is a posture to it. We can retrain your body.”
That piqued my interest, and I looked up from my menu. “Really?”
“Yes,” he said, taking off his blazer. “If you want, I’ll guide you through it. I’ll coach you.”
The little girl inside me who watched relay races from the sidelines and vied to get picked as someone’s partner or just once for Red Rover perked up.
“I don’t know. I’m pretty lazy in the morning.”
“I can change that too. You can run your first marathon by spring.”
I looked at him skeptically. “I doubt that.”
“Then let this be my promise to you. Okay?”
“Okay.”
Both of my hands pinned above my head, Cameron dipped and sipped my neck before he captured my mouth, thrusting his tongue deep, kissing me within an inch of my life. His solid body rocked against mine as he coiled me tightly beneath him.
Everything inside me was screaming for relief as he ground his hips and pressed his erection to my stomach. “Abbie,” he murmured, trailing his palm from the side of my face, down my chest, cupping my breast as he kept his eyes on mine. I could see my breath as it hit his full lips. It was coming out in fast spurts. His hand drifted further, and he paused, his eyes flitting to mine for permission that I gave with silence before he cupped my sex through my leggings.
Moaning out my welcome, he brushed his fingers along the fabric, and I tilted my head back.
“Are you wet for me?” he murmured to my throat as we got indecent on my porch. Reaching between us, I gripped his dick through his pants and heard a grunt while he worked his fingers against me, adding pressure. “Should I make you come right here on your porch so every time you’re at your door you think of me?”
“Cameron,” I prayed.
“That’s not an answer,” he admonished as he made quick work of dipping into my leggings and swiping a finger against the edge of my panties. I twisted my hips before he skimmed a lone finger over the silk covering my drenched middle. He worked it back and forth slowly, toying with me as I ground into him, desperate for friction.
“Jesus, you’re soaked,” he said as he rubbed the finger over the barrier then tucked it beneath. He cursed as he buried his nose in my hair and bit down on my shoulder before he thrust his fingers inside me and began to work them. Gasping at the feeling, I was already there as he began to pump them while I clutched his shoulders. “Someone will see,” I managed to get out, jerking myself against him to chase my release as he pressed in deeper.
“I’m going to come,” I announced as if he couldn’t feel my body start to tremble.
“Let go,” he ordered as he worked me over. I succumbed to the wave of heat that swept over me. He straightened, looking down at me as I convulsed with lips parted, wordless as ecstasy coursed through my veins. Looking at his face only heightened it—his eyes blazing while his jaw pulsed. The strain in his features looked like a mix of pleasure and pain while he watched me crack under his touch.
“Watching you come . . . it’s better than anything I imagined,” he whispered as he slowed his digits and softly kissed me before he straightened my dress. My craving for him was only mildly tempered by the orgasm he gifted me. I wanted more, and I wanted it then. I gripped his blazer and threw myself into a kiss, which he returned just as feverishly. He lifted me so he could slowly grind his rock-hard dick between my thighs. I was already on the verge again while his tongue teased mine.
“We should probably not have sex on my porch,” I said as he worried my lip with his teeth.
I was too turned on to be embarrassed about our little indiscretion, and by the look on his face, he didn’t give a damn, either. But my porch wasn’t the place and the words “come in” refused to come out.
Reluctantly, he pulled away slowly, setting me to my feet before he gave me a tight smile.
“It’s late,” he whispered. “I should go.” He leaned in and searched my eyes. Once he drew a conclusion, he backed away.
I was already mourning the loss of him, my body aching for more.
“Tonight was amazing,” I said. “Thank you.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow?”
I nodded.
I was about to speak when he beat me to it.
“’Night, beautiful.”
At six a.m. the next morning, there was a pounding on my door. I opened it to find a drop-dead gorgeous coach smiling at me. I promptly slammed it in his face. I heard his laugh before I slowly opened it again. This time, he held two boxes.
“Okay, we’ve only been asleep five hours. Can training wait until tomorrow?”
“No time like the present.”
“When I said yes, I didn’t mean today,” I said, making a quick excuse.
“So, you want to start tomorrow?” he asked.
“That would be awesome. I can get new running clothes and everything.”
“I had a feeling that might be your excuse. I’ve got you covered.”
I groaned. Of course he did.
“New Nikes, size seven. These will be good for your affliction,” he said sweetly. I didn’t take offense as I pulled out the shoes.
“These are awesome,” I said, “and expensive. Cameron, you didn’t have to do this.”
“I wanted to. There’s some clothes in the next box. I like pink on you.”
It took everything I had not to mount him in my entryway.
“Wow,” I said as I pulled out the hot pink pants and matching shirt. There were a few more outfits as well as a sports bra. I was speechless.
“When did you get this stuff?”
“Last night when I left you, I went and robbed my own store,” he said. “Go try that on, and then we’ll stretch.”
“Okay,” I said, booking it down the hall, a strange excitement seeping into me. After brushing my teeth, I tied my hair up and washed my face. Everything he got fit perfectly, and I loved the look of it.
I walked out to meet him in my entryway.
“Sexy,” he said, biting his lip.
“Thank you,” I said, leaning in to kiss him. “Is it weird I’m kind of excited?”
“Not at all. I’m happy you are, especially at this time of day. And you’re going to love this, once you find your stride.”
I wanted to confess to him then I’d been trying to find my stride my whole life, both literally and figuratively. I was still fighting the emotion from his gesture. He would never know how much it meant to me. “Okay, let’s do this.”
Cameron led me through a list of stretches. He told me because of my gait, we had to do a few extra to make sure my inner thighs were taken care of. Apparently, he’d been studying up. I did as well and had watched a few videos on the art of running before I’d passed out. I’d laid in bed, dreaming about being one of those women that I envied who could run gracefully, confident. I wanted it more than I had led him to believe.
“We’ll aim for a mile today,” Cameron said as we hit the sidewalk. “But we’ll start slow.
“A mile.” I nodded. One didn’t seem so bad. Mentally rehearsing everything I’d learned, I psyched myself up as Cameron gave me a few more pointers.
“Remember to breathe. Don’t hold it. Steady in and out.”
“Got it.”
“Keep your own pace, not mine. If you get tired, try to press through with your breathing, and if it starts to hurt, stop.”
“Okay.”
“Let’s go.” We set off as I tried to push off on the pads of my feet, arms close, hands loosely fisted, and breaths even. Cameron had a long stride and looked graceful in his jogging suit.
I mimicked what I could. But less than five minutes later, everything I learned went straight to hell. I was panting and close to seeing black. Cameron looked back at me as I lagged, and my arms went full T-Rex. He stopped in his tracks, seeing me struggle, and chuckled.
Something about it set me off. My cheeks flamed, a burning knot formed in my throat. Maybe it was the years of criticism I’d endured or the fact that I’d told him about it last night, but it hurt to watch him laugh at me. My heart plummeted as his dimples appeared.
“Hey, I’m just going to go back to my house.”
His smile was replaced with confusion.
“What?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
“Abbie—”
“Text me later or something,” I called over my shoulder as I headed in the direction of my house. Seconds later, I was caught by the waist and set on my feet as Cameron smiled down at me, but it disappeared when he read my face.
Hands on my hips, I glared up at him.
“This is what you call helping me? You laughing?”
Cameron surveyed my face. “You’re really pissed?”
“Just forget it.” I moved past him, and he stopped me.
“Abbie—”
“It’s fine, okay,” I snapped. “You know, whatever, I’m used to it.”
I walked off, determined to make it back to my house without shedding a tear, when I heard him bark behind me.
“Hey, lady!”
Something in his tone made me stop in my tracks and turn back his way. Long strides had him in front of me in seconds, and he looked . . . pissed. He loomed over me as I crossed my arms.
“Abbie, for the past two months that I’ve conversed with you, I’d like to think I’ve learned a lot, and one of the things I’ve learned is that you can dish it out just as good as you can take it. So, what’s going on?”
“You’ve seen too much.”
“I assure you I haven’t.”
“It’s like I’m a joke to you.”
“I assure you, you’re not.”
“So, when you were laughing at me just then, it meant nothing, right? And what’s with the six a.m. wake up call to exploit my weakness?”
“Exploit your weakness? Abbie, you can’t be serious,” he said, his brows pressing together.
“Like I said, I’m used to it. Everyone I love or am close to makes fun of me.”
His eyes lit fire and his jaw ticked as he studied me.
“Just forget it. I’ll text you later.” I moved to walk around him and was caught by the wrist.
“Wait a damn minute. If I was laughing it was because I find some of your antics hysterical, which they are. You are funny most of the time, and sometimes you aren’t, which is, oddly, still funny. I was at your house at six a.m. because I couldn’t sleep. And I couldn’t sleep because I couldn’t stop thinking about being next to you again and I needed any excuse to see you. I respect the boundaries you’re so insistent on keeping because I do care about you.
“As for running, I saw the way you lit up last night when I talked about it. So, instead of rubbing myself raw with thoughts of you and the need to touch you, I thought I would kill two birds and exercise them out with you by my side. I’m having a horrible time controlling myself at this point because you’re the sexiest goddamn woman I’ve ever met. And in case it’s not clear by now when it comes to weakness, you’re becoming mine. So, if yelling at me on the street is making you feel better, I’m all for it, but I’d rather be doing much, much more, and by the look on your face, so would you.”
I stood stunned. He closed in as my heart went hummingbird.
“I’m not out to get you, Abbie. I’m falling in love with you.”
The sun chose that moment to creep over the horizon, hitting us both. I threw myself at him, climbing him like a tree until our mouths touched. Cameron guided me with his hands, cradling my ass before he moved in, touching my lips softly with his as I sank into him, my legs shaking. He slid his desire-filled tongue along the seam of my mouth, and I opened for him. I gasped as he pressed in, and he kissed me breathless. I felt my knees beginning to give out as he pulled away. “I’m so sorry, baby—”
“No, I’m sorry—”
“I swear to God, I would never intentionally hurt you—”
“I was just embarrassed—”
“You don’t have to be, Abbie, never with me—”
“You were just trying to be good to me, and you are so good to me, Cameron,” I murmured as I took in his features and clasped my hands around his neck, sliding my thumbs through the hair at the nape of it.
Our mouths fused again, all doubts erased. His need matched my own. Chest to chest, our racing hearts met and molded. Give and take, we were relentless in our craving for the other. All that I felt I expressed with my kiss, and his was far too much to handle. We only pulled away when we heard a car approaching but kept our foreheads together.
“This is so much better than—”
“I can’t believe this,” I said at the same time as we pulled away.
He leaned in again, and that next kiss stopped time, rebuked our pasts, led us crashing forward, and lasted a heart rendering eternity. The world was a blur as we stayed content in our cloud. He was all I saw, all I felt, and it was incredible.
I was flying high as he pulled his lips away but kept us close.
“I need this. I needed this so much,” he declared before he shut his eyes tight. When they opened, they were full of emotion. “Tell me I can have this, tell me I can be this happy. Tell me I can have you.”
“Yes,” I whispered. “I’m nervous,” I said honestly.
“I’m not. I want this, Abbie.”
Normally those words would scare me, and in the past, have scared me, but his words were right. They weren’t selfish. He was giving and taking. A gift. And I realized I never wanted anything so much in my life. I was gone, no longer just me but hopefully a part of a we.
And I would never be the same woman without him.
I realized I had everything to lose as I pulled him tighter to me.
“This is the best I’ve ever felt. Take me home, Cameron.”
He pulled away and shook his head. “No, Abbie, that’s not what . . . I shouldn’t have said that, and I won’t push you.”
“I needed it, Cameron, don’t you see? I needed you.”
Brushing a wistful tear from my cheek with his thumb, he dipped in again, and again, sliding his warm hands around my waist beneath my sweatshirt and pulling me impossibly closer. With that kiss, we sealed ourselves together, our fate, in Wicker Park.
“Take me home.”
“Okay,” he said before he placed a reverent kiss on my forehead.
I tugged at his hand leading the way and he followed, his brilliant smile magnified by the rising sun behind him. At a loss for words, we just stared at each other with matching intensity as we walked toward my three-flat.
We took longer strides as we neared home, and then we went into a full-on sprint once inside the gate. On my porch, he nailed me to my front door and kissed me within an inch of my life. Backing up, he placed his hands on either side of my head as he looked down at me, his lust-filled eyes full of warning.
“I can leave now, Abbie. But I won’t be able to if I make it through that door.”
He leaned in as he sucked my bottom lip into his mouth before he pressed his erection into my stomach.
“Stay,” I moaned as he trailed his kiss down my neck and then pulled away to nail me with his stare. I reached down and cupped his cock, sliding my fingers along the hard outline. My whole body tensed as I gauged the size of him.
Hallelujah.
My mouth watered with the need to feed off him. I was starving, and he was the only one I was hungry for. The star of every daydream I’d had since our eyes connected in that café. It was happening. I didn’t care we had so much left to discover, that he didn’t know all my truths, and I didn’t know much at all about his personal past. None of it could touch us. We’d spiraled from nothing into everything within a few months. It wasn’t just attraction. It was far more, both unspoken and admitted. And just as sure as I was standing on that porch, I wanted him to know.
“I want this. I want you.”
Once inside, he pushed me flat to the back of the door and slipped my Nikes off before slowly taking off my pants. He knelt and trailed his fingers inside my thighs.
“If we do this, it’s only you and me. I want to make that clear.” I clutched his head as he slid my panties down before pushing a finger through my sex while he looked up at me. “This is mine from this minute on.”
“Yesss,” I hissed as he rubbed a finger through my folds.
Grinding against his hand, I pumped my hips eagerly. He hooked my leg over his shoulder, his breath hitting my clit.
“I don’t know how slow I can take this,” he whispered before darting out his tongue and licking me smoothly from bottom to top. My moan echoed in my entryway as he spread me wide and devoured me. My legs buckled as his fiery green gaze met mine. He groaned as he swirled his tongue. Bucking into his mouth, I held onto him for support as he tore into me.
He might have been the one on his knees, but I was the one at his mercy.
Cameron’s grip was the only thing keeping me standing as he darted his wicked tongue over my clit only to come back for seconds with slow, leisurely licks. Gasping as the orgasm hit, I gripped his hair, riding it out until I went completely lax against the door. He stood, peeling off his shirt until it hit the floor. He paused his fingers as he drank me in, naked and needy for him.
“Fuck, I’ll never forget the way you look right now,” he whispered.
I felt beautiful and worshiped, the new normal that only he could make me feel.
“I don’t want anyone else.”
“I’ll keep it that way,” he assured as he tore off his undershirt.
Wide, defined shoulders led to an even more demarcated chest, and no part of him was undefined down to a trim torso. His pants clung to him, a nuisance accentuating the beautiful V I knew he worked hard for. The man took care of himself, and it showed on every inch of defined skin. Coarse dark hair trailed down past the waistband of his briefs, and I wet my lips in anticipation. Sexy, full lips twisted before he thumbed off his pants and briefs, just enough so they drifted to the floor. He stepped out, magnificently naked, and we stood in lust and appreciation. He watched me as I reached out with confident hands and spread them over his chest before bringing my eyes to his.
“Tell me what you’re thinking,” he said, moving both hands to my back, capturing my hair against my skin and massaging up and down.
“I’d rather show you.” I grabbed his hand and pulled him down the hallway to my bedroom. We stopped at the foot of my bed. The scent of the fresh white roses he’d sent me lingered in the air as I placed tongue-filled kisses along the crest of his chest. His beautiful cock bounced between us, and I gripped it firm in my hand. I stroked him, sliding my finger across the silky head of his crown. With greedy hands, he explored my naked flesh, caressing my belly, my sides, cupping my breasts, and rubbing his thumb over my nipples. My center pulsed as his eyes roamed, taking in every detail. A hint of a smile twitched his lips before he cupped my face.
“Nice place.”
He hadn’t, not once, taken his eyes off me. I let out a nervous laugh as we kissed again. He pulled away, but I stayed surrounded by his warmth.
“Don’t be nervous,” he whispered. “You give me a new reason to want you every single day.”
“Cameron, I don’t need this to be perfect. I don’t. I just need you,” I whispered.
He took control then as he lifted me to wrap around him. My head fell back at the feel of his thickness against my center. Once on my bed, he leaned over me, his words hitting soft blows to my core. “You and I don’t deal in absolutes and perfection, remember? We’re too smart for that.”
“Okay,” I agreed as I kissed his jaw.
“Nothing more than what we are,” he whispered as he tugged my lobe into his mouth.
“And no more waiting.”
“No more waiting,” he repeated.
“I mean now. Right now,” I moaned as he spread me out on my bed. His soft chuckle only amplified my agitation. I wanted him too much. He looked down at me with so much longing, I felt my eyes water.
“I would watch you every day of forever for the chance to touch you like this.” He flicked his tongue over my lips as his fingers spread me and he slipped them inside. My back bowed off the bed.
“Jesus,” he rasped out as his eyes raked down my body and he watched his fingers sink into me. “But if we ever decide to look for perfect, I would say this is as close as it gets.”
He pushed in again, sliding his fingers in and out, and invading the deepest part of me, stretching me. He pumped in again and again before his head dipped and he curled his arms around my thighs.
Anxious for him, I looked down, and he anchored me in his hold. Unwilling to release me from his stare, he bent and watched me react to the swipe of his tongue. I seized at his touch, my body firing and igniting. He drank me in with slow, precise swipes while I drew his thick hair in my fingers and twisted beneath him. I yanked at the silky strands while he groaned, his arousal peaking with the urgency. He gripped my thighs, lifting my body to match the movements of his tongue. Lick. Suck. Lick. Suck. And then it went blurry as white-hot heat struck me and my whole body tensed.
“Cameron,” I cried out hoarsely with an arousal-soaked voice.
Twisting his fingers inside, his tongue flicked along the ball of nerves, and I detonated again. He lifted to his knees, watching my body shake with my release. Our stare impenetrable, I gave him my every reaction, unabashed and completely vulnerable.
His length jerked at my response to his touch as he slowed his fingers and came up to take my mouth. I knew he was satisfied, his kiss told me so. I’d never been more ready.
Wordlessly, he hovered above me then leaned down to touch his mouth to mine. A slow kiss, and then another, and then another had me dizzy.
Enveloped completely by his warmth, he positioned himself at my entrance, and I locked my legs around his waist in invitation.
“No more waiting,” I whispered as he brushed the hair away from my face with gentle hands. Eyes connected, he pushed inside me slowly, inch by steel pulsing inch, and stretched me full. My mouth opened in a silent O as his beautiful jaw went slack at the feeling of our connection.
The only sound was our mingled breaths when need took over and he moved back and pressed in hard.
I whimpered.
“Fuck, Abbie, Jesus Christ.”
And then we were gone, our bodies took over as he filled me to the brink. Chests glistening, our hands clasped over my head, he rocked into me so I felt every inch before he swiveled his hips and did it again. He hit me deep with every stroke, making sure to touch every place I needed.
My body his slave, I came apart as his name pushed out past my lips. It was his name that wrote itself across my heart; it was his eyes that spoke to my soul. It was Cameron.
I lost myself, trusting him with every minute. His sex was my undoing. His flesh burned as he pushed himself into the deepest part of me.
“Abbie,” he grunted out, his voice needful as I nodded more permission he didn’t need. He let go of my hands and pulled us to sit so that I straddled his lap. On instinct, I began to rock against him as he thrust up, one of his arms wrapped around me like a lifeline, and the other fisted in my hair, tightening so he controlled my gaze.
Lust-filled eyes connected, I bared my teeth as he struck deep and jerked me down. Biting his lip, I felt the onslaught as I watched his features twist with his release, eyes full of heat and ecstasy.
He thrust up again as he came, and I fell over the edge while he spilled into me. We were drunk on need, shrouded in pleasure, exhausted by the feeling of each other as I collapsed in his hold, chest heaving.
The last of the sunlight filtered through my room when Cameron moved us to lay down as our breathing evened out. In my silent bedroom, only our hearts sounded as he kept me pinned to him. Wrapping my thigh around his waist, I basked in his hold, a smile against his skin.
Minutes later, the fog clearing, I ran my fingers over the divots of his chest.
“Wow,” I murmured bracing myself over him with appreciation. His body was rock solid, not a single flaw, and I was sure if there were any, I wouldn’t see them.
Wordlessly, he looked up at me as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. All I saw was need, want, lust, and I prayed I didn’t mistake what looked like love. Because in my greed, I wanted that too.
Please let this be love.
Goosebumps erupted on my skin as he lazily stroked my back with the pads of his fingers. I leaned in and kissed him, my mind reeling as our breaths synced.
We didn’t need any more words. We’d said enough. Content, we laid surrounded by the sunrise, neither of us moving as he put me in a sleepy lull with his touch, his warmth pulling me as close as I could get.
Many hours later, but only seconds after we broke apart, Cameron’s fingers traced the lines of my body while I glanced out the window at the snowfall. In a comfortable silence, I ran my fingers through his soaked hair while he kept his affection on my skin. It was a new kind of heaven.
“Abbie?” I heard shouted from my front door and shot out of bed. The only two people that had a key to my place were Bree and . . .
“Mrs. Zingaro!” I squeaked as Cameron shot out of bed too. We searched the carpet in vain. Our clothes were still in the entryway.
“Oh, good, honey. I was worried. I know you told me to use this key only for emergencies, but I heard some very loud noises. Oh, oh, dear. I see you aren’t alone. Yes, these are men’s clothes. I’m sorry.”
The door shut with a thud as Cameron and I stood naked on opposite sides of the bed. My chin trembled before we both burst out laughing. But it was cut short when I thought of Mrs. Zingaro.
“Shit, shit. I always worry when it snows and she takes the stairs.” I ran to my closet and threw on a sweater dress.
“I’ve got it,” Cameron called from outside the closet.
“She’ll beat you to death before you get near her. Trust me.”
“I think I can take her.”
“You sure?” I asked, peeking over at him, pausing to take him in, naked and in my bedroom.
Hallelujah.
“Like what you see?”
“Meh,” I said as he charged me.
“What’s that?”
I grabbed the growing muscle between his thighs. “I said meh.”
“But you didn’t mean it.” He bit my lip and my eyes bulged at the pain.
“Ow.”
“I’ll go make sure she got in okay.”
“Okay.”
Fifteen minutes later, I was dressed and walking outside. I heard Cameron’s deep baritone on the other side of Mrs. Zingaro’s door. Poor baby. He’d been roped in.
I knocked and, seconds later, the door was opened by a grinning Cameron. “Heeey,” I said with false enthusiasm, my eyes wide. “You need saving?” I whispered conspiratorially.
“Not at all,” he said, opening the door. Jenny was in her kitchen cooking.
“She’s making dinner for us.”
“Great,” I said, showing him all my teeth.
He chuckled and kissed my forehead. “It’s fine.”
I looked up at him. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure. I just want to hang out with you. This is what you two Golden Girls do, right?”
“Very funny,” I said, nudging him in the gut with my elbow before I walked in.
Jenny’s place was completely renovated and modern, save the décor. I couldn’t help but laugh inwardly at the way she’d taken a completely post-century pad and rewound time. Her furniture was old, and she had a plant on every available surface.
I shook off the cold and walked toward her with Cameron on my heels. In her quilted robe and slippers, Mrs. Zingaro was holding a spatula over a boiling stovetop and appeared to be stuck in one of her crippled, dead states.
I nudged Cameron. “Why don’t you go ask her if she needs any help.”
Cameron obliged and walked into the kitchen casually. When he approached her and spoke, she startled and slapped him in the chest with a spoonful of tomato sauce.
I howled as he looked over at me and narrowed his eyes while Jenny apologized profusely. Cameron told her not to fuss as she reached under her kitchen cabinet and took out a bottle of 409, instead of the clearly marked stain remover, and began to spray his chest with it.
Cameron looked over at me, helpless.
“Yep, this is how we do it.”
“This is delicious,” Cameron said as he piled more spaghetti onto his plate.
“I loved to cook for my Roberto.”
“Italian?” Cameron asked.
“Yes. I was raised here, but Roberto was raised in Italy. I learned to speak Italian for our son, Michael. Roberto was a true Italian man, loved the language and the culture. Kept many of his ways even when he moved to America. He never wanted anything but the same staples for dinner. His mother taught me all of his favorite recipes before she passed,” she said, pausing to do the Holy Trinity. “I have to admit, I used to sneak in hot dogs and French fries during our marriage.”
Reluctantly, Cameron posed the question. “When did Roberto pass?”
Jenny sighed, the light blue in her eyes dimming a little. “Twelve years ago. We spent sixty together. Can you believe it? I can’t.”
Cameron’s eyes softened as he looked over at her. Her hair was thin and tied up in a knot on top of her head. She looked a little paler when she spoke of her deceased husband.
“He was on security detail the day Kennedy got shot,” I told Cameron. “He was one of the men walking alongside the car.”
“Really?” Cameron said. “Wow.”
“Yeah, not so wow,” Jenny said. “It ruined his life for a number of years. He ducked out after that and moved us from DC to Chicago. His next profession was a lot less desirable,” she mumbled.
“What was it?”
“Laundry,” I said with a wink toward Cameron, who was wearing a knit sweater two sizes too small that read “Ho Ho Ho”.
I sat, picking at my food, thinking about the taste of his skin and the feel of him inside me. He seemed to be thinking along the same lines as he winked at me before he took a bite of his pasta.
“I have some videos of my Roberto,” Jenny offered. “Maybe we can watch one after dinner.”
“Sounds perfect,” Cameron said as he turned my way. “Okay?”
I shrugged contentedly as I cut into my pasta, hungry, tired, sated, and happier than I could ever remember being.
Half an hour later, we were sitting on the couch when Bree texted.
Bree: What the hell is going on? You didn’t call me when you got in last night. Are you still mad at me?
Me: Nope.
Bree: Okay, are you working?
Me: Nope.
Bree: Okay, fuck, I give up. What?
Me:
Bree: Judas Priest! Oh, girl. I’m so happy. Holy shit! So, how was it? Is he any good? Please don’t tell me that man can’t work his penis.
My phone was plucked from my fingers and Cameron began typing away, and I sat mortified. Poor Jenny was explaining a video neither of us was watching—but in my defense, I’d seen it a dozen times—as I sat waiting for certain death.
Cameron handed my phone back and sank into the couch with his arm around me. Horrified, I looked down to see what he’d typed.
Me: I just had seven orgasms. I’ll call you tomorrow.
“Seven?” I whispered in shock. I knew the count was high but had no idea how many.
“C-A-M-E-R-O-N,” he leaned in and whispered, his eyes still on the video before they flicked to mine and he smirked. My cheeks heated as he pulled me closer to him while Jenny rattled on.
We ended up watching three more videos until Jenny fell asleep in her recliner, her mouth wide open. Cameron and I washed the dishes then crept back upstairs.
He spelled his last name that night, in a way I would never forget it.
B-L-E-D-S-O-E.