Cameron opened the doors before Jane could ring the doorbell to his mom’s house. He’d seen her car pull into the curved driveway while he was standing in the front living room. She’d come alone, and he wasn’t sure where her dad was, but he was glad to see her. She hadn’t gone out with him after game night, but they’d texted late into the night. And when she called him this morning when she woke up, they’d spent another hour on the phone. Cameron had quite enjoyed her morning voice.
Tonight Jane wore a long turquoise sheath with a slit up to her thigh.
“Is your dad not coming?” he asked as he reached for her hand and kissed her cheek. He breathed in summer blossoms.
“He’s expecting a visit from a cousin who is passing through town,” Jane said. “I feel dumb not bringing anything.”
“Believe me, my mom and Selena always go overboard,” Cameron said, leading her into the house. “I’m glad you came.” They walked into the living room, where his dad was sitting on the couch and flipping through a magazine.
His dad shot to his feet. “Great to see you again, Jane,” he said, extending his hand.
She stepped forward to shake his hand. “I appreciate the invitation.”
Mr. Vance grinned. “We’re pleased that Cameron issued it. If he hadn’t, I would have.”
She laughed, and Cameron was more than pleased about his family’s warm acceptance of Jane.
His mom bustled into the room. “Cameron, can you slice the ham? Oh, Jane, you’re here. Welcome.” She looked about the room. “Is your father here?”
Jane explained about her dad, then offered to help in the kitchen.
“No, dear, you can sit and relax,” his mom said. “You’re our guest. Besides, Cameron is the designated meat carver.”
Jane raised a brow, and Cameron said, “What she means is that when I’m here for dinner, my dad gets to put his feet up. I take care of any manly duties.”
“Carving meat is manly?” Jane asked, a smirk on her face.
His dad chuckled and said, “In this house it is. Carving meat and doing dishes.”
Jane’s mouth curved into a smile, and Cameron could see she was pleased. That made him pleased.
He felt reluctant to leave her, but he couldn’t just sit and stare at her while in the same room as his dad. So he followed his mom into the kitchen and set to work on slicing the glazed ham.
“You know, Mom,” Cameron started, “they sell hams pre-sliced. Saw one at the grocery store.”
“Of course they do,” she said. “But Selena says they dry out faster.”
Selena came into the kitchen just then, carrying a pitcher of what looked like her famous strawberry lemonade. “Your mother’s right,” Selena said. “The juices stay inside the ham if you wait to slice it after it’s baked.”
“All right, all right, I believe you,” Cameron said, refocusing on his task.
“We like her,” his mom said in a quiet voice.
He looked over to meet her gaze. “Jane?”
His mom smiled. “Yes, Jane. I don’t know what’s going on between the two of you, but she’s welcome here anytime.”
Cameron straightened. “Thanks, I like her too.”
Selena laughed.
“What’s funny?” he asked.
“I think you more than like her, Cameron Vance,” Selena said with a knowing look. She picked up a tray of glasses. “When you’re finished with that, transfer it to the silver platter, then bring it outside. We’re eating on the deck.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Cameron said and earned himself another laugh.
When Selena walked out of the kitchen, Cameron turned to his mom. She was stirring some sort of creamy pudding into a bowl of cut-up fruit.
“Am I that transparent?” he asked. “I mean, Selena hasn’t even really seen us together.”
“Oh, you’re transparent,” his mom said with a smile. “But I have no problem with that.” She set the bowl aside and rinsed off the spatula in the sink.
Cameron exhaled. He was glad Jane had been willing to listen to him last night. This coming week, though, he was facing a doctor’s appointment with Crystal.
“When’s the appointment?” his mom asked in a soft voice. It was like she could read his mind.
“Wednesday afternoon,” he said. “I guess I’ll find out the due date at least.”
His mom pressed her lips together in that pert way of hers. She dried off her hands and walked to the fridge. She opened the door and brought out a veggie tray she’d already put together. “Do you want me to come with you?”
“No,” he said. “I don’t want to involve anyone else at this point, unless I have to.”
His mom nodded. “If you change your mind, let me know. I could even stay in the waiting room.” She fetched a silver platter from a cupboard and set it by Cameron.
He proceeded to transfer the sliced ham onto the platter. Then he carried it through the dining room and out the back doors that led to a massive deck.
Selena and his mom had already set the table and put up the large umbrella to provide shade. The air had started to cool from the warm afternoon. His mom arrived behind him, carrying the fruit salad. Cameron went back inside to fetch more food.
He wished he hadn’t started thinking about the doctor appointment with Crystal. He wasn’t looking forward to seeing her again. His mind veered into the questions his mom had asked him last week. What if Crystal was faking the pregnancy to get him back? But then, why would she tell him about her doctor appointment?
He tried to shove those thoughts away as he carried out the rest of the stuff. On his final trip, Jane and his dad followed him outside. The seating arrangement wasn’t pre-planned, but Cameron ended up sitting across from Jane. He was more than happy to be able to see her from this angle, but he would have rather been sitting a lot closer.
Jane gave him a sympathetic smile from across the table. Hmm. Maybe he was transparent.
Selena sat and ate with the family as well. As long as Cameron could remember, his mom had always insisted that Selena join them for meals when she was around.
Most of the conversation during dinner was about the Fall Festival his mom was helping to coordinate for Pine Valley. She was on the planning committee, and Cameron listened while Jane offered some ideas that his mom seemed to like.
He found himself loving the interaction between his mom and Jane. It was another thing to add to what he already liked about her.
At the end of dinner, Cameron rose to his feet. “Well, I’m on dishes duty. I’ll just leave the rest of you to enjoy your dessert.”
Jane met his gaze. “I’ll come and help.”
“Oh, you don’t have to, Jane,” his mom cut in. “You’re our guest. And besides, Cameron is great at his job.”
Jane smiled at his mom. “I want to help. I might be able to show him a thing or two.”
“That’s right,” his dad said, piping in. “You do run a cleaning business. You can correct the fallacies of the Vance family.”
Everyone laughed, and Cameron was more than happy to walk into the kitchen with Jane as they carried back the dishes. They made one more trip, then Cameron turned on the hot water in the sink and began to scrub the larger pans. He’d hand-dry them, then put the regular dishes into the dishwasher.
Jane joined him at the sink after putting away the salt and pepper shakers and the fancy mustard his dad liked with the ham. Having her stand side by side with him made it too tempting to kiss her. So he did, just a little one.
“Cameron, your hands are wet,” Jane said.
“Sorry,” he said, removing his hands from her waist.
She faced forward again and nudged him. “I didn’t know you were so domestic.”
“At my own home, I’m pretty lazy.”
Jane laughed. “You can get on my waiting list.”
Cameron set a pan on the side board to drip dry while he found a kitchen towel. “You have a waiting list?”
“Yeah, and I just put out a notice to hire someone part-time,” she said as she loaded the glasses into the top rack of the dishwasher. “Mondays and Fridays are killing me. Everyone wants their house cleaned either before or after the weekend.”
Cameron started to dry the pan. “You work too hard.”
She glanced up at him and paused. “I don’t mind the work, and I don’t work harder than anyone else I know. Look at your mom. She’d the hardest-working lady I know and probably doesn’t make a dime.”
“True.” Cameron set the dry pan on the counter, then started scrubbing the next dish. He cast Jane a sideways glance. “Have you ever thought about going back to your art?”
Jane sighed. “I’m rusty. I couldn’t just start painting for galleries. My education is way behind that of the other artists out there. This industry is about connections, and I’ve lost touch with pretty much anyone I used to know. Plus, I’m about a month away from moving out from my dad’s, and when I get back from work I can barely lift a finger. And even when I move out of my dad’s place, I’m still going to have to help him a lot.”
“Maybe you can do art school part-time once you get someone hired to help you,” Cameron said.
“Maybe. I’d have to raise the cleaning rates, though,” she said. “I don’t know if my clients would go for it.”
“You’re worth it,” Cameron said. “I’ve never seen a better organized dishwasher.”
Jane narrowed her eyes and swatted his arm, but he laughed and pulled her against him. She wrapped her arms about his neck, seeming not to mind his wet hands any more.
He couldn’t resist kissing her again.
“I thought you were doing dishes,” Selena said, coming into the room.
Cameron broke away from Jane. He knew his face was heating up, but he wasn’t really embarrassed. Jane just laughed and turned back to the dishwasher.
He caught sight of Selena’s smile.
“You two are excused,” Selena said. “I’ll finish up in here.”
“We’ve got it,” Cameron said.
Selena folded her arms. “That wasn’t a request.”
“All right, all right,” he said, reaching for a towel to dry his hands. He looked over at Jane. “Do you want to go on a walk or something?”
“I’d love to.”
He grabbed her hand and led her out of the kitchen, calling, “Thank you, Selena,” over his shoulder. Then he spoke to Jane. “There’s a pretty cool walking trail that winds above the neighborhood here,” he said as they stepped outside.
“Sounds good to me.”
They walked down the driveway, then to an access path that led to the walking trail. Pines towered overhead, lining both sides of the trail and providing plenty of shade.
“This is really beautiful,” Jane said. “I didn’t even know this was here.” She snapped a couple of pictures with her cell phone.
“My dad used to take me on walks here when I was younger. I guess it was a good chance for those deep father-son discussions.”
“You two seem to have a great relationship,” she said.
“Yeah, I got lucky,” Cameron said. “That’s why if I’m having a kid, I want to be involved in his or her life.”
“I’m glad you feel that way,” Jane said.
He slowed his step and slipped his arms around her. He gazed into her eyes—eyes that were so easy for him to get lost in. “You’re an amazing woman, Jane.”
“I think you’re pretty amazing too,” she said, moving closer. “And you’ll make a great father.”
“Your support really means a lot,” he said.
She ran her fingers along the back of his neck, then tugged him closer.
He obliged, not minding at all that Jane wanted to kiss him as much as he wanted to kiss her.