Cammie
I bought that image thinking it signified the two of us trying to hold on despite the fact that the odds were against us and there was no way we could have ever made it. I thought it perfectly catalogued how we were doomed from the start. Who would have thought I would show it to the man I love and have him ask where we would hang it?
“Cam.” Duke tugs on my hand as I turn left into the hallway.
“What? Don’t tell me you’ve had an epiphany and you’re changing your mind about this, buddy, because I told you I loved you, and whether you realise it or not, that means you’re mine, for good.”
He gives me that sexy little I’m-not-really-smiling grin that I’ve missed. “As much as I love to hear you talk a hundred miles an hour again, just shut up for a second, would you?”
I lift an eyebrow, dropping his hand to cross my arms.
“I just wanted to say”—he backs toward the door—“that I need to turn the car off.”
“Oh, crap. Of course.”
Duke reaches out to snag my hand again, tugging me flush against him. “So,” he damn near growls. “Get this sexy little butt into bed and be ready for me, because I swear to God, I’ll have that car off and locked in record time.”
“Get to it, soldier.” I back out of his hold and give him a playful push on the chest.
He laughs, turning heel and jogging out the door to sort the car. My pulse races as I turn in the opposite direction and hustle to my room, my sweater off by the time I’m through the door. The HQ still runs as I strip my off leggings and tank. Only when I unclip my bra does the engine finally shut off. Record time, my arse.
I lie back on the airbed to wait for him, switching positions half a dozen times to try and find the most flattering and alluring one. The minutes pass, and I finally give in to check my phone. What the hell? How long does it take to walk back inside, shut the door, and then come screw me senseless?
As much as I try not to worry, the devil on my shoulder gets the best of me, and I find myself tugging my clothes back on. Voices drift up the hallway once I round the bedroom door, both of them deep and definitely male.
I reach the front door and sigh at the sight of his black truck in the driveway. “What are you doing here, Jared?”
Both men turn to look at me with a frown. Weird. I feel as though I’m an intruder on my own property.
“It’s all right, Cam. Go back inside,” Jared assures me.
Weirder still.
“You two talking out here like old friends doesn’t make any sense, guys.” I try a casual laugh, but it comes off as more of a nervous giggle.
“We’re having a bit of a chat, Cam,” Duke tells me. “Nothing to worry about. I’ll be right in.” His tone says otherwise.
I hesitate, hoping they’ll ignore me and carry on with their conversation, yet the two of them stare me down until I take a few steps back toward the door. What whacked up alternate universe have I just stepped into if these two men are having a discussion that doesn’t require me?
Horny and frustrated, I stomp back down to the bedroom and sit on the end of my lonely airbed, cross-legged. My phone spends more time lit up than it does asleep, given I constantly check the time.
Five minutes pass, then ten, but it’s close to fifteen before I hear the snick of the front door followed by the click of the deadbolt and the faint rumble of Jared’s truck.
Duke rounds the doorway, his head down, a hell of a lot less fired up and ready to ravage me than he was before my ex turned up.
“What did he want?” I ask, straightening my legs out.
“Came over to check how the move went, make sure you’re set to be out on time.” He sighs. “Dickhead doesn’t trust you to do anything yourself, does he?”
“No, but that hardly constituted you two talking for twenty minutes,” I bite back.
Duke’s fingers dab his bottom lip as he drops a short, “Huh.”
“It’s a legitimate point,” I protest. “The least you can do is tell me the truth about what was said.”
“The truth,” Duke says, stalking into the room, “is we spent less than two minutes talking about you moving house. He then spent somewhere around five telling me why you’re not worth my time, probably in an attempt to sabotage any chance at you being happy.” He drops to his knees at the edge of the mattress. “Which leaves about thirteen minutes, if I’m counting right.” I notice why he touched his lip; the skin is split, fresh blood dotted around it. “I guess I wasted about ten of those calmly and coolly reminding him that he’s got no business being involved in your life anymore, because well, you know, you’ve sold the house, so that’s the end of that.” Duke lifts an eyebrow as I reach out and touch the flesh under his split lip. “Final three minutes, babe?”
“Yes?”
“I spent those reminding him all the things there are to love about you, that I appreciate, and that he’ll miss out on because he wasn’t man enough to be there for you when you needed him most.”
“Duke,” I whisper, touching his lip. “What did you do?”
“Got rid of the competition so I could mark my territory in peace.” He knocks me on my back, promptly tugging my leggings off. “Told him I had better things to do than waste my time on him, and that he could stick around if he wanted, but that I wasn’t into that kind of kink.”
“You did not,” I counter.
“How do you think I got the split lip?” Duke wrestles my sweater off next to find I never put my bra back on. “Fuck, Cam.”
“Well,” I say, lifting my eyebrows as I stretch out beneath him, “according to you this is all yours, so have at it, soldier.”
“Fucking ’ey, it’s mine.” He ducks down to suck one of my nipples into his mouth.
I moan at the exquisite feel of his hot lips on me, and at the word replaying through my mind: mine. There’s something carnal about the way Duke says it. As much as I’m an independent woman, it makes me want to submit to this man in every way—I love that.
“Don’t leave me again,” I say, threading my fingers into his hair. “I couldn’t survive if you did.”
He crawls over me until we’re face to face. “I’m not going anywhere, babe. Not unless you’re coming with me.”
And I believe him, because after all, he came back. It broke my heart at the time. Hell, it still tears me apart when I think about how I felt hearing him leave that night. But I can see his reasons clearly now. The storm has passed, the clouds have lifted, and the sun is shining brilliantly what we have. I never would have been able to see how bright our future is with the clouds of regret forever over our heads. We each needed to settle our pasts, accept our losses, and come into this with a clear head to give it a fair chance.
I run my hand through Duke’s hair as he lays hot kisses between my thighs, thankful that we’re here, however hard the road was.
A few short months ago, I sat in my living room wondering if there ever was such a thing as love. Wondering if I would ever really know how that felt again, or if I was doomed to vanquish the emotion to the furthest reaches of my memories.
Today, I can say without a doubt that I believe in love again.