CHAPTER THIRTEEN
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Camryn had hoped to get at least six hours of sleep before she needed to drive to Daytona, but it was going on midnight and she was still tossing and turning. It had been so nice to spend time with women outside of the industry, to actually submerge herself in the normalcy of life as opposed to discussing bullshit. She’d enjoyed good wine, great laughs, and created new friendships. Unfortunately, all of that had been overshadowed by her preoccupation with one man.
Sawyer Madison.
She didn’t understand why he was so dead set against getting to know her better. Their attraction wasn’t something she’d materialized out of thin air or imagined.
Or was it?
Was she so desperate for anything to take her mind off her problems with work that she she’d invented the possibility of a budding relationship that really didn’t exist?
“I should just leave now,” Camryn muttered to herself, grabbing the top edge of the comforter and tossing it to the side. “It’s not like I’m going to get any sleep.”
She didn’t move right away. Instead, she laid in the middle of the bed for a moment longer with her head resting on the soft, goose-down pillow that was better than what any five-star hotel had to offer. Mr. Calvert had great taste when it came to home furnishings in general, although the sprawling log home was a bit short on photographs or any kind of personal mementoes—not that she wouldn’t do well to take some lessons from him on décor.
The guestroom that she’d been assigned had been designed with comfort in mind, and the various shades of earth tone hues did its intended job to instill a feeling of peace. The soothing colors complemented the oak furniture, as well as the intricate palm frond ceiling fan and aquamarine glass chandelier combo that hung above the center of the bed.
Were all the rooms uniquely designed like this?
And it was in that instant her thoughts once again turned to Sawyer, wondering if he was staring at a similar light fixture and thought of how he would put together his own home. Even the most innocuous item led her thoughts back to the one man who was consuming her will when he appeared not to have any interest at all in pursuing her. It was frustrating. It was beyond frustrating.
“Damn it.”
Camryn couldn’t take this restlessness anymore, having already decided on stopping at a gas station to buy one of those English toffee cappuccinos to get her through the roughly hour-long drive to her scheduled photo shoot. She had her most comfortable cotton shirt over her head before her feet hit the ground.
There was enough moonlight shining in through the blinds that she didn’t need a light to pick some jeans and fresh socks out of the overnight bag she’d brought in from the car. Having already taken a shower before bed, there was no reason to use the ensuite bathroom and wake everyone up with her racket of getting ready in the middle of the night. It didn’t help that she’d knocked over the bedside lamp in her bid to find the alarm she’d set not an hour ago. Luckily, the resonating thud didn’t break the leaded glass shade or disturb the rest of the house.
Camryn quickly changed into a pair of faded jeans and a lightweight pullover matching the color of her top. She’d rather be comfortable on the long drive, knowing full well that the day ahead would be filled with long hours in the makeup chair changing from one look to another. The poses were usually awkward in an effort to capture that elusive fresh-faced dawn’s early light photograph that displayed innocence with a touch of seduction. The funny part was that it was all a lie. No one woke to the brutal rays of the morning’s light looking like that. The thing of it was, the public expected the lie and wanted even more.
She stared down at the small piece of luggage and debated on whether or not to take it with her. Her original plan had been to head to her mom’s house in Chicago, but that had changed when she’d thought Sawyer would want to spend some more time together. He’d quickly set her straight on that account, so technically, there was nothing keeping her here but her desire to see him one more time.
Camryn still couldn’t bring herself to zip her bag shut and take it out to her car.
“Is everything okay?”
Camryn spun around quickly to find that Sawyer was leaning up against the doorframe of her bedroom, the hallway lights framing him in a golden hue. How long had he been standing there watching her dress? She hadn’t heard the door open—not even the slightest creak.
“You startled me,” Camryn said, crossing her arms and debating on whether she should tell him to go back to his room. His words and actions had confused her today, and she wished there was a way to rewind the clock to when they’d enjoyed a lunch free of all their baggage and roadblocks. Technically, they didn’t have any more physical barriers, but he didn’t seem to want to take advantage of that fact. “I thought everyone had retired for the night.”
“Most of the team is still reading over the old hardcopy FBI case files your brother retrieved from the National Archives Building on Constitution Avenue in D.C.” Sawyer casually reached over to flip on the overhead light, causing her to squint at the sudden brilliance of the room. She noticed immediately that his blond hair was ruffled, but the alertness in his blue eyes told her he’d been with his colleagues reading over those criminal reports he’d mentioned. She wanted to ask him what had brought him up to the main house, but he’d made his position clear. Unless he said otherwise, she would grab her keys and head to Daytona. “I heard something fall and wanted to make sure you were all right.”
There was no possible way he’d heard the lamp fall over on the nightstand if he’d been with her brother in the outbuilding unless Sawyer had been in the house when it happened. Camryn could admit to letting her imagination go somewhat rampant on its journey when she suddenly pictured video surveillance of every room in the house. Her brother did have a penchant to go overboard when it came to security and in his never-ending quest to protect those he loved.
“Um, yeah,” Camryn replied, gesturing toward the bedside table. “I accidentally knocked the lamp over.”
“I was about to call it a night when I heard the noise, but this actually affords me the opportunity to ask you to cancel today’s photo shoot.”
Camryn had to have misunderstood Sawyer, because as far as she was aware there was no valid reason for him to make such an appeal. Yet, his dimple didn’t appear in the wake of such an amusing offhand request. She waited for the punchline to come, thinking maybe this plea came by way of her brother, but Sawyer remained unsettling silent as he awaited her response.
“You’re actually serious,” Camryn blurted out, already shaking her head at such a demand. Well, technically it wasn’t a demand, but his stature suggested otherwise. “Is this coming from Brody? You can tell him that I said—”
“No,” Sawyer replied quietly, leaning back enough so that he had visual access of the hallway as he glanced that way. “Could we take this conversation downstairs to the kitchen? I know Ashlyn has to be in court early in the morning, and Remy needs to go to the advertising agency for an important campaign meeting before noon.”
Camryn was fine with heading downstairs for numerous reasons, but the main one being the intimacy of this room. There was an underlying intensity in the way he was regarding her, as if he was aware of something she wasn’t…and it was quite disconcerting. She glanced down at her small suitcase and impulsively decided to leave it on the floor after all.
She was definitely coming back here after her photo shoot today.
“I’ll meet you downstairs in the kitchen in five minutes.”
Sawyer nodded before silently turning and walking down the hallway, leaving her standing in the middle of the bedroom and wondering what had just happened. What reason could he possibly have for asking her to cancel her photo shoot?
The Noel Cassi situation was still under control according to all her sources, so tomorrow’s date—technically today’s date now—should hold no concerning weight.
Was Sawyer’s reasoning more personal or had they been told something that her people were unaware of earlier?
Camryn rested a hand over her stomach, trying to soothe the flying butterflies that had taken up residence in her stomach. She’d thought of Sawyer every day since their kiss in New Orleans, and even more so since their run-in yesterday morning. His proximity was creating a physical desire to embrace him.
Was it so wrong of her to want to get to know him a little better?
Camryn didn’t waste time, grabbing her toiletry bag and making a quick stop in the bathroom to brush her picture-perfect teeth. She took her hairbrush and drew the rigid bristles through her hair before securing the long strands on top of her head with a hair tie. The sunshine had given her a healthy glow over the last few months of filming.
Technically, her appearance shouldn’t matter, but yet she still found herself wondering what Sawyer thought of her free of all the makeup and flashy hair treatments. How could he so easily dismiss her simply because she was his teammate’s sister? If anything, that alone should have told him something of her character and her suitability.
Had he had a change of heart?
There was only one way to find out, so Camryn gathered up her bathroom items and stored them back in her bag before dropping it off in her room. She closed the bathroom door between her room and the other guestroom before she quietly made her way down the long hall. She descended the stairs, listening for any sounds that someone else might be awake in the main house other than her and Sawyer.
It was strangely silent, almost too much so, considering quite a few rooms were being utilized this weekend. Granted, everyone had a long day ahead of them tomorrow and should be sleeping, but she would have thought there would have been a lighter tone of the earlier gathering still lingering in the air. Maybe there was and she was just missing it because of Sawyer’s odd reappearance and subsequent invitation to join him downstairs.
She wasn’t surprised to find him waiting for her in the kitchen. What did take her aback was that he was in the process of sliding over a steaming cup of hot coffee…with what appeared to be mixed with a little bit of cream, which was her preferred taste. She’d noticed in New Orleans that he’d known how she liked her coffee, but they’d both been preoccupied with what had happened to her at Latrobe’s on Royal. She wouldn’t ask him now, but only because he’d already started the conversation.
“I know it’s late for this type of cancellation, but I think it’s for the best considering the threat.” Sawyer surprised her by coming around the granite countertop and joining her on one of the stools, even swiveling the chair so that he could face her. “Cassi was very specific in writing the date down on that napkin. There has to be a reason. I suspect he has a plan.”
“I had assumed it was because he would be able to take photographs of me in a public setting. There isn’t much I could do to prevent him. However, that was before the restraining order was signed and he was served,” Camryn reminded him, bringing the warm mug closer to her so that she could wrap her fingers around the white porcelain. She noticed that Sawyer hadn’t poured himself a cup. “It’s an open beach, Sawyer. Those fans who get wind of what’s taking place will be on hand to watch and take pictures of their own, though they’ll be sequestered from the actual site a few hundred yards away by security. Noel Cassi wouldn’t be able to approach me, let alone talk to me, without everyone in the vicinity knowing about it and him being arrested. Besides, he went back to New York after the whole New Orleans incident and hasn’t bothered me since.”
“Would you cancel if I were to simply ask you for the sake of my sanity?”
Camryn’s laugh bubbled up, but she could see that Sawyer was absolutely serious about his question. The sound of her chuckle faded when his hand reached out and covered her wrist.
“Did something happen that you’re not telling me?”
“No,” Sawyer admitted truthfully, stroking his thumb over the sensitive underside of her wrist. “I could sit here and tell you a lie like I haven’t given a second thought to what happened between us in New Orleans, but I won’t. I could also explain in detail what those thoughts have done for my current inability to sleep, or clarify my reasons on why I haven’t reached out to you in all this time…but my explanations would only be a waste of time when we both know I’d rather take you upstairs and make love to you the way I should have two weeks ago. I won’t use whatever is going on between us to get you to stay.”
“I wouldn’t be opposed to it if I hadn’t already given my word,” Camryn whispered honestly, laying her cards on the table. She would love more than anything if Sawyer took her upstairs and did wicked, sensual things to her body. She’d thought of little else since their kiss. “I’m sure we can negotiate something.”
Sawyer sighed in what could have been resignation, but she was relatively sure it was fatigue. Either way, he let his fingers drift away from her wrist, leaving her rather cold. He stood up from the stool. At first, she was afraid he was leaving the room, but he walked around the counter and pulled a mug down from one of the cabinets. It didn’t take him long to fill up his cup.
“You know how we talked about my mother’s innate creative ability?” Sawyer stayed on the other side of the island, though she couldn’t tell if he’d done so purposefully. He did rest his elbows on the granite as he leaned forward to share his story. “Mom is rather unique, going so far as to believe she can sense things around us that aren’t really visible.”
Camryn ran into a lot of those types of people in her line of work, and some of them she actually believed did have the ability to sense things others couldn’t. It was easy to recognize that Sawyer was a skeptic, but that wasn’t uncommon considering his line of work. Her brother was the same way.
“There were days—few and far between, I might add—where she would keep me home from school or change our plans at the last minute without an explanation.” Sawyer looked down into his coffee, as if his childhood memories were playing out in the dark liquid. “It wasn’t until I was out on my own in the military that she would call me out of the blue, telling me that I had to be careful, that I started to remember those moments when I was younger. Each time she made a call to let me know about that special intuition, something occurred in the field that could have easily taken my life had I not been more careful.”
“Do you get those feelings?” Camryn asked quietly, wanting him to continue to share with her these parts of his life. “Is that why you don’t want me doing the photo shoot?”
“I didn’t make it through two combat tours by ignoring my gut instinct. I honestly don’t know if it was coincidence that my mother called me on days that were more harrowing than others, if my own reactions were just a fluke, but I’m smart enough not to discount the comparative evidence.” Sawyer shifted as if he were uncomfortable with where this conversation was heading, but that didn’t stop him from finishing his request. “I’m asking you to stay home this morning. Don’t go to Daytona.”
Camryn’s first thought was that it would be impossible for her to cancel a photo shoot with Vanity Fair that had been on the schedule for at least a couple of months. The heated lecture she would receive from Natalie, let alone the flack that she would receive from the producers of the movie, would be inconceivable. She wasn’t even considering the reaction from the magazine or their highly sought-after photographer, which honestly would be the talk of the town the minute she pulled out of the shoot.
“You could have easily told this to Brody,” Camryn offered up, watching Sawyer closely for his reaction. “He would have tried to get me to cancel without you having been so open and honest with me. I guess what I’m saying is that you didn’t have to go to all this trouble.”
“I did consider doing just that,” Sawyer countered, once against reaching for her hand. This time, he took a hold of her fingers by sliding his underneath, once again warming her in a way that the coffee couldn’t begin to do. “But what’s between us has nothing to do with your brother.”
“And what is between us?” Camryn asked softly, truly wanting to know where Sawyer was going with this topic of conversation. She was tired of going back and forth on this with him, leaving her heart feeling like a tennis ball being batted across a court.
“I honestly don’t know, Camryn, but I’d like to keep you around to find out.”
*
He couldn’t recall a time when he’d been so nervous and excited at the same time. It could have been the first time he’d set eyes on Camryn Novak in person. It could also have been when she’d stared directly into his camera lens, her brown eyes practically branding his soul with her curiosity.
She wouldn’t be so inquisitive anymore, not when he chained her to a table in order to teach her not to sell out her beauty for the sole sake of greed.
Greed was one of the seven deadly sins. It was a great lesson, and he’d take the advice given to him on how to go about being a master teacher.
It was all more exciting because Camryn Novak was going to be his first pupil.