“Yup. It’s not fucking fair.”
We say our goodbyes and then Cameron is leading me out of the apartment. Since we were both planning on drinking, we took the tube here earlier but I’m not sure I have the patience for that now.
“Let’s get a taxi,” I say as we step out onto the street.
“If you want,” Cameron agrees, pulling out his phone so he can order the taxi. I lean into his side, yawning heavily. “Tired?”
“Yeah… A bit.” I enjoy the way his spare arm wraps around me, engulfing me in his heat.
“That’s a shame,” he murmurs. “I have all sorts of plans for when we get home.”
“Shouldn’t we give Theo and his date a lift?”
“They already left.”
“Really? I must have missed that.”
“Apparently, we’re going to have the apartment all to ourselves tonight.” There’s promise in his tone. He has every intention of making the most of the empty apartment.
I wake to an empty bed. Rolling over, I check the time on my alarm clock. It’s still early, not yet nine and yet Cameron isn’t here. On his days off, Cameron usually likes to have a lie-in. Confused, I climb out of bed and pull some clothes on and push my hair up into a messy bun.
Leaving our bedroom, I make my way down the hall and into the living room.
Cameron is there, talking quietly on the phone. He’s got his back to me but I can see the tension in his shoulders. “That’s not going to work. I have plans with Grace today.”
That’s surprising. I didn’t realise he had made plans.
“ARGH! Fuck’s sake. Are you kidding me?”
I move towards the kitchen area, trying not to disturb him. I flip the switch on the kettle and make myself a cup of tea. Cameron’s attention moves to me as he turns around. His expression softens as he offers me a small smile.
“Alright, I’ll be there.” He hangs up the phone, before pulling me towards him. “Morning, Gracie.”
“Morning,” I reply, kissing him on the cheek.
“I’m sorry, love, but I’m going to have to go to work.”
I hesitate to reply because there’s something unconvincing about what he’s saying. It’s not the idea of him going to work. As a doctor, he often has to go into work on his day off. No, it’s the fact that he won’t meet my eye.
He’s not going to work, but wherever he is going, he doesn’t want me to know about it.
Putting a smile on my face, I try to tell myself that it’s nothing. I trust him after all. But I can’t help the doubt that is beginning to settle in my stomach.
“It’s alright,” I reply.
“No. It’s not,” he says, leaning his head on my shoulder, “but I have no choice.”
Don’t Do It Yourself
CAMERON’S POV:
I feel like a right shit for lying to Grace. And not just because I know she sees through my lies but because this wasn’t the plan. Then again who plans for a leak.
Letting myself into the house, I’m immediately greeted by a panicky Alison. She’s dressed more casual than I’ve ever seen her, with her hair falling about her face. “Oh, thank goodness you’re here!”
I can’t say that I agree. This is the last place I want to be today.
“What happened?”
“The plumber didn’t seal the shower unit properly,” she says in a rush. “There’s water everywhere in the en suite.”
I follow her up the stairs to the master bedroom and into the en suite. Sure enough, there’s water everywhere but what’s worse is that I notice plenty of water damage along the way. The water from the en suite is coming through to the hallway ceiling downstairs.
“So, what now?” I ask, because honestly DIY isn’t really my thing.
I’m absolutely brilliant with a scalpel but not so much a paintbrush. And definitely not a spanner.
“Er… The plumber is on his way and I’ll get someone to come and deal with the water damage.”
“Good. So, why am I here?” I ask exasperatedly.
“It won’t be ready for tomorrow,” Alison says by way of explanation.
“Fuck!” I grumble. I should have worked that out for myself. Of course, the house isn’t going to be ready. Damn it! “When?”
“Not sure…” She hesitates. “Maybe next weekend.”
I laugh at that, a humourless bark. There’s no chance that I’ll be able to get next weekend off work too. That just isn’t going to happen. Which basically means my proposal is cancelled. What the hell am I going to do now?
Hurriedly, I roll up my sleeves to help. I might know absolutely nothing about plumbing but I know how to use a mop. The sooner I get this fixed, the sooner I can propose.
GRACE’S POV:
Instead of waiting for Cameron to come back, I decide to focus on work. There’s always homework to mark or something equally as tedious to do, so time should move quickly. I’m busy enough. Except, I keep checking the clock, my phone, and listening for the sound of the door.
Time is moving ridiculously slow but he doesn’t call or come home.
I’m not sure why I’m so disappointed. It’s not like we often get to spend the weekend together. He gets called into the hospital all the time and usually it doesn’t bother me at all. The only reason I’m upset at all is that he lied to me.
He definitely lied and I didn’t call him on it. And I really don’t know why. It’s not like me. Usually, if I don’t believe what someone is saying, I call them out on it. I’m not scared of confrontation, much preferring to face a problem head-on than bury my head in the sand.
I consider calling him, immediately going to pick up my mobile. With a shake of my head, I reconsider. I don’t want to seem needy… I could call my friends and go out instead. But I don’t want to play games either. I’m not the sort of girl to disappear on him in annoyance.
This sucks! If I wasn’t pissed off with him for lying, I wouldn’t even be thinking about this. If I want to go out with my friends, I should do that. If I want to stay in and wait for him, that’s okay too. Either way, I should just do what I damn well please instead of overthinking this.
Sighing heavily, I dial my best friend Caitlyn’s number. She doesn’t answer, probably because she isn’t expecting me to be free. I told her last night that I’d be spending the day with Cameron. I hear the sound of keys in the door and my face probably lights up at the idea of seeing Cameron again. But it’s not him. Theo makes his way into the room, offering me a massive grin.
“Hiya,” he says before flinging himself down on the sofa.
“Have you got plans tonight?” I ask without hesitation.
I’m not going to just sit here and wait for Cameron.
“Not really. Why?” He looks at me seriously, perhaps only now realising that Cameron isn’t with me. “Where’s Cam?”
“Work,” I answer, trying not to sound like I totally resent him for it.
“Ah that sucks.”
“Yeah, wanna go to the pub?”
“What about Cam? When’s he coming back?”
“Don’t know,” I tell him. “I’ll leave him a note. He can come meet us.”
Theo hesitates, not that I know why. We go to the pub all the time. And usually he doesn’t need any encouragement at all. With a yawn, he gets back to his feet. “Come on, then. Let’s go.”
I don’t need to be told twice. Grabbing my phone, I message Cameron to tell him to meet us at the pub and then I’m following Theo back out the door and out onto the street. There’s a pub just around the corner. It’s not my favourite but it always does the job when I don’t want to make the effort of a tube trip or a ride in a taxi.
Theo must notice that I’m in a terrible mood because he’s surprisingly chatty, telling me all about his day. Not that I really want to know about what he’s been doing with whatever girl he’s fucking right now. It doesn’t take us long to get to the pub and then Theo is holding the door open for me.
“I’ll get th
e drinks,” Theo says. “You grab a table.”
“Sure thing,” I agree, heading off in the direction of the table we usually try to snag. I can’t stop myself from checking my phone again once I’m sitting down but Cameron still hasn’t messaged me back. I don’t like this. It’s not like me to check my phone repeatedly. I don’t wait around for Cameron to message me normally and I’m not going to do it tonight.
With determination, I put my phone on vibrate and place it in my handbag. I might as well try and have some fun. Looking around the room, I try to ignore the cheesy Christmas songs that are blaring through the speakers. I notice a couple of guys that are watching me closely and silently pray that Theo will hurry up. I don’t want to have to deal with guys hitting on me right now.
Forcing a smile on my face, I tell myself to cheer up. It’s the fucking weekend after all.
I might not be able to spend the day with Cameron but I certainly shouldn’t waste it. Besides, there’s always tomorrow. Maybe tomorrow, Cameron and I can spend the whole day in bed or something. He can make up for having to work by going down on me. That thought puts a smile on my face.
Unwanted Advances
CAMERON’S POV:
This is a fucking nightmare. I’ve been gone hours and Grace is probably cursing me out. I only went and slipped on all the water, twisting my ankle and falling flat on my face. I knew almost immediately that my foot wasn’t broken—doctor, remember—but Alison insisted on taking me to the hospital to get an X-ray.
The X-ray was a fucking waste of time.
As I had already told her, my foot wasn’t broken. I’d just pulled my ligaments and my colleagues laughed at me no end for coming in. Alison, on the other hand, looked relieved. Probably grateful that I’m not going to sue her for this disaster.
Nothing has gone to plan today. I had everything worked out. I was going to propose today, literally with a piece of string that I had planned to tie around her ring finger. I’d planned on it being sickeningly sweet, the sort of thing I’d have laughed at my friends for a few years ago.
But now, I can’t even fucking drive because my ankle is messed up.
I leave my car at the house, choosing to grab a taxi home. It’s only when I pull out my phone to book the taxi that I realise that Grace has texted me. Damn it! I’m really messing everything up today. Several moments later, when I climb into the taxi, I give the driver the address of the pub instead of my apartment and then we’re on our way.
Leaning my head back, I close my eyes. It’s been a long day and I really want to just go to bed. But if Grace is at the pub, going to bed really isn’t an option.
It doesn’t take long for us to reach the pub. I hand a twenty to the driver and then climb out of the cab. Striding into the pub, I do my best to ignore the pain in my ankle. It might not be broken but it hurts like hell.
My eyes scan the room for Grace and Theo. I smile automatically when I catch sight of them at the table we usually sit at and I begin to make my way through the crowd towards them. I pull up short though when a woman steps in front of me, blocking my path to Grace.
There’s a lot of similarities between this woman and Grace. Similar hair. Eyes. Height. But she’s not Grace. It’s hardly surprising. I had a habit of fucking women who reminded me of Grace before we actually got together last year.
“Cameron!” she practically screeches.
I can’t say that I recognise her but that doesn’t mean much. I fucked my way through a sizable part of the female population of London before getting with Grace. Call me rude, but I try to walk around her. I’m not interested in having a conversation with some woman I once fucked.
Not now. Not ever. And definitely not while Grace is watching us with that look on her face.
It’s hard to work out what she’s thinking. She looks both angry and hurt. I want to tell her that I haven’t got a fucking clue who this woman is but I don’t get a chance before the screechy woman leans up on her tiptoes and kisses me.
It takes me a few seconds to realise what is happening. My eyes widen in horror as I comprehend what she is doing. Stretching out my arms, I grab her by the shoulders and push her away as quickly as I possibly can.
I immediately look back in Grace’s direction, hoping that she knows I’d never kiss anyone other than her. I’m pretty sure I’ve made my feelings for her clear, but I can’t help but worry that my past will give her reason to doubt me.
But she’s not where she’s supposed to be.
The seat that she was sitting in only seconds ago is now empty and I can’t find her anywhere.
Looking down at the woman that I’m still holding at a distance, I don’t bother to hide my distaste. Who the fuck does she think she is? I release her and tell her to fuck off. I could be politer, but I don’t have time to waste.
It’s then that I notice a head of mousy hair by the door. Limping, I chase Grace out onto the street. She’s several metres ahead of me when I finally make it outside.
“GRACE!” I call after her, worrying that she might ignore me.
She stops and I sigh in relief. But when she turns around, the look on her face makes me wonder if I relaxed too soon.
“You lied.” Her voice is so cold. I don’t like it. This isn’t how today was supposed to go. I was supposed to ask her to marry me, not get kissed by a random stranger.
“I didn’t kiss her,” I tell her, needing to explain myself. She looks so hurt, her eyes welling with tears.
“I know,” she whispers, “but it doesn’t matter.”
Again, the tension inside me begins to ease. She said it doesn’t matter. That’s a good thing, right?
“You lied,” she says again and I have no idea what she’s talking about.
I stay quiet, hesitating. I’m usually a pretty confident guy, but right now, I’m terrified that I’m going to fuck this right up.
“You didn’t go to work today.”
It’s not a question. She is certain that she’s right. Either she called the hospital or… Or she just knows me well enough to know when I’m lying. In fairness, I always know when she’s pretending not to be scared or when she’s upset with her parents but refuses to let on.
She knows that I lied to her and I’m not sure how to explain it.
I can hardly tell her that I went to the house because she doesn’t even know about the house. I haven’t told her that I’ve bought a house for us to live in, raise a family in. It was supposed to be a surprise. It was supposed to be one more string, tying her to me forever.
“Grace…” I haven’t got a clue what to say to her. I don’t want to ruin the surprise.
“Don’t bother, Cameron,” she says with a slight hiccup. “I was asking too much.”
I should tell her that she’s wrong. I should tell her that I love her. But I say nothing.
“You’re just not the guy for me.” She flings my own words back at me, cutting my soul to pieces and then she’s walking away from me.
What the fuck just happened?
The Hangover from Hell
GRACE’S POV:
What the hell did I do? I’m curled up on my best friends’ Caitlyn and Ayesha’s sofa, an arm covering my face. My head feels like thunder and my stomach is queasy. I try to piece together what happened last night.
I remember going to the pub with Theo. I also remember drinking more than I usually would. I definitely wasn’t sober when Cameron arrived, hours after I texted him. I had been furious with him and then that woman kissed him and I saw red.
After that things get a little blurry. I’m pretty sure I staggered out of the pub without saying goodbye to Theo or talking to Cameron. But I also have a horrible feeling that I dumped him. That doesn’t make sense though. There’s no world in which I would dump Cameron.
Even if I was jealous because that woman kissed him, that wouldn’t have been reason enough to dump him. Except, he lied. With that thought, I mutter the sentence that I should never have said to him.
“You’re just not the guy for me.”
What the hell have I done? I need to go home and put this right. A small voice in my mind tells me that he’s probably not even there. He’s probably with someone else and I have no right to complain because I dumped him.
Why would I dump him? It doesn’t make sense. Even if he lied, I should have just asked for an explanation but, no! The idiot that I am, I dump him!
My friends aren’t quiet as they move about the kitchen. I wonder how much I told them last night. If I told them anything at all, they’re probably moving around like elephants on purpose, making as much noise as possible with the sole purpose of making me suffer.
They’re definitely on team Cameron. Personally, I think they should be on team Grace, but apparently not. The only positive side of them being on his team, is that they’ll definitely help me fix this.
CAMERON’S POV:
I’ve barely slept. I spent most of the night tossing and turning, far too aware of the fact that Grace wasn’t in my bed. I can’t believe I let her walk away from me last night. I’m a fucking fool.
All because I wanted to protect the surprise.
A small part of me is hopeful that she’ll regret her decision this morning. According to Theo, she’d had a lot to drink last night. I gave him a right bollocking for letting her drink so much. I don’t care that he couldn’t really stop her, as far as I am concerned, it’s all his fault.
Well, that and mine.
I’m definitely at least partly to blame.
Since I couldn’t sleep last night, I focused on making a plan. There’s no way I’m going to let Grace go without a fight. We’re not breaking up, not until I’ve offered her everything.
As soon as I can possibly get away with texting them, I send a message to both Grace’s best friends. Of course, I apologise for messaging them so early but I secretly hope that it wakes them up. The earlier they get up, the sooner they can help me fix this.
Christmas Wishes: A Christmas Romance Anthology Page 28
