“Of course. He deserved it.” Mia picked up the dishes Hope had dropped, setting them on a tray. “Anyone messes with my people, I mess with them.”
“I don’t want you guys involved. It’s...it’s complicated.”
“You’re not going to defend him, are you?”
“Against you and Lily? Yeah, I am. I know you can be brutal, but I never would’ve expected it from Lily.”
“Lil’s got balls. She just needs an opportunity to let them hang out.”
“Nice.” Hope rolled her eyes and wiped down the table.
Friday nights were typically busy and Mia only worked every other weekend, needing to keep up with her social life. When she came barreling through the door at closing, Hope knew something was up. She just hadn’t expected her and Lily to have accosted Cameron.
Poor guy.
“Tell me you didn’t charge him for that hideous cut.” Hope couldn’t imagine what was going through Cameron’s mind at the time. Mia might be small, but her bite was big.
“Lily kicked him out. I think the guilt got to her. She sort of clammed up, like she realized what she did was so out of character for her, and sent him on his way.”
“That’s good.” Hope picked up the tray of dirty dishes and brought them back to the kitchen, Mia babbling behind her.
“You don’t feel bad for him, do you?”
“What I feel is irrelevant.”
“Holy shit.” Mia bounced in front of her and whipped the tray of dirty dishes out of her hand, dropping them in the sink for the dishwasher. “You like him.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She spun around, her heart beating erratically, trying to hide the tremble in her hands. Pushing her body more forcefully than necessary through the swinging door, she stomped behind the bar and started putting the clean glasses away.
“Well isn’t this a plot twist?” Mia plopped herself down on a barstool across from Hope and picked up a rag, wiping down the counter.
“You’re looking for something that isn’t there.”
“Shouldn’t I be saying that to you? That’s why you were so torn last night. You don’t want to like him, but you do.”
Hope ignored Mia, keeping busy with cleaning and sorting.
“I can see why, though. Besides being incredibly hot, he has nice manners. I expected him to freak out. Yell, swear, do something. I mean, we mutilated his hair. Instead, he sat calmly and let us do our thing. Let us threaten to puncture his throat with scissors.”
“You did not!” Hope spun back around, slapping her hand over her chest.
“Not exactly,” Mia said with a sly grin. “But I was thinking about it. He knew it too. I could tell by the look in his eyes. He was sweating bullets.” She laughed, tossing the rag into the sink.
“That was mean.”
“You’re welcome.”
Hope tapped her fingers on the bar and couldn’t help but laugh as well. With the myriad of emotions going through her right now, making light of the serious situation ahead of her was the best way to go.
“I would’ve liked to have seen a picture of his haircut.”
“Chances are he shaved it all off by now.”
“Probably.”
They worked in tandem silence until the dining area was set for the night. Hope went back to the kitchen and waved off the rest of her staff as they punched out.
“So you gonna spill?” Mia hopped up on the stainless steel worktable.
“That’s unsanitary.”
“You’re avoiding.”
“There’s nothing to spill.” She opened the walk-in and took out what was left of the French silk pie. There were two hearty pieces left and while she wanted both for herself, she knew better than to not offer Mia some.
“I approve of your method of distraction.” Mia reached behind her for the rolled up silverware, handing Hope a spoon from the bundle. “But I’m not backing down.”
“I told you the story last night.” Hope set the plate on the counter and cut into the pie, bringing a giant bite to her lips. The chocolate was rich and smooth as it went down her throat.
“You told me the newspaper facts. I want to know what’s going on inside your head.” Mia pointed at her with her fork. “And in there.” She lowered it to Hope’s heart.
“I don’t even know what’s going on inside.” Hope scraped her spoon across the plate, scooping up the last of the pie.
“I’ll get you started.” Mia licked her fork and tossed it in the sink. “Cameron’s the bad boy brother who you really fell in love with, but you were dating his brother. Forbidden love and all. And then in all ironies, the bad boy has an accident, killing Mr. Goody Two-Shoes who doesn’t know about the baby. Bad boy brother goes to jail and secretly longs for you, running to you the moment he’s released. You’re torn because you feel guilty about falling in love with the dead guy’s brother. How’d I do?”
“Wrong on so many levels.”
“Like what?”
Hope picked up the pie plate and brought it to the sink. “I had never met Cameron before last week, so I couldn’t have fallen in love with him, nor he with me.”
“Hm. That does mess with my theory. I could’ve sworn by the look in his eye that you’re more than his niece’s mother, though.”
“You’ve been hanging out with Priscilla too much, drinking her foo-foo juice.” Hope turned on the faucet and scrubbed their dishes, setting them in the rack to dry.
“I’m not one for roses and romance, you know that. I don’t want you with Cameron.”
“Why not?”
“So you are interested in him.” Mia picked up a towel and dried the dishes.
“I’ve hated him for so many years.”
“Your lack of an answer answers my question.”
Hope let out a loud pffft with her lips, too mentally and physically tired to argue, and leaned against the stainless steel sink.
“What if it was an accident?” Mia hopped up on the counter opposite her, swinging her legs as if they were having a lighthearted conversation.
Shaking her head, Hope sighed again. “There was cocaine in the car. Cameron had been caught with it before. I’m assuming his father, who’s a judge, had gotten him off. Not that time, though.”
“Like you said before, he was a bad ass. Thirteen years is a long time. Maybe he’s changed.”
“Now you’re defending him?”
“I’m playing Devil’s advocate. When you admit you have feelings for him, I’ll remind you of his jail time. Of his criminal record.”
“I don’t need reminders. That’s been the only thing keeping me from jumping his bones.”
“What?” Mia hopped off the counter and smacked Hope’s leg. “You horny bitch. And here I thought you were a washed up old maid.”
Only Mia could get away with calling a woman bitch and it not turn into a fight.
“I’m kidding.” Kind of. It had only been a couple days where her hormones had been seeing him in a new light. “I started my period yesterday. It’s why there were so many tears last night.”
“Not buying it.”
“He’s well mannered. I can’t tell you how many people have been singing his praises. And he’s humble. And apologetic. No matter how many times I call him a murderer, he takes my harassment with humility. And he fixed my house so I can move in this weekend.”
Mia pulled Hope away from the counter and wrapped her in a hug. “I love you, Hope. I want you to be happy. If you think Cameron can make you happy, go for it. But if there’s too much baggage between you guys, then move on. I don’t know enough about him to cast a fair judgment, but I’ll do some research.”
“No need. The media didn’t portray him in a good light. I’ve read it all.”
“That was a long time ago. Like I said, people change. I’m not the same person I was in high school.”
“Really?” Hope raised an eyebrow and smirked.
“Okay. I’m pretty damn close to the
same. But you’ve changed and so has Ty. We didn’t know Alexis well back then, but she sure wasn’t like the woman she is today. If this Cameron dude has turned over a new leaf, if he’s truly rehabilitated his life, and if he makes you happy, then go for it. For him.”
Maybe. “I don’t know.”
And that was the crux of it all. She just didn’t know.
CHAPTER TEN
CAMERON NEEDED THE overtime. Well, maybe he didn’t need it, but he sure didn’t want to spend the weekend holed up in his apartment. After an early morning shopping trip to buy some normal clothes—khakis and a few sweaters—he stopped by a few discount furniture stores.
There were decent sales, but he wasn’t feeling it. Maybe if he wasn’t in a cheap apartment he’d have been inspired to buy a couch. A bed. A kitchen table. The space above a convenient store wasn’t what he wanted to decorate.
Finding himself too restless to go back to his place, he made a pit stop at Lowes. Looking for what, he didn’t know. Somehow he’d meandered into the flooring section. More specifically, tile.
Cameron picked up a piece of gray eight-by-eight tile that would go well in Hope’s upstairs bathroom.
“Funny I find you here.”
Recognizing the angry voice, he set the tile down and wiped his hands on his jeans before turning.
“Ty.” Cameron dipped his head instead of holding out his hand, unsure what Ty thought of him. If he was as protective as Hope’s friends, there better be an ambulance nearby. He didn’t stand a chance. The man had at least forty pounds and a couple inches on him.
“Putting in tile, are you?”
“Just looking around.”
Ty shifted the bill of his baseball cap and rolled his shoulders back. His face revealed nothing about what was going on inside his head.
“You?”
“Planning on it.”
“Sounds like you and your dad’s carpentry business keeps you busy.”
“Yeah.” Ty narrowed his eyes then folded his massive arms across his chest. The man had some guns on him. Not someone Cameron wanted to mess around with.
“Did you get anything on your hunting trip?”
Ty studied him for a minute before replying. “Yeah.”
He already knew about Cameron’s past, overhearing it the day he first saw Hope, and he’d already threatened him once. If Ty had a new beef with Cameron, it had to be about the past week. About him being in her home. Stepping in Ty’s territory.
“I apologize if going to Hope’s house was out of line. We were put in a...in an awkward situation. I promise you nothing happened.”
“Nothing happened?” Ty rolled his shoulders back again. This time Cameron heard the cracking of his bones.
“I promised you, promised her, that I’d stay away. That I wouldn’t interfere with her life. I won’t hurt her again. You have my word.”
Ty pushed his hat backward, rubbing his forehead, then moved it back again, pulling it low.
“Nothing would have happened unless Hope wanted it to happen.”
Right. That’s what Cameron had just said. Sort of. Yet the look Ty was giving him made him uneasy.
“She let me come back the next day to fix the wiring. I should have had her wait until you got back.” Cameron didn’t know why he’d turned into a blundering idiot. That wasn’t like him. Only he needed to assure Hope and everyone she was close with that he meant well. Trust wasn’t something easily earned. He knew that all too well. And he didn’t give it freely either.
“I’m glad it was taken care of before the damage could get any worse.”
The subtle thank you was a surprise.
“Is she moved in now?” Not that it was any of his business.
“Monday.”
“You’re putting in her floor for her first? I tried to salvage the linol—”
“It was old and ugly. Tile will be better.”
“I knew I’d find you over here—” Hope’s voice came calling out behind Ty, stopping suddenly when she spotted Cameron. “Oh. It’s you.”
Good thing Ty didn’t have his hunting rifle on him because Cameron froze like a deer in the headlights.
Gorgeous as always, today she wore her hair down and it flew freely past her shoulders. Hope tucked a stray strand behind her ears and bit her lip. Cameron couldn’t help the direction of his gaze, taking in the ripe, pink fullness of her mouth.
“Hi.” He tucked his hands in his pockets, afraid if they weren’t trapped he’d reach out and touch her.
“Hi,” Hope replied, clasping her hands together then slightly separating them, her fingers nervously playing with each other.
“I take it you two are looking for bathroom tile?”
“Hm?” Her eyes, big and brown and beautiful, widened. “Oh. Yes. Um. Ty,” she shifted her gaze to him, “and I are putting in the floor tomorrow morning. I’m picking out the tile, and then he’ll do the groundwork.”
“That’s great. The toilet isn’t leaking anymore?”
Hope shook her head, her fingers picking at her nails. “I’m, uh, I’m going to look around.” She turned back toward where she came from, walking away from the tile section, and Cameron’s eyes couldn’t help their fixation on her ass.
“Well holy hell.” Ty took off his ball cap and scratched his head. “I didn’t believe it when she told me.”
“The toilet leak wasn’t that bad—”
“Not the toilet, you dumb shit.” Ty sniffed or breathed deep, Cameron couldn’t tell the difference, only his mannerisms looked like he was about to blow. “Mia said you two had a thing, and I told her she was delusional.”
This time it was Cameron who took his baseball cap off and rubbed his bare scalp. “Mia and I don’t have anything. I barely even met her.”
“Not you and my sister. God help the man who tries to settle her down. You and Hope.”
“Me and Hope?” He wished, oh how he wished that there could be something between them. But they had too much baggage.
“She hasn’t looked at a man like that since...since a long time.” Ty stepped up to him and poked his meaty finger in Cameron’s chest. “If she lets you into her life, you better not eff it up. You hear me? That woman means the world to me. Anyone messes with her, they mess with me. So take it slow. And I mean goddamn watching paint dry slow.”
“Me and Hope?” he asked again, but Ty had already left.
Me and Hope. Cameron smiled until his cheeks hurt.
And then he smiled some more.
HOPE HAD MANAGED TO avoid Cameron for another week. If only she could avoid her pestering friends.
It was nearly closing time on a Saturday night, but she forced her best hostess smile at the couple who entered the restaurant and brought them to a quiet seat in the back.
It had been busy earlier, the rush dropping off pretty fast with the setting sun. Since daylight savings day, the sky darkened by five o’clock and was pitch black by six. Apparently, people ate with the sun and not the clock. Which was fine with Hope. She could get home earlier.
To an empty house. Not that it bothered her.
Ty had been unnaturally quiet when they tiled her bathroom, only asking her one question.
Do you trust him?
Why was everyone bent on her trusting the man? It wasn’t like he’d been in jail for forgery or fraud. He’d never lied to her. Heck, they barely said a dozen words to each other during the four hours he was in her home last week.
Only she knew it wasn’t that kind of trust they were talking about. It would be easier if it were. They were talking about his intentions and her heart. Why they were so overprotective yet pushy at the same time had her more confused than a January heat wave.
Her house had been a steady flow of friends wishing her well, touring the rooms, and dropping off casseroles, bottles of wine, and tasty treats. The elderly neighbors on the road invited Delaney to come to the barns and visit the animals whenever she wanted, which she was ecstatic about.
Delaney wasn’t ready to stay home alone while Hope worked night shifts, so she’d made plans to sleep over her friends’ houses for the first weekend. Hope would need to adjust her schedule now that they weren’t living with her parents.
She’d already taken the following weekend off for Delaney’s birthday party. Hope had rented out the studio where Delaney took lessons for the past ten years. She’d bring some snacks and cake and ice cream, play some music, and watch the girls dance the night away, giggling as they always do.
Four would be coming back to the house for a sleepover. Delaney’s first time hosting one and she felt mature and overly excited.
Hope had sent Mia home early so she took care of the couple’s order, bringing the gentleman a beer and the woman a glass of Chablis.
She gave the cooks their orders and started breaking down the table stations, sweeping and stacking chairs on the other side of the dining room so not to bother her two diners.
When the bell jingled behind her, she sighed, wishing she could close for the night. She loved the restaurant business, but it drove her mad when they were empty for an hour and then got customers fifteen minutes before closing.
Putting on her best customer service face, Hope leaned the broom against the wall and weaved her way through the chairs to the front of the restaurant.
Cameron filled the doorway, his hands tucked in his coat pockets as he looked around. She knew when he spotted her. His head, clad in a baseball cap, tipped and the right side of his mouth tilted up.
“Hey.”
Damn, he was cute. Boyishly charming in the body of an athletic man. His coat hid the muscles and contours of his frame, but she knew what lay underneath. Well, not all the way, but close enough. She hadn’t been immune to the way his shirt molded to his arms and back while he pulled up the disgusting flooring in the upstairs bathroom.
“Here for a late dinner?” Hope picked up a menu and held it close to her chest.
“Maybe.” Cameron dropped the grin, his gaze darting around. He pulled his hands out of his pockets and then put them back again.
“Maybe?”
“I don’t want you to go to any trouble.” He shifted his feet, looking mighty uncomfortable.
Where There's Hope_A Well Paired Novel Page 10
