Where There's Hope_A Well Paired Novel

by Marianne Rice

  “Cool.”

  “You’re making us look bad,” Rich said as he cut his turkey. “Diane and I were only going to make the two afternoon shows.”

  “Mom and Dad don’t like to drive too far at night, and Mom hates staying in hotels.”

  “I’ve seen too many news reports about those places cutting corners and not washing linens.” Diane scowled and shook her head.

  “That’s okay, Gram. You’ve seen me a zillion times before anyway.”

  “More like ten zillion.” Hope slipped her hand from his and picked up her roll. “We’ll figure out all the details later.”

  They spent the next hour eating, talking, laughing and discussing the optimum time to put up a Christmas tree and decorations.

  “When you were Delaney’s age, you used to dig out the garland as soon as the Thanksgiving meal was over. Your father always thought the later the better.”

  “I didn’t mind the fake stuff, but the tree makes a heck of a mess. You ladies never paid much mind to my opinions, though. Not much has changed.” Rich chuckled and leaned back in his chair, resting his hands on his stomach.

  “We started putting them up later when Delaney was born. My, what an inquisitive toddler she was. We thought we knew how to babyproof a house, but our granddaughter was a curious little tot. Always getting into mischief.”

  Cameron felt Hope’s body slouch into her seat. He studied her profile and saw the sadness in her eyes.

  “Tell the story about when I climbed the Christmas tree when I was one and a half,” Delaney begged.

  A dim light turned back on in Hope’s face and she cocked her head, watching her daughter, oblivious to Cameron to her right.

  “That little firecracker granddaughter of mine crawled under the tree and pulled her chubby little legs up, perching herself on the bottom branch. We couldn’t find her but heard giggling from the corner of the living room.” Diane clicked her tongue and pointed at Delaney. “She gave us a run for our money, that girl. We supposed it was payback for having such an easy daughter. Hope was such a good-natured baby.”

  “Tell about the time I climbed into the toilet.” Delaney laughed.

  “I’m going to start on the dishes.” Hope stood, stacking plates on top of hers.

  “Let me take care of that.” Diane placed her linen napkin on the table and pushed her chair back.

  “You deserve a day off too, Mrs. Windward. I’ll take over dish patrol tonight.” Cameron picked up the plates from Hope’s parents and followed her into the kitchen. When they set their loads on the counter, he placed his hands on her shoulders and turned her toward him. “Hey. You okay?”

  Her eyes were dry, but still sad. Hope nodded. He read the guilt in her body language; the woman he loved was too hard on herself and taking handouts from her parents for twelve years had been eating away at her. It’s why she wanted this house. Not to get away from her parents, but to give them a break and to prove to herself that she could be independent. She’d said so much to him over the past few weeks for him to put the pieces together.

  “You’re an amazing mother. And your parents adore their granddaughter. I don’t think they regret a single day you and Delaney lived in their house.”

  Hope bit her bottom lip and furrowed her brows. “How did you know that’s what I was thinking?”

  “Because.” Cameron inched closer, placing a soft kiss on her lips. I love you lingered on the edge of his tongue, but he didn’t want to push their relationship any faster than she was ready. Heck, less than a month ago Hope thought of him as a hateful murderer. If Cameron knew anything, it was about waiting patiently, playing his cards at the right time. Timing was everything.

  “I have a lot of good people in my life,” she sighed into his mouth.

  “Do I count as one of them?”

  She tipped her head back and leaned into him, brushing her hands across his ribs and around his back until they settled in the back pockets of his pants. He liked her hands there, and did all he could to remember her parents and daughter sitting in the other room.

  “Yeah. You do.” She kissed him again, slow and sweet while gripping his ass.

  “Sweetheart.” Cameron cupped her face in his hands. “I’m having naughty thoughts of you right now, and any second those thoughts are going to be revealed.” He tipped his head down toward his crotch.

  Hope had the nerve to yank him forward, press her hips into him, and grind against his front. The teasing sparkle in her eye told him she knew exactly what she was doing.

  “Brat.” He nipped at her bottom lip and stepped back, her hands dropping from his body. “Stay away from me while I wash these dishes or...”

  “Or?” She cocked her hip against the counter, her eyebrow and lip lifting in a matching taunt.

  “Mom? Can we have dessert now?” Delaney asked as she barreled around the corner, the bowl of mashed potatoes in one hand and the gravy dish in the other. She set them on the counter and opened the fridge.

  Hope jumped away from the counter and opened a cabinet, pulling out Tupperware. “The Parkers are coming over for dessert, honey. We need to wait for them.”

  “Tell them to hurry.”

  When Delaney had skipped back to the dining room, Cameron rolled up a towel and swatted Hope on the butt.

  “Hey!”

  “Hey yourself. If I hadn’t peeled you off me, your daughter would’ve caught us with our pants down,” he whispered into her mouth, tracing her lips with his tongue before turning back to the sink.

  “Ass,” he heard her mumble before heading back to the dining room.

  He couldn’t help but smile while he washed the dishes.

  WHEN HOPE ENVISIONED her first Thanksgiving in her own home, she never thought she’d be sharing the table with a man. A man whom she loved with all her heart. Heck, she never thought she’d find a man much less be so over the top in love with him.

  And she sure as heck never thought it could be Cameron Smithfield.

  That he was so intuitive should have freaked her out, but it didn’t. Men like Cameron weren’t supposed to be in touch with their feelings or able to figure out what a woman was thinking. Only he was as far from the typical male as one could be. At first glance, he appeared to be the clichéd alpha male. Tall, handsome as sin, mysterious and brooding at times. There were times when he looked like the bad boy image he once was.

  Until he looked at you with those dark, all-knowing eyes and the sensitive, insecure, caring and nurturing side shone through. His flaws were in his past; the current Cameron Smithfield was the perfect man, which scared Hope to death. She’d fallen for him hard and fast and was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

  Life wasn’t a fairytale.

  But waiting for something bad to happen wasn’t how she lived her life. Hope took life by the horns and made the best of every situation.

  The laughter emanating from her family made her heart warm, and the hunky man doing her dishes made her insides turn to liquid silk. Too bad they wouldn’t have any alone time today. She never thought of herself as overly sexual, but Cameron had her wishing for an empty house and clean sheets.

  Scrap the sheets. The kitchen counter would do the trick.

  When the kitchen was clean, she took his hand in hers and led him to the living room. “Delaney wants to play a game. It’s called Five Second Rule. You get a category and have to name three things within five seconds. Gotta be quick on your feet.”

  “I can be quick with some things. Others, I like to take slow. Real slow.” His heated gaze had her stumbling down the hall.

  “You ready?” Delaney asked from her seat on the floor in front of the coffee table. Rich and Diane were settled on the couch, and Cameron and Hope sat on the chairs she brought in from the dining room.

  “Cameron, do you want to start?”

  “Might as well jump in head first.”

  Delaney pulled a card from the stack and read it. “Name three types of cheese.” She flipped the tim
er, and Cameron stammered.

  “American, Swiss, and provolone.” The beads in the timer settled on the bottom a second after he finished.

  “Wow. You’re good at this.”

  “I like food.”

  They took turns, giggling at how tongue-tied they’d get, not keeping score, but having fun. Cameron took a card from the stack and read it to Hope. “Ready?” She nodded. “Name three types of dances.”

  “Ballet. Um.” She waved her hands in the air, her brain scrambled by Cameron’s clean scent and glowing smile.

  “Mom. This is easy.”

  “Shush! Um, Tango and dirty.” The timer ran out before she got out the last one, and Cameron choked on his laugh.

  “I’m not sure ‘dirty’ counts.” He tossed the card in the discard pile, and she clenched her teeth to retort her comeback.

  “Shut it,” she mumbled, her cheeks warming under his mischievous grin.

  Snickers from all around had Hope growing redder and redder. “I’m getting a drink. Anyone else want one?”

  Before she could get up, Delaney shot from her seat. “I hear a car. It must be Uncle Ty.”

  When hugs and greetings were passed around a few minutes later, Celeste lingered with her arm looped through Cameron’s. “I’m so happy you invited Cameron for Thanksgiving, Hope.”

  “Nice haircut, Cam.” Mia pursed her lips and cast a wicked glare at Cameron. Hope watched his jaw tick.

  “Thanks.” He rubbed his head and grinned. “I’m not sure if I’ll be going to the same barber, though. She took a little too much off the top last time.”

  Mia snorted and headed toward the coat closet. Hope followed at her heels.

  “Mom has a serious crush on your...on him.” Mia shrugged out of her coat and hung it up. “I’m happy for you.”

  “Thanks.”

  “It’s about time you’re getting laid.”

  “Mia.” Hope playfully slapped her arm.

  “Hey. It’s true. I can tell you’re both getting it on.” Mia rubbed her arm and brought the bag of wine and goodies to the kitchen.

  “No need to announce it to my family and yours.”

  “Oh, my family already knows. We discussed it on the way over here.”

  “You what?” Hope snagged the wine from Mia’s hands and looked over her shoulder. Thankfully the crowd was still in the living room and not able to hear their conversation.

  “I wanted to make sure Ty wasn’t going to kick his ass or anything. You know, go all macho Marine on him.”

  “Ty knows about Cameron. We’re good.”

  “I know. I just wanted to remind him.”

  “Mia, your brother and I are just friends.” There was a time when Mia had tried to push Ty and Hope together. She thought they were having a secret relationship and leaving Mia out of it. Ha! As if anyone could keep a secret from all-knowing Mia. Once she accepted the fact that her brother and best friend were not intimately involved—besides that one time—she left them alone.

  “He looks good on you.” Mia took the bottle back and opened it while Hope got down a glass for her. “You look good on him as well.”

  “We’re not on each other.” At least, not right now.

  “You both have this goofy glow. It’s cute. A little sickening, but cute. I expect this from Jenna when the time comes, maybe Lily, but not you.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she lied.

  “Uh, huh. More wine?” Mia didn’t wait for a reply and refilled Hope’s glass.

  The rumble of voices rounded the corner, and everyone crowded into the kitchen and the empty dinette area.

  “Can we have dessert now?” Delaney pushed her way past Ty and peeked into the bag Mia had set on the counter.

  “I say we serve up in age order,” Ty suggested as he brought out his infamous chocolate coconut cream pie.

  “Yes!” Delaney scooped up a bunch of spoons from the drawer and dropped them on the counter.

  “Oldest to youngest, pipsqueak.” He picked Delaney up by her elbows and carried her to the other side of the kitchen, away from the array of desserts.

  “No fair.”

  Hope opened the fridge and took out Cameron’s cheesecake, placing it next to Ty’s pie, Mia’s apple pie, and the pastries her mother dropped off the day before.

  “If Ty eats all the pumpkin cheesecake, I’ll—”

  “Pumpkin cheesecake? That baby’s all mine.” Ty held Delaney back with one hand while the kitchen filled with more laughter.

  Hope served her parents and the Parkers first, letting them sit at the dining room table to eat. Ty and Mia served themselves and ate standing around the counter.

  “You can go ahead of me,” Cameron offered.

  Delaney didn’t question him and dove in, taking a large slice of pumpkin cheesecake and a bit smaller one of the chocolate pie.

  Cameron handed Hope a plate, insisting that she go before him. She was super-aware of his gaze behind her as she served herself a slice of cheesecake. He looked good in her house, at her table, playing games with her family.

  The silence—minus the moans of dessert heaven—was short lived. Once the plates were scraped clean and loaded into the dishwasher, drinks were refilled and the crowd hung around the living room.

  “I’m sorry I don’t have enough seats for everyone.” Her mother, Celeste, and Delaney sat on the couch while Rich, Wade, Mia and Ty took the dining room chairs. Hope settled herself on the floor and Cameron joined her, not as close as she’d like, but still by her side.

  Delaney pulled out her favorite game, and Hope groaned. “Really, honey? This is a game more suited for you and your friends.”

  “Don’t be a spoilsport.” Mia grabbed the box and pulled out five devices. “What the heck are these?”

  “You put them in your mouth and people have to guess what you’re saying.” Delaney modeled, shoving the plastic contraption in her mouth. It was similar to the device her orthodontist used when examining her teeth.

  “You look ridiculous,” Ty teased.

  Delaney picked up a card and slurped before speaking. “O-ee-ewow-no.”

  She looked silly, her teeth and gums exposed, her jaw unable to move to enunciate words, but Mia and Cameron were good sports, guessing what she was saying.

  “Only he knows hos?” Mia asked.

  Delaney shook her head and said it again. “O-ee-ewow-no.”

  After multiple guesses, Cameron finally got it. “Don’t eat yellow snow.”

  “Yes.” She took the plastic device out of her mouth and wiped the drool with the back of her hand. “Your turn.”

  She handed Cameron a clean mouthpiece, and he played along without hesitation. He could’ve passed, most men would have. Heck, Hope didn’t want to play the silly game, but the smiles and belly laughs from all around were contagious.

  Cameron, even being as shy as he was, got right into it, and Mia guessed correct pretty quickly. Ty and Hope took turns as well, the parents watching and guessing along, but passing on taking a turn themselves.

  When the game grew old, Delaney gathered the mouthpieces and brought them to the kitchen to wash.

  “That was fun,” Cameron said as he scooted across the carpet to sit closer to Hope.

  “Most dates wouldn’t have willingly made fools of themselves by playing this game. Well done, Cam.” Mia kicked his calf with her foot.

  “When you love someone, you’ll do anything for them,” Celeste said from the couch.

  Hope tensed and focused her eyes on her knees. She didn’t want this burden, not for Cameron. If he didn’t feel this way, if he wasn’t ready for love, he’d back off, not wanting to send her—or her family—wrong signals. That’s the kind of guy he was.

  The silence in the room didn’t help either. Without Delaney’s chatter to distract, she could feel all eyes on her and Cameron. She didn’t want him to feel pressured to respond.

  “I’m going for a walk. Need to burn off some of those holida
y calories.” Without waiting to see if he would follow, she hopped to her feet and bolted out the front door. A coward’s way, she knew. It was Cameron who should’ve been fleeing, not her.

  The door closed behind her but she didn’t wait for him to catch up. By the time she made it to the end of her driveway, she heard his footsteps right behind her.

  “It’s freezing out here.”

  Cameron draped his coat over her shoulders and curved his arm around her waist, pulling her into his body. They walked in silence until they reached the end of the road.

  “I’m sorry about that, Cameron. My family...Celeste...she means well.”

  He didn’t say anything as he stood in front of her, picking up her hand and placing it through the sleeve of his coat, then did the same to her other. She lifted her shoulders and breathed in the familiar scent of Cameron. Clean and honest and warm, despite the frigid temperatures.

  Instead of zipping her up, he pulled the ends toward him and slipped his arms under the coat, gently massaging her back.

  “I’m sorry if I made things uncomfortable in there.”

  “You?” Hope tilted her head up toward him. She couldn’t read his expression. His mind was either churning, trying to come up with a delicate way of telling her he wasn’t feeling the love thing, or he was waiting for her to say something first. To let him off the hook.

  “My family likes to meddle. Well, not my parents so much as Celeste. She’s like an aunt to me and makes up for my mother’s...normalcy.”

  “I like Celeste.”

  “She likes you too. A lot.”

  “What she said...” His hands stilled and he lifted his gaze to something over her shoulder.

  Avoiding eye contact, pulling away from touch. Yeah, he was thinking of a gentlemanly way of saying I don’t feel the same way you feel about me. Not that he knew she was in love with him.

  “I’m sorry. When I asked you to come to Thanksgiving, I wasn’t thinking about the pressure you...we’d get from my family. I asked you as a...a friend. I’m not expecting anything more. It’s okay. Really.”

  “A friend,” he repeated, dropping his hands from her and stepping back.