"Oh, maybe I should stop that then," she said, teasing. He brought his eyes to hers, shaking his head silently, and she laughed. Taking the hem of the shirt again, she brought it swiftly up and over her head. "How about now? Am I dressed alright then?" She asked. "Decent bathing attire for you, Dr. Caswell?"
He groaned, letting his head fall back against the edge of the hot tub. "Come in here and I'll tell you what I think," he said.
"I don't know, I think I need that shirt after all. I think there's a chill in the air," Cameron teased, running her hands softly down the curves of her stomach. She brought them back up, crossing her arms lightly beneath her breasts, lifting them, displaying the rosy, pebbled peaks. He gulped, and she laughed.
"Woman," he said, his voice low, growling. "The water is hot. You will not be cold. Now get in, or I'm coming out to drag you in."
"Well, alright then," she said, laughing. Still, she teased. "Don't touch me while I get in though. I wouldn't want to slip." She lifted one slender leg, bracing the soft flesh of her bottom on the edge of the hot tub as she lifted the other leg from the floor, bracing her right foot on the edge of the hot tub. Swinging her left leg over, she parted her thighs, slowly dipping her left foot into the water, watching as his mouth fell open at her display.
"God, Cameron, you're so full of surprises. It amazes me, how confident you are with me. How bold you can be. Do you really trust me that much?"
"Apparently," she whispered, lowering herself into the water, slithering through the bubbles to straddle his lap. She rested her hands on his chest, leaning in to press an innocent kiss to his lips. "I feel safe with you," she said, smiling against his mouth.
"I want to show you something," he said, reminding her again of how they'd come to be there.
"Oh. You said that before, too." Cameron sat back on his thighs, her own thighs hugging his as her hands slipped below the water to rest on his stomach. "What is it, Mac?"
"I wanted to give you something," he said, reaching over the edge of the hot tub and slipping his hand beneath the stack of towels there. Withdrawing his hand, he offered her a sparkling crystal trinket box. It was in the shape of two hearts joined together, one large and one small. Immediately she thought of Mac and Logan, a connected pair, one large and one small. The crystal hearts overlapped slightly; each edge of the crystal perfectly cut and beveled for maximum light and sparkle.
Cameron took the box, carefully holding it to her breasts, above the level of the water. "Oh, Mac," she breathed. She lifted shimmering eyes to him, taking in the tension of his face, the tight set of his mouth. Confusion clouded her face and she clutched the box, tilting her head. "What is it, Mac?" she asked again. “What’s wrong?”
"Open it," he said simply.
Swallowing, Cameron looked down at the crystal hearts in her hands. "Okay," she said softly. Gingerly, she lifted the top from the box, gasping when she saw what was inside. She could feel Mac trembling beneath her, the ridges of his thighs vibrating against the sensitive flesh her own thighs. The evidence of his arousal brushed against her under the water, his arms tight around her hips.
"Oh God, Mac. Oh my God," she whispered. "How beautiful!" Her fingers traced the shape of the drop earrings, sparkling with emeralds and diamonds. She moved to the ring next, the large emerald in the center sparkling in the late afternoon light.
"Marry me, Cameron Kingsley," Mac whispered, and her eyes flew to meet his gaze.
"Oh, Mac," Cameron breathed. She leaned over him, placing the box back on the table. "I hate that I can't wear that ring in here, but I'll promise to wear it everywhere else, for the rest of my life. Of course I’ll marry you."
He sighed, releasing a breath, his body relaxing. Pulling her face in close to his, he traced the curve of her jaw with his tongue, reaching her ear and nipping at the lobe before turning her face to access her mouth. He pulled her closer, and as she felt him slip inside her, he whispered against her lips.
"I love you, and I will love you always."
***
"I can't believe I'm engaged," Cameron whispered. "I'm getting married."
"Would you want to do something big? I know you were pretty moved when we were watching Drew's wedding," Mac murmured, twirling the emerald around her finger.
"I actually wouldn't mind something a little smaller. They did all that fuss mainly for Cass's mom and for my mom, but my mom's got her wedding fix for now, I think. Would your mom want anything special?" Cameron tilted her head, waiting for his answer as she watched his fingers weave and play between her own.
"I think we can get away with doing something small if you want to," he answered.
"What about maybe doing it at my parent’s house? They have a big house, and there's land. We could do it there. Outside would be really nice," Cameron suggested. She readjusted her weight along the length of his body, pulling the sheets up to cover them.
He sighed; pressing his shoulders further back into the pillows propped behind him in the bed, he tightened the arm that was wrapped around her, pulling her close. "That's a good idea. Not too big because it can't be, but not too small because there's room enough.”
"Do you think Logan would want to be involved very much?" she asked, and he stiffened slightly.
"Would you want him to be?" he asked.
Cameron backed away, lifting her head to meet his gaze. "Of course I would," she answered, her hand rising to cup his cheek and bring his face to hers. "Isn't that how it should be?" she asked.
Mac lay back with a sigh, the blanket rustling slightly as he moved his feet. "It is," he said, "I think. But I didn't know what you would want."
"I want you," Cameron said, trailing feather-light kisses along his bottom lip. "I want him. I want us. And he shouldn't have to feel motherless anymore if I'm going to be here. I can't be Alex for either of you, and I won't try to be. But he can feel like he has someone to be like a mom to him. And he won't feel like he has that if he's feeling brushed to the side."
"Hmm. Think you have him covered, do you?" Mac laughed.
"Am I off by much?" Cameron had moved down his throat to his chest, and his breath picked up as her hair slipped over his skin.
"No. I think he'd like that. But we can't talk about my son while you're doing – aarggh," he broke off as she dropped kisses down his stomach, her hands pressed to the mattress on either side of him to brace herself. Sliding one palm down the side of his hip and back up to his stomach, she settled herself above him, lying stretched along the length of his body. Crossing her arms, she braced her chin in her hands and looked up at him from her perch on his chest.
"I can stop then," she mocked. "Since you don't like it."
"Oh, I like it," he teased back, grinning as his hands slid down the bare skin of her back to settle on the swell of her hips. "But I love you, Cameron, and I want to marry you, and I want it to be soon. And we can't do it soon if we don't stop doing naughty things long enough to talk about the wedding stuff." Turning as he spoke, he held her snugly against him, slipping her beside him, rolling with her so that he lay to one side. Propped on one elbow, his chest hovered over hers; her thighs opened so that his knee fell between them. He tangled his fingers in the dark curls of her hair, lowering his face to press a kiss to her mouth. "So, your parent's house, then? Will they be okay with that?"
"They got married there," Cameron countered. "I think they might like it if we did. My father has asked about you, you know. Your intentions."
"What did you tell him?" Mac asked, raising a brow as he studied her.
"I told him I didn't know what you wanted. I thought at the time that I might have a clue, though."
"Oh really? Predictable, am I?" Mac asked hovering a hand over her side, barely touching as he traced a path down her hip and back up toward her ribs, making her wonder deliciously where he might set it down.
"Not at all," she countered, her voice a sigh as the warmth of his palm closed over her breast. "Full of surprises, Mackenzie."
> He laughed, releasing her breast and settling next to her, turning them both to keep her close in front of him. "What would you want Logan to do?" he asked.
"Well, I think maybe carrying rings is too young for him, he might feel it's too childish. Maybe he could usher our moms in or something like that? Something that would feel important to him?"
"What about gifts from us? He could deliver them; maybe one from me to your mom, and one from you to my mom. We can have them done up somehow, and he can make a big fuss of bringing in whatever he's got? Maybe your mom first," Mac continued, growing more animated as he spoke. "And then he can go out through a back way or something, circle around while everyone is watching your bridesmaids come in - if you want them of course - and then he could deliver to my mom? Or maybe somehow he can give to both moms at once?"
Cameron sat up, the sheet falling away, and she scrambled from the bed. "I need clothes," she said, in answer to his questioning expression. "I need paper. Or something. I'll forget if I don't write it down. He needs a little tux, right?"
Mac grinned to himself. She hadn't waited for him to answer, stalking naked from the bedroom to find the clothes they'd left trailed through the living room. She'd come so far from the skittish girl he'd first met, and he was amazed to think that he'd had any part in bringing her out of her shell, not to mention how happy he was that she seemed to heal the ache within his own family. Alex would always be obviously absent; her death would not be forgotten. But he couldn't deny the fact that Cameron's presence seemed to ease the pain of Alex's loss, and she'd brought so much cheer to his son.
He couldn't wait to make her his wife.
***
"Ready to be home?" Mac asked, lifting the helmet from his head. He waited for Cameron to do the same, shaking her hair out and running her fingers through the crazy curls spiraling down her back.
"I am. I'll tell you though, I'm never going to get the tangles out of this," she laughed, gripping her hair in her hands and flinging it back over her shoulders. The emerald on her finger gleamed in the sun, and Mac smiled to himself. He'd wondered if he would ever find love again after losing Alex so bitterly, with the extra baggage of a child. And now ...
"I sure am a lucky man," he murmured, his voice going husky as he stepped close and wrapped Cameron in his arms. He had to remind himself as she gazed up at him that she was really his. They were getting married. And he had found love again; not just for himself but also for the boy now charging through the front door of the house.
"Ew, Dad, can't you ever stop kissing?" Plowing into them, Logan threw one skinny arm around his father and one around Cameron. "Did you like our beach, Cameron?" he asked.
"I did," Cameron laughed. "It was very pretty and very quiet there."
"Not when I'm there," Logan laughed. "I can swim in the ocean by myself now, and I scream the whole time so sharks don't eat my legs off."
"I see," Cameron said, glancing up as Marie wandered through the front door. "Good thing I didn't swim very much then, because I didn't know you have to scream."
"Mac, come on in here! I need you to lift this!" Marie called, gesturing back to the house before disappearing through the door again.
"Mother calls," Mac sighed, releasing Cameron. He glanced down to Logan and asked, "You know what she wants?"
Logan shook his head and Cameron laughed. "Go on, we'll meet you in there. I'm just gonna throw my stuff in the car for later. Logan can help me if he wants."
"You sure?" Mac asked.
"Dad, I got this," Logan said, laughing. "She only brought a little bag, right?"
Nodding slightly, Mac mussed the boy's hair and headed up the driveway to the house. Turning, Cameron opened the trunk compartment of the bike and lifted her bag, trying to think of something to say to Logan. She wanted him to know as soon as possible that she and Mac were getting married; she knew he would need plenty of time to adjust before it was time for the actual wedding.
"Did my dad give you a ring when you were gone?" Logan asked.
Stiffening slightly, Cameron turned, shouldering the strap of her bag carefully on her right shoulder. Wondering if he'd managed to notice it already and figure things out for himself, she held out her left hand, palm down, displaying the shimmer of the emerald ring to the boy in front of her.
"He gave me this," she said carefully. "It was in a very pretty little box and it had earrings, too, ones that match. Would you like to see them?"
Shaking his head, Logan regarded her solemnly. "Do you like the ring?" he asked. His dark eyes met hers, his expression unreadable.
"I do like the ring, very much," Cameron answered. "And I like your dad very much, too."
"Do you love my dad?" Logan demanded.
"I do love your dad," Cameron answered, keeping her answer simple, waiting to see what he was really looking for.
"Oh," he said. Leaning carefully against the motorcycle, Logan rubbed the toe of his shoe along the driveway. "And me?" he asked.
Cameron swallowed. "And you?” she countered. “What do you mean?”
“I mean do you think you will love me, too?”
“Logan,” Cameron said softly. “Of course, I love you, too. Are you not okay with that?"
"Are you going to marry my dad?" He asked, not answering her question.
"I'd really like to marry your dad. I'd like to be here for him, and I’d like to be here for you. Mac did ask me to marry him, when he gave me this." Again, she held her hand out, allowing him to see the ring on her finger. This time, he took her hand in his, examining the ring closely, turning her hand palm-up, twisting the ring slightly as his fingers followed the metal around her finger. Her breath tripped and caught as he examined the sparkling jewels. Would he reject her?
"Do you like the ring? The green thing on it? It isn't a white one like most ladies like," the boy said, still looking down at their joined hands.
Swallowing, Cameron struggled for words that would express her feelings to the youngster. "I’m not most ladies. I do like the ring very much, Logan. Even if it were ugly, I'd love it because Mac gave it to me. But it isn't ugly, is it? I can turn my fingers and watch it sparkle, and I've never had a ring like this before. And I like that it's green, that it's an emerald. I like that better than the white kind, diamonds. All the girls get diamonds, so I feel like I have something extra special, picked just for me." Settling her bag on the driveway beside her, she squatted down to meet the boy's eyes.
"Oh. I did good then," he said, quietly, dropping his eyes again.
Tipping her head, Cameron reached out and drew Logan's face up, bringing his gaze back to her face. "You did good?" she asked.
"Yeah. I picked good. If you like it."
"Logan, did you pick this ring?" Cameron asked, holding her hand out between them. Silently, he nodded. "Oh, I see then," she said.
"Are you gonna still marry my dad?" he asked. "Are you mad at us because I picked?"
"No," Cameron said, waiting for Logan to raise his eyes, meeting her gaze. "I'm not mad. In fact, I like the ring even better now."
She didn't see his smile; he threw himself at her so quickly, burying his face in her curls. "Okay, good," he said softly.
***
"What if they don't like me?" Logan asked, his voice trailing quietly into the front seat. Mac looked at Cameron; Cameron glanced away from the road for a second to look back at Mac. His eyes said, "It's your family, you take it." They'd answered many such questions since they'd gotten engaged; Logan had asked where everyone would live, where everyone would sleep. He'd asked if he would be allowed to keep his pictures of his mother, and if Cameron was going to be his mother now.
"I would love to be your mother, Logan, but I can't ever be your mother," she'd said, bending forward to bump her forehead against his. "You already have a mother. But she's not here, and I can be here for you in her place. Like a substitute until you can see her again in Heaven someday. And then, I'd very much like to meet her." Logan had taken that answ
er happily, with a last smiling glance at his mother's image on the living room mantle before going off to play.
Now she sighed again, adjusting the rearview mirror so that she could meet Logan's eyes while they rested at a stop sign. "My family doesn't have any children yet. Did you know that?"
She watched him shake his head, his eyes on his hands, nervously working wrinkles into the thighs of his shorts.
"That makes you very special. My mom wants us to have lots of kids in our family, and you get to be first."
"But I'm not really part of the family," he muttered.
"You will be," Cameron answered, moving the car as someone honked behind them. "You will be very much a part of the family, because the way they see it, you and Mac come with me. We're a packaged deal now, kid. Just like you and your dad were a packaged deal. I knew that, and wanted both of you anyway. Mostly you, though," she teased, glancing into the mirror in time to see Logan's face break into a grin. "Your dad's a nice little side dish though."
Prescription For Love (The Kingsley Series) Page 25
