“I’ve never drunk tea in my life! Well, I mean I’ve drunk sweet tea like every good Southern boy, but hot tea, never,” I said, feeling completely irrational in the moment.
Savannah shrugged a shoulder. “It’s calming.”
“No, I mean, thank you, I’m willing to try, but if you would have asked me what I was going to do tonight, I would have never said I was going to drink a cup of tea in the middle of the night at my neighbor’s house while my house burned to the ground.”
My voice was more high-pitched than I had ever heard. I was losing my shit. I could recognize the signs but felt helpless to stop it. I was stuck on this speeding train and couldn’t jump off.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Savannah
I covered Cameron with one of my new plush blankets after he finally dozed off on the couch. I knew he needed the rest, despite him insisting he didn’t. My heart hurt for him and his daughter. I had given him some time to be alone while he’d called his parents. They were going to keep Lily for the morning, and then Cameron would tell her later.
The man was struggling, and I hated there was nothing I could do to help him. I jumped in the shower. The smell of smoke clung to my clothes even though I had stayed a safe distance away. I had a feeling the entire neighborhood was going to smell of smoke for several days. We had popped our heads out a little bit ago and saw the black, smoldering embers being doused by the firemen.
It was heartbreaking to see the remnants of his home.
I heard Cameron’s deep voice when I got out of the shower. I quickly threw on a pair of jeans and a simple sweater for the day and headed down the hall. As I made a fresh pot of coffee, I heard him giving someone his name and figured he was talking to his insurance company.
He appeared in the kitchen, dark circles matching the thick black eyelashes that framed his blue eyes. His dark hair was mussed, and the beginning of a five-o’clock shadow made an appearance on his square jaw.
“Hi,” I said, handing him a cup of coffee.
“Hi,” he said, the exhaustion evident in his voice. “That was my insurance company. They asked if I had a copy of my policy.” He smirked. “I told them of course I did. It was in my house in my fireproof box.”
“Did it survive?”
He shrugged. “I seriously doubt it. They’re not made to withstand that kind of prolonged burning. I’ll check, but I’m not holding out any hope. They’re going to send someone out today. She’s supposed to be emailing me a copy. I don’t even know what kind of coverage I have.”
“I’ll grab my laptop and you can go over it.”
“The fire chief is meeting me in about ten minutes. He’s going to let me know if they think it was arson.”
I put a hand on my hip. “I thought you were sleeping? You’ve been very busy the fifteen minutes I was in the shower.”
He smiled. “I couldn’t.”
I wanted to comfort him but wasn’t sure where we were in our relationship. I didn’t know if I could kiss him and hold him tight or if it would be stepping over that invisible line he had drawn between us. We could have sex—really hot, intense sex—and I could hang out with him and his daughter, but we weren’t an official couple. One of these days I would have to address the fact that he was treating me like a booty call. That wouldn’t be today. Not yet.
“Did you see anything?” he asked, looking at me with a plea in his eyes.
I shook my head. “I’m sorry. The smell of smoke woke me up. My back window was open a little, and the smell drifted in. My smoke detector went off, and I flew out of bed thinking my house was on fire. I checked around, didn’t see anything, but noticed a faint glow in your backyard. I ran outside and saw the flames. It all happened so fast,” I explained, reliving the terror I had felt in those brief few minutes.
It was a terror Cameron would be living with for a long time.
“I’m going to head over there,” he mumbled. He gave me a quick kiss on the lips and walked out of the house.
I thought about going with him but held back. It was something he needed to do on his own. It almost felt like a violation to his privacy to have me traipsing around in the remnants of his life. I kept busy, cleaning up the house a little and making the bed.
Cameron came back in, looking as angry as ever.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, suddenly worried.
“They’re starting an investigation. At this point, the investigator is leaning toward arson. It’ll take him a few days or longer to give me an exact cause.”
My mouth fell open. “I’m so sorry! That’s terrifying!”
I stared at him and could see the defeat in his eyes.
“I need more coffee if you don’t mind.”
I shook my head. “Why not sleep for a couple hours? There’s nothing more you can do. You need to get your rest,” I encouraged.
He sighed, and his shoulders dropped forward. “You’re right.”
“Come on, I just made up the bed.”
He hesitated for a second and then willingly followed me into my room. Once he was stripped down to his briefs, I realized his uniform was all he had. The man had no clothes!
“What size do you wear? And Lily?” I blurted out, an idea blooming in my mind.
He shook his head. “No way.”
“What?”
“You’re not buying me clothes.”
“Tell me your size or I’m going to buy you something nice and tight,” I said with a wink.
He rested his head against the pillow, his eyes drifting closed.
“Cameron?”
“No, Savannah,” he said without opening his eyes.
“Fine. Get some sleep,” I said, grabbing his pants and shirt off the floor.
If he asked what I was doing, I would tell him I was putting them in the wash. He didn’t stir. I scribbled out a note, left it on the kitchen table, grabbed my purse, and headed out the door. I was going on a little shopping spree.
In the car, I called my mom.
“Uh, Mom,” I started, feeling a little guilty for calling so early.
“What is it? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I, uh, wanted to ask if it was okay if I used my American Express to buy some clothes for my neighbor.”
She was silent for a few seconds. “Why would you do that?”
I cleared my throat. “His house burned down last night. He and his daughter have nothing.”
I could practically hear her processing the information. “The cop?”
“Yes.”
“Well, of course, dear. You buy whatever you need. I’ll let your father know to tell the accountant. Is everyone okay?” she asked with concern.
“No one was home. They do suspect it was arson.”
“Oh my! That’s scary. Where is your cop neighbor now?”
I knew exactly what she was getting at. “My house,” I said sheepishly.
I heard her chuckle. “Good. I’d like to meet this cop boyfriend of yours.”
“He’s not my boyfriend!”
Soft laughter on the other end of the phone told me she didn’t believe me. “Your lover?”
“Mom!” I shrieked.
She burst into laughter once again. “Fine. I won’t press you—for now. But we will be meeting this man.”
I nodded. “Fine, and thank you. I’ll pay you back.”
“No, you won’t. We want to help. Anything we can do to help the man who is keeping his eye on you, we will. Not to mention he’s an officer. Of course we want to help.”
“Thank you. I’ll talk to you later,” I said and hung up the phone.
I drove to one of the department stores I knew would be open this early on a Sunday. The mall wouldn’t open for another two hours. That was a lot of time to kill.
As I was browsing the aisles, tossing in toothbrushes, razors, deodorant, and other personal items, I stumbled into the home furnishings department. Another idea popped into my head. I eagerly started buying various pink and purple room furnishin
gs. I picked up a bed set and wall decorations and tossed them in the cart.
I was going to need another cart. I also needed to get to a furniture store. I wanted to turn one of my empty rooms into a place for Lily to feel comfortable. I knew it was a stretch, but maybe, just maybe, Cameron and Lily could stay with me until he found a new place to live. I wanted Lily to feel like she had her own space.
When I dragged two full carts to the checkout, there were some serious raised eyebrows. I smiled and happily loaded my items onto the conveyor belt, anxious to get to the furniture store and then the mall. I had a lot of shopping to do.
My phone rang. I expected it to be Cameron and immediately felt guilty.
It was Emma. “Hi!” I said with enthusiasm born of my shopping high.
“What are you doing this cheery this early on a Sunday morning?”
“Shopping!”
“You’re an odd duck, Savannah.”
I quickly filled her in on what had happened. She was shocked and told me to let Cameron know she was sorry as well.
I finished up at the furniture store, paying extra to have everything delivered to the house by this afternoon. Then it was the mall. I shouldn’t have worried about killing two hours before the doors opened. Once I got shopping, time flew by.
I happened to be walking by a children’s store when I noticed the exact dress Lily had worn to dinner at Cameron’s parents’ the other night. I walked in and realized I recognized several of the outfits. I guesstimated the size, hoping it coordinated with age, and bought enough clothes to replace Lily’s lost wardrobe.
Then it was off to another store to buy what I thought Cameron would wear. I didn’t go quite as crazy for him. He was a grown man and would probably not appreciate me buying him a wardrobe. I kept it simple with a couple pairs of jeans, T-shirts, a jacket, and the briefs I knew he favored. I had peeked at his police uniform shoes and grabbed a couple pairs of Nikes, hoping he would like them.
I was feeling elated by the time I pulled into the driveway. My midsize car was packed with the fruits of my shopping adventure. I immediately looked around for the cop car and didn’t see it. Cameron’s was gone. I was a little disappointed. It would give me time to unload all my purchases and get started on Lily’s room without seeing his disapproval, though.
“You know this is stupid,” I said aloud as I started to arrange the various prints of butterflies and flowers on the walls of the spare room. “You’re going to scare the man away. Hell, he’ll probably think you started the fire.”
I stayed busy, ripping tags off the dresses I had bought for Lily and hanging them in the closet. When I heard the doorbell, I assumed it was Cameron. He had left a note saying he was going to the station to get his truck and then to his parents’ house to tell Lily.
I took a deep breath, readying myself to hear Cameron’s protests about my purchases. I peeked out the window and laughed in relief. It wasn’t Cameron; it was the furniture delivery.
“Hi!” I greeted and showed them where to take the bed, dresser, and the little rocking chair I hadn’t been able to resist buying.
Once they were gone, I stared at the furnishings with glee. What girl could resist decorating a space? I got busy making the bed and adding little touches here and there. I wanted it to be perfect. I wanted to impress Cameron and hoped he would agree to stay with me, even if it was temporary.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Cameron
When Savannah had texted and offered for us to stay the night at her place, I had initially decided against it. After some thought, I figured one night wouldn’t hurt. My old room at my parents’ house had been fixed up for Lily. The other room was an office, which my mother insisted she could move around to put a bed in there for me. However, that wasn’t going to happen until tomorrow, and I wasn’t keen to sleep on the couch. Besides, I knew I would sleep better with Savannah in my arms. I hated to admit it, but the woman gave me comfort. I needed the comfort, just for now.
The moment we pulled up, with my mom following behind me with some casserole she had made up as a thank you to Savannah for letting us stay with her, I knew something was off.
“Dammit,” I muttered under my breath when I noticed the garbage can outside the garage that was overfilled with packaging and cardboard boxes that had been smashed down.
“Someone’s been on a shopping spree,” my mother quipped as she walked to the doorway.
“I’ll kill her,” I groaned, afraid to see what she had bought. She was going to be taking it all back.
I knocked on the door, heard her shout to come in, and made a note to tell her not to do that in the future. She needed to know who she was inviting into her home.
At first, nothing looked different. I wondered if I had been wrong about where she had disappeared to. She appeared in the room, looking worn out. I realized she hadn’t slept much last night either.
“Hi, guys!” she greeted us.
“Savannah!” Lily said, running toward her.
Savannah dropped to her knees and enveloped Lily in a big warm hug. My mom had tears glistening in her eyes when she looked at me. It was nice to see Lily and Savannah together. My little girl had taken a serious liking to our neighbor.
My mom cleared her throat. “I brought a casserole for you guys to eat for dinner,” she said, walking into Savannah’s kitchen without invitation. “I’ll just put it in the fridge for now.”
“Thank you. You didn’t have to do that. I’m happy to have them stay,” Savannah said.
“What have you been up to?” I asked, picking up on something, though I wasn’t sure what.
She grinned. “I have a little surprise for Lily. I know you guys are only going to be here for one night, but in case you need to stay a little longer, I wanted her to feel at home.”
I shook my head, afraid of what I was going to hear next. “Savannah,” I said in a warning tone.
She shrugged a shoulder. “What?”
“What did you do?”
My mom was looking back and forth between us before she finally spoke up. “I’d like to see,” she announced.
“Mom!”
“What? Savannah’s obviously been working on something special for Lily, and I’d like to see.”
“This way,” Savannah said and headed down the hallway.
Her home’s floor plan was identical to mine. I knew right where she was going. When she opened the door to the room that would have been Lily’s in my house, my suspicions were confirmed.
Lily squealed. “Is this for me?”
Savannah stood in the doorway. “It is!”
My mom walked in while I shot Savannah a look that told her we would be talking about this later. When I walked into the room, I was taken aback.
“You did all this today?” I asked, taking in the sight of the room that had pretty pink curtains hanging over the blinds. A rocking chair with a soft blanket thrown over it was in a corner, and a small toy box filled with toys was next to it.
There was a bookshelf filled with the same titles Lily had in her room at home. Scratch that—she used to have. My mom didn’t hide her emotions. Tears flowed down her cheeks as she embraced Savannah and thanked her over and over for her thoughtfulness and generosity.
“Thank you,” I said and was a little embarrassed to hear the emotion in my own voice.
“And,” Savannah said, wiping the tears from her face, “look in here, Lily.”
She pulled open the closet door, and I felt as if I had punched in the gut. There were several dresses hanging there, many of them replicas of dresses Lily had owned before the fire.
Lily jumped up and down, pointing out the various dresses. “This is the one Grandma bought me!” she exclaimed, her innocence preventing her from realizing that it wasn’t the same but a duplicate.
I had to take several deep breaths before I could speak. “You outdid yourself.”
“I wanted to. I can’t tell you how helpless I felt last night. I wanted
to do this. I talked with my parents, and they encouraged me to do this,” she said softly.
“I appreciate it, I really do, but it’s too much. I’ll pay you back.”
She shook her head. “Please don’t. I have to help, and this is the only way I can. I can’t build you a new house. I’m really not great with a hammer,” she said, gently teasing.
“We’ll talk about it later,” I said in a low tone.
My mom was kneeling next to the bookshelf as Lily greedily pulled one book after another from the shelves. Seeing Lily so happy made my heart full. She had cried when I’d broken the news to her. I had hated having to break her little heart with such adult news for the second time in her life. It wasn’t fair, but what Savannah had done made a huge difference.
“Well, then I may as well tell you now,” she mumbled.
“Tell me what?” I asked, dreading what she was about to say.
She looked down at her feet. “I picked up a few things for you as well.”
“Savannah!”
“You can’t wear that every day!”
“She’s right, dear,” said my mom. “Say thank you and be grateful.”
I took a deep breath. “I am absolutely paying you back. You are not buying me clothes.”
“I got some other stuff as well.”
“Oh. My. God. What?” I didn’t even try to hide my frustration.
“Relax. Just razors and stuff like that. Lily, sweetie, I put your toothbrush in the bathroom. You have some stuff in the drawers of the dresser as well, including some pajamas.”
Lily was smiling big. “Are they like my old pajamas?”
Savannah nodded. “Yes, they are.”
I sighed. “You didn’t have to do that. She had some stuff at my parents’ house.”
She shrugged. “And now she has more.”
My mom came over and wrapped her arms around me. “Be nice.”
“I am, but she didn’t have to do all this.”
“No, she didn’t, but I for one am absolutely overjoyed that she did.” She turned to Savannah and wrapped her in her arms again. “I can’t tell you how much this means. You are a beautiful girl, inside and out. Thank you for taking care of these two.”
Hot Cop Next Door: A Second Chance Romance Page 17
