Wanting Hunter: Book 1 in the Cameron Family Saga

by Shirley Larson

  Alex wasn’t going to be satisfied until she answered his question. “We just talked. He’s…interesting, your brother.”

  “You’re the first woman he’d dropped his guard with in a long time.” Alex leaned on the parapet and looked out over the city as his brother had. “Do you like Hunter?”

  “I just met him,” she said, laughing.

  “What’s that got to do with anything? Do you like him?”

  “What’s not to like? Handsome, hard-working, sincere. And he knows the words to Ninety Nine Bottles of Beer on the Wall.”

  “Sterling recommendation. He sang it for you?”

  “Just one verse.”

  “Extraordinary. I notice you didn’t say rich.”

  “Oh, well, anybody can do rich.”

  Alex laughed. “You really are different. I can see why Hunter’s attracted to you. Unfortunately, he’s a little distracted right now.”

  “He seemed pretty focused to me.”

  “Our brother Justin shipped out to Afghanistan yesterday.”

  “Oh, Alex, no. I’m so sorry to hear that.”

  “It’s eating Hunter up inside. He’s been a surrogate father to his three siblings for so long, he doesn’t know how to let go.”

  “I wish there was something I could do…”

  “Maybe you can.” Alex got a gleam in his eye that Liz thought boded ill for her. “Just a minute.” Alex disappeared inside the ballroom and came back with a photographer. “Liz, you’re probably going to hate me for this, and for sure Hunter will, but let’s give him something else to think about other than his baby brother.”

  Before she knew what was happening, Alex caught her in his arms, bent her over backwards in a tango move and kissed her fully on the lips.

  When he let a dazed Liz up, Alex said to the photographer, “Did you get it?”

  “Light wasn’t quite right. And she didn’t have her arms around you.” Then grinning from ear to ear, he said, “You’ll have to do it again.”

  Alex complied and this time, Liz was ready for him and draped her arms around his neck for better effect. It must have looked passionate, but to Liz, it felt as if she were kissing her brother.

  With obvious reluctance, Alex let Liz step out of his arms. Liz smiled at him and said. “Well, Mr. Stanley, I’m glad you trekked through Africa to find me. You certainly are full of surprises.”

  Alex laughed. “I’d like to see you home.”

  Liz shook her head. “I’ll take a taxi. I’m sure your brother won’t mind that you kissed me. No one’s going to see the picture, anyway.”

  Later at home, well past midnight, she donned her comfy bunny pajamas and settled in front of the TV to watch the Dancing with the Stars episode she had recorded. She always loved to watch people who were not pros putting themselves on the line for the world to see. It took guts. She was watching the first couple go through their dance routine when her intercom buzzed.

  “Ms. Farnsworth, I’m sorry to disturb you, but there’s a man down here who wants to see you.” It was Bob Vogel, the doorman. “He says he needs to finish a conversation.”

  “Did he give you his name?”

  “Hunter Cameron.”

  Her immediate thought was that she looked a mess. Her hair lay around her shoulders and her flannel bunny pajamas gave her the look of an adolescent.

  “Tell him to wait a minute.” She thought about getting dressed and then decided what the heck. She’d throw on a robe and call it done. If he wanted to come visiting at one clock in the morning, he could take what he got.

  The moment she opened the door to him, she was sorry she’d been so cavalier. He was still dressed in his tux. He looked dark and handsome with his expensive coat thrown over his evening wear, his hair neatly combed.

  “I’m intruding on your down time,” he said, after a quick glance at her nightwear.

  “If I didn’t want to see you, I would have told Bob to send you on your way. Let me take your coat.”

  She stowed it in her minuscule closet and even though she wasn’t looking at him, she could feel his glance sweep her apartment. She was sure it was nothing like his penthouse. There were pictures of her mom and dad and her sister scattered around the room, a crocheted granny square afghan her Aunt Hazel had made stretched over the back of her couch, a giant poster of a collie dog on one wall.

  “Since we’re not allowed to have pets here, I put up that picture.”

  “Lassie?”

  “Yes.”

  “It comes with her paw print?” He was having a hard time keeping a straight face.

  “I specified I wanted an autographed copy.”

  “I’m surprised she has the time…with her movie career and personal appearances and all.”

  “It’s a dog’s life, but she’s up to the job.”

  He groaned as she hoped he would. “If you’re finished teasing me about my art work, would you like to sit down?”

  He did, settling into the couch while one corner of Aunt Hazel’s afghan fell over his shoulder.

  Liz plucked it away from him, thinking that Aunt Hazel was warning him to be nice, and took a seat in the rocking chair across from him. “What was it you wanted to see me about?”

  “Are you interested in my brother?”

  It was the last thing she expected him to say. While she sat trying to make sense of his words, he said, “If you are, I want you to know that you’re perfectly free to pursue a relationship with him. Alex is a good man and…”

  She held up her hand, stopping his words. “You came back to the balcony and saw him kissing me. And now you’re going to do the noble big brother thing and step aside for him.”

  “Well…yes.”

  She lunged up out of the rocking chair. “I know darn well I’m perfectly free to pursue a relationship with Alex. Or any other man, for that matter, without your permission.” She took a step closer. “What exactly is your game, Mr. Cameron?” Did you expect to see Alex here with me?”

  “No, I…”

  She was close enough now to touch his knees. “Or did you regret our conversation and think you’d better come and let me know you didn’t mean to imply anything during our balcony conversation?” She put both hands on the couch next to his head and leaned over him about three inches from his nose. “You’re very used to taking care of your family, aren’t you, Mr. Cameron?

  “They are my responsibility…”

  She thought he would shrink back from her, but he didn’t. Was she really going to straddle his legs and sit on his lap? What was there about this man that made her want to unsettle him, drag him out of his controlled mind set, rattle his wits till he couldn’t think those calm, reasonable thoughts?

  She sat down on his thighs, and Hunter’s blue eyes darkened. “You’re not exactly shy, are you?”

  “I learned long ago that shyness puts you in back of the chorus line.”

  “Should I be afraid?”

  “Very,” she said, smiling, waiting, holding her body very still.

  “I have a reputation for holding out on a possible merger for several days until I get the conditions I want.”

  “Then I guess we’re done here.” She levered herself off of him and went to get his coat.

  He rose and followed her. “You talk a big game but you give up easily.”

  “I’m good at taking cues.” She handed him his coat.

  Instead of thrusting his arms into it, he swung it around her shoulders and used it to pull her close. “Maybe not as good as you think.” He let go of the coat and it fell to the floor while he grasped her waist and brought her up to his body. “Maybe not nearly as good as you think.” He lowered his head; she went up on tiptoe. This. This was what she had been thinking about all the way home. This was what she had thought would never happen after he saw the picture of Alex kissing her. This was…heaven.

  He released her. She knew her breath must be in there somewhere if she could just find it. “I’m going out of town fo
r a week. I wanted to tell you so you wouldn’t think that I took Alex’s prank seriously.”

  “Thank you for telling me that. I appreciate it.”

  “I’ll call you when I get back.”

  “I’ll look forward to it.” She bent down to pick up his coat but his hand on her shoulder stopped her. “I’ll get it.” And then he was gone.

  Within minutes after the photographer posted it on the internet, the picture went viral. By the next day, there wasn’t a person in the world hadn’t seen the picture of Alex bent over her.

  Now it was time for the show to close. Her role as Anna had ended. It just seemed too soon to say goodbye to this cast she’d grown to know so well. There was the usual madness of the afterglow, the cast hugging and promising to stay in touch, promises that would be difficult to keep.

  The producer of the show, Henry Morrison, held up his hand for quiet. “We’ve had a request. A member of the USO would like us to go on tour for them.” At the sounds of hand clapping and some serious groans, Henry said, “First of all, none of you are obligated to go. This will be a strictly volunteer gig under the most difficult conditions. I’m not going to lie to you. The living accommodations will be iffy and so will the food. But those guys and gals in the military will love you. And if I’m not mistaken, you’ll love them too.”

  Exotic Jennifer who played Tuptim, asked “Are you going?”

  Liz thought about leaving Broadway for a month, and missing out on scheduled auditions. It was a major concession and would have an impact on her career. And who knew what impact it would have on her new and fragile relationship with Hunter? He would not approve. But she thought about Hunter’s concern for his younger brother. There were lots of younger brothers in the service and older brothers, too, and sisters to whom she could bring a little bit of happiness. And she thought about the song that Beyoncé’s sings, “I Was Here.” The first time she heard the lyrics, they resonated deeply inside her. She was put on this earth to make a difference. Now she had a unique opportunity. Did she have the guts to go to a place in the world that was hostile and unfamiliar and might possibly cost her life? “Yes. I’m going.”

  Chapter 6

  “You know you’re crazy to go to Afghanistan,” Jocelyn Findley said, as she and Liz walked together out of the warm spring air into the arts center for Liz’s last gig as the volunteer teacher of the Saturday morning Orff class.

  “Maybe just a little bit crazy. Did you go out with that handsome body builder again?” Liz asked.

  “Nah. That was a wash out.” Jocelyn was a forty-something lady who’d just been through a nasty divorce. She came out of it determined to have a taste of the high life. If there was an interesting man who wanted more than a drink and conversation, well, wasn’t that the fun of being single?

  “So the man hunt is not going well.”

  “Slow to impossible. I should have told Bob he couldn’t have his twenty-five year old woman unless he found me a twenty five year old man.”

  “Sounds fair to me. Hey, we’d better go before those kids start eating the rugs.”

  In two days she’d be in Kabul and the streets of New York City would seem like a dream. But Liz supposed the time overseas would go quickly, they’d be so busy performing for the soldiers. Two shows a day, Henry had said. That would be a grueling schedule under normal circumstances. She couldn’t imagine how they would all hold up in that inhospitable terrain.

  When Liz and Jocelyn reached the center, the kids were already lined up outside the door. Liz let Jocelyn get them settled in the room while she checked in at the office. She had to let Helen Marlin, the woman who ran the program, know she’d need to hire a substitute to replace Liz for the next four weeks.

  The moment Liz stepped into the office, Kevin Teeters, their unofficial tech guy, came flying toward her. He grinned from ear to ear.

  “That picture of you and that Cameron guy kissing last night at the gala? It’s on the internet and it’s gone viral, a million hits. Here, let me show you.”

  “You have it on your phone?”

  “Sure. Me and a gazillion other people in the world.”

  And there they were. But somehow, it wasn’t the way she remembered it. It looked as if she and Alex were locked in a passionate lover’s embrace. “Are you sure this hasn’t been retouched?”

  “Heck, no. This is the real deal. Here’s another one. This is the best one.”

  This was the second shot the photographer had taken and showed her clearly as a willing participant. She turned away, her stomach churning. If Hunter saw these pictures, he would be convinced she hadn’t been truthful. Worse, she was flying out of the country tomorrow, leaving Alex to deal with the backlash.

  Jocelyn appeared in the doorway. “Are you coming? I can’t be left alone with these kids. Without you here, they’re running wild.”

  “Go get the Orff instruments,” Liz said to Jocelyn.

  “I’ll be lucky if they don’t lock me in the closet,” Jocelyn muttered.

  “They’re not that bad. Go on. I’ll get them settled.”

  When everyone was seated on a rug with a xylophone in front of their eager hands, Jocelyn handed out the mallets. Liz stood in front of the class and chanted in rhythm, “Who’s got their mallets way up high?”

  In an answer rhythm, the kids held up their mallets and chanted back, “We’ve got our mallets way up high.”

  In her deep monster voice, she chanted, “Who’s got their mallets way down low?”

  “We’ve got our mallets way down low.”

  “Who’s got their mallets on that low G key?”

  Under the cover of the children’s answer, Hunter Cameron stood in the doorway and said to Helen who was beside him, “How long has Liz Farnsworth been doing this?”

  “Since the program began. Didn’t you know? You got the list of participants.”

  “Her name didn’t mean anything to me then.”

  “Well, my guess is it means something to you now, if that video is anything to go by. Looks as if she’s involved with your brother. Did you know about their romance?” Helen said

  “She’s not involved with my brother.”

  “I didn’t think so.” With those succinct words, Helen went back in her office.

  He’d had lots of people try to con him over the years, working hard to convince him they were self-sacrificing people with their top priority being the good of others. Here was this woman, a Broadway star dressed in holey jeans with her hair pulled up in a messy ponytail, Beethoven and Bach smiling out from her t-shirt, sacrificing her Saturday mornings to give underprivileged kids a taste of music. She’d kept it so far out of the public’s eye that even he hadn’t known about it. He’d stopped in at her apartment building, anxious to see her. The doorman Marco had told him where he’d find her. Hunter didn’t believe it could be true. But there she was…obviously as talented working with kids as she was performing for adults.

  Out of the corner of her eye, Liz spied Hosea, a sweet dark-haired imp of a boy racing for the door in a get-out-of-jail run. In two steps, she caught him round the waist and plunked him on his designated spot on the rug directly in front. At the age of six, Hosea considered himself a free spirit. “Hey, big fellow. You wouldn’t want to break Miss Liz’s heart by missing her class, would you?” Solemnly, Hosea nodded yes.

  “You little heartbreaker.” She couldn’t resist ruffling his hair. “I’m sorry you don’t want to be in my class, but I like having you here, comprendi?”

  “Every woman’s dream, covering your six,” Jocelyn murmured.

  And there Hunter was, big as life, standing in the doorway. “Take over, will you? I have to talk to him.”

  “I’d say he doesn’t look like he’s in the mood to talk.”

  “That’s his bad-ass CEO look. He puts it on every morning when he ties his tie.” Liz approached him, hoping he’d see the contrition written all over her face, hoping he’d accept her apology. “I am so sorry about the pict
ure. It never occurred to me anyone would put it on the internet. The frenzy is crazy, but it will die down in a day or two, I’m sure.”

  “I hope you’re right. I don’t appreciate having my brother become gossip fodder for every rag in the city.” He held up one of the more virulent ones and there she and Alex were on the front cover.

  “I’m sorrier than I can say.”

  “You don’t have to apologize. Alex is the culprit. He confessed the truth to me after the video went out on the internet. He thought I was interested in you and he’d help things along. Just another Cameron brother’s practical joke.”

  “You aren’t by any chance being understanding, are you?”

  “Hell, no. Not my style. That would ruin my big, bad corporate wolf image. I wondered…if I might take you to dinner tonight.”

  “I’d love to, Hunter, but…”

  “You have other plans.”

  “It’s a matter of bad timing. I’m flying out at midnight, leaving the country for a month. I’m very sorry that I can’t accept your invitation.”

  “Strange you’re leaving New York at a time when you should be auditioning for new shows. I suppose there is a man involved.”

  She didn’t know whether to be complimented or insulted. She was almost tempted to let him believe she had a lover. But she couldn’t lie to him. “There are. Several of them. And women, too. All in uniform. A bunch of us are going to Afghanistan to entertain the troops before the final deployment.”

  He looked like she’d clocked him with a frying pan.

  “It’s something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time.”

  He was shocked, stunned. Then the anger came. Damn it. First his brother and now Liz. Didn’t she realize the danger she would be in? Why the hell would this beautiful woman who was at the height of her career risk her life like this?

  He was silent for so long that she said, “So I’ll need to go home and pack. If you’ll pardon me…”

  She moved to brush by him. He caught her arm and said, “You can’t go.” He was in full protective spate. Yes, he hardly knew this woman. But she was beautiful and talented and kindhearted and the last thing he wanted was to sit at home and envision her lying dead on a godforsaken road in the middle of a war hell.