His hands on her shoulders, Sam piped in, “She’s being modest. Haley is amazing in the kitchen. I’ve put on ten pounds since she started cooking for me.” He leaned in and kissed her neck affectionately before excusing himself. “Ladies, I’m going to go look for that infuriating brother of mine.” Then he left the room.
Cammie sighed. “He’s not kidding. That man.” She tried to play off her feelings and focus on the food, but Haley saw through her.
“Oh.” Haley said as she wandered over and sat down at the table. “Oh, you slept with Adam.” She sighed.
“What gives you that idea? And who just says that kind of thing anyway…” She frowned. This was most definitely not going the way she imagined.
“I have been to enough events with Adam and Sam that I recognize the confusion and disappointment. What did he do? Trick you? Sleep with you and dump you? Make you feel like less than you are?” She stood to take off her coat and make it obvious that she was both staying for a while and safe to confide in.
Shaking her head in shame, Cammie turned off the stove, turned back to the island, and leaning on it heavily, she finally divulged her truth. “I initiated the sex with him the first time. Ugh. If you want to split hairs, I guess the second time was pretty much my fault, too. And then he told me we shouldn’t have slept together if I didn’t trust him!” Her face was flushed with shame. “I don’t know what made me do it. It’s so…unlike me.”
Looking Haley in the eye for comfort and reassurance, she found the woman smiling at her. For some reason, that wasn’t helping. Frustrated she walked over to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of soda. Just as she was about to offer one to Haley, the woman stood and walked over to her.
“Are you laughing at me?” Cammie asked quietly.
“Never,” Haley said warmly. “I just see things differently because I know Adam.” She stretched before she continued. “Whew. Long car ride. In other news, I think he likes you.” She shrugged and started toward the great room.
Inhaling sharply, she looked at Haley. “How do you just say that to me and leave the room?”
Laughing, Haley smiled at her. “Well, it’s easier to gage your reaction that way.” After saying that, she smiled widely before she went to no doubt find Sam.
Wondering what to think, what to do, or even what to say, Cammie stood there for a moment mulling over their conversation. It wasn’t possible. There was no way Adam could like her. She stood there staring off into space and considering every interaction between them since they had begun talking at the party just days before. Years of trying to get his attention, and the minute she stopped caring, it started happening? But…she had huge plans. She had just quit her job. She was working on completing her final project. She had to focus on building a future because she had no trust fund to fall back on. She had a tidy sum in the bank, but that had come from nearly ten years of scrimping and saving.
Cammie started saving right after that incident with her sister. Funny, Adam was Cammie’s dream so long ago. She had imagined a future with him. It was one of those silly teen crushes. Adam had seemed about as accessible as a movie star or male model. He was so confident, so friendly, such a flirt. All the girls wanted him. She was so disillusioned after that night when he went with Cin, even more so the day Cin finally talked about it. After that, she realized there was no future in men. She had to be responsible for her own future, her own happiness. No man was ever going to break her like Adam had broken Cin. What was worse, Cin still tried to pursue him. Every chance she had. It had been uncomfortable for all involved for years.
How could Adam, whom she had come to think of as a heartless player, suddenly behave like he had recently? It just didn’t make sense. His timing was lousy.
Her head was lowered, and her chin was on the table. Cammie was simply staring off into space. She looked so…serious and vulnerable. He had to do something. Adam walked over, playfully tugged on her ponytail, and when her head rose in surprise…he kissed her…on the lips.
She scowled. “What the hell, Adam?” She growled as she jumped out of the chair. “Damn!”
“What?” He looked surprised. “You didn’t mind my kisses last night. Especially when I kissed your…”
She gasped. “Shut up! Just shut up. Sometimes I swear I just…I…I can’t stand you. You suck. You just suck so bad!”
He tried to hide his dismay with a smile. “As I recall…you didn’t mind the sucking so much, either.”
She looked mad or ready to laugh or cry or maybe like she couldn’t decide. Finally, she just sank back into the chair, breathed deeply a few times, and slowly seemed to collect herself. He watched her a moment before deciding to sit across from her at the table.
“Doll, we seem to be having issues that I was previously unaware of. While I would love to have some big heart to heart with you and clear all this up, we aren’t really going to have any alone time for days. Really. In the meantime, we have Thanksgiving, the tree lighting, a cocktail party, and probably a partridge in a pear tree.”
“What?” She looked at him with disgust.
“Just making sure that you’re paying attention. Good job.” He patted her arm. “Let’s at least be professional and set aside our personal differences. You might even stop thinking I suck.” He smiled at her.
Offering him a weak smile, she nodded. “I find that hard to believe, but what the hell? Let’s do this.” She rubbed at her cheeks and brushed her hair away from her face. “What do you want for dinner?”
It was their first meal, sitting down, the four of them together. If Cammie worried about what anyone thought, or even had issues with Adam, she hid it well. In preparation, Adam had offered to set the table. He had helped carry out the side dishes. Once the meal had been consumed, he even carried everything into the kitchen and loaded the dishwasher. He had watched Cammie prepare to voice an objection, but he silenced her.
“I know they are family. I know this is their house, too, but I don’t want to waste time washing dishes. I want to be able to enjoy it.” He continued to load the dishwasher.
“Thank you,” she said quietly. “This is really nice. You gave me an excuse to spend time away from my family…who clearly currently hate me. You’re helping me build my business. And that really means a lot.” She sighed after as though it had taken everything in her to speak those words.
His eyebrows rose. “You are welcome. Really. I’m glad you are here.”
She eyed him suspiciously. “You are, huh?”
Adam smiled. “Yeah. If not for you, I’d be eating nothing but pizza and Chinese.” He chuckled as he ducked her swing. She was predictable in all the best ways.
When they returned to the great room, they found Sam and Haley had rearranged the furniture so that the love seats were on either side of the fireplace. Cammie and Adam exchanged looks.
“I thought it looked homier,” Haley explained with a smile.
“I like things intimate,” Sam proclaimed while grabbing Haley and hauling her even closer.
Though Adam could find no real flaw with that thinking, he couldn’t help but think there was something going on that he was unaware of and that bothered him. He was even more convinced when he saw Cammie and Haley exchange looks.
“Am I missing something?” He asked as he sat on the love seat opposite his brother and Haley.
“Absolutely,” Sam began and he pulled out his hands to tick off items. “Common sense, a strong work ethic, foresight…”
It was obvious he was prepared to go on for some time listing all of Adam’s shortcomings, which was why he was interrupted. The ladies had laughed. Yet, Adam didn’t find the humor. In fact, he felt the need to defend himself. “Hey, I have a work ethic. I’ve been helping Cammie with an advertising campaign.”
“Oh, and are you suddenly working for free? You’re a one man benevolent society,” Sam joked.
“It was more of a barter,” Cammie interrupted. “And you should know that he’s worked rea
lly hard and come up with a ton of great ideas for not just advertising, but also for marketing. I’m impressed.” She finished speaking and looked to her left where Adam was beaming at her.
Adam sat there quietly for a moment. He looked over at Haley and Sam all cuddled together on the love seat. He wished he could do that with Cammie. Instead, she was sitting huddled up in her corner of the furniture. As he looked more closely at his brother, he realized that something was wrong. The looks they were exchanging at the moment weren’t sappy, but instead supportive.
Leaning forward, he looked at them and finally spoke. “What’s going on? Something is wrong. I can tell.”
Shaking his head, Sam indicated that he didn’t want to talk about it. Haley, however, made it impossible for him to remain silent. She gripped his hands and looked up at him pleadingly. Finally, with a sigh, he revealed what was going on between them. “Okay, we weren’t going to bring it up, but quite honestly, we’re running out of time and options right now.”
“What is it?” His brow furrowed and he looked over at Cammie. She was leaning forward now, too. More than anything, he wished he could be holding her hands.
“It’s a good thing you are feeling so…ambitious these days,” Sam began. “It seems we need to be in Philadelphia later next week.”
Dropping his head, Adam let out a long sigh. “So, they set a date that soon? I was really hoping we could get through the holidays without having to deal with…that.” He took a deep breath and studied Haley before speaking. “Are you okay? Is there anything I can do?”
“Funny you should ask.” It was Sam that spoke. “I’ll be going with her, of course, she should never have to face that bastard alone.” He squeezed her hand once more. “We were hoping that maybe you could run the company in our absence. You had offered to come to work again anyway. On the off chance that you were serious, we decided to
ask.”
“Of course. Anything.” He stared at Cammie, willing her to look at him, willing her to show any sign that she would welcome his touch. Instead, she was staring off into the fire.
The only other awkward moment of the evening came at bedtime. There was some discussion as to where everyone would sleep for the remainder of the weekend. Ryan, Ellen, and baby Abby would be there in the morning and it only made sense that they would be near Sam and Haley. So, Cammie and Adam were changing wings. Neither one of them seemed to mind.
“Which room would you like?” He asked as he led her down the hall.
She glanced at the three doors before her. “Three doors to choose from? Wow.” She joked.
“Well, only two, unless you plan to sleep in the laundry room,” he chuckled. He pointed to the lone door on the right side of the hall.
She walked over to it and opened it. Walking in, she commented, “And it’s still bigger than my apartment. It’s good to be your half.”
“So, between door number one and door number two?” He asked. He was currently in charge of both their bags and was ready to set it down wherever it belonged.
“Hmm.” She opened the first door. It had a big queen size bed centered nicely in a very masculine room. Dark colors on the walls, bedding, and wood made it very cave-like. The second door had a loft bed and he could tell by her reaction that it was all she needed to see.
Walking into the room, Cammie climbed the ladder and dove onto the top bunk. She reached a hand up and he saw that she could just barely graze the ceiling. She backed up to the back corner and lay on her side. He watched as she stretched her foot and adjusted the pillow to be wedged perfectly into the bed. He smiled as he saw her reaction. Finally, she flopped over and leaned toward him from the bunk. “I want this one.”
Laughing, he said, “I knew I was going to get you in my bed somehow.”
As she frowned she replied, “Well, that does dampen my enthusiasm some.” She glanced around. “But I’m staying put. It feels just right.”
“Okay, sleep well. I’ll be in Sam’s old room.” He tossed her bag on the bottom bunk and then left the room.
Within minutes he was ready for bed in the room next door. He heard her climb down from the bunk. Soon a light came on under the bathroom door. He waited for her to figure out they shared that bathroom, but that realization didn’t happen. She wasn’t as curious as he had expected her to be. The light went off once more. And despite how far away she was, he managed to fall asleep comfortably with a smirk on his face. Be careful what you wish for. He had wished for days that somehow Cammie would end up in his bed. Next time he would remember to wish that he was there with her.
Adam woke up and headed for the bathroom. He had just finished peeing. “One, two, three shakes,” he muttered before tucking and turning around. Then he jumped. Cammie was standing there looking…annoyed…already…and on a holiday no less. “Crap. What?”
He stumbled over to the sink as he prepared to brush his teeth. Still she simply stood there. “Are you going to say anything?”
“You snuck in. Are you happy now? I’m so sexy first thing in the morning?” She crossed her arms over her chest.
He sighed and spoke. “Doll, I have my own door. Sneaking is not required. Now lose the ‘tude or leave me in peace. This is no way to start a day.” He shoved the toothbrush into his mouth and turned to face the mirror. He caught a glimpse of a pink face as she pushed through her door and back into her room. He heard her head down the hall. Must be she was starting work in the kitchen.
By the time he made it there, the coffee was made and there was a chafing dish with an egg casserole in it. The chafing dish beside it held ham slabs. And there was a fruit salad in one of his mother’s crystal bowls to accompany it all. He was standing there in shock, sniffing and smiling with a plate in his hand. As she turned he said, “Apology accepted.” He nodded and started loading his plate.
She opened her mouth as though she wanted to say something, snapped it shut like she thought better of it, and walked out of the room.
“Enjoy your shower!” He called after her.
Within seconds she had stomped back into the room. “What makes you think I’m sorry?”
He smiled warmly at her while he set his plate down. “Come here.” She hesitated. “Really, come here.” She slowly edged toward him. The minute she was close enough, his arms encompassed her. He felt her tense for a moment, and then he spoke into her hair as he pressed his face against the top of her head. “Doll, I’m joking with you. I make funnies. I don’t know any other way to be.”
Slowly she relaxed in his arms. He rubbed her back, alternating between cuddling her close and running his hands up and down her arms. After a few minutes she melted completely into him and he smiled.
“I know. You don’t always suck,” she admitted quietly.
“Yet you are always tense with me. Why is that? What have I ever done to make you hate me so, to make you mistrust me? I know you’ve seen me take home 117 women that weren’t you. Can’t we clear the air, move on, and get past this?” He drew her close and planted a reassuring kiss on her temple. “I know I was a jerk in the past. I’m sorry that I never noticed you. But can’t we just appreciate that life has a funny way of bringing people together and run with it?”
She leaned back and gazed up at him. Cammie was silent for a moment. “Maybe,” she said carefully, “but sex has a funny way of tearing people apart.” Slowly she backed out of his arms.
“I don’t get it. The sex with you, if anything, made me feel closer to you,” he said in a strained voice. “You didn’t feel that way, too?”
Sadly, she shook her head. “For me, it only reminded me about the sex you had with my sister.” Turning, she headed out of the kitchen before he could even consider a reply.
He was still standing there in shock, picking at the egg casserole when Sam and Haley walked in, so obviously happy and in love. They took one look at him and paused.
“What happened, Adam?” Haley questioned her face full of concern.
“I slep
t with her sister,” he mumbled.
Looking around, she tried to understand. “Cammie’s sister is here?” He watched as she glanced up at Sam in bewilderment.
Adam shook his head. “Nope. Some time in the past, I slept with her sister. That’s why she hates me. That’s why she refuses to trust me.” He felt empty as though that one mistake from his past was not only going to haunt him but alter the potential course of his future.
“Who’s her sister?” Haley asked, simply blurting out the question.
Adam looked up, stared at Sam for a moment, then at Haley, and finally responded. “I don’t know.”
Finally Found Page 10
