Losing Her

by Cori Williams

  That was supposed to be me and Campbell. Conner’s an okay guy, he seemed to make her happy, but that was supposed to be me. It was my own fault really, I knew that, but it didn’t mean I had to like it one bit. I’d taken Campbell for granted, and now that reality was slapping me straight in the face. Too much time had been wasted.

  “Hey, dude. You made it!” Colton clapped me on the back, but I didn’t even feel it. He kept talking but I didn’t hear a word. My eyes were glued to Campbell and the happiness that had washed over her face. I don’t think I had ever seen so much happiness exude from her before. My shoulders slumped in defeat. I had to let her be happy. I wasn’t going to fuck this up for her.

  “Law, you alright, man?” I shook my head and Colton’s eyes flicked from mine to where they were still trained.

  “It’s better this way. She needs someone who’s there for her.” He grabbed onto my shoulder but I shook his hand away.

  “And I haven’t been?” I bit down on my anger, knowing that hadn’t always been the truth. Being on the road almost nonstop sometimes made that hard. “Why’s it different for you and Tess? You’re always gone. But you make it work.”

  “Tess is a different breed, you know that. She hasn’t gone through as much as Campbell has. Plus, she goes on the road with us sometimes. You now Campbell would never do that.”

  I did, but now I couldn’t even be given the chance. I was fucking stupid to think she would still be around when I was ready. Conner was a genius for snatching her up while he still could. Colton grabbed onto Caiden’s hand and led him over to the bounce house that they had set up in the corner. I watched as he ran straight in with a look of glee on his face, chattering away to the kids, most of whom he had never met. That kid didn’t have a shy bone in his body.

  “Hey, you made it!” Campbell was suddenly in front of me and I didn’t know what to do, I didn’t know what to say. I wanted to go back in time and erase what just happened, for her to forget about Conner, and be smiling that smile because of me. But I couldn’t.

  “Hey, yeah, just in time too, I guess. Congratulations.” My smile was tight as Campbell wiggled her fingers, her eyes glued to the massive rock that Conner put there.

  “Thank you, I haven’t really even processed what just happened. I’m engaged” she said breathlessly. “That sounds fucking weird. I never even thought about getting married.”

  “Never? I find that hard to believe. You didn’t plan your wedding when you were a little girl?”

  “I don’t remember doing it,” she shrugged her shoulders. “And then my parents got divorced and that whole mess. I thought I would never get married. And now I am,” she pushed out a breath.

  “Well it’s not like you’re getting married tomorrow,” I grumbled, lifting my chin to Conner who had slid in behind Campbell, wrapping both arms around her waist.

  “Maybe we will,” Conner says, pressing his face into Campbell’s hair.

  “Whoa, slow down there, cowboy. We’ll talk about that.” Campbell swung a finger at him and Conner shrugged.

  “Yup, we will. Tonight, when I have you all alone.”

  She twisted around, twining her arms around his neck, and like an idiot, I continued to stand there, torturing myself. “I don’t think we’ll be doing much talking,” she giggled and he whispered something in her ear, making her laugh even harder.

  I cleared my throat. “So you two aren’t staying here tonight? I thought we were doing a bon fire, drinking, roasting marshmallows…like old times. I brought Caiden with me, he was excited to see you.”

  Campbell’s turned, looking at me apologetically. “Sorry, Conner made other plans. We’ll do it again soon, I promise. I’ll have to hang out with the little man before we leave. I’ve missed him.”

  “Yeah, alright, sounds good,” I answered, pushing on a smile, even though I knew it wasn’t the truth. This was just the start of the changings happening in my life. I could already feel Campbell being pulled in another direction and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

  Chapter 14

  Campbell

  “YOU WORK TOO DAMN much, Campbell. You need to slow down. We’re married now. I want to see my wife every once in a while.”

  “What do you want me to do, Conner? Quit my job? I don’t understand. You knew before marrying me what I did for a living.” I was irritated as hell. This wasn’t the first time we’d had this conversation since getting married after a very short engagement. We figured, why wait? So after a quick, spontaneous wedding, here we were.

  “Baby,” he grasped my hands. “It’s different now. Let me take care of you. We can survive on my income alone. Find a part time job doing something with your marketing degree. Please.” His dark eyes were pleading and my shoulders slumped in defeat. This was the first real fight we’d had, really ever, but it seemed to be an ongoing issue that he kept bugging me about lately.

  I looked at his pressed blue uniform and brushed my fingers through his hair before taking a deep breath. I had been thinking about it since the first time he brought it up, weighing the pro’s and con’s. I just needed to make a decision, once and for all. “Okay, fine.” I took a deep breath, not really believing what I was about to say. “I’ll put in my two weeks notice. Maybe I’ll look at working from home, I’ve always thought about it.”

  “Really?” his lips pursed, the surprise evident in his tone.

  “Yes, really.” He was right. My job was stressful, too much stress sometimes and then I ended up bringing that stress home. I mean, the stress involved didn’t compare to what Conner dealt with daily, but I didn’t want it to affect our relationship.

  “Well alright then,” he grinned, brushing his lips against mine. “This is really happening. As soon as your two weeks are up, we’re going on our delayed honeymoon, whether you like it or not. We’re due for it.”

  “Sounds like a plan. I’ll start researching today.”

  “I gotta get to work, love you.”

  “Love you, too.”

  As soon as he was gone, I pulled my laptop onto the bed and started researching for our trip, stamping down the butterflies when it came to quitting my job. I loved what I did, it was my passion, but I was convinced I was making the right decision. I picked up my phone, thinking I could call Tess to talk to her about it, but I knew she was probably passed out by now. She normally didn’t make it past ten with River wearing her out during the day. So instead, I selected Sugar from my contacts list, laughing at the fact that his number was still in my phone that way, even though I couldn’t even count how many phones I’d had since we had met.

  “Cammie, what’s going on, girl?”

  “Not much, just seeing what you’re up to.”

  “Really? You never just call anymore.” The background noise died down and I heard him say something muffled.

  “Are you with a girl right now?”

  “What? No. Why? Would you care?”

  “Well, no I was just going to let you go.” I pushed my laptop off my lap and crossed my legs, picking up the remote to mute the TV.

  “Uh-huh. So what’s up? How’s married life?”

  “It’s great…different, but good. I’m quitting my job,” I spat out, fast and quick, like ripping off a Band-Aid. It sounded strange to say out loud. How was I actually going to do it?

  “What? Why? You love your job.”

  “I know, it’s just…I think it’s time for a change.” I grabbed my glass of wine from the nightstand, taking a big swig. “What do you think? Is this a good idea?”

  “Well, I mean, I guess. I don’t know, Cam. Is this really what you want to do? Are you going to be happy?”

  I pictured Conner, and then thought about the amount of time we actually got to spend together. Between him working third shift and me working first shift, it was barely nonexistent. And for what, really? Money? Conner was right, he did make enough money to support the both of us. I would have plenty of cushion if I quit my job and then looked for some
thing else. “Yeah, I think I’ll be happy.”

  “Then do it.”

  “Okay, I’m gonna do it,” I blew out a breath. “On another note, I’m planning our delayed honeymoon.”

  “Really? Where you thinking of going? Me and the guys will be in Florida in a few weeks.”

  “Oh yeah? Maybe I’ll have to look into that then.” I pulled up their schedule, seeing that he was right. Maybe we could head down there to see the show and find one of those all exclusive resorts after that. “How’s everything going for you? Have you been thinking about leaving the band anymore?”

  “Nah, not really. I was just having a moment.”

  “A moment, huh?” I smirked, remembering the moment I had on my graduation day, and how Lawson was right there for me when I needed him. “Well call me next time you have a moment. I’m just a phone call away.”

  “Alright, Cam, will do.”

  * * *

  I smacked a floppy hat on top of my head and slid my feet into a pair of flip flops. It felt good to say that we were finally on our honeymoon, well almost. “You ready to go?”

  “Hmm…I don’t know,” Conner’s hands landed on my hips, and he tugged me to where he was sitting on the edge of the bed. “I think I’d rather stay here and see what’s underneath this dress.” He buried his face in my cleavage and I moaned, tipping my head back. He pinched my nipple through the thin material of my maxi dress, and a mixture of pain and pleasure shot through me. “But we need to get going, right?”

  “Right,” I answered quickly, straightening my dress as he lifted me from his lap and deposited my feet onto the floor. “But just to let you know, there’s nothing underneath this dress.”

  He hissed out a breath and smacked my ass with a sound thump. “Way to fucking tease me, Campbell. Now let’s go and get this over with. You’re mine as soon as it’s over.”

  “I’m always yours.”

  We ended up getting to the concert a little late, so we didn’t have time to meet up with the guys beforehand, which kind of bummed me out. Still, I enjoyed the concert, their music has rubbed off on me over the years. When it was over we made our way to the back, and the security guys who had known me for years, waved us through with a smirk. Luckily they didn’t mention why they were smirking. I would never live my drunken strip tease down.

  I spotted Lawson right away, laying his charm on thick to a group of fan girls that had got lucky enough to score some autographs. I noticed one of them slipping her number into his hand and he whispered something to her before winking. I rolled my eyes, typical Lawson. I wondered if he would ever grow up. Colton always tended to hang back at these things, even though he was the lead of the band. It made me feel good to know that Tess had such a great husband.

  I joined the group of girls with Conner following closely behind me. “Lawson Reynolds, please sign my boobs!”

  His head popped up, and he looked at me with that crooked smile. “Well if you insist,” he eyed Conner behind me and stood up to shake his hand. “What’s up, man? Finally convinced this girl to slow down and enjoy life?”

  “Yeah, something like that.” Conner wrapped one arm around my waist. “The show was great.”

  “Yup, same old, same old, but thanks. You two up for some drinks with me and the guys?”

  “Um….” I tilted my head back, catching Conner’s eyes. We were supposed to be heading out early in the morning to board a flight to the resort in Jamaica that we were staying at, and I knew he was in a hurry to get back to our hotel room. His eyebrows scrunched together, but he nodded his head. “Yeah, we can hang for a few. But then I have plans for Campbell.”

  “Oh yeah, Cammie? Care to share any of the details?”

  I smacked Lawson in the chest. “Gross. I am not talking to you about my sex life.”

  Chapter 15

  Campbell

  “GOD DAMN IT, Campbell, why the hell are you being so loud out here? I’m tired as shit and all I can hear is you talking on the phone. Can’t it wait?”

  My eyes flicked to a worn out looking Conner standing in the doorway to my office in nothing but a pair of shorts, deep bags underneath his eyes. “I’m sorry, babe. I didn’t realize I was being so loud. I was just talking to a client and then Tess called.”

  “Yeah I’m sure that’s who you were being so fucking loud with. That girl needs to calm down.”

  I snorted, but covered my mouth up with my hand. He still looked pissed, I didn’t think me and my smart ass remarks would be very helpful right then. “Well, why don’t you head back to bed? I promise I’ll be as quiet as a mouse.”

  “I’m up already,” he glared at me, and I fidgeted under his intense eyes.

  “I’m sorry,” I whispered, and his eyes softened slightly.

  “It’s okay, I guess. It means we can spend the day together now.” He padded over to the recliner sitting in the corner of my office and collapsed into it, running a hand through the mess of his hair.

  “Well that sounds like a wonderful idea.” I walked over to the chair, sliding onto his lap and he pulled on my hips, his dick hardening almost immediately underneath me.

  “What did Tess want?”

  “Nothing much,” I shrugged, running my lips across his stubbled chin. “She was calling to see if I wanted to come over for a long weekend. I told her I would talk to you.”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

  My brows scrunched in confusion. “Campbell, the whole reason you quit working was so we could spend more time together. I want you all to myself.”

  “Oh, so you don’t want to share me?” I teased, trying to lighten the mood a bit more, even though we were going to have to talk about it later. I understood that he wanted to spend time with me, but I still had to have a life that didn’t solely revolve around him. Maybe we could find some time so we could go together.

  “Hell no, I want all of this to myself—all the time.”

  “Well, you have me right now, so what are you going do?” I breathlessly asked against his lips. His finger had already slipped inside my yoga pants and the wetness between my legs was growing at an ever increasing rate. I grinded myself against his erection for some relief, but he pulled his hips backwards wagging a finger at me after pushing me to my feet.

  “Not so fast, Campbell.” He pulled off his shorts and kicked them off along with his boxers, his hardened cock springing out. “I think you need to make it up to me since you woke me up. I was in the middle of a pretty good dream.”

  “Oh really? What was it about?”

  “Well you were in it,” he backed up, his legs hitting the edge of the chair as he sat back down. “And you were on your knees.”

  “Uh huh,” I dropped to my knees and crawled towards him, settling myself between his knees.“And what next?”

  “Well,” he pushed on the back of my head, nudging the tip against my closed lips. I kept them pressed together and he tugged on my hair, sliding the tip against the seam of my lips. “Playing hard to get I see. Open,” he demanded and I obeyed, opening wide and he pushed hard against my tongue. . “You sucked me off for a little while,” he groaned when my mouth engulfed him and he rammed all the way in until I was gagging uncontrollably. “And then,” he explained through panted breaths. “You climb on up and settle yourself right on my lap, wrapping that sweet pussy of yours tight around me.” Warmth flooded between my thighs and I let him go with a pop and slid upwards, wrapping my legs around his waist. “God, my dreams are coming true.” He shut his eyes and I laughed against his neck before biting at his shoulder.

  “I’m so happy I can help make them a reality,” I said as he slid inside of me and I held on tight for the ride.

  Chapter 16

  Campbell

  “YOU SHOULD REALLY change your dress.”

  I fidgeted on my heels, twisting around to look at myself in the mirror. “Why? Does it make me look fat?” I poked at the tiny bump of my stomach, the one that never seemed to go away n
o matter how much I exercised or tried to eat right. I had never really been self-conscious about it up until recently. Maybe it was because of getting older.

  “No of course not, baby. It’s just…its tight, its hugging every single one of your curves and it shows too much skin, skin that should only be for my eyes.”

  “Conner, I think it’s alright,” I moved to press a kiss against his cheek but he stepped back.

  “Change,” he demanded, pointing to our closet before sliding his shoes on.

  “Fine,” I whispered quietly. I felt like I’d been walking on eggshells around him lately. He was always on edge, which seemed to be a part of the job, I totally got that; but what I didn’t get was how he was treating me lately, more and more often. Every simple thing seemed to turn into a fight.

  I slipped out of my dress and instead decided on a pair of jeans that I could wear with heels and a blazer. I’ll be more comfortable in this way anyway. My phone rang from the nightstand but I hit the ignore button when I saw that it was Lawson. I didn’t want to talk to him and I didn’t know why he couldn’t get that through his thick skull. “Lawson?” Conner questioned, his tone relaxed. He pressed a kiss to my forehead before buttoning up his shirt.

  “Yeah,” I sighed, pushing my hair behind my ears.

  “Why don’t you just change your number if you don’t want to talk to him? Or I can take care of it for you. I don’t want you stressing out over this.” He slid behind me and kneaded my shoulders, sending a shiver up my spine and some of the tension oozed away.

  Lawson and I had drifted apart recently and for good reason. My dad had died. God, that sounded so foreign even just thinking about it. My dad was dead.

  My dad’s death had shocked me to the core, flipping my world upside down even though I had known for some time that it was inevitable. Lawson knew how hard I was taking it, but he didn’t show up for the funeral. I got that he was busy, but this was the one time I really expected him to be there for me, and he wasn’t. So I stood at the cemetery, watching my father’s casket being lowered into the ground, with no one but Conner by my side—Not Lawson, not my mom, not Braxton. Even Tess not being there stung, though I knew she was getting ready to deliver another baby any day. It just seemed like our relationships were slowly changing. At least I had Conner, he was always there whenever I needed him. He was my constant.