The Summer I Loved You

by J. L. Lora

  Lauren threw her head back and laughed.

  Adri shook the thoughts along with her head. “All he is to me is Bron’s dad. There’s too much bad blood between us. If he wants to be there for her, and he says he does, I’ll let him but there is no way in hell I’m jumping into anything with him. Things with Cam always get crazy and we’re stupid around each other. I’m a mom. Moms don’t get to be crazy or stupid.”

  •••

  Cameron returned to his hotel room too tired, too wired, and with the day’s events swirling around him. The call to Walter had taken the fight out of him.

  He arrived in the city for one exhibition and in less than twelve hours, everything in his life had changed. He was a father to the most beautiful little girl he had ever seen. Her mother was the woman that’d broken his heart, sent him spiraling, and tainted him forever.

  The last time he’d seen her, she’d been an angry girl damning him to hell. Now she was a mom and in true Adrianna form, she excelled at it. Just like she’d managed to always have good grades in high school, despite what was happening with her parents, she managed to have her own business while raise an amazing kid.

  Bronwyn was beautiful, polite but outspoken, smart, dedicated, sweet and loving. Cam couldn't take his eyes off her. She was also a bubble in his chest that grew larger and larger. He looked out into Sixteenth Street. The quiet street should have helped him think but nothing could help him now. A child, Adrianna and everything he’d missed in the last ten years plagued him.

  He needed to make sure he was there for Bron. He and Adrianna talked about the next steps. He would secure a house in the area and get to know Bronwyn and then they would tell her he is her father. He needed to travel to New York in two days, tie up some business ends and attend his next big exhibit. It was the last one on his schedule.

  His cell phone flashed. Probably Walter begging again. Fuck Walter.

  There were two people occupying every part of his mind right now, leaving no room for anything or anyone else.

  The knock on the door yanked his mind off the little girl and her mother. He wasn’t expecting anyone, but his hotel was exclusive and discreet. It wouldn’t be some dumb reporter looking for an exclusive or anything like that. More than likely, it was someone knocking on the wrong door.

  “Open the door. No one else wants to visit you but me.”

  Cam stopped midway to the peephole, smiled, and flung the door open to the man in the three-piece suit and brown bag in hand. “You dressed up for me. You shouldn’t have.”

  “Shut up and move aside.” Elias moved past him and waved the brown bag in his direction.

  “How did you find me?”

  “It’s not hard when you know where to look. How many times did I have to come have dinner with you in seclusion? I can’t believe you’re still hiding out when you come to the area.”

  It jabbed at Cam’s side. For the last ten years he’d come to the Maryland/D.C. area multiple times, only to confine himself to this hotel room and Camden Yards. Had he gone out or stayed with the team, he may have found out about Adri and Bron. It all seemed so stupid now.

  “Hey, snap out of it.” Elias pulled a six pack of beer from the bag and placed it on the table. The familiar white label with black letters brought back memories he didn’t care to indulge.

  Cameron ignored his question in favor of another. “Washington’s top shark attorney, Elias Sanders, slumming like a high school senior? Did you really bring a six pack of Shiner?”

  Elias laughed and cross the distance between them. He slapped a hand on Cam’s shoulder. “It’s really good to see you. I’m sorry I couldn’t make it to the exhibit. Grayson had me chained to his side. I’ve never seen anyone more married to his work than my boss.”

  Spencer Grayson had a hand in everything, and his ventures were topped only by the Amazon empire. Elias often bragged about the important work he did for Grayson.

  He gave Cam plenty to tease his friend about. “Hmmm. Sounds like you found your soulmate.”

  Elias popped the top of one of the beers and handed it to Cam. “Shut up. Why didn’t you bring Sophia?”

  Cam scoffed. “I haven’t been dating Sophia in years.”

  “Who said anything about dating? Didn’t I see somewhere she got caught by the paparazzi leaving your house recently?”

  No, she’d tried to come see him, but Cam hadn’t been home so Luciana had put her out on the street. “We’re into gossip now?”

  Elias tipped the beer into his mouth and then shrugged. “I just happened to open the New York Daily website and there was my college buddy’s ex-girlfriend.”

  Sophia was the last thing he wanted to talk about. This day was too big, everything weighing too heavy, and the only female on his mind was a nine-year-old with a huge smile. Well, that wasn’t true, there was also her mother looming in the background like Jupiter.

  “What the hell is wrong with you tonight?” Elias waved a hand in front of his face.

  “Sorry. Um…I got a lot on my mind right now.”

  “Like what?”

  The painful bubble in his chest wouldn’t let up and he would have to share it with someone. He and Elias went way back. Cam let the words fly out of his mouth. “I have a daughter.”

  Elias’ gaze dropped to the floor for a brief second and when he looked back at Cam, he burst into laughter. “A kid? You?”

  “I just found out today.”

  “You hate children, Cam. Even the ones that revere you and always ask for autographs. You never hit anything bareback and swore you would never have one. Remember that time I had to talk you out of a vasectomy? You were twenty-two.”

  Cam winced. It was true. Up until a few hours ago, he’d still been planning the vasectomy. It wasn’t that he hated kids. He just never wanted to get trapped by some opportunistic woman trying to get an eighteen-year stipend.

  You didn’t hate Bron, though. Total opposite, since the moment he’d laid eyes on her, his reaction had been adverse to the usual. He’d engaged her even before he’d known who her mother was.

  “I know I said all of that, but it’s different. She’s…different. She’s smart, knows about art and baseball and…she’s Adrianna’s too.”

  “What? And she just showed up out of nowhere, saying she’s your baby mama? Cam? Are you crazy? Don’t tell me you’re falling for this. This is the most common trap ever. Athlete makes it big and every gold-digging mama in the world sets on pursuit.”

  Cam pressed a hand to his chest. “No, the skeptic in me would have kicked in but she didn’t know anything. Bron, that’s her name, came looking for me. Adrianna was shocked to see me. She also told me of the times she tried to contact Walter.”

  “Anyway, women like that teach the kids all kinds of trick too.”

  Cam’s jaw went so tight it hurt. Adrianna was not like that. Even if he hadn’t seen her in ten years, he knew that about her. “Watch your mouth.”

  Elias lifted both hands. “Hey, don’t shoot the messenger. People change, Cam. If your father didn’t say anything, it’s because it’s not true.”

  Cam scoffed. “Come on, Elias. All Walter cared about was me signing with the Emperors and making money out of his investment, as he called Luciana, Chase, and me. He wouldn’t have let anything get in the way of that.”

  “He was only being a dad. They meddle because they care. You need to be smart about this. No one accepts a child after all these years without a DNA test, and some explanations of why Adrianna didn’t come to you. She could have contacted you without Walter knowing. Why didn’t she?”

  “You’re right. She still has a lot to explain, but that kid is mine. I know it. Everything about her says something about me and my life. She laughs like Lux and she’s curious like Chase and I see so many things in her. You know?”

  “Cam… You were always kind of crazy when it came to that girl. You lost your head. You need a DNA test. And you need to g
et Adrianna talking. You were too hung up on her and that breakup. Make sure she answers all your questions.”

  Elias was right. Things changed. People changed. But could Adri have changed that much? Could she be a gold-digging liar like Elias said? Cam couldn’t wrap his mind around that. There was also Bron. Everything told him she was his. That’s what made this all so fucked up.

  “I’m going back to New York tomorrow night and I’ll reach out to my lawyers.”

  “Good. Thank God you’re not that far gone. But make sure that kid is yours. I can recommend a place here. I know someone that works there really well. They’ll be discreet,” Elias said.

  “I’ll just let my lawyers handle it because they’ll also handle the rest of the situation.” Cam said.

  “I can do this for you. It’s not a big deal and you don’t even have to pay me,” Elias insisted.

  Cam laughed. “That’s generous. Don’t worry. I pay the firm a lot of money. It’s time they earned it.”

  Elias’ lips went flat, a glare replacing the friendly look in his eyes.

  Shit, he’d hit the sore spot. He hadn’t hired Elias to handle his affairs, though he’d always intimated he’d gladly do it. He just didn’t want to mix friendship and business.

  “Suit yourself.”

  “Come on, let’s get tipsy on that cheap beer.”

  Elias laughed.

  After he left, Cam dropped himself into the bed. Yes, he would go home and settle things there and then he’d come back. He would have to arrange his life to include Bron.

  His eyes drifted close and the question he’d been dying to ask all evening, but had not dared, popped into his head. Adrianna had not married Tommy, but was she seeing anyone?

  CHAPTER SIX

  Cam walked into Mi Tesoro the next morning, determined to get some of the answers he and Elias talked about. He’d barely slept and woken up earlier than he would during his spring training days. One of the waitresses pointed toward Adrianna’s office and told him she was waiting for him. All the questions that had kept him up at night and tortured him into the early morning hours crashed together and went up in a smoke cloud when he saw her again.

  Adri was standing behind a glass-topped desk, hair up in a no-nonsense tight bun, whispering to herself and placing papers into a tote bag. She didn’t notice his presence and he took a second to watch her in her environment. He didn’t get to see how she ran her business the day before, but the bistro was beautiful and tastefully decorated with some quirks punched in.

  The office followed the same pattern. The pristine white walls with raw wood shelves housed cookbooks lined by subject. The ladder bookshelf filled with photos of Bronwyn, her mom, and friends, balanced and organized in a way only Adrianna could.

  When she was his Adrianna, and he used to sneak into her bedroom, everything was organized and not even a hair clip was out of place. She was still a compulsive cleaner, but she wasn’t his Adri. He didn’t know much about this woman. Her summer dresses had been replaced by blazers and her wild curls subdued, away from her face. Only her slightly faded jeans broke the business monotony into chic. She’d always been like Sargent’s Madame X painting. A straight line combined with a sex bomb. The most exciting of conundrums for him.

  On the brick wall behind her desk, a large framed photograph of a laughing one-toothed baby Bronwyn stared at him until Cam smiled.

  Adri looked up with slightly startled eyes like a deer in the woods. “Cam.”

  And there went his thoughts again. "You're going somewhere?" he asked. Well, duh.

  "Um no. Yeah. The school called. Bron's not feeling well and she's coming home early."

  The words were barely out of her mouth and he went still. What was wrong with Bronwyn?

  She waved a dismissive hand. "It's probably some kind of bug. Kids get them all the time. I hope you don't catch it before your flight."

  He didn't care about his flight. He could grab one at any time. "I'll come with you to pick her up."

  "No need. Lauren is on her way back with her. She’s on the list of people who can sign Bron out.”

  Of course, Lauren was on the pickup list. Everyone was on a list for Bron. Except him. He was her dad but got left out of everything.

  “We'll go upstairs after they get here." She walked around the desk with her cell phone in one hand. "I have to do inventory and you get to entertain her and play butler to her," she laughed. "Be warned. She's as lovely a sick person as I am."

  He remembered the one time he had to take care of her. The whining, snapping, and screaming. "Oh God. That has to be impossible."

  She swatted him with the back of her hand. "I wasn't that bad."

  His hand quickly shot out and trapped hers in place on his chest. Ironically in front of the heart she’d once broken with eight words.

  I don't ever want to see you again.

  In that moment, they were back in time, when she was the queen bee star of his wet dreams. All alone and eye to eye, it seemed natural and almost involuntary when his other hand reached for her waist and pulled her to him. Her gaze drifted to his chest and she grabbed the front of his Henley.

  "I love that you still wear these," Adrianna said, bunching it in her hands and inching her mouth toward his. Her warmth breezed over his lips and he could almost taste her. His entire body buzzed in anticipation and he leaned into her and just as they were but a hair's breadth away, she released his Henley and turned away. His lips brushed against her cheek instead.

  Why?

  “Adri, we’re here.” Lauren called from the bistro and both jumped back.

  Shocked, wide eyes stared back at him. Her hand pressed to her cheek, she turned and left the room. He followed.

  In the main area, Bronwyn was pressed to Lauren’s side. The little girl looked sad and sickly.

  "What's wrong, princesa?" Adrianna asked, bending over and pressing the back of her hand on her daughter's forehead.

  "I'm not feeling so good," Bronwyn whispered, her gaze on her feet.

  Adrianna placed a loud kiss on her forehead. "We're going to go upstairs and Cam is going to hang out with you all afternoon. You can talk about painting and drawing. I'll make you sopa de pollo, like abuela."

  “Her grandma’s chicken noodle soup is Bron’s favorite. It’s going to make her feel a lot better,” Lauren explained to Cam.

  Bronwyn shook her head. "No, thank you. I'm not hungry.” She shot Cameron a brief look that didn’t go past his chin and then looked back to the floor. “I just want to be alone."

  She walked toward the stairs that led to their apartment upstairs.

  Adrianna turned to look at Lauren, a deep frown etched in her face. "What just happened?"

  "She didn't say two words on the trip and Winter said she's been withdrawn the whole day. Winter also told me she didn’t participate in art class," Lauren paused, "Sorry, hi, Cam."

  He gave her a nod and a brief smile.

  "She was really quiet this morning, but I thought she was just tired," Adrianna told them. "I'm going to talk to her."

  •••

  Adrianna knocked on Bron’s bedroom door and opened it. Her daughter sat in the middle of her bed hugging her knees with her head resting on top of them.

  "Bron?"

  No answer.

  The uneasy pinch in her stomach grew. This was very unlike her kid. Bron was almost never sad and never stopped talking. "Is there something you want to talk about, princesa?"

  "No, I'm fine," Bronwyn said not looking at her.

  Adrianna placed her phone on the night stand and sat on the bed, facing her. "You know, I think we are more than mother and daughter. You and I are best friends too. Best friends confide in each other when something is wrong. That way they can help one another. I want to help you and you can always come to me when you need me."

  Bronwyn turned to look at her with glistening eyes. "You can't help me. He’s leaving you too, agai
n." She swiped the back of her hand across her eyes. "I know Cam’s my dad—" her voice broke off.

  The floor dropped out from under Adrianna’s feet and she was lightheaded. She wasn’t ready for this moment. How could she explain everything that happened, and the secrets she carried, to a nine-year-old?

  "Is it because of me that he doesn't want to stay? I thought he liked me, but he doesn't." Bronwyn’s lip trembled, crushing Adrianna's heart against her ribs.

  She scooped her baby up onto her lap and rained kisses over her face. "No, princesa, he adores you, like I do. He thinks you are the most amazing and beautiful girl ever. He's going to come back. He just has business to take care of and he wants to tell his family about you."

  Her little girl shook her head against her chest. “He won’t. He said he’s going to take care of business. Ayla’s mom never came back after she left on her business trip.”

  "He never left us. He didn't know about you. I promise you, my love, he will come back." Even as she said it, Adrianna prayed Cam didn't let them down.

  She held Bronwyn until she fell asleep and would have been happy to hold her all day, but Cam waited outside. Her chest hurt, thinking of Bron torturing herself with this.

  She got up to leave but her phone was flashing. She grabbed it and noticed she had an email alert from The Law Offices of Sanders & Associates. She frowned. The name rang a bell but she couldn’t place it. Cam was outside waiting but curiosity got the best of her. She opened the email and scanned through it. Her body grew cold with each letter she read.

  A formal request that a paternity test is carried out in order to establish whether Bronwyn Arenas is the biological child of Cameron Blake…

  She stopped reading after that. A fissure formed along her chest sending waves of anger and shame through her. He didn’t fully believe her. No matter what he said, Cam had doubts and for some reason that hurt like hell. She pressed her hand to her chest, trying to quell the pain and reminding herself that this was only normal.