by J. L. Lora
"Shut up, Chase," Cam said reaching for his phone. He dialed and ordered the food.
"What are you going to do about Adrianna? Because your plan from last night is not good at all. She would probably break a heel in your face," Chase asked.
Cam frowned. "What was my plan? I can't remember. Damn you for bringing out that third bottle."
Cam went to sit on the couch. Chase sat down in the opposite chair.
"You asked for that third bottle, brother," Chase half-growled. "Last night, you planned to seduce Adrianna into forgiving you. Only a fool would bare his naughty bits around a woman that angry."
"Chase…For God's sake…" Cam ran his fingers through his hair. "I just had to talk to Adri’s mother and she already knows I'm hung over."
"Fuuuuck! That woman scares the bejesus out of me to this day. I hear her name in my nightmares. She once caught me with my face near Lauren’s secret garden." Chase shuddered.
"What?" Cam sputtered. “You got close to Lauren’s…”
Chase shrugged. "You're welcome! We let ourselves get caught so you and Adrianna wouldn't."
"When?" Cam asked.
"The time you decided to get frisky outside of the Town Council celebration. I happened to look over to see Mrs. Hayes approaching and Lauren said it was better she caught her than Adri." Chase stopped to give Cam a mocking smile. "You thought you were so clever hiding stuff from me."
Cam didn't know what to say. "Thank you…How did you know?"
Chase laughed as he turned on the TV. "You were MIA for a whole summer and so was she. Then when I finally saw you both somewhere, you would sneak away." His smile turned malicious as he looked back at his brother. "I saw you walk out from under the Fire Ball and after…you had the most ridiculous smile for a really long time. Not even father could wipe it away."
Cam tried not to smile. "Nothing happened."
"I wouldn't call it nothing. My niece is darling," Chase teased. "Plus, thanks to you getting laid, guess who got to swim naked with Lauren the day after?"
Cam's mouth dropped opened.
Chase closed his eyes and smiled. "I told her the two of you were getting it on. She said she would do anything to keep my mouth shut. I'm so grateful to you guys."
Cam did laugh this time. “She didn’t know you would never tell?
Chase shrugged. “She offered, and I really, really wanted to swim naked with her.”
His brother stayed pensive, making Cam laugh again.
The sound brought along the puppies. Diego promptly attached himself to the hem of Cam's jeans.
"Good God, the mutts are back," Chase groaned. "By the way, thanks a lot for letting Frida get to second base with me earlier."
"I still have no clue what I'm going to do," Cam said picking up the two puppies and placing them on the couch. "I didn't do anything and somehow I messed everything up. She was jealous with no reason. I told her I want this to be between us. I'm wrapping up everything here so we can go back Baltimore. What else do I need to prove to her? Why doesn't she get that I’m all in?"
Chase grunted, "Women are complicated, Cameron. She probably knows all of that. I don't understand how she couldn't? Maybe last night, seeing you with Sophia, reminded her that she's been raising a kid alone for nine years. Think about it. She has had to see every relationship you've ever had on screen and in print."
Anger crept up Cam's neck. "Chase, you don't know…"
His brother interrupted him, "I don't what? Know you? Your reactions? How spiteful you can be when someone hurts you?" Chase was relentless. "You’ve purposefully dated only women that were very famous and whose lives were always caught on camera. For ten years, you've been trying to prove to Adrianna that you moved on from her, while assuming she was happily married to Tommy. She's probably tabloid witnessed your every relationship. I think she got the message you wanted, about how little she meant to you."
Cam’s throat knotted, and he could only gape at his brother.
"I'm back and ready to eat," Bronwyn announced from the door.
She wore jeans and a yellow T-Shirt with a wolf on it. On her feet she wore knee-high Uggs over her pants. Her brown curls hung over her shoulders.
"Bron! It's about time. My boo boos are killing me. And only the kisses of the most beautiful girl in the world can fix it," Chase said, opening his arms to her.
Cam watched in amusement as his daughter stepped into her uncle's arms.
"I thought you said Aunt Lo was the most beautiful woman in the world and that’s why I had to help you with her."
"Second only to you." Chase tickled her, making her laugh. "Now get to kissing."
The scene playing out before him made Cam chuckle but Chase's words continued to torture him.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Adrianna paused at the door. Truth be told, she was scared out of her mind of going inside. All day, she avoided thinking about coming home. She and Luciana treated themselves to the most delicious body treatments, massages, and scrubs. They got their hair and nails done, as well as makeup. They went out for lunch, then spent the last two hours shopping at some vintage boutiques in SoHo.
All in all, she had a relaxing day after putting her Cam woes in a box and throwing that box into the Hudson River as Lux suggested. The results of her spa day were impressive if she said so herself.
The perfect curls brushed her shoulders. The navy-blue shirtdress hugged her curves. She left the three top buttons undone. A thick leather belt cinched her waist, matching the four-inch, knee-high, oak leather boots with a buckle ankle strap. A “strickjacke” cardigan was in the crook of her elbow and her new handbag hung from her shoulder. Her lips were lined and painted raspberry pink. She thought it was ridiculous, but her spa mate insisted.
"You need to look seductive. If you take away his speech, you won't have much explaining to do. Trust me."
And that is how Adrianna found herself looking like a photo spread of Vogue while internally she shook like a leaf.
She heard a huge sigh behind her and before she could think, Luciana walked past her and threw the door open. Adrianna had no choice but to follow. They heard voices coming from the family room. They headed there, Adrianna's legs following the other woman's lead. They found Bronwyn and Chase playing Uno while the puppies lay at their feet.
"Mom!" Bronwyn ran to her. "Wow. You're like a movie star."
"That's so not right," Chase said, shaking his head. "You play real dirty, Adrianna."
"You hush, Chase. Do you ever go home?" Luciana asked.
Footsteps sounded behind her and Adrianna turned around. Cam stopped walking and just stood there watching her with his eyes widened and his mouth hanging open.
"Daddy, doesn't Mom look beautiful?" Bronwyn exclaimed.
"Yeah, doesn't she, Cameron?" Luciana went to stand by her brother, patting him on the back.
"Um," Cam blurted out.
Adrianna's gaze drifted to Luciana's, who winked at her.
"Like I said," Chase muttered under his breath. "Dirty."
•••
Cam couldn't stop staring at her. Adrianna was like a vision that froze him in place. He knew both his daughter and Luciana spoke but he didn't hear what either said. Then Adrianna's lips began moving.
"Huh?" He shook his head.
"Can we talk?" Adrianna repeated.
"Uh. Yeah. Let's go to the living room." He waited ’til she walked by him before following. She wore an intoxicating fragrance that clung to him as he walked behind her.
When she stepped into the living room, she turned to face him, only to frown looking over his shoulder. He turned around to find the other three people in the house watching them.
Cam turned back to Adrianna. "I don't think we will get privacy if we talk here. We can go for a walk in the park and then go to dinner if you feel up to it."
She gave him a small smile and nodded.
"Wait," Bronwyn said. "You're
going out without me again? That's two times."
She held up two fingers for emphasis.
"I know, Bron," Cam said, placing his hand on her shoulder. "I have to talk to your mom in private."
"Oh." The little girl's eyes rounded up. "She's mad at you again."
Cam opened his mouth, unsure of what he was going to say, when Adrianna intervened.
"I'm not mad at your dad." Adrianna sounded sincere and Cam looked at her.
"Come on, Bron. We'll watch your favorite show while they're out. I'm way behind," Luciana offered.
"Okay!" Bronwyn clapped but then she turned to look at her parents. "Next time, you're not leaving me behind."
Luciana waived at Cam and Adrianna. She turned her attention to her niece and said, "We can order cupcakes and ice cream from Sweet Dreams. They deliver.”
Cam turned back to Adrianna, shaking his head. "Shall we?"
She nodded.
They walked in silence until they reached Central Park. Cam was nervous, not knowing what she would say or how he could start. They went in through the Strawberry Fields entrance side by side. He tugged at her hand and moved left. Then dropped it, not knowing if she would welcome his touch at the moment.
The silence unnerved him. His mind reeling from Chase's words clashed with the need to stop and pull her close.
"About last night, Cam…" She began, but he stopped walking and shook his head.
"I understand now…" He trailed off as they reached a park.
There were trees along the path, barely juxtaposed against each other. From their walking angle, the trees appeared to touch. It was like they held hands and made a pact to shield over and around them like accomplices. Or maybe that’s what he wanted to think. That the world was on their side and wanted them to make up again.
"Solace," Adrianna said, her voice softer than the wind.
Cam blinked in surprise. It was the name of the painting in which he immortalized this place. "I come here to think and reflect."
They continued to stroll, past the Imagine Mosaic, where she stopped and paid her proper respect. His Adrianna was a dreamer. He had always been able to see that in her eyes.
His Adrianna. God. Cam shook his head and shook the thought. They made it all the way to the gazebo overlooking the lake before he spoke.
"I've spent the day going over last night. Most of the time, I kept thinking of what I could have done for you not to be jealous of Sophia." Her mouth opened, and he reached for her hand. "Let me finish, okay?"
She took a deep breath and nodded. They resumed walking.
"The rest of the day, I wondered how I would keep you from being upset when we ran into the other women I dated, and there’s a lot of them, Adrianna."
Cam squeezed her hand to prevent her from bolting.
"I know that," Her voice was dry and coarse like a sand block.
"It wasn't until Chase put everything in perspective for me that I realized what this is really about," he sighed.
Her lips twitched. "Chase?"
Cam chuckled a bit. "He has this nasty thing he does. He's always horsing around and joking. It’s like he takes nothing seriously, and then out of nowhere he drops logic and knowledge into a conversation. It's really annoying."
Adrianna giggled. "Lauren once said that about him too."
"He knew about us the whole time back then."
"She told me that too, and that she’d bribed him somehow. What did he say that clarified things for you?"
The gazebo was surprisingly empty that day. So they walked in. She went to the back of it and leaned on the hand rest to look into the lake.
"He pointed out that this was not so much about your reaction but my actions behind it."
Adrianna looked over her shoulder and quirked an eyebrow. "Chase actually said those words?"
"No, he just pointed out that I purposefully got involved in relationships that would get paparazzi coverage, in hopes you would see it and think you never meant anything to me. That I wanted you to think I was happy without you." He whispered the last words and leaned to look out.
Her body tensed as she held the wooden rails of the bridge, but she didn’t move. "This reminds me of Acacia and the town square."
Cam stood. Sitting was too passive. He couldn’t take it. "It's always reminded me of you, Adrianna. I used to come here and remember you, us, that summer, the square, the woods…"
She whirled around to face him. Her face was tight and red.
"Why are you telling me this? You're saying that for ten years, you set out to purposefully rub in my face your every relationship. That what I witnessed and convinced myself was not your fault, actually was because you orchestrated it that way?"
He stared right into her fiery gaze knowing he couldn't avoid this. "I'm telling you that everything in the last ten years of my life has been only about you. I ran from you but you were never far away. I sketched you without meaning to. You were in everything I did. You still are."
Emotions crashed all over her face and she pressed her lips together, then turned away from him to face the lake again.
You might as well let it all out.
"It didn't start that way from the beginning. The year after I left, my parents invited me to dinner at their house. Walter told me he ran into Tommy’s parents. He carried on about how they gushed about their son and his beautiful bride and how happy they were."
A breathtaking woman and so in love. Their children will be beautiful and strong. Tommy has it all. Walter had said. Cam’s anger rose at words that still echoed in his ears and his father's mocking eyes when he’d said the words.
"And to think it was all so stupid." His hands fisted at his side. "If I had looked it up or called you like I wanted to so many times. Instead, I just went and…"
"I did it too, Cam. You weren't the only one," she interrupted, her words surprising him. "I had a few relationships through the year. Some really good ones but…it never seemed enough. It wasn't until Evan said he wanted to marry me that I realized— "
"What," he jumped in. "He wanted to marry you? He asked?" Something about it, other than murderous jealousy, pricked at his skin.
She rolled her eyes. "Obviously, I turned him down. What's so wrong about him asking? Am I not marriage material?"
"Of course you are, but what if you had said yes? Would I ever have found out?" An enormous pressure built in Cam’s chest because there it was. The thought that’d been torturing him. Had Adrianna gotten married, he never would have found out. He would’ve gone through life without Bron forever.
Her hand went to her heart, several emotions crossing her face. "Cam, I wanted to tell you. I was waiting until Bron was older. I tried but your father…"
"No! Don't tell me. I don't want to know right now. It will only piss me off more," he said, shaking his head.
"We have to talk about it, Cam. You do care. You need to know this," she insisted.
"No, it doesn't matter. I was just thinking that you could've married him and he would have been Bron's father." His stomach lurched and he could barely get the last word out.
"The point is, I didn't. Furthermore, I didn't because he wasn't what I was looking for, what I wanted. I went into every relationship looking for what we had that summer and without meaning to. It wasn't fair." She shook her head.
The floor dropped under Cam.
Adrianna continued, "It wasn't fair to them and it wasn't fair to me. I looked for you in every man while you…" She paused to exhale. "Sophia brought it all back. It really wasn't my best moment. The two of you just seemed way too friendly," she added with a laugh.
Cam winced. "Sophia was just a party friend. Nothing more. It's not like I had intentions of marrying her…unlike Evan and you."
"Seriously?" She advanced on him and Cam knew where they were heading again.
"I'm sorry," he said, moving closer to take her hand. "That was uncalled for." He tugged
her closer to him, his arms wrapping around her. "Please, let's not fight anymore. We've spent a decade looking for each other in other people."
He kissed the corner of her lips in tender pecks, savoring her soft skin. Then, he did the same on the other side of her mouth. "Now we found each other again."
"Cam…" Her protest sounded half-hearted, weak to him.
"Adrianna…please." He touched his lips to hers briefly. "I need…"
"Me too," she moaned into his mouth.
Her hands went around his waist as his lips crashed against hers. Her fingers splayed against his back, and his went to each side of her face. She pulled him closer and he smiled against her mouth, desire melding with relief and happiness.
His memory had always been with her in the same way hers had always been for him.
Cam’s tongue plundered her mouth, slowly undulating against hers. Her fingers dug into his skin; he groaned. He let go of her face, his hands needing to touch. They were on her shoulders, sliding down her back, and pressing her to him. He needed more of her. More feeling, more friction, more Adri. He cupped her ass, bringing her higher, against his erection.
A little gasp escaped her lips; he thrust forward holding her in place. Her head fell back and he nipped at her neck. He thrust again with his lips traveling up to her ear.
"I want to press you against a tree and fuck you until we both lose our minds. Let’s go find a secluded corner." He started to pull her in the direction of the area he knew.
"Oh God. We’re going to get arrested."
Or mugged or worse. Get it together, man.
Cam's heart was about to beat its way out of his chest. He looked back at Adrianna who kept blinking. Her lipstick smeared on her parted lips. He didn’t want anything like he wanted her under him. Yeah, the woods it had to be.
“We’re not going to get arrested because we’re not going to be loud and I just can’t make it—"
“No, Choco. You come back here. Bad dog. Sir, watch…”
Cam didn’t get a chance to turn. A huge object pressed into the bottom of his ass like it was trying to make its way in. The distinctive wiggling of a dog’s nose trying to get to know him better. And just like that, he knew he would get luckier in this park with Choco than he would with Adri.
