The next night was identical. Cameron parked in the farthest reaches of the parking lot, waiting to see if her boyfriend would show. His hope escalated as he witnessed Alexandra standing outside, waiting.
She removed her barrette and combed her fingers through her beautiful blond curls. Then, those same delicate fingers fiddled with her phone. Texting him, he realized. He’d give him ten minutes before he approached; he definitely didn’t need to get into a scuffle. No telling what would happen if he came face to face with the man.
Within five minutes of her text, he arrived. Cameron had prayed that the loser wouldn’t show, but evidently, her plan had worked. Had she confessed to him about their evening together? Had she told him how she’d used another man to make him jealous?
Sadness enveloped him, but it didn’t matter. He knew tomorrow would be the same. He’d wait a few more nights, hoping to get a chance to talk to her again.
Would she consider that he was stalking her? Is that what he was doing? No, he just wanted to make sure she got home safely. And have the opportunity to speak with her if possible. He wondered what day she took off.
Sullenly, he watched as tonight she got behind the wheel and pulled out of the parking lot as though she were angry at the world.
The next evening neither of the couple appeared. Wednesday and Thursday were the same. Now it was Friday. Certainly she would be working on a Friday night.
He waited until almost closing time, and then in a bold move, exited his Jeep and headed toward the nightclub.
He looked to the section she had been working last week. A different waitress attended to his fellow co-workers. He had passed on their invitation earlier.
Moseying up to the bar, he took a seat. The bartender smiled. “It’s last call, buddy.”
“I’ll just have a Coke,” he said politely. “Do you happen to know if Alex — Nicky worked tonight?”
“Hmm, not sure. I haven’t seen her for a couple of nights, come to think of it.” The bartender prepared him a soda and placed it before him.
Cameron threw a five on the counter. “Keep the change,” he offered, watching as the bartender wiped down each liquor bottle. He hoped the generous tip would loosen him up, and he could ask him about Alexandra.
“Are you a friend of Nicky’s?” the bartender asked. “I’ve never seen her with anyone other than that loser boyfriend of hers.”
Cameron’s eyebrows rose at the man’s blunt statement. So her boyfriend was a loser, and she had actually confided in someone else about him. He looked at the man’s nametag.
“Yeah, something like that, Brent.” He smiled. “Did she call him a loser?”
“Nah, she’s too kind, but he definitely is. You’re not one of Jonathan’s friends, are you?” he quickly inserted.
Jonathan. Now he had a name to go with his hatred for a man he’d never met. Cameron shook his head. “Not even close.” He chuckled, hoping the friendly bartender would open up.
Brent threw his towel over one shoulder and stepped back in front of Cameron. “Okay, cool. He has a bad rep, so I really don’t want to step on his toes. But he constantly forgets to pick up Nicky, and then she has to call a taxi.” As if someone would hear his words, he leaned over the bar. “And it’s her car.”
Cameron always had a way of getting people to talk to him. One of the reasons, he was such a successful salesperson. He swore people bought from him simply because they liked him. Not that he took advantage of that. He was honest to the core. He knew that sounded like an oxymoron, an honest car salesman, but he was.
He simply nodded at the bartender, wondering why Alexandra stayed with Jonathan if he was such a loser.
CHAPTER FIVE
It was a Monday night, not even a weekend, and Jonathan had arrived to pick her up plastered. No wonder they didn’t have any money. Well, that would soon change. She never worked Sundays or Mondays, but she had offered to work as many extra shifts as she could. She would save the extra money and move out as soon as possible.
Against his better wishes, she crawled behind the wheel. He didn’t think he was too drunk to drive. Of course he didn’t. He never thought that.
God, she wished Cameron would’ve come by. She wanted to throw herself at him, beg him to forgive her for her actions the other evening. Prove to him that she was worthy. She knew he would never believe her, but she wanted a chance to convince him that she wasn’t white trash.
She’d just turned onto Courtenay Parkway when she saw the flashing blue lights behind her.
“Oh, sh —” The siren from the police car broke off Jonathan’s expletive, just a quick shrill to get her attention.
Alexandra pulled off to the side of the road, directly in front of Carrabba’s Italian Grill. “What the heck. I wasn’t speeding,” she complained.
The officer walked up behind the car, shining a flashlight on her driver’s side door.
“Is there a problem, officer,” she asked politely. “I’m sure I wasn’t speeding.” She hadn’t been on the road just a couple of miles and had just turned a corner.
“License, insurance, and registration, ma’am,” he requested.
The officer retreated to his patrol car and then returned a few minutes later. “You have a taillight out. Mind if I take a look in your trunk?”
“Of course not,” Alexandra said without a second thought. She had nothing to hide.
Jonathan bolted upright in his seat. “No!”
She whipped her head in his direction, knowing something was terribly wrong, but it was too late. She’d already given permission and had pushed the trunk-release button.
The officer didn’t waste any additional time. “Ma’am, step out of the car.” Jonathan started to exit the car at the same time she did. “Sir, remain seated until I get to you. Alexandra Dellas, you are under arrest …” And the rest of the officer’s words sounded remote and hollow with the pounding of blood rushing to her head.
Alexandra sat in the back of the patrol car while the officer proceeded to arrest Jonathan next. Jonathan pleaded with the officer, telling him that nothing belonged to her. A vestige of his chivalry from years earlier emerging.
“I’m so sorry, Nicky,” he whimpered as the officer lowered him onto the backseat beside her. “I’m so sorry.”
“You know what I’m tired of, Jonathan?” she spat out in disgust. “I’m tired of you being sorry. We’re through!”
The next few days were a blur for Alexandra. She had no one to call; she definitely wasn’t going to call Lilith. Not that she’d bail her out anyway. But now that her father was gone, they really didn’t have anything to tie them together. So she simply sat in the dingy, smelly cell, waiting for news of an arraignment.
She’d pled her case to the public defender, and to her surprise, the woman acted as though she believed her. Alexandra had explained that she’d never been arrested, had never even done drugs. The drugs belonged to her stupid boyfriend — correction, ex-boyfriend. Again, to her surprise, the public defender had spoken with Jonathan, who admitted that she had nothing to do with possession of the drugs, that she hadn’t even known they were in the vehicle. Why else would she have agreed to let the police officer search her trunk?
Now, Alexandra stood before the judge. Her attorney had assured her that the judge would offer her a plea based on Jonathan’s statement.
The judge looked over his glasses, which sat on the bridge of his nose. “Young lady, how long have you known Jonathan Parker?”
“Six years, Your Honor,” she responded as politely as possible, her voice cracking and tears rolling down her cheeks.
He shuffled papers on his desk but didn’t look back up at her as he spoke. “Did you know he was a drug dealer?”
Alexandra pondered on how to answer. Should she be honest? Was this a test? “Yes, Your Honor, but I thought he quit.”
The judge nodded, but then shook his head disapprovingly. It had been a test, she realized. She hoped she’d passed.
A few weeks later, Alexandra held her hair back as she stooped over the toilet, puking her guts out. She couldn’t be sick. Not today. She had to go, or she would be in further trouble with the courts.
She swallowed a second gulp of Pepto-Bismol, hoping she would feel better by the time she had to leave the apartment. At least she didn’t have to worry about Jonathan. Unlike her, he’d received a sentence of one year for his first offense, which, according to her public offender, meant he’d be out in about seven months. What she did have to worry about, however, was the rent. It was due next week, and she wasn’t quite certain how she was going to make it.
Alexandra pulled up in front of a small church, the closest address to her apartment that was listed on the sheet of paper her attorney had given her. It wasn’t Sunday, and yet, at least ten other vehicles were parked around the building, so she was pretty sure she was in the right place.
She stepped out of her car and followed the other drivers as though she knew where she was going. She definitely didn’t want to ask directions.
An elderly gentleman held the door, allowing her to enter ahead of him. As soon as she entered, though, she stopped cold in her tracks.
There, leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his broad chest, was Cameron. His face lit up for a brief second, but then he quickly controlled his expression.
He pushed off from the wall and sauntered over to where she stood rooted to the floor. “Hello, Alexandra.”
She couldn’t help but notice how her name rolled off his tongue. It was partly seductive but mostly full of disdain. She’d been thinking of herself as Alexandra ever since their night together, but other than the officer rattling off her full name, everyone else had continued to call her Nicky.
Although she wanted to be angry with him for insisting on calling her what he wanted, the sound of him saying her name swept her back to their evening together, and chills traveled down her body at the sound of his voice.
Flustered at the wave of heat that rushed through her, all she could force through her lips was, “Hi.”
He smiled, but it wasn’t a friendly smile. It felt condescending, as though he were mocking her for her behavior that first night. His eyes narrowed, and he lowered his head to look her dead in the eyes. “Do you even remember me?”
Aghast, the heat in her body rose to her face. “Of course I remember you, Cameron.”
His eyes widened at her announcement and a hint of pink rose on his cheeks as well. “Sorry. That was uncalled for.” He held up his hands, as though surrendering to his ill-mannered question. Maybe he hadn’t been mocking her. Perhaps he thought that maybe she wouldn’t have remembered him since she’d drank so much. “Is this your first time?” he asked.
She released a sigh. “Yes, and I don’t even know why I’m here.”
As if her words hadn’t made any sense, he shook his head. “Why are you here?”
She shrugged as a reply. How could she admit she was here because she was court-ordered to be here? And that she was on probation after a drug-related arrest? She couldn’t.
Instead of answering his question, she cocked her head at him. “Why are you here? I thought you didn’t drink.”
“I don’t drink. Al-Anon isn’t for drinkers; it’s for the loved ones who have to deal with addicts.”
“Oh,” she responded. “I knew that. So, is your girlfriend an alcoholic?”
He shook his head again, seemingly frustrated with her. “I don’t have a girlfriend. I told you I don’t date.” And with that, he sauntered off.
Alexandra followed, sitting down beside him without saying a word.
As the meeting progressed, she did her best to focus. When the group leader asked her name, Cameron shot her a glance when she answered, “Alexandra.” So what? She decided she wanted to be a princess again. She hated Nicky’s life and wanted a change.
CHAPTER SIX
Cameron did his utmost to ignore Alexandra. It wasn’t easy. She had so much hair, and she hadn’t restrained it this evening as the previous times he’d seen her.
Every time she turned her head to listen to a different testimony, her long blond curls brushed her shoulder, sending a hint of coconut in his direction, which instantly transported him to sitting on the beach, their kiss, and then afterward.
Why was this happening? Was God giving him his heart’s desire even though He knew it wasn’t what was best for him? He had been desperately trying to forget her. After going to the club a few more times and her not being there, he had given up on the possibility of them ever getting together.
He wondered what had happened. No, he didn’t care. She had her boyfriend, and now she was even attending Al-Anon so she could better understand him. Great!
As soon as the meeting ended, Cameron darted for the door, deciding to escape before he could say anything stupid. Like … Please go out with me.
“Cameron,” her seductive voice, almost soulful with her slight country accent, called from behind him, slowing his sprint to his Jeep.
He seriously didn’t need this. “Yes?” he answered, turning around to take her in. God, she was beautiful.
She walked to within a few feet from him, so close he could smell her again. “Was I just a one-night stand?”
Her question floored him. “What? No! You’re the one who never contacted me. You knew where I lived. You could have come by.”
Her look softened. “No, I couldn’t have. What would you have thought if I’d shown up at your home?”
“I would have thought that you wanted to be more than a one-night stand.” Her head fell, as though he’d offended her, but she had no response. He questioned whether he should admit that he was at her work, but decided that it proved that he’d wanted more than a one-nighter. “I saw him, you — together. The next night. I stopped by your work to see if you needed a ride again, and he was there, with his arm wrapped around you. And then the next night, he was there again. So obviously your little plan to make him jealous worked.”
She gulped and looked up at him. “Oh …”
He cocked an eyebrow at her, then turned toward his vehicle again, shaking his head in disgust. Oh … was all she had to say for herself for using him.
“Wait.”
He stopped. Why, he didn’t know. He needed to jump in his Jeep and leave. Drive away from her as fast as he could. She was trouble.
“Can we go somewhere, get something to eat, or just coffee?”
He shook his head as he reached for his door handle. Was she serious? Did she think I’d actually let her use me again?
“It’s over, Cameron. I broke up with him.”
Cameron slowly turned around, not certain if this was good news or not. “But you’re here? Why are you here?”
She attempted a smile, but it was a weak effort. “Can we go? So we can talk somewhere other than a parking lot. I’ll explain everything.” She turned and walked to her Malibu.
Like an idiot, he followed her again, as he’d done the first night.
Over coffee, Alexandra explained the events of the last few weeks. Again reminding him why he didn’t date and why he attended Al-Anon. Alexandra had more baggage than a 747.
But it was useless to fight; she had snared him completely. How could someone who wasn’t even his type utterly bewitch him?
As the evening wound down and he ran out of small talk, he requested their check.
Alexandra reached for her wallet, and he reached for her hand. The warmth rushed his veins again. “I’ve got it, Alexandra. Tell me something, though, why did you decide to go by Alexandra? I thought you liked Nicky?”
She smiled. “I wanted a change. How come you don’t date?”
“I wanted a change too. Dating is messy; it interferes with my work and — never mind.”
Her head tilted to the side, and she looked so cute, so innocent. “What? What were you going to say?”
He ran his hand through his hair and propped his elbow up on the table, rubbi
ng his neck in the process. How could he explain this without offending her? “I always meet the wrong women. I seem to attract women with problems, but they’re never interested in me as a person. I swear I’m not a co-dependent. I don’t look for people with issues. I have enough problems of my own.”
“Is that what you think I am?” she asked, lacing her fingers together on the table in front of her.
“No … maybe. I don’t know. I don’t want to insult you, but you do seem to have an excessive amount of problems.”
She inhaled a deep breath, then let it out. “I’m not offended. I know I have problems, but I’m not looking for anyone to shoulder my burdens. I’m determined to do that myself. What I could use is a friend, though. Since you don’t date,” she amended.
He smiled. It was the first time he could remember smiling in a long time. The woman who’d inhabited his dreams for almost a month wanted to be his friend. That could work. He could certainly use a friend. “How ’bout we start with the beach tomorrow? Do you like to surf?”
She giggled in response. “The beach sounds great, but no surfing. I’m kinda klutzy.”
“I never would have imagined. You seem very graceful.” The image of her body moving with his flashed in his mind. Yes, she was amazingly graceful, one of the reasons he couldn’t get her out of his head.
She reached across the table and rested her hand on his arm. “Spoken like a true friend. Well, I’m not good at sports, but I like to watch. Your place?”
“My place is fine. Though, the waves aren’t very large. I prefer driving to Patrick Air Force Base. But if you get there early enough, we might be able to catch a few early-morning sets.”
“What time?”
“Is six too early?”
“Nope! I’ll be there.” She pulled her hand back — leaving his arm feeling cold without her warmth — and stood to leave.
Cameron threw a couple bills onto the check and followed Alexandra out to her vehicle. He stood back from her a few feet while she unlocked her car door. She opened the door but stood behind it, as though she were waiting for something. She looked up at him and smiled. Last time they were standing this far apart, he had sheets in his arms to sleep on the couch.
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