Free from Guilt

by Pat Simmons

  To each her own, Gabrielle wanted to reply. Where men were concerned, she didn’t lose all common sense—not yet anyway.

  “Sorry to decline again. Once I stake my claim, I take possession,” he said with finality. Then, turning back to Gabrielle, Cameron whispered, “Open your book. I want to see how romantic this Bryson is after he kisses Xena.”

  “You’re a complex man,” Gabrielle mumbled. She blinked. “Who are you?” She wasn’t kidding. He was proving to be as unpredictable as he was mysterious.

  Cameron’s nostrils flared as he made it obvious that he was inhaling her perfume. “Take a chance, Gabrielle, because what you see is what you really get.”

  “Yes, and what I’ve seen so far scares me.”

  Chapter Eight

  Cameron enjoyed making Gabrielle speechless. As a matter of fact, he’d like it even better if he could kiss her breathless. But assuming her slap would leave a lasting imprint was enough to deter him from trying it.

  In actuality, he couldn’t care less about reading her book, but Gabrielle seemed enthralled nonetheless. That Bryson character had nothing on him. Cameron snickered. The guy needed some Jamieson in his blood to win the heroine over. If Gabrielle would just talk to him without any distractions, he could convince her that she had met her match.

  Reading along with her, he randomly scanned sections until he noticed that she wasn’t turning the pages anymore. Her lids fluttered until finally she began to doze. Cameron sighed with relief. Did people actually get paid to write that fairy-tale stuff? He was surprised he wasn’t asleep himself.

  The woman sitting on the other side of him was a character too. While he attempted to be cordial, her boldness and lack of respect for Gabrielle was a turnoff. The seductress didn’t even take the time to find out if Gabrielle was his lady, wife, or fiancée.

  Mentally, Cameron backed up. If Gabrielle or any woman permanently belonged to him, she would have a rock on that third finger that could cut through glass.

  As for a nice pair of legs, Gabrielle had literally stopped traffic at the ceremony with the pair God gave her. Cameron smirked again. Earlier he could feel her watching him, even though she acted uninterested when the woman’s hem inched higher. Like he had informed her earlier, he didn’t play games. What was going through Gabrielle’s mind when his seatmate toyed with him?

  Gabrielle didn’t stir until the plane landed. She lifted her head from his shoulder, which he didn’t have a problem with her using it as a resting place. Unfortunately, he did have issues with the woman who claimed his other shoulder as a pillow.

  Blinking, Gabrielle gathered her bearings and eyed the other passenger, but didn’t comment. When the plane came to a stop, she reached for her phone. Once it was powered up, her long fingers touched the keypad and sent a text.

  Before the captain could turn off the unfasten seat belt light, many travelers stood. As Cameron gathered their things from the overhead bay, Gabrielle received a text. She smiled at the message. When he looked at her, she must have read his curious expression, but he had no right to ask.

  “I sent texts to Talise and my brother, letting them know I had landed safely,” she offered.

  “Good idea.”

  Once they were in the terminal, Cameron stayed close to Gabrielle. “Am I going to have a problem with your brother?” he asked out of nowhere.

  “Only if you create one. The Jamiesons aren’t the only close-knit family,” she replied as if she had issued a warning. When a woman called Gabrielle’s name, she politely dismissed him to greet some of her coworkers.

  He stood nearby. She would not get rid of him that easily. Cameron was in no hurry to get back to his condo. No one was waiting for him—not a cat, dog, bird, or goldfish.

  When Gabrielle started toward the baggage claim area, Cameron’s long stride easily matched her pace. “I really want to see you again.”

  Although he expected a flat-out no, her hesitation was encouraging. A few moments later, he soon learned the source of her indecisiveness. Evidently, Gabrielle wasn’t paying him any attention as she watched for her luggage.

  As she moved forward to retrieve her bag, he was swiftly by her side. Reaching for another bag, Gabrielle shook her head and pointed to a burgundy one. Cameron lifted it off the carousel with ease.

  “Do you need a ride?” he asked, eying his luggage, which was making its way around. Grabbing his garment bag, he turned to her.

  Adjusting the handle on her roller, she replied, “No, thank you. My car’s at the employee lot.” Her mannerism indicated she was about to say farewell. That wasn’t acceptable.

  This was his last opportunity. Stepping closer, Cameron invaded her space. He towered over her even in her heels. “One date, one chance, and one moment to woo you. After that, you can call the shots, but I hope you won’t call it quits,” he said sincerely, studying her expression. Her resistance was fading.

  Jutting her chin, she wrinkled her nose. It was a cute gesture. She lifted her finger and stared up into his eyes. “One.”

  “Was that a question or a statement?” he whispered to make her draw closer. When she blinked, he smirked, just before slipping a long envelope from his inside jacket and handing it to her.

  She looked at it before accepting it. “What’s this?”

  “Don’t open it until you get home.”

  She gave him a faint smile. Gabrielle’s eyes seemed to light up at the thrill of a mystery. Taking the liberty, Cameron brushed a kiss against her forehead, adjusted the garment bag over his arm, and strolled away. When he glanced over his shoulder to get one more mental snapshot, she was still staring.

  “Gabrielle Dupree, you’re going down, woman. You just might be the one, and if you turn out to be a perfect fit, then we’re going to fall together,” he mumbled confidently and continued on his way.

  Chapter Nine

  He did what?” Talise repeated.

  Minutes after entering her apartment from the airport, Gabrielle phoned her friend. It had only been seconds after opening the envelope from Cameron.

  “Ace never gave me an envelope full of rose petals.”

  “Consider it done, babe,” her husband said in the background.

  “Stop eavesdropping,” she fussed at him. But even to Gabrielle’s ears, Talise didn’t sound convincing.

  Gabrielle heard the faint click of a door closing in the background.

  “Do you have to tell your husband all my business? I may not want it to get back to Cameron that I’m even mentioning his name.”

  “Sorry. If I ask Ace not to say anything, he won’t.”

  “I hope not.” Relaxing, Gabrielle sat in her favorite living room chair. She hadn’t told Talise about the note inside yet. “I can’t figure him out. We were sitting at the gate waiting for our plane to arrive. The next thing I know, he asks me to watch his things and he disappears down the terminal. Then he returned with a bouquet. I thought that was a sweet gesture, but this completely caught me off guard.”

  Not wanting to spoil Talise’s angelic image of Cameron, she omitted that the bouquet was an apology for his swearing.

  “Isn’t that what romance is about—spontaneity, surprises, and tenderness? I’d rather have that than be a woman who has to program her man to buy roses, when to call, how to plan a night out, yada yada yada. That seems like too much work. At least Cameron appears to be already programmed,” Talise argued.

  She read the note aloud. “The man asked me to be his valentine? He’s a little late.”

  “Why limit love to one month? I think that’s romantic. Mark that down in your handbook.”

  “Don’t think I won’t when I finish talking with you.” Gabrielle giggled and took a deep breath. “But still … I’ve been courted by the best. Don’t you think it’s odd that out of all his brothers and cousins, he seems to be the only one detached from the notion of surrendering to Jesus? How can he be around what the Bible calls ‘a cloud of witnesses’ and act nonchalant about God’s
sovereignty?” Gabrielle gnawed on her lip, perplexed.

  “I’m still a baby saint. Don’t ask me. But tell me where that quote is in the Bible,” Talise said eagerly.

  Talise hadn’t been a new convert for a year yet, but she had a hunger for God’s Word. It was a good sign that her friend was in it for the long run.

  “Hebrews 12:1: ‘Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.’”

  Jotting down the reference, Talise said, “Thanks. Ace and I can study together tonight. Sometimes we read aloud to Lauren. We hope it helps.”

  “The Bible says the promise is for you and your children, and as many as the Lord God will call,” Gabrielle responded.

  Contrary to Talise’s accolades, Gabrielle couldn’t recite all the Scriptures from all sixty-six books. Anticipating her friend’s next query, she added, “Before you ask where, that’s a paraphrase of Acts 2:39. And, by the way, God never breaks His promises.”

  “Okay, Bible teacher, back to my cousin-in-law. Maybe the right person hasn’t persuaded him. I don’t know. I mean of all people to witness to me about Christ, it was the mother of a man who I couldn’t stand during most of my pregnancy. Go figure.”

  Gabrielle digested the simplicity of how God worked. “Yes, I do remember that, and you wound up marrying that man.” Ace turned out not to be the monster Talise had pegged him.

  “Call and accept the dinner invitation. Think of it as a free meal.”

  Gabrielle stared at Cameron’s phone number again. “I’ll pray on it.” The thing her evangelist brother drilled into her head was to be aware of the spiritual devices of wickedness as well as physical temptation. They work hand in hand.

  One look into Cameron’s eyes could blur her determination to live like every day was her last until Jesus’ return. Cameron was the poster boy of temptation until the next millennium. She sighed. Although Drexel had told her to stay away from him, her heart wasn’t listening.

  “I’ll pray too. I hope he can win you over.”

  “You mean, you hope I can win him over to a complete surrender to Christ. When Jesus saves, He saves completely. We’ll see. He’ll have to wait until I come back from my vacation.”

  “I do miss jet-setting across the country at a moment’s notice, but that was my life before my baby and my husband. Maybe I’ll return to the airlines when Lauren gets older.”

  “Right, if you and Ace don’t have any more babies.”

  “I won’t complain,” Talise said.

  After a few more minutes of chatting, they disconnected. Gabrielle fingered the rose petals. “Lord, if I close my eyes to the outer man, will You show me what’s in Cameron’s heart?”

  “Stand firm and see my deliverance,” the Lord answered, citing Exodus 14:13.

  The next day at work, Gabrielle wished she was cloned. There was no time to think about Cameron or his dinner date. Forgoing paperwork in her office, she headed directly to a ticket counter to help the agent on duty, who was feverishly trying to handle the customers alone. Another employee had called in sick and they were short staffed. Gabrielle found a replacement, but she would fill in until that worker arrived.

  A new crowd formed as soon as she gave the agent permission to take a long overdue break. Working solo, she assisted each passenger as efficiently and friendly as possible.

  Looking to the next customer, she came face-to-face with Cameron. His smile was mesmerizing. Her heart fluttered as she welcomed his unexpected presence. His timing couldn’t be better as the sick worker’s replacement hurried in and a crowd huddled around the counter.

  Gabrielle moved to the next terminal in hopes that the ticket agent on break would return any minute. Cameron slid to her side. “Has it been this busy all day?”

  She nodded. “If you don’t have a question about a flight, then I’m going to ask you to step aside.”

  “I understand.” He checked his watch. “I’ll wait.” Cameron found a seat in the nearby gate area. The few times she glanced his way, he was watching her. That made her uncomfortable. Her brothers drilled in her head when a man scrutinized a woman, either he was mentally undressing her or thinking of naughty possibilities.

  If she asked him what he was thinking, would he tell her the truth? Gabrielle cleared her head and concentrated on the steady flow of customers until the ticket agent finally returned.

  The agent had begun to develop a habit of leaving early for breaks and returning late. Gabrielle didn’t want to notate the infractions in the woman’s personnel file, but that was her job. First, as her supervisor, Gabrielle would hear her out. “I’m going to need an explanation for your tardiness,” she advised her.

  “I have one, Miss Dupree.” She confided that she was pregnant and trying to manage her shift as best she could without missing work. Her husband was recently laid off.

  Nodding, Gabrielle had compassion because she remembered when Talise worked there and was pregnant. If God’s grace was endless toward her, He expected her to pass it on. She would pray for the woman like she did for Talise and be more understanding of her long breaks.

  She logged off the terminal and stepped away from the counter. Cameron quickly closed the book he was reading and stuffed it in his briefcase. Standing, he offered her the sexiest smile.

  “Do you have time to grab a bite to eat with me?”

  “Are you sure you want to be seen with a woman who looks like a ticket agent?” she asked him and then whispered, “I wouldn’t want to ruin your image or anything.”

  “I deserve that dig, but I’m very sure I want to be seen with you, even if you wore overalls and carried a hammer.” Then, with puppy dog eyes, he apologized. “I’m sorry for that condescending comment when we first met.”

  “Apology accepted … and for good measure, I’ll even forget about it,” Gabrielle said, as Cameron guided her away from the path of a hurried traveler.

  “You are an angel. This does not replace the dinner you owe me.”

  Laughing, Gabrielle conceded. “Okay. How about Earl of Sandwich?”

  “Lead the way, Miss Dupree.”

  “Where are you off to this time?” she asked, as they strolled down Terminal E. Cameron’s attention didn’t seem to stray when beautiful, fast-walking women passed them.

  Brownie points. The man was definitely collecting them. Once they were in front of the restaurant, he insisted on paying and Gabrielle told him what she wanted. They chose a table, Cameron rested his briefcase in a chair and then headed toward the counter. Kicking off her shoes, she stretched her legs and wiggled her toes.

  While looking down at her tired feet, something sticking out of Cameron’s briefcase got her attention. It was a paperback. Nosy, Gabrielle inched it out far enough to read the title. Gabrielle’s mouth dropped in shock. It was a romance novel.

  What in the world is he doing reading this? she wondered. As she fingered it open, pages were marked up as if it were a textbook.

  Cameron had scribbled notes throughout, such as “Never sleep with a woman on the first date.” “You don’t care about this woman, you cheated.” “A text message saying ‘I miss you,’ okay that’s doable.”

  Forget the book. His notes make for an interesting read, Gabrielle thought. She stifled a roar of laughter. Checking the counter, Cameron already had their orders. As he grabbed napkins and straws, Gabrielle hurriedly stuffed the book back before he caught her. She coaxed herself to keep a straight face.

  “Here you go.” He slid the tray in front of her. “Your All-American sandwich and a side salad.”

  Stifling a giggle, Gabrielle could barely thank him. He moved his briefcase over and sat in the space beside her. With the oddest expression, he frowned. “What’s so funny?”

  “Nothing.” She shook her head and waved her hand in the air.

  Clearing his throat, he waited. “Either you’r
e going to laugh, cry, or bless our food.” His eyes twinkled with mischief.

  She patted the corners of her eyes and gathered deep breaths. Gabrielle could hardly compose herself enough to draw her mind in to pray. “Would you do the honors?”

  Cameron didn’t hesitate and wrapped his strong hand around hers. “Lord, in the Name of Jesus, we thank You for our food. We ask You to remove all impurities for our consumption and sanctify it. Thank You, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.”

  Although his prayer had been over their food, she enjoyed listening to him just the same. For a brief time, they ate in silence. Then Gabrielle decided to begin her quizzing. “When I was at the ticket counter, why were you watching me?”

  “You’re a beautiful woman and I appreciate the finer things in life.”

  “Good answer, but while you were appreciating the finer things in life, what were you thinking?”

  He practically choked. “Ah, I don’t think you really want to know.” He actually blushed.

  “I don’t ask questions without wanting to know the answers,” she challenged him. “Tell me.”

  Stalling for a few seconds, Cameron avoided eye contact. Seemingly, he was uncomfortable. “I was thinking about making love to you.”

  Oh, my goodness. He told the truth and that scared her. It took a few seconds for her to recover from his blunt honesty, but she was ready with her own response. “You can’t make love to me without loving me. Anything else is mere sex.”

  “I don’t sleep with women on the first date or the second. I have to feel there’s more to the relationship than hormones,” he stated and took a sip of his iced tea.

  Yeah, I know. I read your notes. “Cameron, you amaze me. I didn’t know if you were going to be truthful or not. Now let me be blunt.” She paused. “I’m not going to sleep with you or any other man. If any man loves me, then he will protect my soul from sinning, which includes sex outside of marriage.”

  “This may surprise you, but I like you. I’m looking for a soul mate, a valentine.” After stabbing at his salad a few times, he stuffed his fork in his mouth.