A Perfect Fit (15 page)

Silence stretched between them. “Are you okay?”

Was she? Cami didn’t know. What did it mean to be okay? She
wasn’t sure anymore. “I’ll be fine. I think I need a drive.” She stood,
snatching up her car keys. She needed the fresh air blowing against her face,
quiet, blessed, impossible to find quiet.

“Cami—”

“Please, don’t. I need some time to think. Time when I don’t
have to see the wallpaper Dad picked out for me, or listen to the music
pounding through the walls. I need a break. I’ll be back later.” She snagged
her purse and hurried out of the room, leaving Lana standing alone behind her.

Vince walked into the small-town burger joint and got into
line to order. It had been a long day—a long several days—while he worked
himself to exhaustion. Still, he couldn’t get over the betrayal he’d seen in
Cami’s eyes when he’d told her he wasn’t just one step up from a bum.

He rubbed his neck and glanced around to see if he
recognized anyone, and stopped short when his eyes landed on Cami.

She sat alone at a window booth, her auburn curls pulled back
at the nape of her neck. She wore what she probably thought of as casual
clothes—a blouse and dress pants. A burger, fries and shake sat in front of
her. Either she’d just gotten them, or she wasn’t interested in food, because
they’d barely been touched. She had her phone out and studied something on it.

He considered getting his dinner to go, or if he stayed,
sitting in the corner where she wouldn’t see him. Then she turned and stared
out the window at the parking lot, her face reflected back, blank and sad, and
he couldn’t do it. No matter what she’d thought of him, or what she’d said, he
couldn’t stand to see that despair. His feelings for her already ran too deep.

As soon as he ordered, he walked over, sitting across from
her in the booth. “Hey. Are you still fuming at me?” He’d thought he was mad at
her, but he couldn’t carry it off. Not right now.

Her eyes closed, making him wonder if she’d known he was
there before he’d seen her, or if she was too numb to respond.

“I don’t know what I am anymore.” She held her breath, her
face averted. “What do you want?”

Vince slid a hand over one of hers that sat limp on the
table. “Cami, are you okay? Do you need to talk?” He threaded his fingers
through hers when she didn’t pull away, but she didn’t react to his
familiarity, either. “Do you want to go somewhere else?”

“Talk?” She shrugged. “What difference would it make?”

They called his number at the front counter. He stood. “I’m
going to grab my dinner to go and I’ll take you back to my place. You look done
in, and we can talk about whatever’s on your mind.” It worried him, this
listless unconcern. It was as if she didn’t care what happened. He’d rather see
her eyes snapping with anger. When his unilateral decision failed to draw a
response from her, he knew it was serious.

He asked the kid at the counter to bag his food and got a
cup carrier, packaging Cami’s dinner to go as well. When he took her elbow, she
grabbed her purse and followed him without argument, climbing into his truck
with little encouragement.

Worry zinged through him and he wondered if she was physically
sick and not just upset. As soon as he pulled onto the road, he asked. “Is
someone hurt? Are you ill? Have there been more articles? What’s wrong?”

She shrugged. “Nothing and everything.” A tear trickled down
her cheek.

He hated when women cried. Nothing panicked him like tears. “Hey,
don’t. You can’t cry over nothing. You said it was nothing.” He pushed harder
on the gas, anxious to get home, racking his brain, trying to come up with some
way to stop the tears.

He was grateful his house was close as he pulled the truck
into the driveway and tossed it into park. He hurried around to her side,
opening the door, but she just sat there. “Come on, baby, do you hear the dogs?
They know I’m home and are getting worked into a frenzy.”

 When he tugged on her hand, Cami followed after him,
bringing her purse and the burgers as he asked her to, but she still didn’t
speak. She wiped at a tear streaking down her cheek and sniffled.

“The dogs are shut in the back yard. They won’t knock you
over, no matter how much they want to.” They could wait a few minutes. He found
himself jabbering nonsense, hoping it would stop her tears. He set the food on
the kitchen counter, stashed their shakes in the freezer, and led her back to
the living room, sitting beside her on the sofa. “Okay, tell me what happened.”

“Nothing. Nothing happened.” Sniff. “Nothing new; just new
to me. Why does it all have to change?” The tears came fast and fevered now and
Vince hurried to scrounge up the box of tissues his mother had brought him when
he had the flu. He pressed a wad into her hands and pulled her into his chest.
She snuggled there as if she belonged, felt right in his embrace. He pushed the
thought away, focusing on what she needed instead.

Cami started to talk, babbling as much as anything, but he
was able to piece it together. He learned only a small part of her doldrums had
to do with their confrontation three days earlier. He caught bits about music
on too loud, people everywhere, Lana keeping secrets, George betraying them
all, and the inevitable accusations that he’d lied and let her think he was a
regular guy.

He wondered what she’d think if he told her he
was
a
regular guy. A degree from Cornell and his various business interests didn’t
take away the fact that he worked hard with his hands every day, that he’d
rebuilt his car engine twice with the help of friends, or that the feel of her
in his arms, even weepy and blowing her nose, did things to his system.

He soothed and patted and whispered nonsense, doing anything
he could think of to calm her. The sobbing stopped, the shaking slowed, and her
hand slid from where it had rested on his chest to trace his collar bone, up
the side of his neck, and along the side of his jaw. Her scent surrounded him,
the silkiness of her skin made him hyper aware of their proximity. When she
tipped her face up to him, he found himself drawn to the offer of her lips. He’d
been aching to hold her for days, to clear the air between them. Though there
was still too much left unspoken, he took what she offered and gave it back in
return.

The kiss started soft and tentative, but grew in strength
until it became something else entirely. He lost himself in the kiss, in the
wicked fluidity of her mouth, the eagerness with which she dove into it. That
was, until he realized she was tugging on his T-shirt.

Though just being close to her threw his libido for a loop, and
the movement of her hands on his chest made it all worse, he covered her hands
and stopped them. He kissed her for a moment more before he was able to slow it
down, then finally pull back, his better judgment kicking in against his
preferences. “Whoa, slow down, honey. Slow down.” She was not in any place
emotionally to make those kinds of decisions and they had too many
misunderstandings between them to go there tonight. When her lips landed on his
neck and she hummed against his skin, it was all he could do to keep his
resolve. “Hold off, sweetheart. You don’t want to do that right now. Come on.”
He shifted back, his hand on her shoulders.

Her fists clenched and she pushed away, pushed him. “How do
you know what I want or don’t want? Who died and made you king?” She stood, but
drilled a sharp finger into his chest. “Just because Daddy approved of you
doesn’t make you my keeper.”

“I never said it did. Gees, that hurts!” He grabbed her hand
so she would stop poking him. “Calm down.” But he was relieved to see the show
of temper. It was much easier to deal with Cami mad than weepy or half
comatose.

“Don’t tell me to calm down. Do you think I like having people
run my life for me? First Lana finds out about Dad’s
extracurricular
activities, and decides to keep it to herself. Then after he dies I learn about
my four extra sisters; he does his utmost to turn my life upside down—have you
ever lived with five women? I’m telling you, even with our own rooms and
bathrooms, it’s not a pretty sight. And that’s with Mrs. Grady coming in to
clean up and make a meal three times a week. What are we, anyway, helpless?”
She gave his shoulder a shove, though there wasn’t much heat behind it.

“No, of course not.” He didn’t know what else to say. Not
everything she said made sense, but her actions were helping him clear his mind
and focus on the issues between them.

“And,” she went on as if he hadn’t spoken, “Dad starts
pulling strings to get us together, putting a bug in your ear about how much
alike
we are, making you wonder what’s wrong with me. I think you’re this strong,
sexy, hardworking type who’s absolutely nothing like the last guy I
dated—though you’re exactly the kind of guy he threatened I’d end up with, or
at least I thought you were. He was sure I’d catch a loser in the end, and you
didn’t end up being one, and Lana decides it’s time to come clean about knowing
about Dad for
years
.”

“Hold on,” Vince interrupted, fury racing through him. “What
do you mean I didn’t end up being a loser? You said you didn’t think your dad
would like me, but you didn’t say you thought I was a
loser
when you
agreed to join my family for the Fourth. You have a lot of nerve. Nobody’s
slumming when they go out with me.”

She took a step back, held up her hands, took a slow breath.
“No kidding. I’m sorry, that’s not what I meant.”

“So what did you mean?” He stood to face off with her. How
could he have such strong feelings for someone who thought he was a loser?

She turned away and raked both hands through her curls and
he realized she’d lost her elastic at some point. After a moment, she turned
back, much calmer. “I didn’t think you were a loser. You had a steady job, and
Dad had hired you, so you obviously knew what you were doing. He didn’t suffer
fools. I just . . . I thought I was getting away from his maneuvering. And then
it turned out I fell right back into his plans when we started dating. You were
exactly the guy he wanted for me, the one I’ve searched for, despite the
slightly different packaging than I’d expected.”

“What’s wrong with my packaging?” The fury was gone, but
confusion and irritation were still wildly abundant. Did she realize she’d said
he was what she wanted? Had he imagined it?

She looked him up and down. “Oh, nothing, I promise.”

For some reason her frank appraisal embarrassed him and he
set his hands on his hips as the anger and irritation deserted him. “So what’s
the deal?”

She turned and paced across the room, then came back. “I don’t
know what to do with you, Vince. I don’t know what to do with myself when I’m
around you, and I feel things for you I’ve never felt before, and that scares
the crap out of me.”

He rubbed his stomach where her words had sent his insides
twisting. “Well, now we’re even.” When she lifted an inquiring brow, he
clarified. “I’ve had relationships, but there was no falling in love. Attraction,
the excitement that comes at the beginning of a new relationship, yes, but not
love—if that’s what I’m even feeling. I’m not sure I’m ready to deal with all
of this so soon.”

The woman had to be schizophrenic or something to flip flop
from one emotion to the next so fast. He was going to get whiplash if she didn’t
slow down. But was he any better? His anger had never peaked and melted away so
fast before.

“I guess there’s no rush.” She let out a shaky breath and
forced a smile. “How about if we reheat those burgers and eat. I’m starved.”

“Okay, fine.” Bewildered, he followed her through the house
to the kitchen.

When the food was in the microwave, Vince opened the back
door and his two dogs shot into the room, barking like mad, running in circles,
and jumping up on Cami in delight. He gave each of them a firm patting, then
yanked them back onto all fours when they nosed at the milkshakes on the
counter. The monsters were big as horses and ate twice as much—each. “All
right, get down and I’ll get you two some food.”

He crossed to the closet and pulled out a huge scoop to
ladle kibble into the metal doggie bowls. Then he grabbed a gallon pitcher and
topped off their water bowls inside and out. When he came back, Cami was seated
at the table, both dogs quivering at her feet, their eyes filled with hope as
she unwrapped her burger.

“Don’t turn your back on them,” he warned her, “or your food
will disappear in one gulp.”

“You just fed them.”

“Doesn’t matter. They’re bottomless pits.” Still, he gave
each of their heads an affectionate rub, then washed his hands before he sat
with his food.

They ate in silence for a few minutes before he broached the
subject he’d been turning over in his mind. “So what’s the big problem here? Is
it that your father managed to manipulate your life, even from the grave? Is it
the pressure you’re getting from the media?” She eyed him and he shrugged. “I’ve
been paying attention.”

She was thoughtful as she chewed and swallowed. “I’ve never
told anyone this before.” She dipped her fry in her shake, swirled it around, and
ate it while the suspense increased. “About four years ago I dated a guy named
Lance. We went out for several months. I was starting to think maybe there was
a future for us. I thought we fit so well and had so much in common. Then one day
I was working at the hotel, doing paperwork from the front desk when a woman
came to speak with me.” Cami paused as she picked out a pickle hanging from the
burger. “She asked me to stop seeing her husband.”

Vince’s throat closed up on him as he watched the emotions
flit through her face, so many, too fast to capture.

“I was the other woman, Vince. We weren’t sleeping together,
but I was still keeping him from his family.”