Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 79870 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79870 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 399(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
I guided Cameron all the way to my apartment, my conscience screaming inside my head for the duration of the drive. I don’t even know how I managed to hold up my end of the small talk. When we pulled into the driveway, I just sat there. It was my own place, and I didn’t even want to get out and go inside.
I checked my text messages and confirmed that Kage had still not replied. While I was sitting there frowning at my phone, Cameron came around and opened the door for me. To make matters worse, he reached in and pulled me out by the hand. It was seeming more like a date by the second. After almost two weeks of moping and being unsure and feeling unwanted, it felt good. And that was bad.
“Cam—”
He cut off my words with a kiss, pushing me gently against his car and draping his arms over my shoulders. I wanted to stop, but instead I leaned toward him and kissed him back. It was the first time I’d ever kissed a guy besides Kage, and it felt awful, like my insides were knotting up. I pushed him away and gave an embarrassed laugh.
I checked my texts again. Nothing.
Fuck.
He took me by the hand that wasn’t still clutching my phone like a lifeline, and he pulled me toward my apartment. I fished the key out of my pocket and unlocked the door. Then I led him to my room, because it didn’t feel right to be flaunting him in the living room, even if there was no one there to see him. The bedside lamp was the only one on, and it cast a romantic glow, making my room look more attractive than it did in the harsh overhead light. I was glad of that. Cameron probably lived in a penthouse suite or something.
Once we were in my room, Cameron pushed the door closed and locked it. He took my hand again and backed me toward the bed. Everything was happening so fast, I couldn’t react properly. One minute I was in a bar, the next I was being pushed down onto my bed and my shirt pulled up over my head.
“Oh, yeah,” Cameron breathed, running a hand down my abs. “You’ve definitely been eating right.”
“Wait.” I held my phone out between us, as if it could protect me. “Stop.”
“I’m sorry.” He backed away, still holding my shirt. “Am I moving too fast?”
“It’s more like I have a boyfriend.”
“Oh, shit.” He dropped my shirt like a hot potato and stuffed his hand into his pockets. “I’m sorry. God, I feel stupid. It’s just… When we met at the gym, I wanted to ask you out, but I was such a chickenshit. I had you right there in the shower beside me, and I just let you walk away. I told myself if I ever saw you again, I wouldn’t make the same mistake. Guess I just got a little carried away.”
I took a deep breath and fell back on the bed, feeling conspicuous without my shirt on. “This situation is so jacked up.”
“Yeah,” Cameron agreed. “Listen, I’ll go if you want me to. I can drive you back to the club.”
“No, don’t go. It’s not your fault I was giving mixed signals. I do find you attractive.” I checked my phone again. There was no text from Kage. “Dammit, why won’t he answer me?”
“Who?”
“My boyfriend. I’m trying to text him, and he won’t answer me. I don’t know what to do.”
Cameron sat down beside me on the bed. “Maybe he’s busy. I’m sure he’ll answer when he gets a chance.”
“You don’t understand,” I groaned. “I’ve been texting him for two weeks, and he won’t answer me.”
Cameron was silent, and I could tell he was thinking I was delusional. He was probably trying to figure out how to break it to me that if my boyfriend was ignoring me, he probably wasn’t my boyfriend anymore.
“I know what you’re thinking,” I said. “But I’d like to at least hear it from him before I get with someone else.”
“Do you want me to call and ask for permission to fuck you? Because I assure you I will.”
Even as distraught as I was, I couldn’t help laughing at that. “Even if you did, he wouldn’t answer. He hasn’t been answering my calls, either.”
“Maybe he’s blocked your number.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he bit his lip and winced. “Sorry. That was insensitive.”
“No, maybe you’re right.” I took a deep breath and decided to tell Cameron more than I’d told anyone. “Okay, here’s the deal. My boyfriend is sort of a celebrity.”
Cameron raised his eyebrows as if to say I was full of shit.
“No, really. I know that sounds pretentious, but I don’t mean it to be. I just want to be able to tell someone, because I’m gonna lose my mind if I don’t.”