by Nikki Paris
I gasped when I saw Serena following behind him in a pretty lilac halter dress. I raced over to her, entirely forgetting that I’d just ripped Camden’s heart out twenty-four hours ago. I was completely unconcerned with the fact that he probably hated me and didn’t want me anywhere near him.
“Serena! You’re okay!” I pulled the teen in for a tight embrace. “I was worried about you, girl!”
Serena smiled and hugged me back. “I’m fine, Ash. My mom was just having an episode… and I had to take care of shit for Taylee and Sami.”
I smiled. “Cause you’re a tough bitch.” I wanted to kiss the top of her head and take away all of the years of pain she’d suffered. I wished I could wave a magic wand and just let her be a kid. “How’s your mom now?” I asked.
Serena shrugged and rolled her eyes. “Sober, at least for tonight. Camden brought a babysitter over, too, just in case.”
I glanced over at Camden. He was staring at the pavement with his jaw set, refusing to look at me. “Thank you, Camden,” I said.
He just nodded and then turned back to Serena. “Your speech is going to be killer tonight. Thanks for being willing to help us out.” He patted her shoulder and then walked inside. My heart ached.
Serena sighed as we watched him go. “If I was like ten years older, man.” She laughed and shook her head. “That dude is the coolest. I hope I can find someone like him someday. You’re pretty damn lucky.”
My heart ached even more.
I put my arm around Serena’s shoulders. “No doubt, you’ll find the best guy in the world. You won’t settle for anything less. Come on, let’s go inside, meet some rich people, and get them to give us their money.”
Serena laughed out loud. “My speech is gonna break their hearts.”
“I’m proud of you. You know that?”
“Yeah, yeah, Ash. Don’t get all sappy on me now.” Serena grinned and headed through the doors.
An hour later, she stood on the stage, smiling out at all of our wealthy guests. “Who am I?” she asked. “I’m a nobody, a dirt-poor, punk teenager with no future. That’s what I believed.” Serena looked down and shook her head. She looked back up and stared her audience down. “And then I met Ash Piper from Bright Starts. She was relentless and as annoying as hell in making me change my mind about myself.” Serena grinned, and the crowd chuckled.
“Ash tricked me into coming to more events by getting me to show off and cook for everyone. Girl knew how to play to my pride.” Serena grinned. “But I realized that it was fun and that I know what I want to do with my life now. And all these people — Ash, Camden, Elliot, Tom, Lena— they’re helping me make a real plan to change my world and be the best version of myself. They don’t give up on people. They made me start to see this little glimmer of hope. I started to see my strength and believe that I could be something. Man, I can be anything! It doesn’t matter where I come from. It matters where I’m going. Bright Starts made me see that. And there are a million other kids just like me out there that just need to see that little glimmer of hope. They just need someone to not give up on them.”
Serena grinned at me as the crowd clapped and cheered for her. She smiled and waved before heading back to her table.
I was powerless to stop the tears that streamed down my face. God, I loved that kid! I chanced a glance at Camden and saw tears in his eyes, too. He met my gaze and forced a half-smile that told me he was just as proud of Serena as I was. Then he looked away.
Camden must have shown up at Serena’s house to check on her after I told him how worried I was. God, he was amazing. What if I just told him I loved him? What if I just gave us a chance?
As the dinner ended, and our guests pulled out their wallets. Elliot tapped my shoulder and nodded toward Camden. He still wanted to offer him a job.
Camden should work full-time at Bright Starts. He had the perspective we needed. He could reach kids in a way that Elliot and I just couldn’t. I sighed and nodded at Elliot.
“Yo, Camden.” Elliot called across the table. “Ash and I want to talk to you for a sec.”
Camden looked over at Elliot, but he wouldn’t meet my gaze. “Uh, yeah. Cool. What’s up?”
Elliot elbowed me. He wanted me to make the offer.
I cleared my throat. “Your work has been exceptional, Camden. You are, by far, the best intern we’ve ever had. We, um… we were just hoping that maybe you’d be willing to work at Bright Starts, full-time.” I looked down and hurried to say, “Of course, we understand completely if you don’t want to, or if you have better offers. The pay is crap, and you already know the hours are long. We would understand if you turned us down.”
Elliot raised both eyebrows, and slow clapped. “Way to sell it, Ash.”
I felt my cheeks burn as I stared at my hands.
“I think what my partner and good friend Ash was trying to say is that we want you. You can change lives, and we need you on our team, man.”
Camden looked back and forth between Elliot and me. “You both want me to work at Bright Starts?” He raised his eyebrows and settled his gaze on me.
“Absolutely, man.” Elliot spoke up.
“Wow. I’m honored,” Camden said. “Obviously I’m passionate about what you guys do here. Can I take a day or two to think it over?”
“Of course.” My voice was barely audible.
Camden nodded and stood to leave. “Thanks guys, I’ll seriously consider it.”
After he walked away, Elliot turned to me with a “the fuck??” look. “There something weird going on between you two?” he asked.
I sighed. “Yup.”
“Care to elaborate?”
I rested my forehead in my hands. “We slept together.”
“Are you serious, Ash?” Elliot was pissed. “You fucked the intern?”
“It wasn’t like that. We met before the internship even started!”
“So, you hired your boyfriend?” The edge was still in Elliot’s voice.
“No!” I snapped and looked right at his face. “Lena hired him while I was clearing my head after the divorce!”
Elliot let out a breath and shook his head. “Okay. Okay, Ash. Well, he’s not about to take the job then. That fuckin’ sucks, because we really could have used his talents.”
I twisted my napkin and said, “Yeah, I know. He’s amazing.”
“Why the hell didn’t you tell me? We tell each other shit, Ash!” Elliot shook his head.
I gave him a sharp look. “Do we? I was the last person to find out about Maliya’s pregnancy.”
“Ah, hell. You know why I didn’t tell you! You’ve been through enough, and I didn’t want to hurt you!”
I sighed and said, “Your good news doesn’t hurt me, Elliot. I feel like you and Aria have been keeping shit from me for years now. That doesn’t make for real, deep friendships when you keep things from people!”
“Ash, come on, girl. We just don’t want to see you hurt anymore.” Elliot’s voice was quiet. He leaned back in his chair and asked, “Ash, was it more than sex with Camden?”
I nodded.
“For both of you?”
I shrugged.
“So who caught feelings then?”
I bit my lip as the tears began to fall. “I guess we both did, but I ruined it.”
Elliot rubbed his head. “How did you ruin it?”
I tried to wipe my tears away, but it was pointless. “He… he told me he loved me, and I pushed him away, hard. I told him he didn’t mean anything to me, and that it was just sex.”
Elliot let out a low whistle.
“I know, I fucking know! I was trying to protect him! I didn’t believe that he was okay with me not being able to get pregnant.” I shot Elliot a glare. “Thanks, by the way, for telling him about that!” Then my shoulders slumped, and my tears fell faster. “I didn’t want him to wake up one day and be heartbroken that he wasn’t a father!”
Elliot sighed. “Come here, girl. I’m sorry I told him. W
asn’t my place, but I didn’t know y’all were involved.” He pulled me into his arms and said, “Okay, you screwed up. So, what you gonna do about it, Ash?”
I sobbed, “I don’t know! Can I even fix this?”
Elliot released me and rubbed his head. “If he loves you, then you can fix it. You have no idea how many times I’ve screwed up with Maliya, but we always fix it. You fix real love.”
I gave him a half-smile through my tears. “That’s sweet, Elliot.”
I stood and started collecting donation envelopes from the tables. Elliot walked up beside me and took them from my hands. “Get your ass outta here. Show up at his door and fix it. We’ll take care of stuff here.”
I laughed and wiped away a few more stray tears. “You think that’s a good idea?”
“Yeah. Go.” He gave me a light shove and said, “And if it’s not too much trouble, try to get him to work with us. I really wanted him to work with us, Ash!”
I rolled my eyes and walked out of the event center with my heart racing. What would Camden do when I showed up at his door?
19
Camden
I tossed my suit jacket on my couch and walked a few feet to collapse on my bed. Ash had looked incredible tonight in her tight black dress and her red sex shoes. It was weird to have blood rush to my dick while simultaneously feeling the pain in my chest that hadn’t gone away since she shot me down.
Then she’d offered me a job. She must really feel nothing for me if she thought we could keep working together. I couldn’t take the job. There was no way. She didn’t even really want me to take it.
It didn’t matter. I had two other job offers anyway, one of them halfway across the country. I’d take that one and run from the woman that turned out to be my undoing.
I knew loss, and I knew grief. I’d been abandoned, unwanted, pushed aside, forgotten, rejected — all of it. It all hurt, but I could deal and rise above it. Ash though… Losing Ash was pure torture. I didn’t know if I’d recover from being rejected by her.
I should never have kissed her that night in the club. Then we could have started the internship as strangers. Then maybe everything would be different right now.
I stood and unbuttoned my dress shirt. Drinking wouldn’t fix this shit, but maybe it would help numb the pain, at least for a minute. I needed a break from the pain. I opened the cupboard above the fridge and pulled out a bottle of Vodka. Should I just drink it straight? That would be the fastest way to stop thinking about Ash. I put the bottle to my lips right as there was a knock at my door.
“Who the hell could that be?” I muttered to myself. I set the bottle down and headed for the door, not bothering to button my shirt first. My breath caught in my chest when I pulled the door open and saw her standing there. It hurt just to look at her.
“Camden?” Ash bit her lip and wrapped her arms around herself. Her eyes traveled longingly over my bare chest.
“Don’t worry, Ash. I’m not going to take the job.” I made to close the door, but she put her hand out to stop it. I narrowed my eyes at her. “Isn’t that why you’re here? To ask me not to take it?”
“No.” Her voice was so soft. “Can I come in?” She gave me a sexy little half-smile.
Fuck. I wanted her lips.
I stepped back to let her into my apartment. The last time she was here, we’d fucked on the kitchen counter. I still remembered burying my face in her tits and my dick in her pussy, while she moaned out her approval and banged her head against the kitchen cupboards.
Her eyes settled on the same spot in my kitchen. Was she thinking about it, too?
I sat at the table and looked up at her with a stony glare. “What can I do for you, boss?”
She rolled her beautiful eyes at me. “You can’t call me that anymore. The internship is over.”
I shrugged. “Okay, boss.”
Ash sighed. “You’re pissed.” She crossed my kitchen to stand right in front of me. I instinctively opened my legs to let her press herself against me. My heart and mind were angry and hurt, but my body didn’t care. It always reacted to Ash.
“Good observation.” I fought the urge to wrap my arms around her waist.
“I came,” she reached out to run her fingers through my hair, “to tell you that I lied to you last night when you told me how you felt. You’re more than just a really good fuck. You’re more than a hot stranger in a club, and you’re more than a good-hearted, adorable, dedicated intern.”
My heart raced out of control. What was she doing? Her fingers traveled down my neck and chest. Damn. It felt incredible. Could she feel the way my heart was beating? Did she have any idea what she did to me?
She held my face with both hands. “I came to tell you that you make me feel things I’ve never felt before, and I don’t just mean incredible orgasms.”
I swallowed and said, deadpan, “Stop, Ash, you’re making me blush.”
Ash smiled down at me. I slowly slid my hands up and down her legs, cupping her perfect ass. I couldn’t help it. She bit her lip, and her eyes filled with desire and fear. “Camden, I’m so sorry that I lied and hurt you. I thought I was protecting you from even more pain later down the road. I love you, and that terrifies me.”
I could hardly breathe. Was this really happening? Was she finally and completely accepting the fucking lightning that always crackled between us? Was she giving us a chance? I squeezed her ass and asked, “What scares you, Ash? How can I take away your fear?”
“I’m so scared that I won’t be enough for you. It was agony not ever being enough for Maddox.” Her gorgeous eyes filled with pain. “I’m scared that this is all too fast and that I haven’t let myself heal before diving back in. I’m scared that I’m going to wake up one day, and this will all have just been a dream because you’re too good to be true.”
I stood and pulled her tightly into my arms. I could feel her heart pounding as I held her. “Ash, you are more than enough for me. If we live the rest of our lives, just me and you, fucking on the kitchen counter, great. If we dive into Bright Starts and help as many kids as we can, awesome. If we decide to adopt ten kids and start a touring family band, fantastic. It doesn’t matter what I’m doing, as long as I’m doing it with you.” I held her face gently in my hands and gazed into her eyes. “Don’t you get that, Ash?”
I pressed my lips into hers and felt her melt into me. Everywhere we touched felt like fire.
Ash broke the kiss but didn’t pull away. “But don’t you think this is too fast? And I still have so much emotional shit to work through!” Her breathing was heavy.
“It is fast, but that doesn’t make it wrong.” I kissed her neck and reveled in her moans of pleasure. I forced my lips away from her body to say, “And, Ash, we all have emotional shit to work through. We can heal together.”
Ash kissed me and shoved her tongue into my mouth. “God, I love you.” She pressed against my erection and raked her fingernails down my bare chest. “I wanna be with you. It feels so fucking good to be with you.”
I had to stop just to look at her. This was real, wasn’t it? I had to be dreaming. “I love you, Ash.” I lifted her in my arms and carried her to my bed, my lips never leaving hers. I had to get that fucking dress off of her. I tugged at the zipper, slid the dress down her body, and licked and kissed every inch of her skin that came anywhere near my mouth.
She removed her bra, revealing her rock hard, pointy nipples. I teased her nipples with one hand and rubbed her pussy with the other. Her panties were drenched. I was ready to burst just from touching her. “Ash! Fuck, you’re so hot!” I grabbed her panties and yanked them down, burying my fingers deep inside her sweet, warm, wetness.
Ash threw her head back, arched her back, and let out that sexy, sensual moan that drove me wild. “Oh, Camden. Oh. Oh!” Her breathing was heavy, and she rocked her hips into my hand, pushing my fingers deeper inside her.
I rubbed her clit with my thumb and had to focus on not spilling in my pants when s
he rode her climax with gasping screams.
When she finished, Ash straddled me, with wild, crazy passion in her eyes. “I need you inside of me.” She kissed my chest and licked my abs while she unbuttoned my pants and slid them down. Without missing a beat, she lowered herself onto my hard dick and rocked her hips in some magical rhythm that seemed made for me. Ash just kept riding me until I was seconds away from the best orgasm of my life.
“Holy shit! Fuck!” I grabbed her hips and moaned. “Ash, I love you. I love you so fucking much.”
“I love you too.” She leaned down to kiss me.
Our lips locked right as I came, deep inside the woman I loved.
When I finished, Ash didn’t roll off of me. She spread her naked body over mine and nestled her head under my chin. “I love you,” she whispered again.
I ran my fingertips gently down her spine and smiled when she sighed. I couldn’t believe this was happening. Ash loved me. She was giving us a chance.
One hour ago, I’d been nursing the most painful broken heart of my life. I’d been ready to drown my sorrows in alcohol and never see this woman again.
Now she was mine, and it was almost like I could feel my heart sewing itself back together.
I smiled. “So, now that we’ve established that we’re crazy about each other does the job offer still stand?”
She laughed. “Yes. But you’d have to work in the common area with Lena, or else we wouldn’t get anything done.”
“Why?” I grinned. “Because we’d be fucking on your desk five times a day?”
Ash lifted her head to smile at me. “Yup.”
I brushed her hair back. “That was the first thing that crossed my mind when I walked into your office four months ago.”
“Same.”
I grinned at her and lifted my head to kiss her. “If I took the job, I’d work in Lena’s space, not yours. Would you still be my boss?”
Ash rolled her gorgeous eyes. “Technically, yes.”
I laughed. “Okay, boss.”
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