“But it really wasn’t your fault,” she said, frowning over at him, some of her shame leaking into her voice. “I mean, you did try to tell me to give Adrien a wide berth. I was the idiot that didn’t listen. You can’t blame yourself for that.”
She looked at the side of his face in the light from the dashboard. His jaw clenched and a serious expression shone on his face. He looked really bothered…
“My brother being the way he is, though,” he murmured after a while. “I partially blame myself for not noticing there was something not quite right about him even before I left for the military. It wasn’t until after I left and started getting correspondence from my family that I knew. When my parents passed away, a big part of the reason why I came back was his being unstable. I didn’t trust him to look after our sister. He wasn’t very happy about me being back. But as the elder brother in the family, it is my duty to look after them and take responsibility for their actions outside of the family home.”
Ah, Camila thought in realization. He really was this kind of person. Someone who was reliable and took his responsibility seriously, even though she didn’t completely agree with his words. Adrien and he were twins. Even if he was older, it couldn’t be by that long. Adrien should have taken responsibility for his own actions, not allowed his brother to take the fall for it and have to try to fix it.
…wait a minute.
Camila’s eyes widened, as she realized something incredibly important. She recalled reading all those negative comments about Samuel online, all the misdeeds he’d supposedly done. About how he was a playboy and womanizer. She had made the assumption that some of it had been him, and some of it Adrien, but had it? Was it possible that all of it had been Adrien?
She cringed as she realized, None of it had ever been Samuel, it was all Adrien. Every horrible thing she’d read had been Adrien. I feel so foolish!
“Can you please let me know where to drop you off?” he asked. “At your apartment, maybe close by? Or I could drop you off somewhere and you could take a taxi back, if it will make you feel more comfortable.”
Camila could feel her heart warm at his words. After the way she had treated him, when he tried to help her out, he was being too considerate of her.
“My home will be fine,” she murmured, giving him her address. When she looked up, she realized he was already driving down the streets of Manhattan. “Could you tell me more about your brother?”
For a while, she didn’t think he would. But after a moment, he sighed, then began to speak.
“I can't tell you when my brother turned like this, or if he’s always been like this. It’s not like I’m unaware of the things he does, either, it’s just hard to counter them. And he always uses my name too, so if there are consequences to be had, I’m the one to shoulder them.”
That was so unfair.
“Couldn’t you just explain it was your twin brother?” she asked.
“Not really. You would be surprised how few people even know I have a twin. My parents tried to keep him out of the limelight as well, as much as they could. He was a troubled child. He did things normal children don’t do. He only got worse in his teen years. However, he’d learned to use my identity while I was away in the military. People just assumed he was me and he allowed it.
“He and I may look alike, but our personality and mannerisms are quite different. People who don’t know us well are easily persuaded that we are the same person. They simply ignore it when he shows any quirks I don’t have, because he’s so good at charming people and getting them to like him. They just explain it away as an eccentricity, even when he behaves badly.
“For years, I have had women go to my lawyers to complain, or worse, tried to tell the information to the media. Tabloid stories pay decent money if they say that I got them pregnant, or that I was dating them and then cheated. The worst ones are the borderline abuse cases that have been thrown at me, even though I personally did nothing wrong. If I didn’t have such a good team working for me, my reputation would have been wrecked beyond repair a long time ago. Then who knows what would have happened to me and my family.”
“Can no one really tell you two apart?” she asked, astonished. Admittedly, it wasn’t easy, but as long as you paid attention, it wasn’t hard, either.
Samuel just sighed. “As you may have noticed, I’m not quite as outgoing as my brother,” he admitted. “It’s why it’s so easy for him to do this.”
Things were becoming a lot clearer in Camila’s mind. He hadn't outright said it, but she realized he was introverted. Or else, for someone with his status, there were plenty of people for him to mingle with. He probably was ill at ease around people he didn’t know well, and coupled with his attitude of taking responsibility for his brother, it was probably why he never spoke up for himself amidst the accusations.
Also, the man had a damn good reason to hate his own twin brother.
They kept silent, both of them lost in their thoughts, for the remainder of the drive. When they stopped, it took Camila a moment to realize she was home, and turned to Samuel. As if waiting for her cue, he stepped out of the vehicle, and she quickly followed.
He rounded the car and came to stand in front of her.
“Have a nice evening, Miss Blake,” he said to her.
Camila winced, remembering when she went back to speaking formally to him out of annoyance. Regret didn’t even come close to what she was feeling right then.
“Just Camila is fine,” she said, stepping closer.
He looked at her curiously, but didn’t stop her advance. The height difference, even with her in heels, was still there, but she could at least reach his cheek, and gave him a kiss there.
“Thank you,” she added in a whisper.
She didn’t immediately step back, looking up at him, hoping he could see the gratitude and the remorse in her gaze. Samuel’s eyes were a little wide, probably in surprise from the kiss, but as their gazes held, she noticed a slight change, not that she could decipher it.
Camila did notice when he raised his hand, and she was a bit surprised when he patted the top of her head, tenderly touching her hair. Then his hand slid down her face, and his knuckle traced its way down her cheek. Her eyes widened at the unexpected touch.
Then, she saw it. One corner of his lip twitched upward. She could barely call it a smile, but the small movement immediately relaxed his whole face, making his expression look gentler. It stuck with her, even after he got in his car and drove away, she stood still for a moment, thinking about that look.
Finally, she turned toward the building and went inside.
Chapter Ten
Camila went to sleep early that night, after having dinner with her mother. As they’d eaten, her mom seemed to realize something was wrong with her, so she dialed back on the sarcasm about Camila’s dating life. They’d spent a mostly quiet time through dinner before she went to her room, changed, and fell into bed.
She did snort to herself, thinking how her mom would be saying I told you so after she explained what happened with Adrien. She didn’t plan on mentioning it, though, because she didn’t want to worry her mom, either.
Ducking under her covers and curling up on her side, Camila closed her eyes to sleep.
She dreamt. And when she woke up the next morning, it was to her body twisting underneath her sheets as she panted, feeling sweat on her skin and desire riding her body. She throbbed between her legs, and her nipples were hard nibs that brushed against her top with every movement she made. When she realized that it was all just a dream, she groaned, feeling so ready to come, but also a bit ashamed of herself.
After all, she had still been seeing Adrien until just yesterday, and thinking of the two of them sleeping together. Yet, she’d had another erotic dream, and the star in it was once again Samuel Kane.
Shit.
Camila rolled onto her side and closed her eyes, swallowing. She was so close already, she felt like just a simple touch between her
thighs would be enough to make her body shudder out an orgasm. She didn’t think it would be right, though, because Samuel would be the one in her mind. Not that she would rather think of Adrien, but she hadn't treated Samuel right ever since she met his brother, so she couldn’t bring herself to think of him that way without feeling guilty.
Instead, after she calmed down a bit, she got out of her bed. It was morning already, at least, so she just hurried to the bathroom to have a shower, worried her mom would see her blushing face, a total contrast to the dejected look she’d had last night.
After her shower, her body calmed down. This time, however, she was unable to get Samuel out of her mind.
The day went on. She had work, so she didn’t leave the apartment, and with what happened before with Adrien, she wasn’t going to be leaving for a while. She tried to get back to work, only for her mind to keep bringing up thoughts of last night. She would picture Samuel as he touched her hair and her face so tenderly, then think about how gently he made love to her in her dream, and her face would flush as her body grew warm.
It took a while for her to be able to push such thoughts from her mind. It didn’t last, though.
Out of nowhere, a knock came on her door, startling her.
“Camila? Don’t just hole yourself up in there! It’s lunch already, so come out and eat.”
What?
Camila checked the time on her phone, and was startled again to see how late it already was. Then, she looked dejectedly at her computer screen and the open blank document. She did have some handwritten notes in front of her to look through so it wasn’t as if she’d done absolutely nothing, but she’d practically wasted her whole morning.
With a sigh, she got up, calling back, “I’m coming!”
Just before she left, her phone vibrated where she’d left it on the counter. No sound, because she had in on silent, and if she’d been out of the room, she might have even missed it. The moment she saw the screen, though, she realized this wasn’t an entirely bad thing.
“Bastard,” she muttered to herself.
What the hell was Jordan calling her for? With this kind of timing, too, just when she was feeling out of sorts. No way would she answer his call with the mood she was in, she didn’t doubt that he would only make her feel more depressed. She didn’t care about him, either, so it was easy to turn away and ignore the phone.
As much as she wanted to ignore Jordan, thoughts of how things had ended entered her head, and she couldn’t help thinking back over that dreadful day.
She was on her way to confront Jordan over what the psychologist she’d interviewed had told her. She was so focused on her thoughts, that she hadn’t been watching where she was going and tripped in the street. Looking up at the squealing tires of a vehicle, she realized she had nearly been run over by one of the numerous limos that drove through the streets of Manhattan.
She ignored the driver’s offer of help, as he shouted at her through the window, her mind too focused on what she was about to do. She moved to the sidewalk in front of Jordan’s and walked over to the steps. However, before she could climb them, writhing shadows in the living room caught her attention. She moved closer to the window, straining on her tiptoe to see through the gap in the curtains. Camila let out a little whine of denial when she saw Jordan’s skinny ass pounding into someone else. Someone who wasn’t her, but screamed like a banshee and seemed to think she was in a porn movie from the way she carried on.
“Oh, yeah, Jordan. Give me more of your big dick. It feels so good. Ohhhh, I’m coming.”
Camila backed away, no longer able to quell the nausea. She turned and heaved on the sidewalk in front of his apartment before standing up and running away without looking back.
It had not been a fun time, and she hated being reminded of it when Jordan called her.
That afternoon, she and her mom sat down to an uneventful lunch, and then she went back to her room to work. She didn’t turn her phone off, though she really wanted to, in case Jordan tried to call her again. Luckily, he didn’t.
Jordan wasn’t the only one to call her, either. It wasn’t until the next day when he tried, but when Camila saw his name on her screen, she was even more dismissive of him than Jordan. After the whole fiasco at his place, and learning all the trouble Adrien had brought to his brother, she couldn’t help but feel angry. It was enough to make her turn off her phone, even though she risked missing important calls for work.
Another couple days passed, and she finished her job. This time thankfully, her boss didn’t need her to go all the way to the office to pick it up.
“I’m just not feeling well, would it be alright if I emailed it in?” she begged off.
“Aw, I’m sorry Cami, yeah sure, it’s fine if you want to send it via email. I’ve got another job for you though, so I’ll send someone over with the documents, okay?” he said.
"Yeah, that would be fine,” she commented before hanging up. It was what she wanted, but she knew it was impossible for her to just stay at home without ever leaving.
She was a little weary though, thinking of what happened with Adrien the last time she left her apartment. Thinking about it now, she couldn’t deny that the actions had been creepy and downright stalkerish. It wasn’t as if she hadn't thought it was creepy at the time, but now she wondered how she could have gone back to him as if it was normal from just those few sentences.
Camila shuddered. Adrien, much like Jordan, was a manipulator. Only, he was on a much higher level than her pathetic ex was on.
Still, she couldn’t let him turn her into an agoraphobic. Thinking about his stalking made her leery as she left her house to stock up the kitchen once again. It wasn’t that her mom wouldn’t do it if she asked, but she was a bit ashamed. Not to mention it felt like running away, and that just wasn’t in her personality.
It’s only a block away, she reassured herself several times. I can run all the way back if I have to.
In the end, all her caution seemed misplaced. No matter how much she looked around, she didn’t see Adrien anywhere, and she couldn’t help breathing out a sigh of relief, feeling a bit dazed.
Is it really over now? she thought. Finally, he won’t be coming after me again?
Camila couldn’t describe how happy that thought made her. If she could just be free of him, she wasn’t going to forgive, but she could at least forget the shit that happened with him. She didn’t actually want all that shit in her thoughts, after all. It could only give her a bad taste in her mouth.
Thinking that things were over between them now, also made her think about Samuel more. Since that time, she had dreamed of Samuel again. When she made it back home with the groceries, she knew she wouldn’t be able to focus on work. She put everything away in the kitchen, then moved to her room and locked herself in.
“Ugh,” she groaned to herself after a long time of just sitting at her desk and staring at her computer. She lay down on the desktop with her arms folded, arguing with herself. “I couldn’t possibly…could I?”
Camila wanted to see him again, talk to him. It was the only thing in her mind, but she’d held herself back, because within that time, he hadn't tried to contact her again, and after the way she’d treated him before, she didn’t feel it was right to try things with him again. But…what if he didn’t see it that way, and she actually had a chance?
It didn’t take long to resolve her mind once she started thinking of it. Her dreams were enough indication that she felt something for him. If he wasn’t interested, then, wouldn’t it be better to know early?
Her heart still beat nervously in her chest as she found his number in her contacts list, and after some hesitation, made the call, holding her breath as she waited.
Samuel picked the call up on the first ring. She heard the click and startled, almost thinking the call had cut off, when he spoke.
“Hello?”
Camila’s breath hitched in surprise, so she was a bit slow to speak.
> “Um, Samuel? It’s me, Camila.” As soon as she said it, she felt her face warm up. Stupid, of course he’d already know that. He had saved her number in his phone after all.
“Camila,” he said, and even through the phone, she could tell his tone had changed and become a lot gentler. “How are you? Can I do something for you?”
“I’m absolutely fine,” she said, taking in a deep breath. Just…do it. Her mind was already made up, so why hesitate? She wouldn’t back off after working up the nerve to call him after this long. “I was wondering if you would like to meet me for dinner sometime.”
“Oh?”
She chewed on her lip. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking from just the one word.
“Not any place fancy,” she admitted. “It’s this hole in the wall restaurant in my old Brooklyn neighborhood, not too far away from where you dropped me. Would…that be okay?”
Her voice was small as she asked. She picked this restaurant because it was on her home turf, and she would feel comfortable. She could also afford the food there. She didn’t think Samuel would go for it, though…
“I would love to,” Samuel agreed, sounding happier than she could have ever imagined.
Camila was surprised, but pleasantly so. As they chatted over the details of the date, she wondered how and why she had dismissed him in the first place. It had been the worst mistake of her life.
At least he was giving her a chance to fix it.
Chapter Eleven
I have a date with Samuel.
This thought was enough to lift Camila’s spirits up, bringing her out of the funk she’d thrown herself into for the past several days. Suddenly feeling full of energy and without any other way to use it up, she turned to work. She wasn’t any more effective than she was before, since she kept humming to herself and derailing her thoughts as she thought about Samuel, but at least she managed to get something done before her mom bothered her to come out for dinner.
Buried Obsession: Book 1 of the Obsession Trilogy Page 9