by Beth Rinyu
I creased my eyebrows in confusion. “What do you mean?”
She shook her head and let out a light laugh. “Okay, this is gonna sound incredibly stupid, childish….take your pick. But, to me, you’ve always been my Cam. The cute boy with the big, brown eyes and adorable little dimples. You went from being my playmate to the boy I secretly crushed on to my big brother and now one of the best friends I could ever ask for….and I guess it kind of bothers me when I see all of these strangers drooling all over you. You were my Cam first….and I don’t ever want them to take that away.”
“No one will ever take that away. I’ll always be your Cam.”
She pulled in her bottom lip and her eyes began to tear. Her head moved closer to mine until her lips were right up to my ear. “Good, because I couldn’t bear to ever lose that Cam to anyone else.” She pressed her forehead into mine and I had to catch my breath. Our lips were so close to touching and even though I knew it was wrong, I wanted it to happen. “Hey, do you want to go see the tree at Rockefeller Center?” she blurted out, snapping us both back to reality.
“Are you sure you’re up for that? You’ve done a lot today.”
“I’m more than up for it.” She smiled, making it impossible for me to say no.
“Can you let us off at Rockefeller Center?” I shouted up to the driver.
I helped Gia out of the limo once we arrived and held tightly to her hand as we worked through the droves of people who had the same idea as we did. Gia’s eyes lit up as she took in all the lights. “It’s always like I’m seeing it for the first time. It never gets old.” Her smile said so much. It was the same smile I remembered from all those years ago, before she allowed herself to become so stressed out with life. We walked for some time, taking in all the lights, watching the skaters and trying to get as close to the tree as possible. I could tell that Gia was fading fast but she was adamant that she wanted to walk down to Saks Fifth Avenue to look at the window displays. I watched her zone out into her own little world as she got as close to the window as possible, taking in all of the elaborate Christmas decorations. “You cannot tell me that there is anything better than Christmas in New York City,” she smiled, turning around and taking my hand in hers once again.
“Yeah, it’s okay,” I teased, knowing that it would get her going.
“Cam! L.A. may have its palm trees and beautiful weather, but nothing beats this.”
“Well, when you come out to L.A. next month, we’ll just have to see about that.”
Her eyes widened. “You still want me to come?”
“Of course I do. Why wouldn’t I?”
“I don’t know. I just thought that maybe you would’ve gotten sick of me by now.”
“Gia, I could never get sick of you.”
Her smile widened as she looked up at the sky just as the first few snow flurries began to fall. “It’s snowing!” she shrieked with happiness.
“Yup, it is.” I couldn’t help but smile over how very little it took to make her happy.
“Well, you don’t have this in L.A.!” We began to walk once again, taking a few steps before she stopped dead in her tracks, looking up at the lamppost on the corner of the street to get a better view of the falling snow. “So, I was once told that if you kiss during the very first snowfall of the season and make a wish the exact second the first snowflake hits your nose, then that wish will come true.”
“Oh yeah, has it ever worked?”
She shrugged. “Don’t know. I never tried it. Want to be my guinea pig and we’ll see if there’s any truth to it?”
I let out a chuckle and ran my hand along the side of my face. “Sure, why not?”
“Okay. Ready?” She took a deep breath and stood on her tippy toes and we both moved our faces closer together until our lips were skimming each other’s. Her hands moved to the back of my neck and our lips were now fully engaged. I knew it was probably wrong, but I couldn’t resist slipping my tongue into her mouth. When she responded back just as eagerly, I was happy with my choice. Time seemed to stop as we stood on that street corner, surrounded by people, with the snow falling down and our lips locked onto each other’s. She pressed her forehead against mine and smiled when our kiss finally ended. “Did you make a wish, Cam?”
“Yeah, I did.” I whispered, staring down into her beautiful blue eyes, hoping that wish would come true.
Twenty-Three
Gia
Christmas and New Year had come and gone. I’d had my check-up at the doctor and was good to go, like nothing had ever happened just six short weeks ago. But, even though my body had healed, I knew it would be a long time before my heart would.
I stood in line to exit my flight, beyond excited to see California for the first time and even more excited to see Cam. The next two weeks were going to be a big change for me and I was hoping it was the change I needed. We finally began to disembark and my anticipation heightened. I was especially looking forward to the seventy-six-degree temperature that the pilot had announced as we were landing. It would be a welcome change to the bitter cold I’d left back home.
I stepped off the plane and followed the signs to the baggage claim area where Cam had said he’d be waiting for me. The walk seemed like forever, but I finally made it! I scanned the area for him but didn’t see him at first glance, so instead, I turned my attention to the luggage rotating around, hoping that mine would pop out soon. Relief washed over me when my bright pink floral suitcase came rolling down the conveyor belt. I grabbed it as it went by, getting ready to pull out my phone to text Cam, but when I turned around, he was standing right behind me, grinning from ear to ear. I didn’t think he could get any cuter, but as I stared at him standing right beside me in his Nike baseball cap and just a plain old white t-shirt and jeans, he was that adorable boy that I knew from way back when.
“Gia Maynard, President of the Cam Hamilton Fan Club reporting for duty.” I spun around to show him the back of my baseball tee shirt that had his name and number on it.
He laughed as he grabbed my bag and flung it over his shoulder. “Ready?” he asked, reaching for my hand.
“Yup, I am!” My face actually hurt from smiling so hard. He gripped tighter to my hand and we weaved our way through the busy airport with my suitcase rolling behind me.
Within the first five minutes of being there, I was already impressed. First, Cam’s high-end convertible sports car that probably cost more money than I would ever make in a lifetime, second, the beautiful scenery on what Californians considered a highway--a steep cliff on one side and a beautiful mass of blue ocean on the other with a stretch of roadway in between which was not my definition of a highway but it certainly was beautiful. The warm breeze blew through my hair when Cam stepped on the gas, flying past the cars in the other lane and leaving them in the dust.
“Why, Mr. Hamilton, are you trying to impress me with your driving skills? I’m already president of the fan club remember?” I shouted over the wind and the radio. His deep dimple etched into the side of his razor stubble cheek and I couldn’t peel my eyes away from just how absolutely adorable he was.
“Umm…you’re joking, right?” I asked when we pulled into the driveway of the multi-level beach house with balconies everywhere and windows galore. When he hit the button on his visor and the garage door opened, I knew that this oceanfront gem was his house. I was still a little stunned when he turned off the car. I thought houses like this only existed in movies and in those house hunter shows.
“Are you gonna sit in the car or are you gonna come in?” He asked, as he got my suitcase from the trunk.
“I’m sorry – I’m just still a little shocked.” I looked over at the showroom condition classic Mustang parked next to me. “Do you have a roommate?” I asked.
“No. Why?”
“Well, whose Mustang is that?”
“Mine,” He said nonchalantly, motioning for me to follow him into the house.
His? “Well, don’t you already have
a car? Why do you need two?”
He shook his head and laughed. “Gia, will you just come inside?”
As if the outside wasn’t enough to take my breath away the inside certainly was. The ultra-modern kitchen, the living room with floor-to-ceiling windows offering an unrestricted view of the ocean and the further up we went, the better it got…if that was even possible. He grabbed my bag and suitcase and placed them in one of the bedrooms before giving me a tour of the upstairs area. He had a room that he used for a state of the art gym, a room that was his office and two guest bedrooms. Then there was his bedroom. My jaw dropped as I imagined myself waking up to the exquisite view just outside his floor to ceiling windows that led out to a veranda overlooking the beach. I stepped outside and squinted into the bright sunlight. “Okay, now show me your real house.” He let out a loud laugh. “Seriously Cam, I don’t even know what to say. I thought houses like this only existed in movies.”
“Ahh….are you saying that this is better than Christmas in New York?” he teased.
“Watch it! I’m an East Coast gal, but this is just –” I looked out at the view again. “Gorgeous.”
“Let me show you to your room.” He took my hand and led me back inside through his bedroom and down the hall, stopping at the room he’d placed my bags in. He opened the door and the first thing that caught my eye was the oversized vase of sunflowers on the dresser. They had always been my favorite flower and Cam knew it. I bit my lip, trying to hold back the tears. I didn’t want to blur my vision and miss any other details of this room. When I looked outside the window, I was happy to see the same ocean view that Cam had from his room. The room was done up in shades of yellow and pale blue. When I stepped in further, I noticed the adjoining private bathroom that was about as big as the living room in my apartment and was all done up in elaborate tile. And then I saw it…. the oversized painting hanging over the bed of the beautiful ballerina sitting down lacing up her ballet slippers. It was so intricately done that I knew it probably cost just as much as everything else in this house. I couldn’t take my eyes from it.
“Do you like it?”
I finally broke my gaze and turned my tear-filled eyes back to Cam. Unable to come up with words, I nodded and threw my arms around him. “Cam, you didn’t have to do this.”
“I know, but I want you to come back and visit again, and this will be your room when you do. So I figured it may as well be decorated the way you like.”
“I just – I just –” He laughed over my lack of words. “Just thank you so much.” I hugged him tighter.
I felt like I had won the lottery and was staying at a five star hotel. It was hard to imagine that this was Cam’s house. Cam, who I had known my entire life, was able to afford all this. I knew he was living his dream, but to actually see all of the rewards that came along with that dream was so surreal. He didn’t flaunt his wealth like most normal people in his position would. He was still the same old Cam from back in the day which only added to the shock of it all.
“So, what do you want to do?” he asked.
“Umm, I don’t care. I don’t want to interrupt your schedule. I’d be content with just staring out this window at the view for the next two weeks.”
“I only have a few things that I need to do while you’re here and they won’t take up much time.”
“Do whatever you need to and just pretend I’m not even here. I’m sure I can find something to do in this little old house.” I joked.
“Well, I did want to see if you wanted to come to this benefit dinner with me tomorrow night, if you can tear yourself away from the view.”
“Tomorrow night? As in twenty-four hours from now?”
“Umm yeah….give or take a few hours.” He grinned.
“But…”
“But what?”
“Well, what does one wear to this benefit?”
“It’s a black tie event.”
I let out a deep sigh. “I wish I’d known, I would have packed the proper attire for it.”
He waved his hand in a dismissing manner. “Gia, they do have stores that sell the proper attire here, you know?”
I mentally started going over the amount of spending money I had with me in my head. I knew that a halfway decent dress and shoes would cost me at least two hundred dollars and that would be with my best bargain shopping but Cam wanted me to go and I didn’t care how much it cost, I was going to do this for him after everything he had done for me.
“Okay, sounds good. Is there a mall around here or somewhere that I can get a dress?”
“I have meetings in the morning, so I’ll have Lenny pick you up and take you to the store while I’m gone.”
“And who the heck is Lenny?”
“I use him as a driver from time to time. He’s an awesome guy who I trust a hundred percent. I promise you’ll be in good hands.”
I shrugged my shoulders. “Okay, if you say so.”
“Are you hungry?” he asked. Considering I hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast and it was already six o’clock, which was really nine o’clock my time, I was pretty much starving.
“Famished.”
“Well, did you want to go out or eat in?”
“Would I be totally lame if I said stay in? I’m pretty beat.”
“Not at all, I have to be up pretty early tomorrow, so that works for me.”
“Cool.” I smiled.
His smile back did something to me that I had never felt before in my life. It wasn’t the adorable one that I was so used to from him, instead it was sexy, smoldering, and suddenly making me want him in a way that I never had before. God, I really need some sleep!
***
I stretched my recharged body after a wonderful night of sleep. I was still on New York time and not surprised to find that it was only a little after 5 a.m. After washing my face and brushing my teeth, I quietly headed downstairs not wanting to wake Cam. My nasal passages followed the scent of freshly brewed coffee into the kitchen.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” I said taken a little by surprised at the short, older-looking Spanish woman who was taking something from the oven.
“Gia!,” she exclaimed as if she were a long lost friend.
“Hey,” I played along, not wanting to make her feel awkward over her warm welcome.
“I’m Lucy, Cam’s cleaning lady and cook when he needs me. Sit down and let me get you some coffee.”
“Oh, I can get –” but it was too late, she was already pouring it into the cup. I sat down at the breakfast bar and watched as she poured in just the right amount of cream and four sugars, just how I liked it. “Wow, that’s pretty amazing, you know just how I like my coffee,” I said as she placed it in front of me.
“I made sure I asked Cam. You know that’s the most important thing to know about a person. My mother used to say that you should never be with a man who doesn’t know how you like your coffee.”
I smiled at that thought. Jasper never remembered how I took my coffee.
“That’s good advice,” I said, taking my first sip.
“I figured you’d be up early with the time difference, so that’s why I started breakfast so soon. My French toast bake should be done any second now.” She looked down at her watch. “Cam should be back shortly, hopefully he has enough time for breakfast before he has to head out.”
“Oh, he’s not still asleep?” I asked.
She waved her hand in disgust. “I don’t think that boy ever sleeps. He’s out for a run.”
I pushed my hair behind my ear and took another sip of my coffee, perfectly comfortable with being left alone with Lucy, who reminded me a lot of my grandmother.
“So, do you live around here?” I asked.
“About twenty minutes away, in a much more modest neighborhood.” She smiled, opening the oven door and allowing the heavenly aroma of cinnamon to fill the air. “Perfect!” she exclaimed as she took the French toast out of the oven. “I cannot tell you how nice it is to finally m
eet you. I feel like I know you from how much Cam talks about you and I see your pretty face three times a week while I’m dusting.” I creased my eyebrows in confusion. “Over there on the mantle, that adorable picture of you and Cam.” She smiled.
I got up and walked into the living room, taking the picture that was front and center on the mantle to get a closer look. It was taken four years ago on my twenty-first birthday, right before Carrie, Jason, Cam and I got totally wasted celebrating. I smiled just thinking back to that night as I examined the photo closer. Cam looked exactly the same, still the same little cutie pie that he was in that picture. “That was a great night,” I murmured.
“Yeah, it was.”
I jumped at the sound of Cam’s voice coming up behind me. “Oh my god, you scared me!” I held my hand over my heart and took a deep breath, placing the photograph right where I had found it on the mantle. When I turned around to look at him, all I could think was how the hell could he even make pit stains look sexy? Sexy, there I went again, using that word in the same sentence as Cam. I tried to use my exhaustion as an excuse for it last night but I was fully rested now. Sure I’d give him a second look when I saw him shirtless. I wouldn’t be normal if I didn’t. He had the perfect body and any female in their right mind would be stupid not to sneak a peek, but to feel like I wanted to jump his bones as he stood next to me with sweat dripping off him and desperately needing a shower, was crossing the line. Cam was my cutie patootie, not the sex symbol that other women saw him as. Okay, maybe it was my hormones that were a little out of whack, after all, I had just gotten over my period for the first time since I had lost the baby. Yeah, that’s what it was. Maybe if I kept telling myself that then I could will myself to believe it. I would get right on that just as soon as I got done staring at his cute little butt as he ran up the stairs to shower.
***
Cam was right, Lenny was a pretty awesome guy. If I had to guess, I’d say he was in his late sixties or early seventies. He loved to tell stories of his younger days and the best part of all was his Brooklyn accent, it made me feel like I was at home. We talked the entire ride and when I finally looked up and saw the sign Rodeo Drive, I knew we must have made a wrong turn. “Oh, umm…I think we’re in the wrong neighborhood.”