Again, Alabama

by Susan Sands

  “Pull yourself together, or they’ll eat you alive,” Cammie jumped a mile at being caught blubbering by her sister, Jo. She leaned into her sisters comforting embrace for a quick second, embarrassed, but glad it hadn’t been Emma who’d discovered her in a weakened condition. She sniffed and straightened her shoulders.

  “Nothing like the pecking order we’ve got going on around here,” Cammie acknowledged.

  “Just a little good-natured sibling rivalry—or survival of the fittest, however you choose to look at it. It’s football day, honey. No crying allowed on football day,” Jo winked, and pulled her forward into the crowed room. The sea of red and white was quite shocking—roll tide.

  As she entered the room, they shouted her name in unison, “Cammie!”

  “I see you’re all sadly in need of pigs in a blanket and a few other items,” Cammie eyed the coffee table boasting a bag of cheese curls, chips and salsa, and a bowl of pretzels.

  Junior blew her a kiss, “Woo-hoo! Cammie’s makin’ snacks, everybody!” A loud chorus of cheers and whistles followed her as she made for the kitchen.

  “Animals,” she muttered with a smile. There were worse things than making finger food for extremely appreciative people, she supposed.

  She hummed softly and rolled out pastry dough, planning to cut out squares for wrappers. Cammie had purchased the cocktail sausages at Jenna’s grocery on a whim. This bunch could eat their weight in the things.

  As she slid a huge pan into the oven, the kitchen door swung open. Lucy buzzed in with Samantha in tow. Cammie said hello to Samantha, but the little girl quickly averted her eyes.

  “Hi, Aunt Cammie! Sam just got here. We’re looking for more cheese puffs. Do you know where they are?”

  “Uh—yes, honey, they’re in the pantry next to the pretzels, I believe.” Cammie retrieved her wits and wondered what was up with the little girl.

  “Hello, Samantha, welcome to football day.” Cammie smiled broadly, trying to get a feel for what was happening here.

  There was obviously something eating at Sam, something unique to Cammie for her to behave so oddly. She seemed to be a sweet-natured child.

  “Thank you.” She kept her head down, muttered her reply, and refused to make eye contact when confronted with kindness.

  Lucy, oblivious to the tension, said, “C’mon Sam, lets go sit on the porch and work on our lanyards.” Sam silently followed, not lifting her eyes again.

  Then, it occurred to Cammie, was Grey here too? As the thought was formulating, she heard the good-natured ribbing. He’d attended rival school, Auburn. Of course any opponent who played Alabama was who an Auburn fan rooted for on game day. She supposed he would be sporting navy and bright orange, a hideous combination, with a fighting Tiger across his chest today instead of his own alma mater. That was always the case on game day, whether you had plans for the viewing or not.

  She wouldn’t go out of her way to find out though. Her best bet was to stay in right where she was. She cranked up her favorite country music CD and began caterwauling right along with Miranda.

  She’d just turned the faucet on at the sink to rinse out the prep bowl when she was startled out of her chorus by a deep voice. “Hey, Cammie, did you see where Sam went? She left her bag in the truck.”

  He stood there in the kitchen wearing faded jeans, an old Auburn t-shirt, and holding a bright pink Hello Kitty tote. He was a daddy. Something shifted. He should have been her little girl’s daddy. It hurt; it shouldn’t have, but by God, it did.

  Before she could answer, Emma came to the rescue the way only Emma would. She invited Grey to watch the game after insisting it was no trouble and of course he should.

  Grey accepted the offer to stay because he’d just been bullied by a woman in tight jeans and high heels. Cammie shot her sister a glare after pointing him to the backyard where the two girls were giggling under the old oak at the picnic table working on their crafts. Emma winked innocently and headed back to join the rest of the family.

  Avoiding Grey’s eyes as he passed her and stepped out back required balling her fists at her sides and concentrating hard on the dark stained, old boards where she stood. She could swear she smelled him—in a manly, basic, rip-off-his-clothes way. Oh, God, that couldn’t be good, for so many reasons.

  The timer began beeping incessantly, which required her full attention. The heavenly scent of what surely must be among the unhealthiest snacks on the planet permeated the room as she juggled the large pan. At least she wasn’t inhaling Grey anymore. What was up with her?

  Cammie slid the large oven mitts on and concentrated on balancing the heavy tray as she carefully eased it from the hot oven.

  “Need some help?”

  She was so startled by the warm breath near her ear she nearly sent pigs and their blankets flying through the air. “Grey! Don’t you know never to sneak up on a person taking something hot out of the oven?” Cammie slammed the pan down, accentuating her agitation at his stealthy arrival.

  “Sorry, didn’t mean to endanger you or the snacks. The music is a little loud. I just wanted to apologize for accepting your sister’s invitation without asking you first. I hope it’s alright that Sam is here with Lucy. I’d only meant to drop her off. But she forgot her backpack in the truck.”

  Cammie leaned toward the kitchen CD player and turned it down to a background volume.

  “It’s fine.” Cammie still wore the huge potholder on the arm with which she was gesturing.

  She turned and began filling a tray with the piggy rolls and placed her back to him, trying to ignore how his presence in a room caused such a warming physical sensation in her lady parts. She’d been near men in kitchens countless times over the years and hadn’t had the slightest reaction, certainly not the kind she was experiencing now.

  He’d waited until she’d placed the tray on the counter and moved in closer again, his eyes seeking hers. “Cammie, when I saw your mom’s car right after the accident and the blood—” He placed a hand gently on her shoulder and slid it downward in a comforting gesture.

  At least, she assumed it was meant to be comforting. Honestly, she wanted nothing more than to lean into him at that moment, but that would be so wrong and stupid, wouldn’t it?

  She returned his gaze and smiled softly. “Thanks. I appreciate your bringing me home from the hospital and carrying me around when I was, uh, loopy on painkillers. Sorry if I said anything inappropriate.”

  Maybe she was just feeling fragile from her accident, and if she were honest, from the past month or so of being beaten half to death by life. She’d like to think this weakness toward Grey was an abnormal response.

  “Are you kidding? You on the pain meds almost made it seem like old times.” He cocked his head sideways and grinned.

  Cammie flushed. After all, a girl could only take so much. She resisted the urge to fan her inflamed cheeks.

  The roar of the family brought her back to the moment, and she realized how exhausted and sore her body felt just now. The accident and her confused emotions were taking a toll, not to mention the long day she’d had catering and entertaining. She wouldn’t take the pain meds for obvious reasons, but a couple over-the-counter pain relievers wouldn’t hurt. Hopefully, she would sleep, despite the upset and guilt currently rampaging through her.

  *

  Cammie had just finished clearing up any remaining evidence of yesterday’s parties. Most had been handled last night, but she’d been straightening furniture and returning things back to their normal state. Grey’d left her a message saying he was using today to head to a neighboring town to pick up supplies and take Samantha to an orthodontic appointment. She could admit a tiny bit of the excitement and anticipation had gone out of her day at finding this out.

  “You know what you need once Mom gets home from the hospital, dear sister?” Jo Jo startled her.

  Cammie stood up from removing an errant party favor that had fallen behind the potted plant in the foyer. “What? And d
on’t sneak up on me like that.”

  “A girls’ night out.”

  Cammie stared blankly at her sister. “Out to do what?”

  “Are you ninety years old—have you forgotten what it’s like to go out with friends and tear up the town?”

  This whole idea seemed pointless. “I don’t tear up towns—wouldn’t know how to, actually,” Cammie replied primly.

  “Oh, sweetheart, you are in desperate need of a little innocent fun.” Jo patted Cammie’s hand as if she were two years old—or ninety. “After the month you’ve had, you need to cut loose.”

  Cammie still didn’t see the value of going out and getting crazy for no good reason, but if her sister or sisters decided on a plan, then Cammie most likely wouldn’t have a lot of say in the matter. “I’ll think about it.” There, that would put this nutty idea off a little longer.

  “Good idea. Don’t worry about a thing. I’ll get together with the sisters and we’ll plan everything. You’ll have a blast, trust me.” Jo’s smile wasn’t comforting in the least. In fact, Cammie knew that smile. If anything, it meant trouble. And Jo was the normal one.

  “Oh, dear.” And she meant that.

  Jo Jo headed off to answer phones and left Cammie to her tidying up.

  Cammie’s cell vibrated inside her pocket. “Hello?”

  “Hi there.” It was Jason.

  “Hey, you. What’s up?”

  “Just checking in on your mom’s condition. And yours.” Such a great guy.

  “She’s better, thanks. I’m heading over later this evening after I finish cleaning up around here.”

  “So, how are you?” he asked.

  “I’m okay. Better now that I’ve gotten a couple events under my belt and everybody helped out. Stinks that Auburn beat Alabama last night though. I thought my family was going to rip the TV out of the wall.”

  “Big fans, huh?”

  “You’ve no idea.” She smiled.

  Still, she didn’t mention Grey. What would she say? By the way, my old boyfriend, the one that I would’ve married was here, and I got all hot and bothered but nothing actually happened.

  *

  Cammie headed out to the hospital. She’d received a call that her mother was running a slight temperature and was being monitored for a possible infection. Nothing to worry about yet.

  She passed a couple of old high school friends in the hospital parking lot, said a quick hello, and dodged uncomfortable questions. She assured them she was all right from the deer incident and shared a phony laugh over the Jessica Greene parody, then headed upstairs to see her mother.

  A middle-aged man in a lab coat, who Cammie recognized as Mom’s doctor was standing next to her mother’s hospital bed making notes in her chart when she walked in.

  Cammie’s heart plummeted. “Is everything okay?” She asked.

  Mom appeared to be resting comfortably.

  “Hi, Ms. Laroux; yes, your mother’s temperature is starting to come down and we’ve begun a second round of IV antibiotics, just in case. Her incision site isn’t showing any signs of infection, so it’s a precaution in response to the spike in her temp. I don’t foresee any other complications, so rest easy.”

  “Is she alright?” Ben caught her as she left their mother’s room.

  “I just saw the doctor, and he thinks they’ve managed to prevent anything major. Just watching that her temperature doesn’t go back up.” He heaved a sigh.

  They made their way to the waiting area just down the hall from Mom’s room, leaving her to rest. Cammie wore headphones, her favorite classical music cranked up, as she sat in the hospital waiting room chair and entered notes into her PDA calendar for the next couple of months. She was working on ideas for opening her own restaurant, a lunch place and bakery. This was a positive way to momentarily fast forward to the next phase of her life. The one where her mother’s health was good and she was back home in Virginia Beach, elbow-deep in what she loved, with Jason by her side. Blissful peace at the idea of the dismal present temporarily becoming a distant blip on her radar began to permeate her lovely daydream.

  Ben had stopped by after work, and had brought his briefcase with him and worked on whatever lawyers carried in briefcases. Cammie hadn’t bothered to ask, busy as she was trying to Zen her way through the evening. Hospitals made her extra antsy.

  Without warning, or because she had the music so loud she hadn’t noticed until it was too late, the matched pair of dark cowboy boots that sauntered just within her field of vision, startling her out of her happy place. As her eyes traveled up six feet and some change of rugged, muscled, sexy male in jeans, holding a bouquet of yellow roses, she realized her blissful peace had been blown all to—

  “Hello, Cammie,” His eyes held hers a brief but impactful moment before he turned toward her brother, who was making a hard study of his paperwork just then. “Ben.”

  “Oh, hi, Grey.” She greeted him politely and took out one of her earpieces and turned down the volume to a reasonable level, still not quite ready to let the daydream go and face this reality. “I thought you were out getting supplies.”

  “I left early this morning. I stopped back by to check on your mom and bring her these,” Grey said, holding out the lovely bouquet. Ben finally raised his eyes from the document he was scanning then nodded briskly at Grey. “Harrison.”

  Guys were so weird, Cammie thought as she took the flowers, then brought them to her face, inhaling. She adored fresh blooms. Not knowing what else to do with them, she gently laid them on the small end table.

  “My dad said Miz Maureen might have an infection. How’s she doing?”

  “Oh. We hadn’t really let anyone know—” Cammie began.

  “Dad spoke with her earlier,” Grey said.

  “I appreciate your father’s concern. She’s holding her own right now. The incision site from where they installed the hardware in her spine still looks clean. Her fever is down now, so she should be on the mend. The doctor is supposed to be here soon,” Cammie said.

  Grey lowered his tall frame into the chair across from her and was focused intently on her face. Too intently for her piece of mind. His direct gaze gave her the heebie-jeebies.

  While she appreciated his show of character in stopping by, Cammie could have done without the upset to her constitution. His presence during her visit home unsettled both emotionally and hormonally. She was engaged to be married. No, she and Jason hadn’t yet set a date. But they would. Soon.

  He reached out and touched her hand with his long, calloused fingers. Her hand trembled. It was nearly her undoing. She could feel herself weakening physically every time he came near her. Maybe it was time for Jason’s visit to Alabama. It beat the desire to climb up into Grey’s lap and seek comfort and physical gratification if she was honest with herself.

  She abruptly stood, breaking contact before making a completely idiotic scene. She could feel Ben’s curious stare boring into her back. No way would she turn and face him head-on.

  Cammie cautioned a glance up at Grey, also standing now. His expression was guarded, and solemn.

  “Do you want coffee?” She asked, unsure how to proceed.

  “Sure. I’ll walk with you.”

  “How’s Samantha?” she asked.

  “She’s up and down. It’s been a rough year. Make that ten years.” His expression was rueful.

  “It can’t all have been bad.” Careful, girl, or you might sound like you want to hear all about it, and she so didn’t.

  He stopped then, and held her eyes with his weary deep green ones. “No, not all bad, but rarely easy.” His voice held a heavy wealth of deeply packed history that Cammie knew nothing about.

  Ben appeared in the hallway just then, “Hate to interrupt, Cam, but the doctor’s just come from Mom’s room. He wants to meet with us.”

  Cammie immediately turned her attention to Ben. “On my way.”

  Grey fell into step beside Cammie, Ben having gone on ahead. “Can I cal
l you?”

  She sighed. “I’m getting married, Grey, and I’m leaving town soon. I don’t see how it will solve anything.”

  He closed his eyes for a brief second, as if pained by her words. “Do you really love him?”

  Who? She was so entranced by his soft words and wounded expression; it took Cammie a split second to remember. “Jason? Of course I do.” They slowed and stopped a couple rooms down from where Cammie’s mother and Ben were waiting with the doctor. She touched his arm lightly, her gaze soft and steady.

  “I—have to go now. I’ll call you when things settle down with my mother. Maybe we can talk before I leave town; I don’t know, Grey. It might be better to let things alone between us. I really have to go now. Thanks for stopping by. Tell your dad hello.”

  His response was to stare at her with a sad longing in his green eyes. He lifted his hand in a slight wave.

  She walked backward a couple of steps, holding his gaze before turning to head in the direction of her mother’s hospital room. The finals seconds of connection between them burned in her consciousness. But she hadn’t had time to pursue the line of thinking and turned away to handle the priority at hand—her mother’s recovery.

  Cammie came out after speaking with the doctor, relieved now that Mom was out of the woods. She looked around for Grey and cursed herself for doing it. Mom was responding to the treatment and should make a full recovery after a few more days in the hospital with IV antibiotics, rest and continued recovery at home.

  Maybe she would see Grey back at the house, or would call him later. Or maybe not.

  *

  How could he be so stupid to lose his head like that again—now, when Cammie was involved with someone else and lived a million miles away? He’d just stood there staring at her with great big, hound dog eyes right after she’d basically told him to eff-off.

  His luck with women or lack thereof was legend. Too bad he wasn’t the kind who was just out to get laid. With that he’d have no problem. Sex was easy. Love was a real bitch. He’d spent nine years married to a crazy person who’d raved he hadn’t loved her as she’d held him hostage threatening self-harm if he abandoned her. And she’d finally had made good on her threat, whether she’d done it purposely or not, leaving their child motherless and broken. He should have left with Sam when she was a baby before Deb had the opportunity to damage her.