With a heavy sigh, she stared at her toes. “What am I?”
“Beautiful,” he started, “passionate, daring, successful.”
Because she wanted to believe him, Veronica forced herself not to argue. Instead, she asked, “You got all of that in less than four hours of fake-dating me?”
“I got all of that before you woke up this morning.”
The simple statement sent a tear down her cheek. “That might be the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.”
A dark brow arched. “I hope not.” The man was way too literal.
“Are we okay?” she asked. “I swear I never meant to mislead you.”
Cam rose and offered a hand. “We’re okay. I’d better go back in and help with the dishes.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“The rest of the men would say otherwise.”
Veronica rose, and her breasts brushed his chest. Despite the frigid temps, his heat penetrated her sweater. “Are you always so astute, Mr. Rhodes?”
“The way I grew up, I had to be.”
A reference to his childhood? The man was full of surprises.
“That doesn’t sound like the result of a positive experience.”
Taking her hand, he led her back to the French doors. “It wasn’t.”
* * *
The rest of the day passed without incident. Wherever Cam was, Penelope wasn’t far away. She was full of questions, most based on insightful observations well beyond her years. First was the question about his financial situation. Having noticed the difference between Cam’s clothing and that of the Hamilton men, she’d surmised that he must have a lot more money than everyone else.
Cam had informed her that lots of people had more money than he did and left it at that. After lunch, Veronica had opened her presents and taken great delight in each personal offering. A bright-red scarf. A moleskin journal. The new set of headphones she’d been eying for use in the studio. She’d grown more animated with each package, and Cam appreciated witnessing such unbridled joy.
There hadn’t been enough of that in his life, especially of late.
When it was time to leave, Cam took great satisfaction in Penelope’s insistence that she kiss him goodbye. Uncle Ash, who? Even the older kids had paused their video games to bid him and Veronica farewell. They’d loaded her new items into the car as Mr. Hamilton examined the BMW. The delight on the older man’s face when Cam suggested he give the leather driver’s seat a try rivaled that of his daughter’s present-opening enthusiasm.
The drive to her place passed in comfortable silence, primarily due to Cam being the only one awake. His passenger had sighed, hugged the new scarf close, and abruptly passed out. Between the alcohol and lack of sleep the night before, he was surprised she hadn’t drifted off sooner.
“We’re here,” Cam said, waking her with a gentle shake. He’d already carried the other presents to the porch and was prepared to carry Veronica as well, if necessary.
“What?” She glanced around. “Oh my gosh. Did I fall asleep?”
“You’ve had a long twenty-four hours.” He helped her out of the car, and she shook her head to clear away the sleep. “Sorry about that. I fought it for the last hour we were there, and then your German engineering knocked me right out.”
“The Germans tend to do that.”
“That’s another joke,” she mumbled. “You’re becoming a regular comedian.”
“It’s always been my dream.”
Cam took her keys and unlocked the front door. Once inside, she kicked off her shoes and turned his way.
“That is so much better.” The removal of the boots left her several inches shorter. “Has anyone told you you’re really tall?”
He nodded. “Penelope made the observation earlier today.”
“You must seem like a giant to her.”
“She’s four. Everyone is a giant to her.”
They stood close, Veronica staring up at him with a bleary expression and a curve to her lips. He wanted to taste those lips more than he’d wanted anything in a long, long time.
“This is the end of our date,” Cam said.
Veronica sighed. “I guess it is. Thank you again. You made a great fake boyfriend.”
The word fake annoyed him. “I’ll add that to my resume.”
Laughter bubbled out of her. “How do you do that?”
“Do what?”
“Make a joke with a straight face. Do you ever laugh?”
Cam couldn’t remember the last time he’d done so. “Not often.”
She ran a hand down the lapel of his coat. “Then I hope you find a girl someday who changes that.” Face turned up to his, she added, “You’re a really good guy, Cameron Rhodes. A really good guy.”
Another joke sprang to mind, but if this was the last time he saw Veronica Shepherd, he would leave her with more than an empty quip. Holding her chin between his thumb and forefinger, he lowered his mouth to hers, and she instantly lifted onto her toes. He’d intended to be brief but thorough. Veronica had other ideas.
Slender arms snaked around his neck, and she slid her fingers into the hair at his nape. The touch sent a fire down his spine. Cam straightened, lifting her with him until she was off the floor. He crushed her against him as their tongues performed an age-old dance. He wanted more, and the knowledge of that made him put her down. This was supposed to be goodbye.
Why, he couldn’t remember.
Cam ended the kiss and pressed his forehead to hers, breathing heavily. She panted along with him, fingers still in his hair and one denim-clad thigh pressed between his.
“You’re really good at that,” she whispered.
So was she. But she also wanted a family and forever. Cam wasn’t the man for her.
“I should go.” He stepped back and pulled a card from his pocket. “If you ever need anything, call me.” He slid the business card into her hand.
“Wait.” She grabbed his sleeve. “You’re really leaving?”
Yes, he was. With a curt nod, he made his exit, grateful for the cold air that hit his body. Though it did nothing to clear her scent from his mind.
* * *
What. The. Hell?
Who kissed a woman like that, and then walked away? Veronica stood rooted to the spot, fingers pressed to her still-warm lips and eyes locked on the door Cameron Rhodes had just walked through. Was today even real? In literally six hours, she’d woken in a stranger’s bed, taken him home to meet her family, and now been kissed senseless and left alone with the equivalent of a female hard-on.
“Merry-freaking-Christmas to me.”
As she dropped onto the couch, Veronica’s phone dinged. Thinking it was Cam changing his mind and asking to come back, she dove for the phone in her purse. Ash’s face was on the screen. She had to give Cam credit for one thing. She hadn’t thought about her ex in hours.
Taking the call, she said, “Hello?”
“Merry Christmas,” Ash replied. “I hear you took a guy to the family gathering.”
Freaking blabbermouths. “News travels fast.”
“I was tied up this morning and had five missed calls by nine o’clock. All from Marsha and your sisters.”
Of course, he’d missed the calls. Probably enjoying a Christmas morning romp.
“They thought I was dead, but if you know about Cam, then I’m sure you know that already.”
Ash held silent for several seconds. “Why didn’t you tell me you were seeing someone?”
“When was I going to tell you? I haven’t seen you much in the last six weeks.”
“Ronnie, don’t be like that. You know I’ll always make time for you.”
Her ex was the only person who called her Ronnie. When they’d first become friends, he’d joked that she was like one of the boys. Like Ronnie instead of Veronica. When they’d advanced beyond friendship, the history behind the name had become a running joke between them. She didn’t find it quite as endearing anymore.
Testing his statement, she asked, “Are you still coming over tonight?”
“That’s why I’m calling.” Veronica closed her eyes, waiting for the excuse. “Can I come over now?”
Her eyes popped open. “Now?”
“Yeah. I’m in the way over here. Jess is unpacking the stuff we brought back from her parents’ house. They’ve decided to sell, so we grabbed some of her old things. And some of Tommy’s.”
Tommy was Jesse’s older brother and had been Ash’s childhood friend. He’d been killed in a car accident more than a decade ago, and Ash had been the one behind the wheel.
“I need your help with something,” Ash added. Jesse may be his future wife, but Veronica was still his best friend. Maybe she wasn’t going to lose him entirely after all.
“Come on over, buddy. I’m here.”
Another weighted pause. “Are you alone? I don’t want to interrupt anything.”
If only. “No worries. It’s just me.”
“Cool,” he said. “See you in a few.”
Veronica ended the call and dropped the phone onto the sofa beside her. Sitting up to remove her coat, she realized Cam’s card was still in her hand.
Cameron Rhodes
President and CEO
Rhodes Hospitality Group
Below that were an office and a cell number. No design or ornamentation. Nothing frilly for the man who never laughed.
She pitched the card onto the coffee table. “Thank you, Mr. Most-Eligible-Bachelor, but I won’t be needing you again.”
Chapter Six
“New Year’s Eve?” Veronica exclaimed. The man was insane. Who planned a wedding in six days?
“We don’t want to wait any longer,” Ash explained. “We’ve waited twelve years already.”
The high school sweethearts separated by her evil parents only to find each other a dozen years later and get their happily ever after. These two were a flipping Hallmark movie.
“But that’s a week away. Less than a week.”
Ash paced the living room. “I know. But Jesse starts her radio tour the week after, and by the time that’s over she’ll be in rehearsals for the spring tour. It makes sense to do it now before life gets crazy.”
The latest artist signed to Shooting Stars Records, Jesse Gold was set to launch her debut album in a few months. The album Ash was producing. If the label’s track record continued, Ms. Gold would be a bona fide star by the end of the year. The fledgling operation had already sent Dylan Monroe to the top of the charts—plus a best new artist award—and redeemed country music bad boy Chance Colburn with a stellar relaunch of his rehab-interrupted career.
Veronica wanted to help the couple out, despite her own existential crisis about her ex remarrying, but her party planning didn’t stretch beyond her own backyard. And they were not having the wedding there. She had her limits. Plus. . . Winter.
“How big do you want this shindig to be?”
“A lot of our friends are off the road, so I’m guessing a hundred, give or take.”
They’d had only fifty at their wedding, but whatever.
“You’ll need a good-sized venue. On a holiday. A party holiday.”
“It’s a tall order, I know.” Ash dropped onto the couch and leaned his elbows on his knees. “There has to be someplace.” If there was, it would be a miracle find, and Veronica was short on those. “Wait a minute,” he said, snatching Cam’s card off the coffee table. “This guy owns that bar downtown, right? Rhodes Tavern?”
Oh, no.
“We could use the top floor. We’ll even pay extra to make it worth his while. Veronica, you have to hook us up.”
She couldn’t even hook herself up with Cameron Rhodes. Not for real.
“I don’t. . . I mean. . . That’s a big ask. They probably make a ton of money that night. I’m sure there’s another option.”
“Come on, Ronnie. It’s perfect. I did a songwriter’s night there once. There’s a back elevator we can use so no one has to go through the other floors. We can have the service, and then kick off the party right there, with the lights of Broadway behind us.” Pride prevented Veronica from admitting that she and Cam were a hoax. “And I’ll have you as my best woman,” Ash added.
“What? There’s no such thing as a best woman.”
Well, there was, but not in this context.
“You’re my best friend, Ronnie. There’s no one else I’d want standing up there beside me.”
“But I—”
“Now that you have this Cameron guy, all that weirdness from October is out of the way. You wouldn’t have taken him home for Christmas if it wasn’t serious, right? Now we’re both happy.”
That weirdness was what had led her to take a stranger home in the first place. After her annual Halloween bash, Veronica had confessed that seeing Ash with Jesse had really bothered her. They’d agreed that she just had to get past it. Or rather, she’d agreed so that Ash could be happy. She really did want that for him. Like it or not, Jesse did that for him.
“Okay,” she said, backed into a corner of her own making, “I’ll ask him. But I can’t guarantee he’ll say yes.”
She couldn’t even guarantee he’d see her. This was going to take some explaining and that meant more than a phone call.
“You’re the best!” Ash exclaimed as he twirled her in a giant bear hug. “Jesse is going to be so excited.”
“Don’t tell her until I know for sure. You don’t get a bride’s hopes up like that. It’s cruel.” It was highly unlikely that Veronica was going to be the hero at the end of this, so best to mitigate his expectations now. “We don’t have much time, so I’ll ask him tomorrow.”
“What about tonight? The sooner the better, right?”
Cam’s departure an hour ago conveyed loud and clear that he didn’t want to see her again, but she couldn’t tell Ash that. He did say that if she ever needed anything to call. She definitely needed something.
“Right. Sure. I’ll talk to him tonight.”
Ash hugged her again. “Thank you. I know you can make this happen.” So much for mitigating his expectations. “I need to go. Call me the minute you have an answer.”
Veronica followed him to the door. “You’ll be the first to know.”
With a quick peck on the cheek, he hurried out the door, and one thought rolled through her mind. Cam was much better at goodbyes.
* * *
A ninety-minute workout had done little to burn off the rush of kissing Veronica Shepherd. Four hours after leaving her and an hour into reviewing the year-end reports, Cam had yet to get her out of his mind. He regretted leaving the way he had, an emotion he rarely entertained. An apology call would not have been out of order, except he didn’t have her number.
Another ten minutes of staring at the report and he had yet to process a single line. Leaning back in his chair, Cam swiped his hands over his face, then stared at the earrings resting beside his coffee cup. He’d removed them last night, worried the large silver hoops might hurt her ears as she slept. A ridiculous notion, but Cam hadn’t grown up with women around. He was uneducated regarding earring safety.
That Veronica hadn’t asked for them said a lot about her. She wasn’t enamored with material things. That was clear in other ways, like in her home. Not that it wasn’t tastefully decorated, but the items given prominence were small and personal. All those pictures. A painting signed by her sister, Emma. The worn leather furniture and dog-eared magazines.
Until today, Cam believed that he had a type. Ambitious. Calculating. Controlled. That’s why he and Samantha had worked so well together. The temperament and similar backgrounds. Veronica was different. Free. Relaxed. Open. All the things Cam had never been.
The one time during his childhood that he’d allowed himself to relax, Cam had been ripped from his bed, tossed into a pickup, and never had a moment’s peace again. Not until he’d grown tall enough and strong enough to take care of himself did his life been somewhat to
lerable again.
His cell phone buzzed, bringing Cam back to the present. He didn’t recognize the number, but he was expecting a call from a new supplier so he answered.
“Hello?”
“Um, hi,” said the caller.
There was loud music in the background. “Hello?” he said again, not sure if the person could hear him.
“It’s Veronica. I know you don’t want to see me, but—”
His sat up straighter. “Where are you?”
“Outside your club. I tried your apartment building, but I couldn’t remember the number to know who to buzz. Then I came here, but your bouncer says you aren’t working tonight. I wouldn’t have bothered you, but it’s kind of important.”
Cam had told his staff that if anyone asked, he was off the premises. “Hand the phone to Dwayne.”
“Who’s Dwayne?” she asked.
“The bouncer.”
“The big, bald guy is named Dwayne? Shocker.” The music grew louder, and then his employee spoke. “Hello?”
“This is Cam. Bring the owner of this phone to my office.”
“Yes, sir.”
“But put her back on the line first.”
The volume increased again before Veronica said, “Did you just put me on a blacklist or something? I swear that I’m not stalking you.”
Where did she get these ideas? “I told him to bring you to my office.”
“Oh. Then you’re here?”
“I am.”
“Why didn’t he tell me that?”
“Veronica, just follow him.”
“Fine.”
The line went dead, and Cam rose from his chair, looking around as if he should tidy the place before her arrival. An absurd notion since, as always, there was nothing to tidy. Why was she here? She’d said kind of important. Cam had never liked that phrasing. There was important and not important. No in-between.
Among The Stars: A Shooting Stars Novella Page 5