"Not too bad, same old, same old. What about you?" he asked, not wanting to disclose that his mother had called, worried about her.
"The same, just working. We've been busier than I ever imagined. I think I owe much of that to your mother. I think she tells everyone she meets to come by and try the food," Madison laughed.
Cameron picked up on how hollow her laugh sounded. He could hear over the phone how tired she was, and he knew exactly what she needed. "Listen, I had a thought, and you really can't tell me no, because you owe me."
"I owe you?" Madison asked, suddenly annoyed with him. How could he think she owed him anything?
"Well, last time I saw you, I told you it was rude to walk out on me and not use the backstage passes that I gave you. Not only that, but you did attend those charity events with Thomas, and barely gave me a chance. So the way I look at it, you owe me," he explained.
"First of all, you'll remember that I did go backstage, and you were preoccupied," she reminded him.
"True enough, but you still can't tell me no." He took a deep breath, ready for the oncoming verbal assault. "I have a ticket for you at JFK airport, leaving tomorrow afternoon for you to come out and meet me on tour. It's only for a couple of days. You'll meet me in Indianapolis, see the show there, then travel with me to Chicago, then St. Louis, and fly back to New York from St. Louis."
She laughed out loud. "That's not funny."
"I'm not laughing, gorgeous."
He wasn't. There was a long pause while the request sank in.
"Cameron, have you forgotten that I have a restaurant to run?" she finally snapped. How dare he make these decisions for her?
"I know you have a great staff. Austin seems to handle things very well."
"Besides, I already told you that our lives are too different. I'm not into partying and watching girls crawl all over you."
"No girls will crawl all over me," he said. "You can keep them away."
As much as it made her mad that he assumed she'd leave her responsibilities behind to go 'play', she was also tempted to take him up on his offer. Not only did she need a break, but she missed him terribly.
"Listen, I'm sorry that it sounds like I am dictating your life, but the truth is, I need you. I need a sense of normalcy right now. I feel like I am going crazy touring, and we still have three weeks left to go," he told her honestly. "I need someone to ground me, and you seem to have a knack for that."
Madison paused, not sure what to say. Her mind was battling, both hesitant and excited at the same time. "Can I call you back with an answer?"
"You have until your laundry is done to call me back," he teased, knowing her better than she thought he did.
Madison agreed, and hung up her phone. Her heart pounded as she dialed another phone number.
"Hello?" A tired male voice answered the phone.
"Austin? I need a favor," she said in a small voice. "And if you say yes, I will give you an extra week of vacation that you can use in two weeks."
Austin groaned. He knew what was coming, and as frustrating as it was, the extra week of vacation would be much appreciated.
"Which night do you need off?" He asked.
"Well, see, that's the thing. I sort of need the next six days off," she told him coyly.
There was a long moment of silence. "Huh?"
"I need the next six days off," she said.
Austin sighed. A moment of fear went through her, and then she was struck with some common sense. She was the boss, she owned the restaurant, and he worked for her. It was time for her to pull rank.
"Austin, I really need this time off, and I need you to step in and watch the restaurant while I'm gone," she told him, more confident now.
"Fine," he relented almost immediately. After all, she was the boss. "Are you going to tell me where you're going?"
"Just on a trip to get some much needed relaxation," she told him. "I have to run, finish my laundry, and start packing. I'm leaving tomorrow afternoon and will be back in just under a week. I'll have my cell if you need me."
"Sure, have fun." Austin replied, obviously not meaning the sentiment behind his words. She could tell he was annoyed, but in her excitement, she didn't care. She knew that he would take care of the restaurant like it was his own, and that was all she wanted to know about his feelings at this point.
She opened her phone again and went to the received call list. She hit the call button and the phone dialed the number that was last received.
"I better hear a 'yes' come out of your mouth," Cameron said before even saying hello.
"Just tell me what time I have to be at the airport," Madison said quickly, before she changed her mind.
"The flight is at one o'clock, but make sure you're there early. I don't want a call telling me you missed your flight. I will try to be at the airport in Indy to meet you, but if my manager thinks it isn't safe, I will send him to get you." Cameron was happy, but nervous at the same time.
"Ok, see you tomorrow then."
There was a long moment of silence. Then Cameron whispered, "I can't wait to see you."
"I can't wait to see you either," she admitted. "Until tomorrow..."
She hung up the phone, her stomach already a bundle of nerves. What did this mean for them? What was expected of her? Would she be able to handle his 'other life'? What if things were even worse than they appeared at the backstage party?
But...what if things weren't? What if they could really enjoy their time together?
She knew she wouldn't be sleeping that night, because there was no way her mind would stop asking these questions.
The plane touched down in Indianapolis and Madison listened as the pilot urged them to enjoy their stay. She was impressed. Cameron had flown her out First Class, but then again, she didn't expect less of him. It was just typical Cameron, always thoughtful, or at least typical of the Cameron she knew.
Madison wheeled her carry-on through the gates of the terminal, searching for anyone familiar, or someone holding a sign with her name on it. She walked through the crowd, and suddenly felt a hand on her arm as she moved between two people. Looking up, she saw a complete stranger with shoulder-length blond hair, a backwards trucker hat, and aviator sunglasses. Just as she was about to tell the man to get his grubby hands off her, he leaned in and whispered in her ear.
"Glad you didn't miss the flight, gorgeous."
"Oh my goodness," she blurted, staring at him.
He kissed her cheek and led her downstairs, to the baggage claim area.
He turned back to her on the escalator and put his finger up to his lips, effectively keeping her quiet, to ensure nothing would draw attention to them. They completed the ride in silence, but Madison couldn't help but stare at him. Once they had her other suitcase, they exited the airport to a waiting car.
Safely inside the vehicle with dark tinted windows, he pulled off the sunglasses, hat and wig. He fluffed up his spiked hair, and looked over at Madison.
"You can talk now." He laughed at the awe in her eyes, and the smile on her face.
"I missed you so much, Cameron," she blurted out before her brain could stop her.
"Not as much as I missed you, Madison." He leaned over and hugged her tight, noticing the clear difference in her body. His mother was right, she had lost a lot of weight. Too much, in fact. He slowly backed away from her, and for the first time, he saw how tired she looked.
At that moment, he vowed to make this the best vacation she ever had.
Chapter Twelve
"So what are the plans for today?" Madison asked as they carried her luggage into the hotel and up to the room. Madison looked around as they walked, impressed with the lobby and all of the furnishings in the hotel. It was obviously a five star hotel, the type she wasn't used to staying in. Before her restaurant had become a success, she lived a middle class lifestyle. And now that the money was rolling in from The TigerLily, she hadn't really had time to indulge in any luxuries.
"Well, first we are going to get you settled in your room, and then you have an appointment in the spa while I go do my sound check. When I get back, we have dinner reservations, then I hoped we could walk around Monument Circle for a while and be all touristy," he told her when they stepped into the elevator.
"The spa?" Madison asked.
"Yup, I signed you up for the full package, facial, massage, some sort of mud bath thing - the works," he answered, watching the numbers slide by as they rode to the top floor. He pulled a keycard from his back pocket and slid it into the lock, opening the door with a quick flick of his wrist.
Standing in the hallway, Madison looked around and saw that the only door was the one to the room Cameron was opening. She followed him into the room, and saw a giant sitting room with doors that led to separate bedrooms and bathrooms. "Cameron, this is huge!"
He laughed. "Well, I am so tired of sleeping in cramped spaces on the tour bus, so I decided to get the penthouse and treat us both. You're giving me an excuse to sleep in nice hotels while you're visiting, rather than having us both suffer on the bus."
He led her over to a large room. "This is my room, just in case you get scared, or horny." She laughed and smacked his arm when he wiggled his eyebrows at her. Snickering, he walked a bit further and opened another door. "This is your room."
Madison entered the room and looked around. It was elegantly decorated with cream, gold, and hints of maroon throughout. Cameron set her large suitcase on the bed, and turned to leave. "Your bathroom is through that door over there." He pointed to a large door to his left. "That's the closet if you need it, but we'll only be here until tomorrow. Um, there's food and drinks in the kitchenette, help yourself to whatever you want. Oh, and your appointment is in forty-five minutes, so do whatever you need to, but be downstairs in the spa by then. I will be back shortly after you finish being pampered, and our dinner reservations are at eight o'clock."
He ran through the list while Madison tried to take it all in.
She put her carry-on bag down and followed him to the door of the penthouse. "Cameron, wait!" He stopped rushing to leave, and turned to see what she wanted. Once he had stopped, she stood awkwardly, not quite sure what to say. She walked to him slowly and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. "Thank you."
Cameron nodded, not really knowing what to say, without screwing up the moment they were sharing. He returned Madison's kiss on her cheek, and walked out the door.
After two hours of absolute bliss in the spa, Madison returned to the room, using the keycard that Cameron had left for her on her night stand. She collapsed onto her bed, feeling quite relaxed, and drifted off to sleep.
Cameron came back to the room an hour later, and stood at her door watching her sleep. He was so torn on whether he should let her sleep, or wake her up to get ready for dinner. What he really wanted to do was crawl into bed with her right then and there, and see where it led.
Instead, he quietly crept into her room and sank down on the bed next to her. He placed a kiss on Madison's forehead, waking her from her nap.
A slow smile spread across her face. She stretched her arms over her head, groaning softly. Cameron watched her and felt a stirring in his pants as she stretched. Her innocence had an erotic effect on him, which felt surprising, considering the kind of women he was surrounded by on a daily basis.
"Good evening, Sleeping Beauty. Do you want to sleep some more? I can cancel our reservations and just order room service later."
A grumble from Madison's stomach told him the answer. They both laughed when they heard it. "I am definitely ready for food. What kind of place are we going to?" she asked, getting up and opening her suitcase.
"Dress nice, but comfortably, so that we can stroll around later," he told her. "Can you be ready in twenty minutes?"
"Without a doubt. But can you, pretty boy? Looks like that spiky hair is pretty high maintenance," she joked with him. He flipped her off as he left the room to get ready himself, leaving her laughing as she gathered her clothes.
Twenty minutes later, Cameron finally emerged from his room. He was surprised to see Madison sitting on the couch, flipping through a magazine. "It's about time," she joked, not looking up from the periodical. Finally, she tossed it onto the coffee table and turned to look at Cameron.
Her breath hitched as she took in his appearance. His steel blue shirt was open to reveal a black t-shirt underneath, the sleeves rolled up just a bit. Looking down, she admired the black pants and black Doc Martens. She eyed him appreciatively, knowing all that black was for her.
At the same time, Cameron was scoping out Madison. Usually she wore black, but tonight she wore an interesting shade of camel, and it looked great on her. Her knee high leather boots matched the camel leather blazer she wore. A tight white tank top was tucked into her denim mini skirt. Cameron needed to keep his libido in check. He wasn't sure what Madison wanted from him, and he wasn't about to scare her away.
Cameron cleared his throat. "Are you ready?"
"Oh yeah, I'm starving!" She walked over to him, and hooked her arm into his. "Let's go taste the town."
Cameron laughed as he escorted her to the elevator and down to the car. He had never seen Madison so carefree and jovial; except when she was drunk, of course, and there wasn't much he remembered about that night.
Dinner went well, but Cameron kept insisting that though it was a well-known restaurant in Indy, it had nothing on The TigerLily. That made Madison blush, even as she protested that the food was delicious. Deep down though, she kept thinking about what would make each dish taste better.
After their meal, they headed to the Indianapolis Canal walk, then over to Circle Center Mall and Union Station. It was a beautiful night as they walked arm in arm, taking in the charming downtown shops. People were sitting on benches alongside the canal, and some were travelling down the water in gondolas.
Cameron looked over at Madison and even by the streetlight, he could tell that she was starting to look better. He still needed to feed her, get her weight back up, but that wasn't something that could happen overnight.
As they headed back to their downtown hotel, neither one could fight off their yawns. It had been such a long day for both of them, and their previous exhaustion did nothing to help the matter.
Back at the hotel, Cameron walked Madison to her bedroom door and took her hand in his. He brought it up to his mouth where he kissed it gently. After he lowered her hand, he didn't let go as he looked into her eyes. "Thank you so much for coming, Madison. I really missed you."
"I missed you too," she whispered, startled, but a bit turned on by the intense look in his eyes. "Thank you for tonight, it was perfect," she told him, kissing his cheek, then closing her door behind her before anything happened.
Cameron sighed as he made his way to his room. He most definitely needed a cold shower before he'd be able to sleep.
The next morning, Madison woke up feeling better than she had in a long time. After she showered, she changed into jeans and a red button up shirt that accented her curves. When she left her room, she was surprised to see that Cameron was up and dressed already. He was sitting on the couch, reading the morning newspaper.
"Cameron Rome reads the newspaper?" she noted. "What would your fans think?" She moved closer. "And it's even the 'World and Politics' section!" She had to admit that she was impressed.
Cameron looked back at her and smiled. In an instant, his arm snaked around her waist and puller her over the couch onto his lap. The newspaper was forgotten as he started to tickle her.
A knock at the door stopped them both in their tracks. Cameron stood up, effectively dropping Madison to the floor. He looked down at her and laughed. "Breakfast is here, do you want to get up for that, or should I feed you on the floor?" he joked as he went to open the door.
"Rock stars," Madison groaned as she pulled herself from the floor, straightening her clothes and hair. She watched as a small man rolled a large cart into their room
, leaving it next to the dining table. Cameron handed the man a tip and told him he could take it from there. Madison went to help Cameron unload the cart, amazed to see all the food he'd ordered. "Are you expecting guests for breakfast?"
"Nope, just me and you," he said, looking over all the food. He pulled a chair out for Madison. "Dig in," he told her as he sat down and started to take some food. His plate was overflowing by the time he was done.
Madison started to take some small portions of a few dishes, but after seeing how much Cameron was taking, and hearing her stomach rumble yet again, she added more. She decided to start with the blueberry pancakes, making sure she would definitely be able to eat them, and not be too full if she saved them for last.
Cameron looked up at her as she ate, pleased that she was eating the way she was, and by how her eyes now had their shine back. "I thought we'd go shopping this morning before we leave for the venue. Sound good to you?" he asked between bites.
"Sounds great. I haven't been shopping in so long. But do you think you can handle shopping with me?" She knew that guys seldom liked to shop, except for Chase, and she wasn't sure she could consider him a 'guy'.
"I can handle it. I could use a few new things too. But the condition is that you let me pick an outfit for you, to wear to the concert tonight."
Her eyes widened. "I'm not too sure about that. I've seen how some of those girls dress at your concerts, and I can't see myself wearing something too lewd."
Cameron's hands flew dramatically to his chest. "I'm wounded that you would even think I would dress you like those whores." He brushed some imaginary lint from his shoulder. "I have much better taste than that."
"Fine, but if it's even close to being hoochie-like, I have the power of veto," she warned him. "Are you going to be able to go shopping without getting swamped?"
"I was invisible at the airport yesterday, wasn't I? I even had you fooled," he pointed out.
Madison nodded and pushed her chair back from the table. "I couldn't eat another bite! I bet I just gained five pounds."
Taste of Love Page 10