She closed her eyes and tried to turn her face away, but he gently touched her jaw and waited until she was looking at him again. But this time, when her lashes fluttered back open, there were tears in her eyes. And a wealth of feeling. Her entire body trembled with the emotion she was trying so hard to suppress, and he suspected that was a very instinctual reaction for her.
"You can hide behind your erotic stained-glass art and your wild and outrageous personality, but I know who you really are, Mia," he said softly. "Deep inside where it counts. In your heart. In your beautiful, lost soul. And that's the woman I fell for. The woman no one else knows as well as I do."
She blinked, and a big, fat tear fell down her cheek. "God, how can you want a woman with so many hang-ups and issues?"
"Because I love you," he said simply.
A panicked sob caught in her throat, and she shook her head in denial. "You can't!"
"I can, and I do. It certainly wasn't something I'd planned on, but it happened. I want to love you, Mia, like you've never been loved before." He gently wiped away yet another tear with the pad of his thumb. "You trusted me with your body, and I gave you nothing but pleasure. You trusted me with your past and secrets, now trust me with your heart, and I swear I'll keep it safe from the kind of hurt and pain you're so afraid of."
"You can't make those kinds of promises, Cameron. No one can. I know you believe in this moment you can give me those things, that the two of us can make it work, but I can't handle a broken heart if it doesn't. I know what that feels like, and the emotional pain of losing someone is something I can't bear to go through ever again."
He knew she was referring to her mother's death, which had scarred her deeply and affected so many relationships throughout her life. Men, definitely, but shutting people out of her heart had all started with her stepmother, Amelia. And that was a situation Cameron couldn't repair for Mia, even though he suspected that scarred relationship was the crux of most of her emotional issues.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
Cameron understood that she was frightened of what she was feeling for him, but he'd hoped that during the course of their conversation today she'd face those fears and take a chance on something genuine and real. Him. Them. Together.
He'd been sorely mistaken. Her rejection felt like a knife through his heart.
Admitting defeat, he pushed away from Mia, letting her go. There was nothing left for him to do. Nothing left for him to say. She'd made it very clear that it was over, and he wasn't going to beg and plead.
"Come on," he said with a heavy sigh. "I'll take you home."
Chapter Seventeen
CAMERON skimmed through the rap sheet on Ray Wilkins, a.k.a. Billy Dearborn, that Wesley had just handed to him, not at all surprised to discover that the man had a list of transgressions attached to his real name. The guy had a criminal record that spanned everything from physical to sexual assault, varying degrees of theft, vandalism, drug use, carrying a concealed weapon, and even a few felony violations he'd done prison time for.
"Jesus," Cameron said in disgust and was damn grateful Gina had finally come to her senses and ended her relationship with the guy. Not to mention issuing a restraining order against him. Dearborn was a hot-headed, dangerous criminal without a conscience, and it looked as though Gina needed whatever protection she could get against him.
Jaw clenched, Cameron glanced back up at Wesley, who was standing on the other side of his desk. "How in the hell did you finally nail this guy?"
"Billy Dearborn changed his name, but not his Social Security number or birth date," Wes replied wryly. "As soon as I started tracing his Social Security number through public records, one thing led to another until I tracked him down to the last place he'd lived before moving to Chicago, and that was Florida."
Cameron shuffled through the other paperwork and printouts Wesley had given him. "Do you know what sent him packing?"
"Actually, I do, and I came across more than one reason why he left the state. I have a few P.I. contacts in Florida I've kept in touch with from the last firm I worked for, and I put a call in to someone I know and trust." Wesley's lips flattened into a grim line. "It appears that Billy Dearborn was involved in a drug-smuggling ring, and about six months ago he pocketed a cool twenty grand that belonged to the organization he was working for. They found out about the theft, beat the crap out of Billy, and gave him a week to pay back the money, but Billy changed his identity and moved here to Chicago."
"They didn't try very hard to find him," Cameron muttered irritably, wishing they'd tracked down Dearborn before he'd hooked up with Gina.
"Unfortunately, I'm sure they have bigger fish to fry in their line of business," Wesley told him. "Billy was small shrimp in comparison, though I'm betting if they knew where he was they wouldn't hesitate to try and get their money back from him any way they could. Even in blood."
That thought gave Cameron a semblance of satisfaction.
"But that's not all," Wesley said. "This guy has a warrant out for his arrest for sexually assaulting a woman."
Cameron swore beneath his breath. "Well, it looks like Gina is going to be the last woman he assaults for a very long time, because I'm turning his ass in." There was no way Cameron was going to let this bastard hurt another woman again. "And while I'm at it, I'm going to scare the shit out of him with the information we have about the twenty grand he stole to keep him away from Mia and Gina for good."
Standing, Cameron gathered up the paperwork on Dearborn. "Can you give me the entire file on this guy so I have everything you've covered?"
"You got it." Wesley gave him an affirmative nod.
"I'm also going to share it with Gina and Mia so they know exactly what kind of guy they're dealing with."
Once Wesley left Cameron's office, he picked up the phone and dialed Mia's home number. When the answering machine picked up, he looked up the number Mia had given him for Gina's phone and dialed that. Gina picked up after a few rings, and Cameron let her know he was coming by to talk to her. Cameron figured Gina could relay the information to Mia, which was probably for the best considering Cameron hadn't talked to Mia since they'd parted ways four long, miserable days ago. She hadn't made any attempt to contact him, and the ball was squarely in her court if she was at all interested in salvaging their relationship.
So far, it appeared she was not.
Cameron glanced at his watch. It was after six in the evening. Steve had already left work a few hours, earlier to spend some quality time with his wife and son. Ironically, now that Wesley was picking up so much extra work, everyone's schedule had been freed up. Except Mia was out of Cameron's life, and that gave him too much time to think about things better left alone.
Within fifteen minutes Cameron was on the road, heading toward Mia and Gina's place. Once he arrived, he made his way to the apartment, file folder in hand, and as he neared the door he noticed that it was cracked open a few inches. He frowned, prepared to berate Gina for being so careless when he heard a loud, jarring thud coming from inside, along with something crashing to the floor and a woman's muffled screams.
Adrenaline rushed through Cameron's veins as he pushed the door open and moved cautiously inside, keeping as quiet as possible until he could assess the situation. He found Ray pinning Gina up against the wall in the living room, one of his hands pressed tight against her throat and the other holding her arm to the side at an awkward angle. Gina had a big long gash above her eye that was trickling blood down the side of her face, and while that was the only injury Cameron could visibly see, he feared she was going to end up with even more bruises from Ray's rough handling.
"Bitch," Ray sneered, so focused on dominating Gina he was completely oblivious to the fact that anyone had entered the apartment. "There's not a chance in hell I'm going to let you leave me, and no restraining order will keep me away. Got that?"
Gina nodded jerkily, her entire body trembling in fear. While Ray spoke Cameron made his way qu
ietly closer. For as much as he wanted to kick the shit out of Ray right then and there, he had to get Gina out of his grasp and away from Ray first so the other man didn't use her as pawn between them.
"You try and leave, and I'll hunt you down and break every bone in your body… just… like… this," Ray said maliciously, and twisted her arm until she started crying out in pain and tears rolled down her cheeks.
Fury ripped through Cameron. "You're a sick, pathetic bastard," he said, finally announcing his presence.
Startled, Ray immediately released Gina and spun around to face Cameron. His eyes narrowed, and his hands curled into fists at his sides. Thankfully, Gina took the opportunity to scramble away and put the couch between herself and Ray.
With Gina out of the way, Cameron took another step toward Ray, watching his body language and anticipating his next move. Ray wasn't a big guy at all, which was probably why he preyed on the weaker sex-to make him feel manly when he was anything but. Cameron estimated that he outweighed Ray by a good twenty pounds of solid muscle, and he intended to use that to his advantage.
"Billy Dearborn, isn't it?" Cameron taunted and watched the man's eyes fill with disbelief and even a flicker of apprehension.
Then Ray straightened, his expression menacing. "Fuck you," he said and swung his fist toward Cameron's face.
Cameron jerked his head back out of the way but caught Ray's punch before it could connect with his jaw. With his fingers encircling the other man's wrist, he twisted his arm, spun him around, and shoved him up against the wall. Ruthlessly, Cameron wedged his knee between Ray's to keep him pinned in place and jammed his contorted arm higher up his back until Ray cried out in agony. Then, for good measure, Cameron jammed it even higher, harder, increasing the pain.
"Do you like the way that feels, you worthless piece of shit?" Cameron asked.
Ray muttered another crude expletive at Cameron and struggled for freedom, his mouth spewing all kinds of vicious words. Ray hadn't learned his lesson the first time, so Cameron rammed his knee up between Ray's legs, crushing his balls, and the other man's legs buckled as he screamed out in raw anguish. Ray dropped to the floor, writhing in excruciating pain, and Cameron kept the other man shoved face down on his belly with his arm still bent behind his back.
"The pain you just felt is nothing compared to what I'd really like to do to you, you miserable weasel," Cameron bit out gruffly. "So just go ahead and give me a reason to snap your arm in two."
"Cameron," Gina said in a quivering voice. "I called the police."
He glanced up, noticing that Gina was clutching the portable phone to her chest, her eyes still wide with fear. He was surprised she'd been thinking clearly enough to call the cops. "Good girl," he said. That gave him a few minutes to have a chat with Ray before law enforcement arrived.
"Listen up, Dearborn, because I'm only going to tell you this once," Cameron said to the man on the floor. "I know all about who you are, where you're from, and why you changed your name. First, you have a warrant still out for your arrest. Second, it seems your sticky fingers lifted twenty grand that wasn't yours, and there are some guys looking for you and that money. From what I hear, they'd be happy to cut you up into little pieces and feed you to the sharks."
Ray stopped squirming and started listening intently to Cameron. His breathing was labored, and his body had grown tense.
"So I'm going to issue you a friendly warning. I'm sending your ass to jail, but if I ever see your face again, or if you harass Gina or Mia, all it will take is one phone call to ensure you're dead meat. That is, after I've had my turn with you. Got that?"
Ray stubbornly, and stupidly, refused to agree.
Cameron took great pleasure in giving his arm another forceful twist and added a sharp, digging pressure against Ray's shoulder blades with his knee. "Got that?" he repeated, harsher this time.
Finally, the other man complied with a fierce, yell. "Yes, I got it!"
Cameron smiled grimly. "Good, I just wanted to be sure we understood one another."
MIA came home to chaos, with the police and the paramedics walking in and out of her apartment and a handcuffed Ray being escorted out the door by a uniformed cop. She immediately panicked, and fearing the worst, she rushed inside and found Gina sitting on the living room couch with a female medic putting a butterfly bandage on her roommate's forehead and another checking her blood pressure.
Stunned, Mia glanced around, seeing the lamp that had fallen to the floor and shattered. Her stomach cramped at the thought of what had happened while she'd gone by the gallery for a few minutes to drop off some new designs for Amy to display. If only Mia had come home right after work, maybe she could have stopped whatever had happened.
Out of the corner of her eye she saw someone heading her way. Shaking herself out of her stupor, she looked in that direction and found Cameron approaching her.
"Cameron?" she said, confused now. What was he doing here? Had he stopped by to see her? Her traitorous heart picked up its beat at that thought, forcing her to realize just how much she'd missed him the past week. "What happened?"
"I found out some information on Ray. Actually, his real name is Billy Dearborn. I came by to tell you and Gina what I'd discovered about him." His tone was all business, though his eyes seemed to drink up the sight of her. "Instead, I found Ray in the apartment, roughing up Gina."
He went on to tell her how he'd handled the situation, and Mia shivered at the replay of events. "Oh, God," she said and peered around Cameron to look at Gina again. "Is she okay?"
"Ray gave Gina a pretty nasty cut above her eye, and she'll probably bruise pretty badly, but at least that will be the last time." Cameron pushed his hands into the front pockets of his jeans, as if to keep from reaching out and touching her. "She's pretty shaken up right now, but she'll be okay, especially because I highly doubt she'll ever have to deal with Ray ever again."
"Really?" Mia asked hopefully.
He nodded. "Not only does Ray have a warrant out for his arrest, but he has a past he doesn't want to catch up to him. He and I came to an understanding of sorts." Cameron gave her a rundown of Ray's past transgressions, and the threat still looming over him, and how Cameron had no qualms using that information if Ray ever contacted Gina again. "Trust me, between jail time and his theft, he's gone for good."
She trusted Cameron unconditionally. The guy was solid as a rock and as good as his word. Her own thoughts startled her, but before she could reflect on her realization, Cameron spoke again.
"Gina has already given a statement to the police, and so have I," he said and nodded his dark blond head toward Mia's roommate. "Why don't you go over there and let her know you're home."
Mia suddenly didn't want to leave Cameron, even to cross the room to Gina, but her friend undoubtedly needed her comfort and support, and that was more important at the moment.
A cop came up to talk to Cameron again, and Mia took that opportunity to walk over to where Gina was sitting on the couch. She settled in next to Gina and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.
"I'm so sorry you had to go through all this alone," Mia said, wincing at the large band-aid the medic had put on her forehead, certain it hid a sizeable wound. "But I'm so glad you're okay."
"Because of Cameron," Gina said gratefully. "I don't want to think about what could have happened if he hadn't showed up when he did." She shivered.
"The guy is a regular white knight," Mia joked, and that comment earned her a smile from Gina.
After a moment, Gina's expression grew serious. "Mia, there's something I need to tell you."
Mia tipped her head. "What is it?"
"Even before today with Ray, or Billy, or whatever his name is," she said with a frown, "I'd already made the decision to move back near my sister. Spending last weekend with her and my nieces made me realize how much I miss being close to my family. And right now, I think that's where I need to be."
As much as Mia would miss Gina as a roommate and
friend, Mia understood. As the medic asked Gina a few last questions about how she was feeling, Mia glanced to where she'd left Cameron, but he was gone from the apartment.
Just as he was gone from her life.
THE turnout for Mia's stained-glass art show at the Brennan gallery was a huge success, more than anything Mia ever could have anticipated. When Amy had told her she was sending invitations to more than one hundred of her best clients, Mia had been skeptical and figured she'd be lucky if a fourth of that number showed up. But now, as she glanced around the crowded gallery, she found herself overwhelmed by the number of people milling about and perusing her artwork-even if a good two dozen of those guests were her immediate family.
Even Cameron's sisters had shown up with their husbands, and it was so nice to see all of them again. But their presence made her all too aware of the fact that Cameron had obviously opted not to come to the showing. It was a good twenty minutes into the event, and although a part of her understood why Cameron might want to stay away, another part of her had secretly hoped he'd attend. After all, he was the reason why she was having the show in the first place.
Sighing, she accepted a flute of champagne from a passing tray and took a sip of the bubbly liquid as she watched Scott and Alex and their wives, Ashley and Dana, disappear into the far room where Amy had displayed her erotic stained-glass pieces. Mia's stomach dipped nervously, because while her family had been surprised to learn that she'd put her stained-glass designs into an art gallery, they still didn't know just how provocative some of her art was. But they were about to find out, and she could only imagine and anticipate their shocked reactions.
However, no matter what they thought, she'd decided their approval no longer mattered. This was who she was, and there was a piece of her in every design and picture. If her family didn't learn to appreciate her art, she knew many others who would.
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