The Real

by Kate Stewart

  Cameron looked over at me, helpless.

  “Yep, this is how we do it.”

  “This is delicious,” Cameron said as he piled more spaghetti onto his plate.

  “I loved to cook for my Roberto.”

  “Italian?” Cameron asked.

  “Yes. I was raised here, but Roberto was raised in Italy. I learned to speak Italian for our son, Michael. Roberto was a true Italian man, loved the language and the culture. Kept many of his ways even when he moved to America. He never wanted anything but the same staples for dinner. His mother taught me all of his favorite recipes before she passed,” she said, pausing to do the Holy Trinity. “I have to admit, I used to sneak in hot dogs and French fries during our marriage.”

  Reluctantly, Cameron posed the question. “When did Roberto pass?”

  Jenny sighed, the light blue in her eyes dimming a little. “Twelve years ago. We spent sixty together. Can you believe it? I can’t.”

  Cameron’s eyes softened as he looked over at her. Her hair was thin and tied up in a knot on top of her head. She looked a little paler when she spoke of her deceased husband.

  “He was on security detail the day Kennedy got shot,” I told Cameron. “He was one of the men walking alongside the car.”

  “Really?” Cameron said. “Wow.”

  “Yeah, not so wow,” Jenny said. “It ruined his life for a number of years. He ducked out after that and moved us from DC to Chicago. His next profession was a lot less desirable,” she mumbled.

  “What was it?”

  “Laundry,” I said with a wink toward Cameron, who was wearing a knit sweater two sizes too small that read “Ho Ho Ho”.

  I sat, picking at my food, thinking about the taste of his skin and the feel of him inside me. He seemed to be thinking along the same lines as he winked at me before he took a bite of his pasta.

  “I have some videos of my Roberto,” Jenny offered. “Maybe we can watch one after dinner.”

  “Sounds perfect,” Cameron said as he turned my way. “Okay?”

  I shrugged contentedly as I cut into my pasta, hungry, tired, sated, and happier than I could ever remember being.

  Half an hour later, we were sitting on the couch when Bree texted.

  Bree: What the hell is going on? You didn’t call me when you got in last night. Are you still mad at me?

  Me: Nope.

  Bree: Okay, are you working?

  Me: Nope.

  Bree: Okay, fuck, I give up. What?

  Me:

  Bree: Judas Priest! Oh, girl. I’m so happy. Holy shit! So, how was it? Is he any good? Please don’t tell me that man can’t work his penis.

  My phone was plucked from my fingers and Cameron began typing away, and I sat mortified. Poor Jenny was explaining a video neither of us was watching—but in my defense, I’d seen it a dozen times—as I sat waiting for certain death.

  Cameron handed my phone back and sank into the couch with his arm around me. Horrified, I looked down to see what he’d typed.

  Me: I just had seven orgasms. I’ll call you tomorrow.

  “Seven?” I whispered in shock. I knew the count was high but had no idea how many.

  “C-A-M-E-R-O-N,” he leaned in and whispered, his eyes still on the video before they flicked to mine and he smirked. My cheeks heated as he pulled me closer to him while Jenny rattled on.

  We ended up watching three more videos until Jenny fell asleep in her recliner, her mouth wide open. Cameron and I washed the dishes then crept back upstairs.

  He spelled his last name that night, in a way I would never forget it.

  B-L-E-D-S-O-E.

  The following week, Cameron and I had only managed to meet for a run in the mornings and kept our days full of texts, but missed every opportunity to meet after due to my workload and his coaching schedule.

  I was inching closer to finishing my job at Preston Corp, but last-minute meetings had made my days twice as long. Kat came back from Florida a little less on edge, or at least she’d appeared to be. We were getting along famously, but I was fraying on both ends.

  I was desperate for a break and knew the schedule would only get more grueling if I was going to finish out my contract on time. The only consolation was that I had cleared my weekend in hopes to spend it with Cameron. I was at the coffee shop trying to finish up when I got his text.

  King of Woo: Hey, beautiful. Where are you?

  Me: At our place.

  King of Woo: What’s your Monday looking like?

  I sighed and closed my Mac, pushing it into my tote. Great. He’s tied up until Monday. The weekend wasn’t shaping up to be shit, either.

  Me: The worst day of the week.

  King of Woo: Not this time. Hurry up and get outside. I’m picking you up today.

  Following orders, I dropped my cup off at the counter and slid on my coat as I pushed out of the door with my tote in hand.

  Outside the café, Cameron waited in a navy suit, and looked gorgeous standing in front of a blacked-out Audi SUV, his hands in his pockets and two cups of coffee on the hood. He was dressed to impress and had a wicked gleam in his eyes.

  “What’s this?”

  “This is us coffee-ing the fuck out of town?” he said with a hopeful lift in his voice. “I would prefer you in a bikini in Mexico, but this is all I could swing last-minute with little imagination other than seeing you naked every possible minute. Get that beautiful ass over here.”

  I pranced over to him, swinging my hips a little as he gave me that come-hither finger. In seconds, I was wrapped in his warmth while he took my mouth in a possessive kiss.

  When we parted, I did my best to control myself and my thundering heart. “Cameron, I want nothing more than to disappear with you, but I have to work Monday.”

  “Is your Mac in that bag?”

  “Yes, but—”

  “You can work remotely, right?”

  “Yes, but—”

  “Take it with you. We’ll have a little fiesta around it.”

  Elated and opting to just go with it, I still had reservations but only named a few. “I have no clothes, no toothbrush, and where will we go?”

  “Too many objections,” he said, grabbing my tote and packing it in the idling SUV.

  Dear God, he was a temptation. Especially when he towered over me with his sparkling green eyes.

  “Don’t say no.”

  “Okay.”

  “Is that a yes?”

  “Well, I can’t say no.”

  “I want you out of this city. Okay?”

  “Okay.”

  Minutes later, we were on our way to said fiesta, navigating easily through Saturday traffic. He’d refused to stop at my three-flat to let me grab anything, which I gave him hell for. I texted Kat to tell her I would be taking Monday off. She must have been on her phone because she texted back right away.

  Kat: No problem. I owe you. ☺Have fun.

  I hadn’t talked to Kat about “coffee shop guy” since she’d returned. She’d been a bit more distant and our workload had only increased. Though I wanted to share my new-found happiness with her, she was going through enough as it was with her marriage.

  Cameron had a lead foot as he steered us toward freedom from it all. I put in one last call to Michael, who assured me he’d be checking in on his mother.

  The Audi was cozy, and I glanced at the man next to me as I pulled my gloves from my hands and found his over the console. He swiftly pulled my offered skin to his mouth and kissed it with soft lips and a little tongue. That act alone had my stomach fluttering in anticipation.

  “Take me away anywhere,” I said as I kicked off my Uggs and rested my feet on the dash. “Is this yours?”

  “Yep,” he said with a breaking smile as he glanced at my posture. “Just got it. Do you drive?”

  “Nope, I run,” I said with pride as I looked over at him. “I hit two miles without breaking this morning, but I missed my coach.”

  He squeezed my fingers a
nd brought them to his lips for another kiss. “Proud of you. I missed you too. Are you comfortable?”

  “Yeah,” I said, feeling whatever weight I harbored lift from me easily as we exchanged smiles.

  Cameron let go of my hand, and I felt his warm fingers on my back as he rode them up to my spine and had my bra unfastened in seconds.

  “Holy shit,” I said, stunned as the girls lay free and heavy on my chest.

  “That’s better,” he said in a sexy whisper.

  “Seriously, that’s an awe-inspiring skill. And it’s kind of scary you’re so good at that.”

  “Basketball camp. We used to wrap them around balls and practice. Yep, it’s a talent.”

  I quirked a brow. “Any others I should know about?”

  “All in due time,” he promised as he lifted the front of my sweater and brushed his fingers along my stomach. I mourned the loss of his hand when he pulled it away to grip the wheel.

  Cameron tapped his fingers to Kings of Leon “The Face” as we slowed to a stop at a light.

  “God, I love this song. I swear Caleb’s voice is sex.” I began to sing along as Cameron drove on. The L train rumbled overhead as I got swept up in the moment and began jamming in my seat. I turned the music up loud and nodded my head.

  It was only when I heard Cameron’s rumbling laughter over the music that I turned to look his way.

  I paused the workings of my hands, that I realized were playing air guitar, as he drove on, openly laughing at me.

  “What?”

  He made quick work of pulling over. Once we were stopped—in a grocery store parking lot—I looked out the window in confusion. I was about to ask what he was doing when I was swept from the passenger seat and onto his lap.

  I let out a squeak as he looked at me with a new smile. One I’d never seen.

  “What in the world are you doing, Coach Bledsoe?”

  “Me? What am I doing? Jesus, woman, you have got to be the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.” With no more explanation than that, he took my mouth so possessively that I had to push at his chest to get some air.

  “That was some kiss,” I said with a smile.

  “That was some show. Tell me, witchy woman, do you always rock out that hard in the car?”

  Embarrassed I must have really gotten into it, I looked at him through my lashes. “I went geek on you, didn’t I?”

  “Little bit, and it was fucking awesome.” His voice was low as he pushed my sweater down over my shoulder and drew my nipple into his mouth. I tilted my head back on a moan.

  “Cameron,” I breathed as he sucked my nipple until I was pulsing with need. “Hey, we’re kind of in a parking lot.” He ignored my protest and sucked harder. “Cameron, what if someone sees?”

  “Hold on, baby.” He reached behind my seat and pulled out a sun reflector to shield us from prying eyes. “They would have to look really,” he said, pushing his hips up against my clit, “hard.”

  The music, the man, the anticipation. It was all so fucking perfect.

  Seconds later, I was staring at Cameron’s straining cock as he freed it. I could see his arousal dripping over the tip, his breath heavy as he fucked my mouth with his tongue. His kiss went deep as he gripped my neck with one hand and yanked my sweater tights down with the other.

  Once free, I saw him react, his eyes turning into liquid pools at the silk panties that lay underneath. I could see their fate and beat him to it as I looked around and quickly slipped them down my legs.

  His voice was sexy gravel. “God, I’d give anything to feast on you right now.”

  I gripped him firm in my hand and hovered before I slowly sank down onto him. We both exploded in movement.

  “Fuck yes, just like that,” he said as he bit his lip.

  I was gone, driven by need, and dazed by his words as he gave me more—more of him, more of us, more of everything that mattered.

  “You’re so fucking hot. Ride my cock, baby.”

  “Yessss,” I hissed as he invaded me with his eyes and conquered me with his body.

  His eyes lit fire as he palmed my breasts and watched me pump and flex on top of him. I was full and frenzied as I raced toward my climax. We were a tangled mess of searching mouths and limbs before he thrust up and gripped my face while I balanced myself with one hand on the door and the other on the console. I rolled my hips and watched his eyes darken further.

  “Fuck, fuck, Abbie, you feel so fucking incredible.” He nipped at my skin, unable to control his hard grip. Needy for more, I rode him faster while he pistoned his hips, holding me so close, I had no choice but to take all of him.

  Our fucking was carnal but remained intimate as he grunted and murmured words of praise and worship. I was muttering nonsense, his pace maddening but rhythmic. My center slid along the edge of his cock as he filled me and overfilled me, his words spurring me on.

  “Don’t stop,” I begged as I tilted my head back and bounced along his thighs, grinding myself as hard as I could, choking on the fullness of him. I spread myself wider on his lap and we both inhaled sharply as we hit another crescendo.

  “Give it to me,” he ordered as he looked down to where we connected. His eyes flared as he watched me fuck him. With one hard thrust up, I tipped over and washed away on his lap, riding it out as far as I could take it as he grunted and finished inside me.

  “This is going to be a good weekend,” I said breathlessly against the hollow of his neck before I slid my tongue along his cologne-scented skin and curled in his lap like a cat.

  “Yeah, if we make it out of Chicago,” he murmured with a kiss to my temple.

  “We’ll get there. We’ve got a good pace.”

  “Yeah, we do,” he whispered, caressing the small of my back with his fingers.

  We stayed in our high for as long as we could before I moved back to my seat and took his offered Kleenex. I slid my leggings up and he tucked himself back into his pants. We were a hot mess, both winded with matching smiles. Mine faded when I saw concern start to darken his features.

  “We haven’t used anything, Abbie. We haven’t even talked about it. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

  “I’m covered in the multiplication department,” I assured. “And I got the all clear a year ago and haven’t slept with anyone since.”

  “It’s been a really long time for me. A really long time,” he admitted while my jaw went slack.

  “Really? For you?”

  “Really,” he whispered, cupping my chin and bringing his lips to mine. “I feel possessed,” he said as he pulled on my lip. “And I’ve never had sex in a parking lot.” He shook his head and bit my lip before he sucked it into his mouth. “Damn, baby, you make me crazy.”

  “Crazy enough to do it again?” I waggled my brows.

  One side of his mouth lifted as his eyes told me he accepted my challenge. “I’ll do anything with you twice. So, I guess it’s going to be that kind of weekend?”

  “You’re not the only one who’s starved. I think we can manage a postcard-perfect weekend, with a side of porn-worthy,” I assured as I rubbed my nose against his.

  “You’ll hear no complaints from me,” he murmured into my hair as he wrapped me in his hold and took my lips in a seductive kiss. I clutched him tight as he slowly explored before pulling away.

  “What are you doing to me?” he whispered. “Strike that, I know what’s happening here.”

  I let myself ask the question. I had to know. “Do you want it to happen?”

  “More than anything. I hope you believe me.”

  “I’ll believe you if that’s what you want.”

  “Good. Because I want you.”

  “You have me.”

  “Then I’m falling in the right direction,” he said, running his fingers through my hair. In the crowded parking lot, I felt like we were in our own world as he rubbed some of my locks through his fingertips. “Someone told me once to picture something I can’t live without and then decide wh
at trumps that, so I know the truth of what matters to me the most.”

  “What trumps me?” I asked as his crystal green eyes pierced me. He tilted his head back in thought as I puffed out an indignant chest. “You better not say a Bears game.”

  He twisted his rearview so I could see our reflection. We both looked winded and a little disheveled and . . . happy.

  “The only thing that could trump you today, Abbie, is you tomorrow. And I don’t want to be without you tomorrow.”

  Our fiesta ended up taking place in a private cabin in Rockford, about ninety minutes outside of the city. The problem was, we couldn’t find it. And as the night started to creep in, we were worse for wear when the cell phone service went spotty in the middle of a blizzard.

  “So, you haven’t been here?” I asked as I looked out the windshield of the SUV. We were getting close to zero visibility, and the only thing keeping me calm was that Cameron was calm.

  “No, but the GPS said we weren’t far. Well,” he said with a laugh, “when it was working.”

  “Shit,” I said, twisting in my seat, trying to get some signal.

  “Don’t worry, we’ll find it,” Cameron assured as he gripped my thigh and squeezed.

  “It’s getting scary, you know?”

  “Is this where your serial killer paranoia comes in?”

  “Yes,” I said pointedly.

  “Hang in there.”

  “I can’t believe you decided to take me to the woods.”

  “Surprise?” he said with a laugh.

  It was the first time I wanted to grab his junk as a disciplinary action.

  Cameron slowed down when he spotted a driveway. “This is probably it.”

  “Thank God. I need a hot shower.”

  “Does that come with an invitation?” he asked, glancing at me as we followed the small driveway through the trees and hit a dead end with no cabin in sight.

  “What in the hell?” He got out of the car while the windshield wipers roared. The snow was blinding at that point and I could barely make out his frame when I began to get twitchy. I was about to blow the horn when he opened the door and jumped in while I jumped out of my skin.