Cambree loved imagining him in a suit. Had Emmett Hawk just asked her on a date? She wanted to squeal in delight and call one of her sisters, but the thought of dating the superstar outside of this safe refuge made her stomach drop like she’d just leapt off the bridge into the Colorado River.
She raised her eyebrows instead of screaming yes and getting herself into faster rapids than the Colorado could boast. “Maybe. Let’s see how the week goes, bossy man.”
He chuckled, then inclined his head toward the forest trail that led to the lake. “Do you want to go on a short walk to … loosen your legs up?”
“Ooh, is that code for ‘I’m going to decimate your legs tomorrow’?” She grinned up at him. She wished it was code for Let me get you alone and kiss you.
“If I haven’t decimated your legs the past three days, you’re getting a full refund.”
She laughed at that. “You’ve pretty much destroyed my entire body.”
His eyes swept over her body. “If your body looks this good after being destroyed, I’d love to see what it looks like normally.”
“Stop.” She laughed and walked out of the cabin, absolutely loving him flirting with her. He fell into step beside her and they walked down the trail for a few minutes, simply enjoying being side by side and the warm, quiet night, crickets chirping and lightning bugs flashing.
“I’m so sorry,” Cambree said, breaking the silence.
“You’re sorry?” His eyes cut to her. “You did nothing wrong.”
“I was grumpy with you today.”
He laughed. “Yeah, you were a bit grumpy.”
“Thanks for being honest.”
“You had every right to be much worse than grumpy.”
She thought about last night, being trapped under Troy’s body, him grabbing her. “When you saved me, I was all out of whack. I should’ve been more grateful.”
“No. You went through something traumatic. I’m just sorry it happened at all, that I didn’t get there quicker. Really sorry pricks like Troy were ever born.” He muttered the last part.
She whirled on him and grabbed on to his forearms, which were thick and roped with muscle. “How can you be so buff, yet so gentle?”
Emmett gave her a slow grin that made her knees go weak. “My mother raised me right.”
“She most certainly did.” Even though they were from different worlds, he had definitely been raised to be a gentleman. “My mama taught me something important too.”
“Besides how to be the most impressive woman in the world?” Emmett brushed her hair over her shoulder, his fingers trailing along the bare flesh of her shoulder and making her stomach quiver.
How did she respond to a line that sweet? Especially from someone as rocking as Emmett? “Thank you.” She looked down, then met his dark gaze and forced out the bravest line of her life: “She taught me I should always show gratitude. There’s not much I could give you, seeing how you’re wealthy, famous, and successful, but I could at least give you a kiss of gratitude.” Would he think she was too forward? Some lowly girl trying to seduce him?
Emmett gave her a slow grin, and her stomach filled with butterflies. He wrapped his hands around her lower back and leaned in closer. He smelled clean, like a manly soap and dryer sheets.
Cambree ran her hands up his arms, then threaded them behind his neck. She lifted up onto her tiptoes, their mouths centimeters apart. Was she brave enough to cross the distance?
Emmett studied her with an irresistible smolder in his eyes. “You said you were giving the kiss of gratitude … I’m waiting.”
Cambree couldn’t help but laugh, but the humor didn’t ruin the moment—far from it. She loved that they could tease and laugh together. All of her concerns—misgivings about Emmett being wealthy and famous, the fact they lived states apart, and the worry of this just being a fling—were thrown to the back burner as she pressed her lips to his. The fireflies must’ve gone insane, because the night seemed to light up around them. His lips were firm, and though he let her initiate the kiss, he quickly took control and ignited every pleasure receptor in her lips.
The kiss was innocent and sweet, yet full of delicious promise and desire stronger than she’d ever experienced in her life. His hands moved over her back, bringing a low burn to her stomach. She reveled in the beautifully formed muscle that pressed against her in a protective embrace.
She could’ve gone on kissing him all night; sleep wasn’t important to her at all, no matter how hard tomorrow would be. Regrettably, Emmett pulled away. He smiled down at her, then simply took her hand and started walking her back to her cabin. Neither of them said a word. Cambree was hesitant to break the spell surrounding them. She pushed reality away and savored his hand surrounding hers, the safety, excitement, and joy that Emmett Hawk brought to her life.
When they reached her cabin, he bent down and gave her a tender kiss. “Good night,” he whispered against her lips.
Cambree blinked up at him. “It is a good night,” she said.
He chuckled, then released her and stepped back. Cambree fumbled open her door and couldn’t resist catching his gaze one more time before she slipped inside. Emmett Hawk. Had that really just happened? She pressed her hand to her heart and then to her lips. Tonight had been magical. She didn’t want to let tomorrow, or more specifically next week, intrude.
Chapter Seven
Emmett felt like he could conquer the world when he woke up. He hadn’t planned on finding the woman of his dreams at camp, but the good Lord had blessed him to meet and get to know Cambree and he wasn’t going to kick a gift horse in the mouth. Cambree was unreal—tough, brave, funny, beautiful. She truly could be the one for him. He suddenly cared little about his knee and that he might never play another football game in his life. What did that matter if he had Cambree?
Everyone met in the open green area for the morning run. Emmett fell into step beside Cambree and lowered his voice. “Last night was the best night of my life.”
She glanced sharply up at him. “You don’t get out much, huh?”
He chuckled. “Not with someone as impressive as Cambree Kinley.”
“You haven’t taken me out yet, bossy man. We’ll see if I’m impressed after that.”
He grinned, loving her spice. Ideas formed in his mind for how he would impress her. It would have to wait until after camp, but they only had a few days left. “Can you wait until after camp for me to sweep you off your feet?”
“As long as you promise good nights like last night.” She winked, and Emmett’s chest swelled. It sounded like she’d loved the kiss as much as he had. He couldn’t wait to keep on kissing her, but right now he needed to focus on training her and getting her ready for her next race. With her determination, athleticism, and grit, she could definitely take the number one spot.
They worked hard together all day. Emmett had no problem challenging her physically, but he loved calling her “sweetheart” and “my girl” and taking every opportunity to touch her firm muscles. She rewarded him with lots of smiles and teasing.
After the swim that night, everyone else headed to bed and they stole a few minutes alone in the hot tub. Emmett wrapped his hands around her waist and lifted her onto his lap. “Your waist is so small I can fit my hands all the way around it.”
She laughed. “It’s your hands. They’re massive.”
Her face was close to his as the water swirled around them. Her firm body pressed against his chest, making his stomach smolder. “So here you are pretty much perfect to me, but I’m this giant with too big of hands?”
Cambree ran her palms along the musculature of his shoulders. “No, you’re pretty much perfect. I don’t mind awkwardly big hands.”
He laughed and cradled her even closer. “As long as you like my lips, I don’t really care how you feel about my big hands.”
She bit at her lip, and it was all he could do to slow down the moment before the kiss. “Your lips are better than perfect in my book,”
she said.
His chest filled with warmth that had nothing to do with the hundred-degree water. “Good, because they’re going to be connecting with your lips soon.”
“I’ve been waiting like a pig for his dinner for that.”
Emmett grinned at her unique lingo but didn’t resist any longer. He captured her lips with his, and they proceeded to make magic as their lips danced together and he savored her being so close in his arms. After several minutes, he forced himself to pull back; being only in swimsuits was playing with a fire that he didn’t want to consume them. Their relationship was new and fragile. He wanted it to stay pure and develop into something beautiful and committed, like his parents had. That meant no intimacy before marriage, no matter how tempted he was right now.
“We’d better get some rest. Tomorrow is going to be brutal.” He wrapped his hands around her waist and lifted her onto the step.
Cambree stepped out of the hot tub and he followed. “More brutal than the past four days?”
“You’ll see in the morning.”
She laughed and grabbed a clean towel, tossing him one. They dried off, then wrapped the towels around themselves and slipped into their flip-flops. Emmett took her hand and walked her out of the pool area toward the cabins.
“Thank you,” she said quietly.
Emmett glanced down at her. “For?”
“Being you.”
“That’s all I know how to be.”
She smiled. “Thank you for respecting me and not taking advantage of me when your kiss makes my head so cloudy I would struggle to say no if you pushed me.”
Emmett’s eyebrows jumped. Cambree was a sweetheart clear through, but she was also honest to a fault. “I would never take advantage of you, Cam.”
“I know that.” She squeezed his hand. “And I love the nickname.”
He couldn’t resist bending down and kissing her. He kept it short, but he realized he could never get enough of her. Is this how it happened for other men? Only his brother Creed had a serious girlfriend, Kiera, and he claimed to love her and know it was going to last forever. Emmett had never felt that, never felt this. He didn’t want to stop feeling it.
A wail came from the cabin next to Cambree’s, shocking him out of his sappy thoughts. Emmett and Cambree glanced at each other, then broke into a jog.
Lucy’s door popped open, and she almost ran into them. “Hey, lover-birds. Who’s screeching out here?”
A muffled sob came next.
“Britney?” Cambree guessed.
Lucy gritted her teeth. “I got her. You two go make out some more.”
Cambree glanced up at Emmett.
“You want to go help Lucy?” he asked. Even though it would mean no more kissing for him tonight, he hoped Cambree would go. Lucy didn’t seem very patient with Britney.
Cambree nodded and arched up on tiptoes, kissing his cheek. “I’ll let you know if we need you.”
“Thanks.” He released her hand and watched as they walked to Britney’s door and knocked. He would’ve preferred to stay with Cambree, but she was the type of person who would help someone in need, even if that person in need was … a bit dramatic.
The door swung open and he heard Britney give one more cry before throwing her arms around Cambree’s neck. “My life is ruined,” she moaned.
Cambree hugged her back. “How can we help?”
Emmett turned and walked away. Cambree had Britney under control. She was definitely the most impressive person he’d ever met. He grinned, mentally planning the date he would take her on after camp was over.
Cambree ushered Britney back into her cabin and they sat side by side on the leather couch. She wished she wasn’t in a wet swimsuit, and she really wished she was still in Emmett’s arms, but she wanted to help Britney if she could. She needed to clear her head from Emmett’s mind-blowing kisses anyway. She was getting swept up much too fast, but didn’t know how to slow this love train down. The scary thing was that she’d fallen for Nolan fast and hard, too, and look how that had turned out.
Lucy sat across from them in a chair. “What’s going on?” she asked.
Britney brushed at the eyeliner smearing under her eyes. Luckily her fake eyelashes made it so no mascara was smearing. “I’m ruined,” she muttered.
Cambree’s gut twisted. Troy. He said he’d had his way with Britney the night before he attacked Cambree. “Troy?” she asked.
Britney stared at her. “What about him?”
“Did he … attack you?”
“Oh.” Britney shook her head. “No. We made out the first night of camp, but it was nothing.”
Cambree’s shoulders relaxed. “So what’s going on?”
Britney twisted her hands together. Her gaze darted to Lucy and then to Cambree. “I came to this camp because I’m five pounds heavier than last year, and no matter how hard I work, I can’t lose it.” She sighed. “My agent told me if I don’t lose it, I’ll lose my contracts with Sports Illustrated and Maxim. I thought this camp would be my answer, but I’ve actually gained two pounds this week.” She focused on Cambree. “Not to point fingers, but I took your advice to eat a little more than usual.”
Cambree wasn’t quite sure how to respond to that.
“What a load of bull crap,” Lucy spit out. She gestured to Britney. “You are perfectly gorgeous. The reason you weigh a little more is because you’re gaining more muscle. Throw your stupid scale away, fire your agent, and go be a supermodel if that’s what you want to be.”
Britney’s eyes widened. She pushed back against the sofa and simply stared at Lucy. Cambree didn’t know what to say to soften Lucy’s words, and she didn’t think she should soften them. Lucy was dead-on.
The silence lingered for a few more beats. Cambree pressed Britney’s hand; at least she could back up Lucy. “Lucy is exactly right. You’ve got a perfect shape, a gorgeous face, and the sweetest smile ever. Weight shouldn’t matter a bushel of beans, and I’m sure you can find an agent with a brain in his head who will only care about how fabulous you look and the contracts he can secure for you. Your agent answers to you, not the other way around.”
Britney’s mouth opened and closed. Her eyes glistened, and then tears spilled over. She hugged Cambree and then released her, jumped to her feet, and hurried over to hug Lucy. She stood in the middle of the room, looking back and forth between the two of them. “You two are the best. Thank you!” Her eyes narrowed. “Wait. You aren’t just saying this to butter me up so I’ll be your friend and you’ll know someone famous, right?”
Lucy cackled. “I thought you’d gotten to know me a little bit this week. I never say anything to butter somebody up. And Cambree knows Emmett Hawk; she doesn’t need any other famous friends.”
Britney wrapped her arms around herself and squealed. “You’re right! You would never do that, and Emmett Hawk is a little bit more famous than me.”
Lucy lifted her eyebrows at Cambree.
Britney gave a self-satisfied nod. “I’ve been killing it this week with the workouts and I’m going to keep killing it, and when this camp is over, my agent is either going to be supportive of me or I’ll find someone else.” She grinned. “I love you both!” As Cambree and Lucy stood, Britney hugged each of them a few more times before they escaped her cabin.
Lucy walked with Cambree to her cabin door. “You know what? That felt good. I’ve hated Britney and what she represents because of jacktard Tim and who he cheated with, but none of that is Britney’s fault. Yeah, she’s a shallow drama queen who likes to show her butt cheeks off, but she’s a person and deserves to be happy.”
Cambree nodded. “You did amazingly fabulous, Lucy.”
Lucy sized her up. “What about you? Falling in love with the gorgeous billionaire superstar, are we?”
Cambree hugged herself and grinned, though her worries pricked as she thought of Emmett as the billionaire and superstar. He was both, and she hated that world, but she liked Emmett too much to let the outsid
e world intrude just yet. “I can’t seem to help diving off the cliff.”
“Hey, nobody’s blaming you. You two are both great. I wish you loads of happiness.”
“You’ll find happiness again too,” Cambree said.
“Maybe. But I’m already happy. I’ve got my boys, my daughters-in-law, and my grandgirls. And I know that I can rock this fifty-year-old body as well, and I’ve got my moxie back. That’s enough for right now. I’m not waiting around for any man.” She winked and turned, strutting back to her cabin.
“Wow, girl, you own that strut,” Cambree called out.
“You know it.” Lucy laughed and waved.
Cambree really liked Lucy, and she was glad they could help Britney out. Only two days left of camp and they’d all return to real life. Would what she and Emmett were developing last past the shelter of this beautiful wooded spot? Sadly, she didn’t think it would. Dread filled her gut. She wanted to enjoy the time with Emmett, but every minute she fell harder for him. Was she an idiot to let herself fall?
Chapter Eight
The next day passed much too quickly, and real life loomed around the corner. Cambree didn’t let herself think about it too much and simply enjoyed being with Emmett—his solidness, his quiet teasing, the way he touched her as he helped her lift or pushed her to climb faster or hang from an obstacle longer. They laughed a lot, and she lived for the times when he would whoop and call her his girl.
After lunch, Emmett stood and announced, “A very good friend of mine has agreed to come speak to y’all today.” He grinned around at the group, then strode to the door of the dining room.
He walked back in with a woman so beautiful and well-known that Cambree felt her stomach swoop with excitement to meet her. Yet as she took in the too-comfortable way this perfectly put together lady was clinging to Emmett’s arm, her stomach dropped like a lead balloon.
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