And as I took in the sight of him, with his red hair and bright smile and laughing eyes, I had to admit that, yeah.
Maybe he was.
Chapter 8
FINN
Cameron Walker was the most awkward turtle I’d ever met.
Case in point—we were in his own house, but he still blushed when after dinner I asked where the bathroom was. He apologized for not showing me sooner, then disappeared and reappeared clutching a fresh towel. “I thought you might like to shower. Not that you smell or anything,” he said quickly, his cheeks going pink. “I mean you do, but you smell like brown sugar and spice and gingerbread. It’s kind of amazing. You’re like a human Yankee Candle. Not that I’ve been sniffing you, because that would be weird!” He let out a nervous, high-pitched laugh, at which point I took pity on him.
“Bakery smells are the best,” I said easily, “but a shower would be great.”
Cameron lost his anxious expression and handed me the towel. I flashed him a grateful smile and closed the door. I stripped down quickly, turned on the taps, and got under the water.
The steam and heat went a long way to soothing my aching muscles, although I could feel the deep throb where bruises had formed on my tailbone. I didn’t know what the situation was with Cameron’s water heater, so I didn't linger under the spray,as tempting as that was. Instead I soaped myself up quickly and rinsed off, then stepped out of the shower and dried myself.
It took me all of two seconds to figure out that although my underwear was fine, the rest of my clothes were too damp to put back on.
Well, shit.
I put my boxer briefs on before opening the door a crack. “Uh, Cameron?”
Seconds later he appeared, a worried crease between his brows. “Are you okay? You’re not dizzy or anything, are you?”
I opened the door wider. “No, but I don’t suppose you have something dry that I can wear?”
Cameron’s gaze traveled down over my bare chest, lingering on the soft bulge in the front of my underwear before he caught himself and his head snapped up, his cheeks darkening.
“I mean I can stay like this if you’d prefer?” I said with a teasing smile, just to see him blush harder.
Cameron swallowed, eyes wide, and said, “I—uh—let me—” and then he vanished.
He was back in under a minute, holding out a faded long-sleeved tee, a pair of dark sweats, a navy sweater, and a pair of fleecy socks. He gave an apologetic sigh. “They might not exactly fit since I’m shorter than you, but they should be warm enough. I’m sorry I didn’t think to stop and pick up some dry clothes. I guess I was more rattled than I thought.”
“It’s fine,” I said. I took the clothing with a nod of thanks that made my head thump more than I wanted to admit and closed the bathroom door. I dressed quickly, before the warmth of the shower left my body completely. The tee and the sweater were tight across my chest and around my biceps, and the sweats left an inch of bare ankle that reminded me of the time back in high school when I’d grown six inches seemingly overnight andnothing had fit right. But the socks took care of that, and at least I was warm.
I hung my towel on the rail to dry and made my way out to the living area. Cameron was in the kitchen with his back to me, and I caught the scent of chocolate right before he turned with two steaming mugs in his hands. “I thought you might like some hot chocolate,” he said, raising his eyebrows.
I took the mug gratefully and inhaled, catching underlying notes of cinnamon and nutmeg. I took a sip and moaned as the flavors, warm and rich, rolled over my tongue. “This is incredible.” I took another sip and hummed in appreciation.
Cameron flashed me a pleased smile, and we settled at the dining table with our drinks and sipped in companionable silence until the shower, the hot chocolate, and the painkillers I’d taken earlier all combined to wash over me in a wave of exhaustion. I found myself letting out a massive yawn before I’d reached the bottom of my mug.
“Sorry,” I said, right before another yawn escaped me. “I guess it’s been a day.” I drained the rest of my mug and went to stand, but I had to grab the side of the table when the world tilted a little. Okay, maybe I was more than just tired.
Cameron’s gaze narrowed. “You’ve gone pale.”
“I just stood up too fast,” I said.
“You need to go to bed,” he said firmly.
“Yes, nurse,” I teased, but bed actually sounded amazing. I wanted to sink into a pile of blankets and pass out until my head and my tailbone stopped throbbing. Except there was only one other door in the cabin, presumably leading to only one bedroom—and only one bed.
This shit was getting more Hallmark by the minute, wasn’t it?
I glanced over at the closed door and Cameron followed my gaze. “You take my room. I’ll sleep on the couch,” he said, standing.
“What? No. I’ll take the couch,” I said.
