Page 18 of Made to Be

Cam chuckled, “She’s very shy.”

“Wait, she? You’ve seen her?” I was utterly flabbergasted. “How?”

Afterall, I’d lived in this house for over a year now. But Cam had been here for less than a day and she’d already shown herself to him? Rude.

He shrugged, smiling to himself before taking another bite.

I internally cringed at the many rather inappropriate things she’d likely been witness to. Not just my experiments and other shenanigans, but like... the three-day boner session or my drawers of dildos or... Shit, had she seen...? No, no way.

I shook the thoughts away as we finished our food. We talked casually about this and that, and Cam asked me little things like what I did for work and about Alice at the morgue. He seemed genuinely interested in what I had to say, which was... really nice. He was a good listener, but I didn’t want to only talk about myself. However, he still couldn’t remember much from his previous life so any questions I had for him that he couldn’t quite answer yet, I tabled for another time.

After putting the leftover chili away, Cam stood at my side as we cleaned up the dishes. I washed while he dried, and all awkwardness from earlier had melted away as we worked in companionable silence. Chewing on my lip, I scrubbed the last bowl, suddenly filled with anxious nerves knowing what I needed to bring up next.

Do it, just ask,I lectured myself.Rip the band aid off, scaredy cat.

“So, Cam... Um,” I began, able to see him watching me from the corner of my eye. “Did you maybe... want to go on a… date?” Then, more specifically in case I wasn’t being clear, “With me. You and me. Together. Ya know,” I handed the clean bowl to him and scratched at my burning ear. “As a date.”

I released a long breath, my face on fire.

Nailed it.

“A... date?” Cam echoed, setting the dry bowl down onto the counter.

I nodded.

“With me?” He added as he pointed to himself. He was wearing the most shocked and adorably bewildered expression, eyes wide and head slightly tilted.

Then the inner panic struck.

Oh, unholy shit, what if he wasn’t into men? The thought hadn’t even occurred to me when I’d decided that he was Mr. Right. What if he wasn’t, and his not-gayness was still ingrained in him even after being brought back?

I was torn between the need to barf and wanting to be anywhere but here facing imminent rejection. The panic must have been evident on my face, either that or the fact that I was seconds from bolting, because a pair of strong hands were suddenly gripping my shoulders, turning me to face him. I jolted and stared up to meet Cam’s unsteady gaze. Nervous but not... Not uncomfortable. Not disgusted or appalled, just a shy, slightly flustered quirk to his lips.

Then he smiled. Full and bright. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. For some reason, it made me think of the moon. The ever-quiet, stunning glow that shined through even the darkest of nights. While many might have seen it as a cold, distant,unfeeling thing, to me it was warm and gentle. Comforting.

Wow, who knew a crush could turn me into a poet?

My chest grew unbearably tight, so I rubbed at my sternum to soothe away the ache.

My breath whooshed out of me, and I swore I saw a flash of color shine through the milky film of his eyes. I couldn’t catch which hue though as he said,

“Yeah.I’d love to.”

CHAPTER 4:

What’s a first date without hiding

a body behind a dumpster together?

CAM DIDN’T WAKE UP until almost noon the following day. It seemed that being resurrected made one sleep like the dead. Ironic.

But it was fine that he was sleeping in. I was a walking, buzzing ball of giddy excitement. Cam had saidyesto going on a date with me. An actual date. And I was taking him on said date today. I was also extremely nervous and spent far too much time picking out what I was going to wear. Not that I thought Cam would care all too much what I wore, but I still wanted to put effort in my appearance for him. This would be our first date, after all. Well, unless we counted shopping yesterday as one, which I didn’t.

I was sitting at the kitchen table working on my third cup of coffee when Cam at last emerged from his room. As I heard him coming down the stairs, I set down the book I was reading, one that I’d bought off the Darkmage Web, and watched as his sleep-rumpled hair peeked into view. Black strands stood up wildly inall directions that my hands itched to finger through. His hair looked... ridiculously soft. Which I knew for a fact that it was.

Standing in the kitchen doorway, he tiredly rubbed his eyes and let out a wide, sleepy yawn. He was shirtless, only wearing a loose pair of pajama pants riding low on his hips. I tried and failed to keep my focus glued to his face, but my traitorous eyes kept falling to those... muscles. And that deep V disappearing tantalizingly beneath the waist of his pants was just... wow. I could feel my mouth going dry, so I took another deep gulp of coffee.

When he spotted me, a sweet smile broke out across his face as he said in a voice husky with sleep,