Page 37 of Effortless

“Some men need a harsh hand, Tommaso, and some only need a harsh word. You will figure out which man is which. That is how you’ll win this war.”

“How do I figure out which is which, Dad?”

“By paying attention. Some men are like vicious dogs, and the only way to deal with them is to put them down. Others are just loud, disruptive, and intimidating, but they know how and when to step back with the right motivation. Figure out which men fall into which category, son. Also, I sincerely hope you’ve put this gunrunning nonsense to bed, Tommaso.”

And just like that, Tom’s irritation was back in a blink. “Not really, actually.”

“Shame.”

His father hung up the call without a goodbye.

Right then, Tom didn’t mind.

His mind was on someone else …

Tom leaned against the hood of the Mercedes as people filtered through the parking lot. Beside the car, Camilla’s Mustang GT sat parked and waiting for her. It was the only help Cross was willing to give Tom where Camilla was concerned. Her location, and when he could find her there.

So, here he was, at Rory Meyers College.

Waiting.

“Two questions.”

Tom’s head lifted at Camilla’s sweet voice. He found her standing twenty feet away with a messenger bag slung over her arm, and wearing navy blue scrubs with the school’s emblem on the right breast pocket. Even in scrubs and plain white shoes, with her hair pulled back into a neat ponytail, and her face free of makeup, the girl looked good.

Amazing, really.

He smiled. “What’s your questions?”

“Is that Mercedes a rental or yours? I didn’t see you driving something before.”

“It’s a rental. I just traded it in for something else, but I have to wait a couple of days for it.”

“And that something else is …?”

“You only said two questions, Cam.”

She pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. “Okay, second question, then. Why are you at my college?”

“Just thought I should say goodbye before I head out of state in a couple of days, that’s all.”

He didn’t miss the way her lips pouted or her shoulders dropped. She hid it quickly enough, sure, but it still happened.

“Well, have a good flight, I guess,” Camilla said.

Tom tipped his head toward the car. “I’m not heading out of state for a couple of days. Just thought you would like to know when and all.”

Camilla abused her bottom lip with her teeth, and fiddled with the strap on her bag before saying, “I figured not answering your last couple of texts after Luna Park would have given you the hint that I’m not interested in anything beyond what we already did, Tom. We hooked up a couple of times, that’s it.”

“Had you answered my messages, you would have figured out I just wanted to meet up before I headed out of state. Say goodbye. Like friends do.”

Her gaze darted away from his. “Friends, huh?”

“Sure.”

“I don’t fuck my friends, Tom.”

“Well, we’re definitely not anything else, right?”