AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Oh, that’s because I am very funny,” he answers with a wink.
I nod with a closed-lip smile and for a moment, the room feels smaller. I’ve hung out with Cameron here and there, and we’ve always gotten along. But I don’t know that we’ve ever spent a lot of time alone. When did he get so big? I swear, a year ago he wore that same suit and it draped on him. Now . . . Cameron has muscles?
We break eye contact at the same time, almost as if we both got caught doing something we shouldn’t. Cameron plays another chord on the piano, as soft as the last two. This time, the sound is rather melancholy.
“I should go before Caroline Powell tries to force me into a mobility scooter,” I say as I stand. My leg is tired, but I’ve worked the muscles out enough to make it home.
“I’ll walk you,” Cameron says, quick to stand at the other side of the piano. We both walk around it to meet at the point where a gold-plated rod props up the lid.
“You don’t have to.” I swallow because I’m looking at him differently again—as though he’s attractive. Because . . .shit. He is.
He leans into me and cups my ear.
“I welcome the excuse to get out of this place—every chance I get. Please, I insist,” he whispers, his lips,I swear,brushing my ear with his light laughter. A thousand watts of electricity channel down my spine, and suddenly every muscle in my body feels primed and ready to sprint.
“All right,” I croak.
Cameron leads the way through the vast room built for nothing but show, and he holds up a hand at the open double doors as he looks to the left then right.
“Coast is clear,” he whispers, waving me to follow.
He grabs a long wool coat from the mudroom near the front door and I spot my red pea coat hanging across the room. Before I can slip my arms through on my own, the fabric slackens as Cameron holds my coat open for me to put on.
“Thank you,” I say, blushing.I’m blushing!
The mudroom is dark,thank God!I pull the knit hat from my coat pocket and stuff it on my head as Cameron holds the door open for me. The breeze outside is strong enough to carry dry leaves across our path, and we spend most of the walk with our hands crammed in our pockets and our chins tucked into the collars of our coats.
“For someone who was about to fall over, you’re moving at a pretty solid clip,” Cameron teases. I slow a beat in response, realizing I am close to a walking jog, if there is such a thing.
“I really wanted to get out of there,” I laugh out, meeting his gaze. He smiles with full lips that push dimples into his cheeks, and I’m not as cold as I was a minute ago just from seeing it. My pulse is also racing, which has nothing to do with the pace of our walk.
We reach the corner of campus in minutes, and when we reach the spot where the pathway divides—one route heading to my hall, the other to his—we pause.
“You think you got it from here? I mean, I could still run back and get you that walker,” Cameron teases.
I push him gently and he grabs my hands awkwardly before we both recoil, hiding our hands in our pockets again.
“Don’t you dare,” I say, not thinking about his joke at all now, instead thinking about his hands, the ones that made the piano sound so lovely, how warm they felt in those brief seconds just now, how big they are—strong. His monogramed ring. His tanned skin. The soft lines on his knuckles.
“Well, you take care, Brooky.” He stirs me out of my head, and I laugh nervously as I back away toward my dorm. “I’ve got a date with a few buddies.” He nods over his shoulder, toward the riverwalk, and I get without him saying that he’s going to smoke. For someone so fit and healthy, the guy sure likes his weed.
“Yeah, I’m going to find out why my roommates skipped out on tonight’s party.” Lily and Morgan were on the fence about coming, and I am pretty sure they both ditched me for boys, though Morgan’s situation with her quarterback crush is . . . complicated.
“You do that.” He’s several steps away now, still walking backward, still looking at me and smiling. I wonder how long he can walk like that.
“You’re going to trip,” I shout.
He shakes his head.
“I never fall. Besides, I promised I would make sure you made it to your dorm, and you haven’t climbed those steps yet.” He’s adamant, which is clear by the way he manages without even looking to weave around a stone bench that divides the pathway behind him.
“Fine, but only because I’m afraid you’ll fall in the river if I make you keep this up.” I chuckle, then turn to scale the steps, careful not to put too much weight on my right leg.
“I told you; I don’t ever fall. I know right where that river is. Now, get inside!” His playful scolding has me grinning.
“I’m getting! I’m getting!” I tug the door open and step inside, turning to stare through the glass when it shuts. Cameron salutes me and promptly spins on one foot to continue his journey.
I remain at the door until he’s completely out of view, and I linger for a few extra seconds knowing he’s only on the other side of sculpted hedges that lead to the walking path. Catching myself, I shake my head and laugh at my silly insta-crush.
