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Cameron covered him with the old quilt again, and then went to the kitchen and made a cup of coffee. When he looked out, the ground was white and the air was full of snowflakes so huge they looked like feathers. He stood at the window, watching the snow spinning into an eddy beneath the security light and drinking coffee simply for the boost of caffeine. He’d sleep when she was well.
***
It was just after sunup, but Cameron’s phone was on fire. After a half-dozen texts and three phone calls, all from family, the secrecy of Rusty’s presence and what had been happening in Jubilee was unraveling. But it didn’t matter. His entire focus was on the woman in his bed.
The snow was still falling but lighter now, and Ghost was thoroughly disgusted by the depth of it to the point that he’d cut his ramblings short and meandered only far enough away to do his business before running back to the house.
Cameron was watching from the back door, and when Ghost started running, he opened the door and stepped back, knowing the moment the dog’s wet feet hit the floor he was going to slide.
Cameron grinned. “Nice landing,” he said, and shut the door.
He grabbed a towel and began digging the snowpack from between Ghost’s toe pads, then gave him a chew bone for his troubles.
Ghost trotted off with it hanging from his mouth like a big cigar.
A few moments later Cameron heard footsteps, and then Rusty walked into the kitchen. She was wearing her heaviest sweatshirt and oldest jeans and thick fuzzy socks with her house slippers. Her curls looked like she’d combed them with her fingers and called it done, and the side of her face where Kelly hit her was purple and the eye above it was turning black.
“Ah God…honey. If you’d looked like that yesterday, I wouldn’t have stopped at winging him,” Cameron muttered, and wrapped his arms around her. “Want some coffee?”
She nodded and slid down into a chair at the table.
“How about oatmeal? I made some, and you won’t have to chew,” Cameron said.
Rusty nodded again. She could talk, but every time she opened her mouth, her jaw popped so hard it felt like it was falling off her face, so it wasn’t worth the pain.
Cameron brought the hot cereal to the table. It had a pat of butter melting on top, and he set a bowl of brown sugar and a carton of half-and-half in front of her to let her do her thing.
She gave him a big thumbs-up and doctored the cereal to her liking, then opened her mouth just enough to slide in the first bite.
“Ummm. Thanks,” she said.
“Just eat. I’ll talk.”
She nodded and took her second bite.
“So here’s the scoop,” Cameron said. “Various scenarios of the truth are all over Jubilee, but close enough not to be libelous.”
She smiled at the phrasing and then winced and nodded instead.
“Agent Howard called me last night after you were asleep. He thinks they’re going to be able to locate some of the women who were sold, or at least a starting point to finding some. He also said they’ve found a money trail. I’m paraphrasing here, but he kind of apologized for sending you into a volatile situation. He thought they’d get Barton before that happened. He thanks you, and he’ll be in touch.”
She rolled her eyes and shook her head. “I’m done,” she mumbled.
Cameron sighed.Thank you, Lord.
“I’m not going to pretend that’s not the best news I’ve ever heard, because that would be a lie. I’m not sure I’d survive long watching you running into burning buildings instead of away from them. And yes, that was an analogy, but you get my drift.”
“Not sure I’d survive it again, either,” she said, then finished the oatmeal and carried her bowl to the sink, then went back to the table and plopped down in Cameron’s lap. “You. Me. No more wars,” she said.
Cameron cupped the back of her head and laid his cheek against the curls.
“You. Me. Forever after?” he said.
She met his gaze.
“Deal. Love you,” she said, then winced again. “Ice?”
“Yes, for your jaw?”
