Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 98264 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98264 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
“And miss the complimentary shampoo?”
“I hear the bedbugs are complimentary too.”
“You hear anything about frogs though?”
I barked a laugh and reached over to give his forearm a squeeze. “It’s really good to see you. And not just because you saved my ass back there.”
He rested his hand on top of mine and smiled, warm and content. “You too, Nora. You too.”
“Come on. Let’s go to my place and have a beer. I live off Springdale Road now.”
“Um, actually, I really do need to get settled in and get some rest. I have a call with the prosecutor's office in the morning. He was out with his wife tonight, but I’d like to get a feel for where his head’s at on all of this. Being a Saturday, I’m sure he’ll want to keep it brief though.”
I tipped my head to the side. “Why do you know the prosecutor in Clovert? And, for that matter, Judge Wallace too?”
He put the car into drive and got back on the road, answering, “Because I’ve made it my business to know them. It’s the same reason I’m a member of the Bar in Georgia. Eventually, Jonathan was going to pull something, and I wanted to be the one to handle it when he did. Sets me on fire that he’s decided to pull it on you, but I’m hoping to transfer that heat to him, and watching him burn might be more fun.”
Awestruck, I sat there, staring at the side of his handsome face, a warmth filling my chest. Camden Cole still had my back no matter what.
My gut instinct was to feel guilty, to apologize for him having to take on so much of my issues to the point that he’d built a safety net for me into his own career.
I wanted to be embarrassed that I needed him and feel shame about how he was stuck with a friend like me.
But year after year, I’d been uninstalling the drawers in my head, so there was no longer a place to put those feelings other than out in the open.
“I hate that I’ve made so many of my problems your problems too.”
He shot me a side-eye. “Are you kidding me? I’d have flown down here and planted weed in your purse years ago if I’d thought it would get me involved in a case with that prick.”
“Okay, then at least let me pay for your plane ticket. I feel bad.”
“It didn’t seem like you felt bad while you were giggling back at the station.”
“Well, no. You made Jonathan your bitch. That was fucking amazing. But I feel bad now.” Reaching over, I slid my hand on top of his and intertwined our fingers. It was something so natural I didn’t even question it. Yes, I would always be attracted to Camden. But this was not a hey, I'd really enjoy ripping your clothes off again type of physical gesture. It was more of the thanks for always being there when I need you variety.
The problem was, regardless of the variety, Camden immediately pulled his hand away. “There’s no reason to feel bad. We’re friends,” he stated.
Remember that mixture of caress and curse he’d hit me with earlier? Yeah, this one was all curse.
I leaned back in my seat, an awkward sense of unease slithering across my skin. We were friends. There was no arguing that. But why had he said it with such a force it was as though he’d planted a shield in the ground at his feet.
It had been a seriously long day. There was a good chance I was just being sensitive and reading into things. “Right. Friends,” I muttered.
He nodded and turned onto my street. “Which house is yours?”
“Corner on the right.”
He slowed and I waited for him to turn into my driveway, but instead, he pulled up in front of my house and put it in park. The best part? He didn’t even cut the engine.
“I’ll be by to get you in the morning. Say about nine? We can grab your car from impound and then head over and talk to Joe. Hopefully, by then, we’ll have more information from the prosecutor and know how to handle things. But you need to get some rest and I need to make a game plan.”
He looked at me expectantly, but I just sat there staring at him with a curled lip.
“Are you seriously not staying with me?”
“I’ll be up late working, and when I think, I do a lot of pacing and talking to myself.”
“So…”
“So I’m going to stay at the hotel.”
I stared at him, a knot growing in my stomach. Why did that hurt? We hadn’t seen each other in so long; I wanted to drink up every single second of Camden Cole that I could.
And he wanted to stay at a hotel.