Page 24 of One Night Redemption

"So it's always been me?" I question, letting the answer that I know is true wash over me. "I'm both the fuck up and the one she wanted."

"You can be both at the same time, Cam, but I don't think anyone blames you. We were young, and I don't think you were prepared to be the man she needed. Not back then. Now though? Now you know, and you're capable. So now if you break her heart? I break your fuckin' face."

Normally I wouldn't take a threat seriously from someone who's almost two feet shorter and a hundred pounds smaller than me. But Cassie's friends go hard for her, and truthfully, it's understandable. "You do know how much I love my face," I tease, giving her a grin. "All joking aside, I do not want to break her heart, I don't want to cause her pain, and for the first time ever, I want to be the person who doesn't disappoint. I might have pushed her to Brandon, but I'm going to keep that whole damn family from ruining her if it's the last thing I do." I check my watch and see that it's time to clock off. "I gotta go, but thanks for the talk."

Fifteen minutes later, I'm pulling into Cassie's driveway again, taking those same porch steps two at a time. I knock, but only for politeness, before opening the door. "Cass, are you okay?"

She's lying on the couch, what looks to be a frozen bag of veggies on her head, covered up with a blanket. When she looks at me, her bottom lip quivers. "I was until right now." She pulls her lips tightly together.

"What's wrong? What hurts?" I rush over, going in behind her on the couch, and taking her in my arms.

"My whole body does now that the adrenaline is gone, my head more than anything." She sighs, sniffling. "But, I'm pissed. So fucking pissed that she would threaten Mamaw's car."

"Cassie." I run my hands up and down her arms. "I hate to say this to you, but that car can be replaced."

"It can't," she argues, her voice shrill. "That was her pride and joy. She earned that walking up and down the street selling makeup and face products. It might've been a crappy MLM, but it was the only thing she could get back then. It fed me, Cam. It raised me as much as she did."

I close my eyes, trying to figure out how I'm going to say this without hurting her. "That wasn't her pride and joy, Cass. You were. She did it all for you. You have to know that, and it's understandable that your emotional attachment to the car is what it is. Having said that, please don't put yourself in the situation you did tonight. You could've really been hurt. As it is you're gonna have a shiner in the morning, and I'm still not convinced you shouldn't go get checked out."

She makes a noise in the back of her throat. "I'm a nurse, Cam, if I thought I needed to be looked at, I'd have you take me in. I promise, I'm okay. Just tired, and emotionally done with people."

I drop a kiss to the top of her head. "If I draw you a bath, would you get in it? Because you're going to be sore. Just the adrenaline will make you feel it tomorrow, and your knuckles look rough."

"I will." She answers softly. "But only if you get in with me."

"Deal." I push her up slightly before reaching out and taking her hand in mine. "You can sit on your bed as I get everything ready. No need to be here on this couch by yourself."

"Thank you, Cam."

"No need to thank me.” I might not be able to tell her how I feel yet, but I can damn well show her.

Chapter

Nineteen

Cassie

The sound of the alarm is like a goddamn siren ringing in my ears. I roll over, groping for my phone. Every single part of me hurts. My head aches, my hands are beat to hell and if I could get a hold of Jenna today, I’d probably beat the piss out of her just for spite at this point.

I finally get a hold of my phone, but when I look at the screen, it isn’t my phone that’s making that grating noise. It’s Cam’s, which is on the other nightstand and too far away to even try to get to. Instead, I grab his pillow and put it over my face, trying to block out the sound.

A few seconds later, it goes silent. There’s pressure on the pillow, tugging it away. And when I let go of it, Cam tosses it aside.

“If you wanted to end it all, Cass, that’s a very unreliable method.”

“Make sure that alarm is off or I’m going to end you,” I threaten.

“Big talk for a woman who couldn’t even get to the other side of the bed,” he laughs. Still, he shuts off the alarm and replaces his phone on the nightstand.

I glance at it as it hits me that he left it in here. Yeah, it’s locked, but if someone texted him, I could see it. If someone called him, their name or number would pop up on the screen. It dawns on me that leaving his phone within my reach while he’s in another room is a sign of trust.

“Seven, two, zero, three, five, four.”

The random string of numbers is confusing. “What the fuck is that?”

“The passcode to my phone,” he says. “There’s nothing in there you don’t know about. Nothing in there that I feel like I have to hide from you.”

I just sit there in stunned silence as Cam tosses his phone on the bed in front of me and heads for the door. When he reaches it, he glances over his shoulder, “You want breakfast? I can make some scrambled eggs and bacon.”

---