Page 8 of Among the Stars

“Yeah, Mom, I’m here.” Dragging her eyes from Cam, she checked the clock on the stove. Nine thirty-five. If they left now, she could shower and join the festivities by eleven. “I’m sorry I missed breakfast, but I’ll be there before lunch.”

There were mumbles in the background, and her mom said, “Yes, she’s okay,” before returning to the call. “Is Ash coming? We called him trying to find you, but he didn’t answer.”

Gritting her teeth, Veronica shared her ex-husband’s big news. “I’m afraid Ash won’t be with us today.” Or any holidays from now on, she almost added. “He’s in Georgia with his new fiancée, but I’ll see him this evening.”

When he’d shared the news the day before, Ash had insisted they get together tonight. Why, Veronica didn’t know.

“Since when does Ash have a fiancée? I still don’t understand why you two ever split up.”

The pain pills had yet to dull her throbbing headache, and this conversation wasn’t helping.

“I need to go so I can get ready. Tell everyone I’m sorry I scared them, but I’ll be over soon.” Before her mother could respond, Veronica ended the call and slid the phone across the island countertop. “Thank you. At least now they know I’m alive.”

“No problem.” Cam looked ready to say more, but he held his tongue.

She deserved whatever lecture he was holding in. Though at thirty-four, she could take care of herself, getting drunk enough to pass out without someone around to protect her had quite possibly been her dumbest move in a decade. Not to put too dramatic a spin on things, but Veronica owed him a huge debt for giving her a safe place to stay.

That she’d been saved by Cameron Rhodes was still a bit surreal. Her sister, Emma, had devoured the article in The Tennessean magazine, rattling off his details in numerous emails. Veronica had glanced at the Internet version, but all of the images had been of a man in black from some distance away. Man looking seriously out a window. Man looking serious next to a fancy car. She’d never have recognized him serving drinks in a bar, even if she hadn’t been three sheets to the wind.

“About last night—” she started, but he cut her off.

“Don’t worry about it.”

“I don’t normally do that,” Veronica said, not sure why she cared what he thought of her. “Drink like that, I mean.”

The dark-haired Adonis nodded. “Good to know.”

“I appreciate you taking care of me.” She dropped her eyes. “I’m mortified, but I’m grateful.”

Cam lifted a key from a bowl at the end of the counter. “Like I said, don’t worry about it.” He bent to retrieve her white ankle boots and held them out to her. They looked ridiculous in his grasp. “If you’re ready.”

Message received. Time to go. Accepting the shoes, she used the counter to steady herself as she slipped them on.

“What about my coat?”

“Your coat check ticket was for another bar.” He offered her a large black option pulled from a hook by the door. “You can use this one.”

Veronica took the offering and slid the expensive garment over her shoulders. The coat swallowed her. “Is this cashmere?” she asked.

“Wool cashmere.” He opened the door and said, “After you.”

Feeling like a child wearing her father’s ridiculously expensive overcoat, she shuffled over the threshold, hoping the halls would be abandoned. Regardless of whether they’d had sex or not, this was a walk of shame, and considering the building, there was a chance they might encounter someone she knew. Most of her associates lived beyond the city limits, either on secluded, expansive properties, or in posh communities. But there would always be those who preferred the buzz of the city, and The Gulch sat in direct proximity to famed Music Row, the epicenter of country music.

“I’m sorry if I’ve kept you from a family gathering,” she said when the silence grew uncomfortable.

“You haven’t.” They entered the elevator, and he pressed the button for the ground floor.

Lucky him that his loved ones didn’t demand an early start to the festivities. Seconds later, the elevator doors glided open, and Veronica spotted a large Christmas tree in the lobby. The sight made her realize the lack of decoration in Cam’s place.

“You don’t have a tree.”

Cam pointed to the poinsettia-surrounded pine in the corner. “There’s a tree right there.”

“No, I mean you don’t have a tree in your apartment.”

Instead of walking to the glass doors at the entrance, he led her in the opposite direction with a gentle hand on her back. “I don’t put up a tree.”

She was enough her mother’s daughter to be disturbed by such a statement. “Why not?”

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