Page 17 of Fallout
“Let’s give them one more day. If you haven’t heard from their office by this afternoon, follow up tomorrow morning.”
The distinctive clack of a keyboard drifted over the line. “Will there be anything else?”
“That’s it for now.” At least, those were his most pressing concerns. “There’s been extra security assigned to the building, but if you have any problems, call me.”
“I can handle a few reporters, Cameron.”
He could practically hear her eyes roll. “I know you can, but just humor me, okay?”
“I promise to call you if there’s a problem,” she recited.
“Thank you. So, unless something comes up between now and then, I’ll check in tomorrow.”
“I look forward to it.”
Chuckling, he disconnected the call and looked up, just as the couch cushion near his feet dipped. He probably should have been used to it by now, but the weary look on Asher’s face broke his damn heart.
“Hey,” he greeted, his smile a little brighter than necessary.
Asher didn’t smile back. “Everything okay?” he asked with an air of someone preparing for the worst. “Did something happen?”
“No, nothing happened. I was just checking in with Amelia.” He hesitated before continuing, knowing his next words were not going to go over well. “I need to go home.”
As anticipated, Asher stiffened, his spine straight and rigid. “Why?”
“Because I need clothes. My own clothes,” he added, speaking over Asher when he started to argue. “I need to check my mail, water my plants, and since I can’t go into the office right now, I definitely need my laptop.”
There were at least three available computers in the house that he could use, but there was information downloaded on his laptop that he couldn’t access from a server.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” As he spoke, Asher stroked his fingers idly across the top of Cameron’s left foot. “If you tell me what you need, I can send someone to pick it up for you.”
“It’ll be fine.” Despite the upheaval to his routine, he couldn’t just put his life on hold until things blew over. Plus, he really didn’t like the idea of a stranger rummaging through his underwear drawer. “I won’t be gone long.”
Asher stared at him, his gaze penetrating and searching. Eventually, he must have found whatever he was looking for, because his posture visibly relaxed, and he even smiled.
“When do you want to leave?”
His meaning wasn’t immediately clear until he leaned forward as if to rise from the sofa. Jerking upright, Cameron grabbed him by the wrist to keep him in place.
“What are you doing?”
“There is no way in hell I’m letting you go by yourself.”
“Then, I guess we’ve reached an impasse, because you are not leaving this house.”
Talon and Becca would both murder him if he stepped foot outside his front door, and Cameron would not be responsible for the bloodshed. A shiver worked down his spine as he envisioned Becca’s reaction to Asher’s face being splashed across another tabloid. There was only one person on the planet who scared him more than Asher’s agent, and that person had given birth to him.
Instead of the witty comeback he expected, Asher sighed and carded his fingers through his hair, the move stretching his powder-blue shirt across his chest. “Fine, I won’t leave the house, but I still don’t want you to go alone.”
Cameron frowned as he felt the headache building in his temples. “Oz and his team have enough on their plate without babysitting me.”
“No, not them.” He ran his hands through his hair again and looked fixedly down at his knees.
Cameron tilted his head as his eyes narrowed in suspicion. “What did you do?”
“Nothing,” Asher answered a little too quickly. A moment later, he released a long breath that puffed out his cheeks, then finally lifted his head to meet Cameron’s gaze. “I might have hired security agents to follow Natalie, Luke, and Nico around for the rest of the week.” He glanced down again, and added in a mumbled whisper, “And you.”
Cameron stared as a hard knot lodged in his throat. It would be a lie to say he was surprised by the admission, but he hadn’t expected to be so touched by the gesture.
