Page 156 of Already At Risk
I pressed my lips together, trying not to let a little whine of disappointment slip out of me.
It was no use.
Cameron’s eyes blazed bright, feral in the way they worked over me.
“Well,Iwant you to sit on my face, Sunshine, but sometimes we have to wait for the things we want.” He licked his lips like he was imagining it and then opened his car door. “Come on, baby.”
And because following Cameron Bryant was the easiest thing in the world, I stepped out of the car and took his hand.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
natalie
CAMERON LED ME TOWARD a building that was boxy and nondescript, and it wasn’t until we got closer to the doors that I realized I’d been here before.
“Are we at the?—”
I cut off, because there was no way, right?
But Cameron smoothly finished for me. “Planetarium?” He gave me a sideways glance that glowed with excitement. “Of course we are.”
I was still reeling from what had happened in the car, and nowthis?
Speechless, I followed him inside, where it was all but empty except for us. Cameron directed me to an auditorium that boasted a domed ceiling, sprinkled with lights.Stars. We walked past the rows of plush seats, down to the middle of the room, where blankets were laid on the ground, along with boxes of some kind of takeout food, drinks, and cushions.
I stared at the display, completely lost for words.
He’d rented out aplanetariumfor our first date?
“I wanted to give you the stars without the bugs,” he said, turning toward me and shucking his hands in his pockets, looking a bit sheepish. It was my favorite look of his, a reminder that eventhough Cameron always acted like he had everything put together, this was all new for him, too. And we were both just doing our best, hoping for the best.
My heart swelled in my chest, pressing against my sternum.
“One day, I’ll find a truck, load you and Chloe up in it, and take my girls somewhere out of the city to stargaze the way your dad took you when you were younger, but until then…” Cameron drifted off, his eyes roaming across the starry ceiling, and I shook my head in disbelief.
My girls.
I had no idea how to put into words what his thoughtfulness meant to me. I was constantly inawe.
“Natalie?”
The tone of Cameron’s voice made me realize that I’d been staring at him with my hand over my mouth and tears in my eyes. My whole body vibrated, both because of the edge he’d left me on in the car and the emotions bouncing around inside me. He could probablyseethe way I shook. “Are you okay?”
I nodded, dropping my hand to reveal the smile beneath it, and Cameron chuckled, opening his arms and moving toward me.
“Come here, Mama,” he murmured, and I gladly stepped into his arms.
“It’s just the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me,” I admitted. “And what you said about stargazing with Chloe—” My throat closed for a second, words getting stuck in it. “She’d really like that.”
“I’d really like it, too,” he said, voice gentle, like he knew I was moments from breaking. He pulled me down onto the blanket, tucking me between his legs and dragging me back against his chest. Then he reached around to unbox the food: sandwiches with thick, decadent bread, colorful fruit, and gourmet snacks. He brought a strawberry up for me to take a bite, and I leaned forward, happy to do so.
The room was dimly lit, dark enough so we could see the stars but enough light so we could see our food. It settled a sort ofpeace over me. In the background, soft music played, the gentle strumming of guitars and familiar melodies flowing from a hidden speaker.
“You know, I think about the things I’d like to do with the two of you all the time,” Cameron said after a long pause. His lips pressed to the column of my throat while I chewed, lingering in a way that made me feel flushed. “But only when you’re ready. And Chloe, too.”
“Chloe?”
Had hemetmy daughter? She couldn’t be more excited every time Cameron walked in the door in the evenings. Or when she staggered downstairs in the morning to find that he was still there, making her breakfast in the kitchen.
