Page 116 of Cougar

And the claws are out.

Liam snickers quietly beside me. Apparently I’m not the only one who picked up on the tension between these girls.

I’m so focused on the standoff between Jay and Chelsea that I almost don’t notice Cam standing there with his arm around Juliette, Jay’s dance instructor.

The blonde.

* * *

Cam

“This looks bad,” Jules murmurs as we approach the group.

“Hey, man.” I reach out to give Liam the one-arm pat on the back, then nod to Jules. “You remember Juliette?”

“Of course I do.” Liam leans over to hug her and I look over at Emerson, but she won’t look at me.I feel like a dick.

My heart is pounding in my chest. I should’ve told her about Jules months ago.

“She’s also my dance instructor,” Jay adds.

“Ah. So, you’re the one responsible for all that ‘twerking’ my mother shamelessly demonstrated for the family today,” Liam jokes as he pulls his phone from his pocket and taps out a text. “Well, if we’re not gonna see a movie, then I’ve got somewhere to be.”

Emerson waves him off. “Go. I’m too tired to sit through a movie.”

She opens her purse and mindlessly digs through it. I know her well enough to know she’s trying to avoid this awkward standoff. This is so fucked-up. The sooner I get out of here and take Jules home, the sooner I can get back to Emerson and straighten this mess out.

“We’re gonna take off,” I hedge. “Zach, you coming?”

“Nah. I’m staying with Jay.”

Liam leans over and drops a kiss on top of Emerson’s head. “I’m gonna catch a ride with Cam. I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”

I sneak one last glance at Emerson, but she’s still digging through her purse, refusing to look at me.

* * *

Emerson is lying on an oversized chaise, wrapped in a long, white silk robe. Her black hair is in a messy knot on top of her head, and reading glasses are perched on the bridge of her nose, staring down at her book.

“Hey.”

Her head jerks up. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to talk to you.”

She exhales a heavy sigh as she closes her book and tosses it on the floor. She pushes her reading glasses up to her hairline and pats the empty space at her feet.

Closing the door, I head over to the chaise and straddle the end. “I’m sorry for being an idiot.” I brush my fingers over the top of her bare foot and she yanks it back.

“You’re an asshole. Say what you have to say and then leave.”Ouch.

I drag my hands down my face and exhale a breath. “I thought if I ignored you for a few days, you’d realize that you needed me. That you’d come after me. I wanted you to miss me as much—”

“You’re not making any sense,” she snaps. “You ignored me for three days and then lied to me.”

I run my hand over the scruff of my jaw. “I came straight here when I got back from California, because I missed you and I wanted to be close to you. You don’t remember because you were asleep. I crawled in behind you and hugged you to my chest. I told you I missed you. And you said, ‘I missed you, too, Marcus,’ and… I don’t know.” I blow out a breath. “I felt like I’d been kicked in the stomach.”

Her beautiful green eyes gloss over with unshed tears. “So you broke up with me over something I said in my sleep.” Her lips buckle and nostrils flare. “You couldn’t have just talked to me? Instead you toss me to the side like trash and jump into bed with Juliette.” She kicks out her foot, making contact with my inner thigh, just inches from my balls. “You told me you love me, for fuck’s sake. Get out, Cam,” she grits out.

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