Page 31 of The Wrong One

“I’m sorry you had to go through any of that,” he replied. “You deserve better. You shouldn’t have had to put up with that. You deserve a man that will treat you right and love you like you should be loved.”

“Maybe Patrick and I weren’t meant to be,” I whispered. “He was a roadblock. He blocked me and then diverted me back here. Back home.”

I didn’t say it, but I was thinking maybe I was always supposed to be here. With him. He was the man I was meant to be with.

Cam cupped my cheek and kissed me. His hand slid back, his fingers weaving through my hair as he held the back of my head and kissed me. I opened my mouth and let his tongue in, sliding mine against his. I couldn’t believe I was actually doing this. Cam was the guy I crushed on throughout my teen years. He was always out of reach. He was the older guy, and I was way too young for him. But now, age didn’t matter.

Laughter from just beyond pulled me back to the moment. Cam pulled away, leaving me feeling lost. “We can’t,” he murmured.

I couldn’t see why we couldn’t. We did it very well. “Why?” I asked with my lips tingling.

“Ramsey,” he said.

My brother. My brother who declared himself the gatekeeper of my love life. I wanted to tell Ramsey to back off, but when I considered the man I chose and how well that worked out, I realized I might need a gatekeeper.

We didn’t move. We stayed in the same position with our bodies pressed together. I felt like if I got up, I might lose him. And I didn’t want that. I wanted to kiss him again. And again.

“Ramsey.” I sighed when I realized there was no way anything could happen between us.

Cam scooted back before getting to his feet. “We should get back to the lab,” he said and reached out to help me up.

We walked back to the lab without saying a word. It didn’t feel awkward between us, but there was definitely a change in the dynamic between us. I couldn’t explain what it was, but it was like we were just seeing each other for the first time. Cam wasn’t just Ramsey’s friend or the annoying dude who always hung around eating the last slice of pizza. He was a man. A single, eligible man who was a really good kisser.

It was going to be hard to focus on work when my lips were still tingling from the touch of his lips against mine. The kiss had been hot. If that was a precursor to what the man could do, I couldn’t imagine what a real kiss would be like.

ChapterFourteen

Cam

Isat in one of the chairs in Ramsey’s living room feeling a mix of excitement and nervousness. We were about to pitch our groundbreaking technology. I was still a little freaked out about actually taking it public. Our successes with other technology had made us very rich and we had a pretty good reputation in the industry, but it was still a little scary to go this big.

“I can’t believe we’ve reached this point,” I said, running a hand through my hair. “Years of research and dedication have led us here. This technology has the potential to change countless lives. Do you know how many other people have tried and failed to do this? I think you’re going to be met with a lot of skepticism at first.”

Ramsey nodded, a confident smile on his face. “You’re absolutely right. We’ve poured our hearts and souls into this project, and now it’s time to show the world what we’ve accomplished. More like what you’ve accomplished.”

“You’re doing the pitching,” I said. “I’m just the guy who smiles and nods.”

He smirked. “I know.”

“What are you going to say?” I asked him.

He cleared his throat and got to his feet. “With our system, doctors will be able to detect diseases at their earliest stages, giving patients a fighting chance for successful treatment. Imagine a world where genetic illnesses can be intercepted before they manifest, allowing for more effective interventions and improved patient outcomes.”

I nodded. “I like it. I wouldn’t get to into the specifics. You’ll bore people.”

“I know,” he replied with a chuckle. “I’ll keep it fairly light. That’ll be the opening to grab their attention.”

“It’s good,” I agreed.

“How does this sound?” he asked and pulled out his phone to read the speech from his screen. “We’ve conducted extensive testing and validation studies, and the results speak for themselves. Our technology boasts an impressive accuracy rate of ninety-eight percent, significantly higher than any existing diagnostic tool on the market.”

“Technically, I think we could say ninety-nine,” I told him. “But ninety-eight works.”

“We don’t want to make it sound like this is too good to be true,” he commented. “The information you gave me was ninety-eight point eight.”

“Good point,” I said. “That’s why you do this part of the thing.”

He laughed. “I know.”

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