Love, Scars, & Shooting Stars

Chapter Forty-Nine

Cam slipped in around the screen door and lingered unseen in the shadowy outer fringe of his own kitchen, still in awe of the sight before him. Julie stood at the sink with her back to him, her faraway gaze reflected faintly in the window as she waited for the sink to fill, and Cam's eyes scanned appreciatively over the length of her body as he continued to watch in silence. Her sandy-blond hair was pulled up in a tousled knot, a few wispy tendrils pasted to the back of her neck by the humid summer heat, her shoulders bare beneath the tiny straps of her filmy, flowered sundress. Cameron had yet to see the treasures that were hidden beneath, but was content to revel in the anticipation of that moment, whenever it should choose to arrive. He let his gaze travel lower, down the length of her spine, over the curve of her backside, along the surface of her tanned legs, right down to her bare feet, standing small and delicate on the hardwood floor that he had installed over a year ago with his own two hands. At the time, he supposed, Cam had been hoping that it would be Jessica's feet standing before his sink, on his porch, in his bedroom, but that all seemed like a faint and distant memory now. Right then, as Julie turned the water off and plunged her hands into the soapy water, he couldn't even begin to imagine the scene with anyone else but her.

"There you are," he said, startling her as he stepped forward into the light.

"Cameron!" she gasped, a soapy hand flying to her chest as she spun around. "You scared me!" She offered him a tentative smile, scooping the suds from her skin and flicking them into the sink. "I figured I'd get some of these dishes cleaned up..."

Cam reached for the towel on the sideboard and dabbed the moisture from her chest.

"The dishes can wait," he said, tossing the towel aside. "You're missing Finn's party."

"I'll be right out," Julie vowed, a tremor creeping into her voice. She turned back to her task at the sink. "I just need a minute."

Cameron fell into place beside her, taking a soapy plate from her hands and rinsing it off before setting it in the rack to dry.

"What's up?" he asked, giving her a playful nudge with his elbow. "Is it the party?"

"No! It's not that," Julie assured emphatically. "The party's fine, and I really appreciate everything that you did to help."

"But...?"

Julie sighed and passed him another plate to rinse.

"I don't know," she shrugged, swirling the dishrag aimlessly through the sudsy water. "It's just that thirteen is such a milestone age, and I guess I'm just wishing that I could've done... more."

"Like what? You wanted to fly him and twenty of his closest friends to Vegas for the weekend?" Cameron ventured with a grin.

"Don't be ridiculous," she chided, a smile twitching at the corner of her lips. "I was thinking three friends, four at the most. And Disney, not Vegas."

"Sure," he laughed, playing along. "That wouldn't be excessive at all!"

Julie smiled, soaping up another dish in the sink.

"I guess I'd just always imagined doing something really... spectacular, you know?"

"That strawberry pie you made was spectacular," Cameron said, sliding in behind her and slipping his arms around her waist. Inhaling her sweet vanilla scent, he leaned down and brushed his lips ever-so-lightly over the salty silk skin of her neck, reveling in the faint mewl of pleasure that escaped through the parting of her lips. She leaned into him, and he continued stating his case, trailing soft kisses down her neck with each point made. "The food was great. The company was great. Finn loves his new bike. And by this time tomorrow he'll be in Old Orchard Beach having the time of his life."

"Don't remind me," Julie groaned, breaking free and snatching the kitchen towel up to dry her hands. Tossing it aside again, she sighed and leaned her back against the counter. "Tell me again why I said 'yes' to that?"

Cameron moved closer, suddenly aware of what was really bothering her.

"Because you wanted your son's father to be a part of his life," he reminded her, his fingertips gliding lightly over her upper arms. "Because Garrett wanted to take him, and Finn wanted to go." Cameron gently tipped her chin up until her eyes met his. "Because you're a good mom, and you want your son to be happy."

She nodded, then snaked her arms around his waist and buried her face against his chest.

"Is it too late to change my mind and say 'no'?" she asked hopefully, her voice muffled and only half-kidding.

"Afraid so," Cam said sympathetically, holding her close. "But it's not too late to change your mind and go with them."

Julie leaned back just far enough to look up at him.

"And you'd be okay with that?" she asked, her tone an equal mix of doubt and hope.

"I would," Cameron said. "If it helped you to feel less anxious, then yes, I'd be fine with it." His eyes locked on hers, and he realized that he was telling the truth. "I'd be fine with it, because I trust you."

A slow smile spread across her lips, and her brown eyes glistened with what he hoped were happy tears. She pulled him in close and rested her cheek against his chest.

"I don't deserve you," she sighed, and then untangled herself from his grasp, wiping her eyes and smoothing her hair in an effort to pull herself together. That accomplished, she took a deep breath and smiled once again. "But, no, I'm going to let Finn have the weekend alone with his father. Like you said, he'll have the time of his life, and it's not like Garrett's going to lose him or anything, right?" She snickered nervously, grabbing the towel from the counter and twisting it mercilessly between her hands. "And I'm pretty sure they have lifeguards at the beach, so it's not like he's going to drown or something, right? Right?"

"He'll be fine," Cameron soothed, rescuing the towel from her iron grasp. "And so will you."

"Right," she agreed, although obviously uncertain. "Finn will be fine, I'll be fine. We'll all be fine. I just have to stop thinking of all the things that could go wrong, distract myself somehow..."

Cam grinned, taking both of her hands in his and pulling her closer. "I might be able to help you with that."

Her eyes darkened to the shade of melted chocolate. "Really?" she purred, an impish smile unfurling over her lips. "And just how do you plan to do that?"

Cameron leaned forward to whisper in her ear but pulled away as Finn and Brandon came barreling through the door and into the kitchen, their faces beet-red and sweaty from riding their bikes around the block. Julie spun around to the sink while Cam snagged the dish towel from the counter and pretended he'd been drying, just to be on the safe side. They'd both agreed to hold off on telling Finn about their burgeoning relationship until they knew that the situation with Garrett was on solid ground.

"You guys have got to see this!" Finn exclaimed, seemingly oblivious to the peachy glow in his mother's cheeks. "Gary challenged Becca to a game of one-on-one, and she's kicking his a— uh, butt." He dropped his gaze to the floor before daring a sheepish glance at his mother. "I meant to say 'she's kicking his butt'."

"Mm-hmm," Julie said dubiously, her arms crossed over her middle. "That'd better be what you meant to say!" She turned to Cameron, her eyes apologetic, but her smile promising a rain check for later. "I think we need to see this for ourselves."