Chapter 1 #2
Maybe he was right. I threw together a quick picnic lunch and hoped for the best. Roast beef on fresh sourdough for me, microbe-infused spinach wraps and kimchi for Cameron. After filling a water bottle for us and the dog water bottle Cameron had forgotten, I placed everything in my backpack.
Dahlias bloomed alongside my driveway. Not wanting them to nosedive with nothing to cling to—a metaphor for my life—I reminded myself to buy supports. Then, I headed to the local park.
Winding up the path to my favorite hilltop perch, I spotted my little family on the multi-purpose track below.
I placed the picnic pack on the ground and sat on the manicured grass.
Spectators cheered for a soccer game on the nearby pitch, and fried onions lingered in the warm breeze from the hotdog vendor beside the fountain.
Excited yips narrowed my focus to Charz and Pika, where they tugged on the leash Cameron held, trying desperately to get to me. The cropped shirt he wore highlighted the swath of golden skin above his low-riding sweats as he not-so-absently scratched his six-pack.
Damn, why hadn’t I changed my shirt? My hand automatically reached to stretch the fabric away from my gut.
Oblivious to the dogs, Cameron chatted up a jogger stretching beside him. His grin glowed in the distance. He’d done this before.
My heart lurched, but I always gave him the benefit of the doubt. Cameron loved me.
The jogger rose from where he stretched, leaned in, then held Cameron’s bicep as he tapped his number into Cameron’s phone.
My toes curled against the soles of my flip-flops, bracing for impact.
He’d never taken it that far before. Not in front of me, anyways.
It usually amounted to harmless flirting—part of Cameron’s personality.
I tucked my knees into my belly and rested my chin on them. A cold shiver ghosted over me despite the midday sun.
He says he loves me, but…
When we’d first met, he’d showered me with attention. I never could quite grasp what a guy like Cameron, with his charm and supermodel good looks, wanted with me.
Yanked by our yapping dogs, he turned in my direction. He jumped back from the jogger when he spotted me.
I gasped. His guilt hit like a virtual punch to my gut. His fingers fluttered at shoulder level in an awkward wave, then his long stride ate up the distance between us, his mouthwatering smile firmly in place.
Running his fingers through the long part of his hair, he raked it out of his eyes and sat beside me. A trail of goose bumps pricked my skin where he bumped my arm with his. Then he cupped my calf as he wrapped his other arm low around my back, and my muffin top squished in his hold.
Cameron kissed my cheek, all smiles, as if I hadn’t witnessed his obvious attempt at a pickup. “Hey, I didn’t think you were joining us today.”
Give him the benefit of the doubt. Although I wanted to reply with a snarky ‘clearly,’ instead, a shy “I made us a picnic” came out.
“Yes, I’m starved!” He pumped his arm, dove for the backpack and passed me the doggie water bottle. I opened and filled the shallow dish compartment. The pups attacked the dish before I placed it on the grass, slopping cool water into my lap.
Cameron rolled his eyes when I dabbed my lap with a napkin. “You’re such a mess.” He dug in.
I shifted closer to kiss his temple, and my soft belly pressed into his hard side before I murmured, “Cameron, did you give that jogger your number?”
He sighed so long that both dogs chimed in. “About that…” His forefinger circled idly around my kneecap. “Remember our conversation about going non-exclusive?”
Ah, no. What conversation?
The lump in my throat grew so large I could barely swallow. “You’ve been dating other people?”
I shifted out of his reach, my skin stretched too tight, like a snake near shedding.
“Don’t make me out to be the villain, Geo.” Cameron stood abruptly, jutting one hip to the side, framed by dramatically placed bent arms. “You agreed.”
What’s he talking about?
How long had he been, to use his words, “non-exclusive?” “When…when did I agree?”
As much as I didn’t want him to answer that question, I needed him to say it. My hands fisted at my sides as I rose to stand. The dogs circled my ankles, whining at my distress. Cameron’s elbows locked, his nonchalant gaze narrowed to one of concern.
“Why so serious, silly?” He reached up and booped me on the nose. “I still love you.”
But how many others do you love?
“When. Did. I. Agree?” The words bit like venom and pumped adrenaline through my veins.
Cameron stumbled back a step. “For my last conference. You…you said it would be…fine if I went with Mikiao.”
“As fucking friends, Cameron! To share a room and costs. Not to sleep with.”
Months. He’d been dating other men for months. My heart pounded inside my ribcage, imprisoned behind bars. I shook off his hand when he reached for me. He’d been my jailer for too long, and his time to return the keys had expired.
I seethed but steeled myself against his charm. There would be no second-guessing myself this time. “I’m going to Ginger’s.” My chest heaved as I attempted to keep the emotion out of my voice. He would get nothing else of mine. “I want you out of my house by Monday morning.”
His mouth gaping as I spun away from him would be forever etched in my memory.
The mirrors that covered two walls of Ginger’s studio, now an impromptu guest room, told me nothing I didn’t already know. Peering back at me was the same short, hairy guy with a short, fat… Finding another man who would love this package—so not happening.
I flicked the corner of the brochure I’d brought to bed to study.
The idea of a new job on another planet took form under my fingertips.
My eyes laser-focused on the two blue bodies in an embrace on the front, drawn in like a magnet.
Cameron may have shoved me over the line, but Ginger’s dogged persistence had finally found a foothold.
A quick search on my phone led me to an online application.
Two minutes later, the ‘successful orientation registration’ notification flashed.