Chapter 37
THIRTY-SEVEN
SAVANNAH
Addie: Happy move-in day! Wish I could help.
Me: Thanks, babe, but there isn’t much to move. It’s a perk of being non-sentimental and cheap.
Josie: Good luck at your game, Addie! And don’t worry, she turned my help down too. She’s all about my mom and your aunts now. We’re old news.
Me: Oh my god. Shut up, you jealous whore!
Josie: Oh, a new nickname. I like it.
Sutton: So MY way of doing things apparently wasn’t so bad after all, huh? You got a boyfriend and a new roommate out of it.
Me: Haha. Yes, thank you, Sutton. I forgot to tell you girls—he FREAKING KNEW about the articles.
Josie: Wait! Why haven’t you called me to explain this already? I’m actually Jealous Whore Barbie now. WTF?
Me: Sorry, the last 24 hours have been a whirlwind. I even got a tattoo!
Sutton: Holy crap! Send pics!
Camden bends down to pick up a box, and with that perfect bubble butt on display like that, I can’t resist giving it a good smack. “C’mere, babe.”
Over his shoulder, he smirks. “Don’t hate the nickname, but if you want my attention, you know how to get it.”
I roll my eyes. “Fine. Daddy.” I can’t even hide the stupid smile that graces my lips. “Could you please come here and take a picture of your new branding with me so I can show the girls how I own you?”
Eyes dancing, he slowly drags his shirt over his head. Everything is a show with him. And it’s all for me. I love every second of it.
And when he removes the bandage covering his tattoo, my heart skips a beat. I still can’t believe he got my name—followed by fucking Snow—tattooed over his heart. It’s so permanent.
“Fuck.” I pant, unable to catch a breath as it all hits me again.
Camden’s cocky smirk goes soft. “I know, baby girl.”
I shake my head, my eyes going to his. “I have to keep reminding myself that this is real. That you’re really here, with my name inked on your skin and—” I roll my lips, my emotions building, making it hard to speak.
“Loving you,” he finishes for me, stepping close. He gently grasps my chin and tilts my head up. “I know, baby girl. People like us, we don’t trust it. But trust this: I love you. And I’m so damn proud to be branded with your name.”
I tug my lip between my teeth. “Well, it’s really your name.”
His expression turns stern. It’s the kind of look that gets me wet. “Don’t make me take you over my lap and remind you that it will be yours as soon as you’re ready.”
As soon as I’m ready? I exhale sharply.
He dives in, his mouth on mine. I sink into him. Sink into this feeling. Never in my life has another person read me so well. This man knows precisely what to do to quiet my racing thoughts.
With his hands on my ass, he lifts me up and sets me on the bed. Then he tears my leggings down, wedges himself between my thighs, and drags his tongue against me in the most deliciously dirty way, making my toes curl.
“Why the fuck do you always taste so good?” He curses against my thigh. “I could stay between these legs for days, baby girl. I’m never going to get enough.”
Head falling back, I thrust my hips, pushing myself against his mouth. “Good, because I’ll never get enough of this.”
With a hum that only drives me higher, he gets back to work, teasing me with long strokes.
My phone buzzes over and over. The sound makes me grin. The girls—mainly Josie—are probably teasing me about getting distracted.
They wouldn’t be wrong. Camden Snow and his wicked tongue are completely distracting. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
We get carried away twice more, fucking on my kitchen counter and then in the shower. Once we’re finally cleaned up, we gather a few more boxes. It’s not quite everything, but my lease doesn’t end until April, so I can come back for the rest when I have time.
“What about these?” Camden points to the three boxes sitting on the kitchen table.
They’re full of memories. Items from when I was a kid. Photos from college and high school. The only picture I have of my mom and me together is in there too.
I shake my head. I don’t want the past to touch what we have. I can’t avoid my mother, and I really haven’t been trying. She’s the one who hasn’t returned my calls lately. But for now, I’d rather not think about her.
The box on the end, though, snags my attention. Some of my fall decorations are inside, I think. Along with a few toys I loved as a kid and couldn’t bring myself to part with. Stepping up to the table, I pick it up. “Just this one.”
He presses a kiss to my lips and takes it from me. “Okay, baby girl. Let’s go home.”
My breath catches, and a goofy smile spreads across my face. “Home.”
That word and the big smile he’s directing at me make my heart flutter. The excitement dancing in his eyes makes me believe this means as much to him as it does to me.
“Yeah,” he says. “Home.”
I flick off the lights to my studio apartment and lock up. Then I follow Camden down the steps. When we pass the Donadios’ door, I hesitate. I’m going to miss them.
Camden stops at the top of the steps leading to the first floor, then backs up and nods. “We have a few minutes.”
Despite my sadness over leaving them, I still can’t stop smiling. I probably look ridiculous as I knock.
“Did Junior say he was coming over?” Rosalie hollers inside.
“Do you want to rev my motor?” Nick shouts in response.
“What?” she yells as the door flies open. “Oh, Savannah. Camden. Never mind, Nico,” she hollers over her shoulder. “It’s the other kids.”
“What kids?” The motor of his recliner whirs. “And what do you mean rev my motor?”
I glance back at Camden and find him biting back a laugh.
“I said—”
“Why are you yelling? I’m right here,” he says, joining us in the doorway.
With a sigh, she turns back to us. “Never mind. Are you all packed?” she asks, her face suddenly a mask of worry.
I nod. “I’m going to miss you both so much.”
She gives Camden a serious look. “You better take care of her.”
He shifts the box onto one hip and wraps an arm around my waist. “I will. And we’ll still come by for Sunday dinners when I’m not traveling.”
Rosalie’s stern expression brightens dramatically. “Such a good boy.”
I hold in a laugh, my mind going straight to the gutter, but when Rosalie focuses on me, her eyes filled with emotion, tears suddenly threaten to escape.
“I’m so happy for you, Savannah. No one deserves this more. Remember, you’re family.” She opens her arms wide.
I throw myself into her embrace, relishing the softness of the woman who has become more of a mother to me these last few years than my own.
Family doesn’t have to be blood. Hell, sometimes the people meant to love us are the ones who hurt us the most. So it’s hard to believe that a person who has no obligation to me whatsoever could ever show me this kind of love.
But Rosalie broke down those walls with her loud voice and her pushy attitude and the sweet moments sprinkled in here and there.
She pulls back and squeezes my shoulders. Then she pushes me toward Nick, who gives me a big hug as well.
The first floor is quiet, meaning the Donovans must be out.
It’s a relief, really. I’m not sure I could handle saying goodbye to the kids.
Last night, when Piper and Alice sat on my bed, crying about how we can’t have random playdates, was hard enough.
I promised to visit often. As excited as I am for this next phase, there are parts of this transition that are hard.
When I get in the car, I finally look at my phone and am bombarded with texts from the girls. They’re so ridiculous that they instantly lighten my mood.
Josie: Um, hello? Where are the pics for proof?
Addie: I’m a little nervous to see this tattoo after hearing where SOME people put their tattoos.
Josie: I swear to god if this is about my FATHER, I’ll unalive you.
Sutton: Definitely avoid reading Sav’s chat with your mom’s friends, then, Jose.
Josie: I hate you all.
Josie: Savannah?
Addie: Sounds like she got distracted
Sutton: She got Di-something
Addie: Bahaha. SUTTON, did you make a DICK joke?
Josie: She’s been DICKMATIZED, let’s be honest.
Sutton: Bet his is tatted too.
Josie: I will need 7-10 business days before I speak to you again.
“What are you giggling about over there?” Camden asks as he pulls out into traffic and heads toward his—no, our—place.
Giddy, I smile at him. “Josie’s trying to come to terms with the fact that her father is also the infamous War that I now know far too much about, thanks to Hannah.”
Camden barks out a laugh. “Fuck.”
“Is it true he has Ava tattooed on his balls?”
He laces his fingers with mine and rests our joined hands in my lap. “Not exactly. But close.”
“Like it’s on his perineum?” I tease.
Camden’s loud laugh fills the car, the sound making me feel lighter. “Fuck, I love you.”
“That’s not an answer.”
He chuckles. “Her nickname. And it’s right above his balls, yeah.”
I shake my head. “Jesus, you actually know the precise location?”
“Listen, I’ve seen more of those guys than I have of anyone else in my life, you included.”
Shifting his way, I scrutinize him. “You trying to tell me you got that close with them.”
“No, baby girl, I never fucked around with my teammates. Other than a threesome a long fucking time ago, I guess,” he says. “Not with War.”
“Let me guess—Daniel.”
His laugh is so beautiful, and I hear it more each day. “I think some things are better left in the past.”
I lean against the window and sigh. “What a smart observation, Mr. Snow.”
Eyes heated, he gives me a once-over. “Baby girl, you say my name like that, you’re going to get fucked.”
A thrill shoots up my spine. “Well, we wouldn’t want that, now, would we?”