Chapter Six
Jasper
Icleared snow until it became dangerous for me to operate the plow. And I’d hit my maximum of thirteen hours.
And still the snow came down.
Taryn had been called to help seven people who’d skidded into snowbanks. Another truck would take calls while she went down for a hard eight as well. She said it would be okay if I parked the truck at Cameron’s townhouse complex since I had to clear it. Digging out would be a bitch, but the snow was lessening.
Right?
Regardless, I needed rest.
I’d texted Cameron—I had the number because of badminton—and he’d encouraged me to come.
When I stepped wearily into his garage, he pressed a kiss to my cheek, took the cooler bag, and coaxed me into the house.
“I’ve made up the guest room—it’s got blackout blinds. You said some chamomile tea will help you sleep but you won’t be groggy when you wake up. You said eight hours, right? Will you want breakfast food or lasagna or something else? Because it’ll be six in the evening. Oh God, I need to stop talking, and you need to get into bed. Shower or...?”
I shook my head. “Bed.” Before I could say anything else, he was at my feet and untying my laces. “Cameron—”
“Shush. You’ve been up for more than thirty hours, and you’re falling over. Bed. I turned on the heating blanket—Dad liked it when he visited. But you can turn it off if it’s too much. You’re frozen.”
“I had to keep the cab cold to stay awake.” I eyed the stairs. “Can I just sleep under your desk down here?”
“You really want to give me a blow job. The answer’s no. I’d carry you, but that would end disastrously for both of us. Come on, I’ll help you.”
And he did—all the way up two sets of stairs, into the guest bedroom, out of my clothes, and into bed. He’d left the fucking reindeer pajamas for me to borrow, but the heated bed was fine, so I dove in naked. I didn’t even care if he saw me.
Well, I kind of liked that he did.
And that he maintained the clinical approach.
I was so tired that I didn’t even react to being near him. I drank half a mug of tea and was out before he even left the room.
Eight hours later, my alarm went off, and I squinted at the display.
A text from Taryn assuring me I was needed—when I was safe to drive. Technically we were exempt from the hours-of-service rules because we were performing emergency functions, but Taryn followed the rules scrupulously.
I hopped into the guest shower and was dry and headed downstairs within fifteen minutes.
Hot lasagna awaited me. Along with an insulated mug of coffee and a zipped cooler bag.
Tears sprang to my eyes.
“No.” Cameron’s eyes widened. “This was supposed to make you happy. To make things easier. I shoveled the front of the truck so you can just drive out. I…” He faltered. “Are you okay?”
I sniffed. “Just…no one’s ever done this for me before. Like, certainly not at work. And Mom’s all about practicalities and being self-sufficient.”
“You just worked thirteen hours. Self-sufficiency was you making it here safe. This—" He pointed to the table. “—is about me taking care of you. Now, sit.”
I dropped into the chair.
And devoured the food. I’d eaten everything he’d packed last night.
God, had that only been twenty-four hours ago?
“I didn’t have a lot of snacks, so I raided Everett and Rayne’s pantry. I have a couple of other neighbors I can hit up—”
“The 7-Eleven have staff and are open. So’s the Petro Canada. I can get snacks and fuel.” I scratched my stubbled chin. No way was I wasting time shaving. “They say this storm will be worse than last year’s. Maybe as bad as the storm of ’96.”
Cameron shut his eye for a moment. “I was three.”
I grinned. “And I wasn’t even born.”
“Don’t remind me.” He grumbled the words, but in jest.
“Eleven years,” I reminded him cheekily.
He rolled his eyes.
I grinned.
“Oh, do you like éclairs? I took a container over to Rayne and Everett’s last night and they sent me home with a few. Let me grab them.”
“You went out?”
“Well, all of three houses down.” He brought a container to the table, opened the lid, presented it to me, and then sat.
“Oh, minis! They’re my favorites.” I dug in.
“Everett’s family headed back to New West as soon as the snow started. I saw Rayne and Champ just after you left—”
“Right, I thought that was him waving as we pulled out.”
“Yep. He saw I was alone and asked me to come.” He straightened. “Champ asked as well. He’s a rescue and I hate disappointing him.”
I grinned because Cameron was proving to be even more of a softie than I could have predicted. “What did you do? Examine their teeth? I can’t believe you took sweets over. But I’m glad.” I popped another mini into my mouth and grinned.
He rolled his eyes. “Not all sweets are bad. You just have to ensure you brush your teeth afterward. We watched a movie with Peter Erickson and Cole Hamilton. I’ve been meaning to watch it for years. They were watching it for the third time.”
“That bittersweet movie?” I nodded. “I watched it on the Internet a while back. I’d love to see it on a regular screen.”
“I happen to have a television. And I can get the movie. So let’s plan to watch it when you’re finally done with work.”
“That might be three or four days from now. Wally won’t have anything for me, so he’s happy Taryn’s keeping me busy.”
“I guess not a lot of lawn maintenance right now.”
“Nah. He clears a whole bunch of people’s walkways, though. And some sidewalks for elderly folks. He’ll be plenty busy.”
“That’s good of him.”
“Well, a chunk of that is paid work. Below what he’d normally make, though. He is a good man.” He’d only been my boss for a month, but I really liked the guy. “Oh, and school’s canceled for tomorrow. If the snow keeps up, that might stretch to Tuesday. And since Wednesday is the last day before Christmas break, that might be it for the year. Are you closed over the holidays?” I ate a fourth pastry. Man, these are so fucking good.
“We are closed. I like to give Kyla, my receptionist and Marcel, my hygienist, a couple weeks off. But Inez, my assistant, and I are on call through the holidays. Dental emergencies don’t follow a calendar.”
“True that.” I eyed the last éclair.
Cameron smiled and nudged the container my way.
Gleefully, I took the final one. After I’d chewed and swallowed, I grinned. “Thank you. Truly.”
“I’ll make sure I always have some. I didn’t think I’d find someone who enjoys them as much as my dad. Apparently, I’m wrong.
“I love them. Honestly. My favorite. Well, and blueberry milkshakes. Which is so random and weird.”
“Have you been to Fifties yet?”
I blinked.
“The diner down on the highway.”
I shook my head.
“Ah, well, we definitely have to go. They have, like, forty flavors of milkshakes. Their blueberry is exceptional, I must say.”
“Like a date?” I nudged his arm.
His eyes went wide.
Oh shit. “I’m kidding. It’s a joke. Nothing to worry about.” Because Everett and Rayne won’t say anything, right? Well, Everett, I could trust to be discreet. Rayne was a whole other ball of wax.
Champ would definitely keep his mouth shut.
“I want to take you to Fifties. I…want you to have a blueberry milkshake.”
“So why don’t we plan to go after badminton next week? We can invite FP, Knight, and Orlando.”
“There isn’t badminton until the new year.”
I snapped my fingers. “Right. I keep forgetting Christmas is so close. The bonfire shouldn’t have been possible two days ago.”
“Well, we’d had a dry spell. Now Mother Nature’s making up for it.” He gestured out the patio door. “The meteorologist says it’s going to stop just after midnight. I can’t believe how much has come down.”
“Think of the flooding if this had been heavy rain the entire time. We’re lucky it’s just snow.”
“Still might have flooding issues when it melts.”
“Well, that likely won’t be my problem.” I rubbed my belly. “Thanks for this.”
“Least I can do. You’ll be back in the morning?”
“Yeah, but you don’t—”
“Yeah, I do. I’ll have food. Hearty breakfast or can you sleep after eating that much?”
“Something lighter? Then I’ll chow down after my eight.”
“Omelet?”
“Perfect.”
“I’ll bake some sourdough bread.”
My eyes damn nearly goggled out of my head. “You bake?”
“Relaxes me. And I can control the ingredients.”
Which makes total sense. A little control freakish…but understandable. “How are you still single?”
He shrugged. “Because I haven’t met someone who made me want to ‘settle down’.” He used air quotes.
The women in this town must be blind. And the men, apparently. “Are you opening the clinic tomorrow?”
Cameron shook his head. “Kyla called seven people, and six couldn’t commit to getting there. The roads north of Mission City aren’t even plowed, and it’s still snowing.”
“Yeah, driving’s treacherous. I’m glad you’re hunkering down. Maybe another night of movie watching with Rayne and Everett? To keep you company?”
He snickered. “I did all right before you came into my life. Quite enjoyed my own company. Time for family and friends, of course, but also lots of solitary time.”
“Are you an introvert?”
He shrugged. “I’m someone who likes helping people and who is also comfortable with his own company.”
“You should get a dog. Dogs mean you meet lots of people. Or a cat to keep you company. They can be snobby, but they also like to be fed.”
He blinked. “Uh, I get to meet plenty of people, even without having a pet. And I’m not certain what a cat might add to my life. And where would I put the litter box?”
“Spare room? Laundry nook? Plenty of places.”
“I’m good. Truly…I’m good.”
Yet he said the words slowly—almost like he was having to convince himself.
I needed to leave, but I had to try one more time. “Everett says you volunteer with at-risk youth and donate dental services to people on the margin who can’t access care.”
“Well…” He straightened. “The government provides for services for more people—”
“But not all.”
“No, not all.” He cleared his throat, then toyed with the edge of the glass container. “I’m lucky. My practice is extremely successful, and I have no problems paying my bills at the end of each month. My student loans are paid off, the mortgage on this place is more than half paid down and I have healthy savings.”
“So you’re in a good place.”
“I watch my expenses.” He met my gaze. “I spoil my nieces and nephew.”
I’d figured out by now he meant Kade and Tanner’s daughter as well as Nina and Rohit’s twins. He didn’t have siblings, so he didn’t have any blood nieces and nephews.
Blood relations were way overblown as far as I was concerned. Even I could see Cameron’s found family—of Kade as best friend and Kade’s entire brood—was far more important to him than my parents were to me.
I loved my parents, but they’d never been overly affectionate. Or overly caring. They’d very much had their own lives and expected self-sufficiency from me. Which was fine…but also made it easier to get up and walk away when my job was terminated and I got dumped by my cheating boyfriend.
“You have to go. I wish…” He smiled. “I want to tell you about my draft dodger father who is now fiercely Canadian. About the wonderful woman he married and had a great twenty-five years with. I want to sit with you in a booth in Fifties and watch you try the best milkshakes in Cedar Valley. Hell, possibly the best in British Columbia. I want to make you smile like you are now.”
“Those are some pretty easy wishes to fulfill. The snow will stop falling. The plowing will, eventually, all be done. Your office will close, and Wally’s giving me a week off. So we’ll have time to do all those things.”
“But I’m…” He blinked.
“You are…?”
“I don’t think I can be who you want me to be.”
I cocked my head. “Have I said I’m unhappy with any part of this rather unorthodox relationship?”
“Well…not exactly.”
“Right. So how about, to use my mother’s expression, we not go borrowing trouble?” I rose, stretched over to him, and planted a kiss on his lips. I pulled back. “I think you’re amazing. I always have.”
“You’ve known me a month.” Said dryly.
“I have good taste.” I snagged the insulated bag and the mug of coffee. “Thank you.”
“Thirteen hours?”
I nodded.
“Well, I’ll be waiting.” Still, he rose and walked downstairs with me. He held the bag and mug while I shoved my feet into my boots, tied the laces, then put my coat back on.
I straightened, then met his gaze. “Don’t let the intensity scare you. We’ve got our entire lives to sort this out.”
And with that, I took off.