Chapter 14
FOURTEEN
Cora was icy to her brother at the dinner table that night and the others were on their best behaviors trying to smooth things over. By the end of the meal, Cora was even looking the others in the eye, much of the embarrassment from the afternoon put behind her. Her real issue was with Cameron, and everyone knew it.
Especially Cameron.
It took him a while to convince Buck to tell him where he'd taken Vince.
He'd tried to demand the information first and that had worked about as well as it would have worked with him.
So when he arrived at the Navy Lodge later that night, he should have known that he'd have a tough time getting past the welcoming committee.
The woman standing just inside the lobby door had her arms crossed over her chest and a knowing eyebrow raised in his direction.
"Axl?"
He knew that tone. He'd heard it from Buck a few times.
If he didn't know that the two were just friends, he'd think they were beginning to share a brain.
Or at least an over developed moral compass that was, at the moment, pointed directly at the center of his chest, where he knew his heart was.
Even if it was more than a little bruised at the moment.
He nodded his head in greeting and didn't even have to look at her engraved name tag to know the formidable woman he was standing in front of.
"Marikit."
She narrowed her eyes at him. "Heath called and let me know you were on your way."
He cleared his throat. "I need to talk to Vince."
"To whom?" She had a ghost of a smile on her face. "I don't have a Vince here."
His shoulders dropped and his jaw tightened at her ridiculous answer. He'd never say that to her, but he could certainly think it.
That wouldn't get Buck pissed off.
"Marikit. I really do need to talk to Vince."
She shook her head, a short definitive movement. "All of our guests have a right to privacy."
Cameron's hands clenched at his sides. "He's with my sister."
Marikit looked askance at him. "Your sister isn't here, Axl."
"I know that. She's at my house. What I meant is that she's dating Vince and I..." He bit into the inside of his cheek. "I think I made a big fucking mess out of things today."
The look on her face said that she agreed with him.
"So, I'm here to talk to him."
Her eyes widened slightly. "You're here to apologize."
He grimaced at her words. "I wouldn't go that far."
She dropped her delicate chin down and she looked up at him over an invisible pair of glasses. "Then you won't get to talk to my guest."
Cameron drew in a breath that filled his lungs to the top.
"Look, tomorrow is Thanksgiving-"
She gave him a look that said he wasn't exactly telling her something she didn't already know.
"And I want to ask Vince to come to the bowling alley and eat with the rest of us."
She gave him a sidelong glance. "You plan to ask him to come to Thanksgiving, but you're not planning to apologize to him first?" She shook her head. "I don't know. If you were to ask me, I'd say that was a complete miss."
Cameron huffed out a breath. "I'm trying."
A smile touched her lips and then she tried to smother it.
"What?" He narrowed his eyes at her. "What's in your head?"
She rolled her eyes, but instead of looking snarky or rude, Marikit had a way of looking elegant and graceful at every damn moment. "The things that are in my head would set you straight, but I told Buck I wouldn't be too mean to you."
Cameron swallowed.
She was likely an inch or two taller than Maile, but while Maile had no qualms about taking him down in her feisty way, Marikit had a kind of zen-like confidence that was like a wall twice as tall as she was.
"If you'd like," she looked over at a pair of couches in the lobby with a large wooden coffee table between them, "I can call Vince and ask him if he'd like to come down to the lobby and talk to you."
He opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off.
"At least here there is lots of light and a couple of security cameras to keep things on the level."
Cameron felt his face heat up. "I'm not going to hit him."
Again, she looked at him and he felt a little like a kid. It was really hard to be a raging bull when she was standing there taking him down a notch with just a knowing look.
He put his hands up in surrender and then gestured at one of the couches. "So, can I sit down?"
Marikit looked like she was about to burst out laughing. "When I asked my mother that, she would always reply. 'Can you?'" Her expression changed to an almost wistful smile. "Go ahead, have a seat. I'll go get Vince."
Cameron walked over to the couch and sat down gently. He wasn't the smallest guy, and the couch looked like it was from some kind of vintage shop. The rattan arms and brightly printed tropical fabric upholstery was nice to look at, but he was always wary that he'd break things that were older than he was.
He let out a breath and moved his hand over the cushion next to him. He had a lot to think about before he went home again.
Dinner had been excruciating for him. It was hard enough that Cora was treating him like he was invisible.
No, not invisible.
She'd treated him like he was a big gaping hole on the other side of the table moving her gaze over and around him and patently ignoring his attempts to pretend he hadn't thrown her boyfriend out of the house.
His friends? His team?
Oh, they'd enjoyed the show. Buck had just rolled his eyes at the whole situation.
Cameron knew that he'd gone over the line when he'd gotten home. He just hadn't been able to stop seeing red when he'd seen his sister and her boyfriend... doing what they were doing.
He swallowed, tasting bile in his throat.
How was he going to talk about it when he couldn't even think the words?
The door to the lobby opened up and Cameron stood up from the couch.
Marikit smiled and gave him an approving look. When she stepped to the side, he saw Vince walk in through the door.
Cameron felt the muscles in his jaw clench, and he drew in a breath.
"Okay, here are the rules."
Her voice had a harder edge to it when he swung his gaze back over to look at her.
"I'm going to be behind the counter the whole time and if something happens, my first call is to Buck. And he'll call Pallas, so you behave."
He didn't miss the fact that her gaze never left his face as she was talking.
Cameron looked at Vince. "I'm not here to fight."
Vince nodded, just a little dip of his chin. "Okay."
Marikit reached out and gave Vince's arm a gentle pat before she walked away.
Cameron gestured at the couch on the other side of the coffee table. "Thanks for coming to talk to me."
"I wanted to see how Cora was doing." Vince nodded and moved to the other couch and sat down. "I figured you could let me know."
Cameron nodded. "She's pissed at me." He chuckled but it died quickly, and he looked contrite. "She acted like I didn't exist all night."
"I was worried about her," Vince felt pain in his chest, but also a bit of relief. "Did she get more after sun lotion?"
Cameron's eyes narrowed. "What's that?"
"We both had sunburns from our day at the beach and Kawehi said she should get after sun lotion for the burn. Cora sent the bottle we were using with Buck to give to me saying she was getting another one to use."
Cameron nodded, but he looked off to the side with what appeared to be a pensive expression on his face. "I noticed her face was red, but I guess... I thought it was because she was angry with me."
Vince's brows raised at that. "I don't want you to be upset with her. Things... got out of hand."
Cameron's eyes closed and a furrow developed between his brows.
"She loves you. She was really looking forward to this trip. I don't want to be the reason why things are difficult between you. That was never my intention."
"When I said she could bring a friend," Cameron let out a long, pent-up breath, "I never thought it would be a guy."
Vince smiled a little at that. "I was surprised by the invitation, but I couldn't turn her down." He shook his head. "She's... amazing."
Cameron shook his head. "I feel like... I feel like I've missed so much. When I signed up for the Marines, I knew it wouldn't keep me away from her and that was a given in my life. She's basically all I have left of our family. Then it seems like there were just so many things that made me feel like I was falling down on my responsibility, but Cora never blamed me."
Vince saw the other man sit back against the couch cushion and rub his palms against his thighs, struggling with his words. Or maybe it was his emotions.
Either way, Vince doubted that many had seen this kind of truth from Cameron in regard to his feelings.
"And I was looking forward to this time with her, even though I knew I'd have to work for part of the time, I didn't think it would come to this. To where she's not even looking at me."
Vince didn't know what to say to that. He knew how much he wanted time with Cora. Any minute or any experience. He wanted it all, but so did her brother.
And while he'd only just met Cora and knew how much he wanted to learn about her, he was realizing that Cameron was going through something close to what he was. He wanted time with his sister, but now there was a third wheel involved in this family moment.
Vince wasn't sure if he should tell Cameron how he met Cora, but that was something he'd have to talk to Cora about. The core of this trip was just that, her relationship with her brother.
"I don't know how to say this without making this worse," Vince looked Cameron in the eye, "but it feels like you don't trust her."
The instant he said the words, he felt like he should have kept quiet.
Cameron leaned back heavily against the couch and Vince could hear the frame of it groan in reaction. Cora's brother was taller than he was and to say he was bigger and more muscular was an understatement in so many ways. Every second of time that passed before Cameron spoke sent Vince through a myriad of second thoughts and guesses.
"When you said those words," Cameron shook his head back and forth, "I wanted to knock you out."
Vince lifted his chin a little.
If Cameron was going to belt him, Vince was ready to take it, quite literally, on the chin.
"I want to say that it's because you were out of line."
Cameron's jaw tensed up, but Vince didn't move. He stayed still, ready for... whatever Cora's brother was going to do.
"It shouldn't've taken me walking around the whole damn lake and a painful dinner to make me realize how wrong I was." Cameron clapped his palms down on his jeans clad knees. "Going into the military, becoming a Marine, I thought I'd taken my life into my own hands. Found a place I could make something of myself. And all the time I was working, my head down, nose to the grindstone," he shook his head, "I didn't realize that life was going on without me. That Cora was going on without me. It didn't really sink in until I saw her... with you."
Vince heard the pain in Cameron's voice. He wasn't even sure Cameron could hear it.
Sometimes you get too close to something, and you can't see it.
Vince just didn't think that it was his place to point it out.
Cameron sat up a little straighter on the couch, his hands gripping his knees to the point where his knuckles were paler than the rest of his skin.
Clearing his throat, he continued. "It was brought to my attention that I might-" He shook his head. "That I overreacted when we came home early from the base. I shouldn't have drawn that particular line in the sand. You," he cleared his throat again, "and my sister are both adults. I... I reacted like an ass."
Vince raised his brow at that. "Wow. I didn't expect that." He smiled. "I didn't expect any of this conversation."
"Well, don't get used to it." Cameron's face changed, hardened. "I don't get all touchy feely on the regular."
Vince nodded. He didn't doubt Cameron's words in the least. "I wouldn't expect it."
"But," Cameron drew in a breath and let it out, "you're welcome to come to Thanksgiving tomorrow and to move back in the house as long as you're here in Hawaii."
Vince heard the words, but he wasn't sure he believed them.
Not that he thought Cameron was lying or putting on a show. Vince had been trying to find a way to bridge the gap between himself and Cameron, if only to make things easier for Cora, and he'd come up empty. Having Cameron show up to talk to him was more than just a shock. It still seemed like he was half-asleep, dreaming it.
A corner of his mouth twitched up in a grin.
"What's so funny?"
Vince heard the guarded tone in Cameron's voice and understood it. The man was probably waiting for Vince to come back at him with... something.
"I was just thinking that I wouldn't have dreamed that you'd come here to see me. And how you're not the Cox sibling that I'd want in my dreams." He put his hands up to ward off Cameron's anger. "No offense."
Cameron raised an imperious reddish brow at him. "You wouldn't be the one I want in my dreams either."
"Touché."
The two looked at each other for a moment before Cameron got up from the couch and let out a breath. Vince got up from his couch and watched Cameron look over at Marikit who was standing stock still behind the front desk.
"No bloodshed," she grinned. "I'm impressed by your restraint."
Cameron puffed up a little. "I was never going to do anything to him."
Marikit's lifted eyebrow spoke volumes as she turned, and Vince saw her gaze land on him. "I was talking to Vince."
Vince admired her. She showed nothing like fear when she talked to Cameron the way she did. She knew that Cameron could get angry, but he wasn't the kind to hurt her.
He turned back to Cameron. "What time do you want me to be there? I'll get a ride."
Cameron shook his head. "I doubt you'll find rideshares or even taxis that will come over here on the regular. Remember that gate you passed through before getting on the bridge? Military property."
Vince nodded. He did remember the gate. He just hadn't thought of it.
"Uh, okay."
"I'll come and get you."
Vince barely kept his jaw from dropping when Cameron offered.
"I can get here without any trouble, and I think it'll be good for Cora to know that I brought you. To know that I'm okay with you and that you're okay with me."
There wasn't a question in his words, but Vince felt like it was implied.
Without much hesitation, Vince reached his hand out.
Cameron shook it a moment later and Vince nodded. "Yeah, I am."
"Good."
They dropped their hands and Cameron took a few steps toward the door before turning back to look at him. "I'll be over at ten to pick you up."
"Okay." Vince agreed. "I'll see you then."