Chapter 14
CAMILLE
“Wow, you completely outdid yourself.” Adam tosses his napkin over his plate, bringing a smile to my face. He lets out a low whistle before he continues. “That was one of the best meals I’ve had in a really long time.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it.” I’ve always loved watching others enjoy my cooking, but Adam’s praise does something entirely different to me. It excites me and makes me want to kiss him senseless. “I hope you saved room for dessert?”
“You mean there’s more?” His jaw drops, and I laugh until my shoulders shake.
“I love to cook.” I pick up the bottle of red Adam brought.
It came from the vineyard next to his family’s ranch.
I still can’t believe anyone can grow grapes in Montana and make wine this good.
I have a feeling The Wine Room will become one of my favorite places.
I refill his glass before I pour a little more for myself.
Lizzy covers hers, indicating she’s had enough.
“Now that my kitchen is finished, you can expect a lot more meals from me.”
I glance at Adam, our gazes meeting. His lips tick up and his eyes brighten to the shade of green I love the best. They remind me of rough-cut peridots. I hope that look means he understands the meaning behind my words.
He’s been so patient with me. He’s been here for me in every way over the past few months, and seeing how he is with Lizzy more than confirms what I already know I’m feeling. I think I’m finally ready to advance our relationship.
And I’m not afraid to tell him.
He takes a sip of his wine and stands. “Let me help you clear the table. It’s the least I can do since you fed me. Twice today, I might add.”
Adam stacks the dirty plates while I carry the serving platters into the kitchen. Lizzy leans back in her chair and lets out a soft moan. “I’m just gonna stretch out and try to make more room in my tummy for dessert.”
I snap a towel and pin her with a stare. “If you want dessert, you’ll help clear the table, young lady.”
“But Mom, I’m a guest. I shouldn’t have to clean up too.” Lizzy does her best to keep a straight face, making Adam laugh.
“Something tells me you’ll never be considered a guest in your mom’s house.” Adam says.
“Ain’t that the truth,” I confirm as I take the plates Adam carries in. I place them in the sink and give them a quick rinse.
I glance over my shoulder, and Lizzy sticks her tongue out at me with a playful grin before she starts helping. I know she’s joking, and would’ve gotten up to help eventually. She just likes getting a rise out of me.
Once she’s up and next to me in the kitchen, I wrap my arms around her and kiss her cheek. “You should know by now, sweetie, that I’m not going to let you sit around and watch everyone else clean up. Especially when our guest is helping.”
“Hey, you can’t blame a girl for trying.” She laughs and kisses me back.
“And Lord knows, you’ve spent enough of your life trying.” I rinse off my hands and dry them before turning toward the refrigerator. “Grab those small plates I stacked there and take them to the table, please.”
“Yes, ma’am.” She bounces on her feet and heads back to the table where Adam is already sitting with a huge smile on his face.
“So, what did you make?” she asks.
“You’ll see.” I chuckle as I carry her favorite dessert to the table. As soon as I set it down, she squeals.
“Yes! You’re trying to make it so I never want to leave, aren’t you?” Lizzy claps her hands, her smile wide.
“I wouldn’t mind that one little bit, sweetheart.” I cut a piece of tiramisu and hand the plate to Lizzy. I look up at Adam to find him watching us with amusement. “What’s that look for?”
“Just enjoying the two of you interacting. It reminds me a lot of my momma with Leann. It’s … cute.”
“Leann is your sister, right?” I ask.
“Yeah, and she’s the baby in the family, so she thinks she can get away with things the rest of us can’t. Much like Lizzy here.”
That makes Lizzy laugh. “She sounds like my kinda friend.” She shifts her gaze toward Adam. “How old is she?”
“She’s actually not much older than you. She’s twenty-nine.”
“Whoa.” Lizzy drops her fork. “I take it she was an unexpected child.”
Adam chuckles at her reaction. “You could say that. I was an only child until I was eighteen. My parents thought they couldn’t have any more kids.
So they decided to adopt. They’d made all the arrangements, met the young couple who weren’t ready to be parents, and signed the adoption papers.
They’d have a baby in seven months. A month later, Momma found out she was pregnant.
Those were crazy times in our house. Two infants just months apart in age. But it made my momma so happy.”
“Wow.” Lizzy sits back in her chair, a look of complete amazement on her face. “So you have a biological sister and adopted brother that are the same age?”
“Yep. Several years later we took in another foster, Matt. He stayed, and a few years later my parents adopted him, too. He’s a couple years older than Joe and Leann.”
Lizzy looks at me, her eyes glossing over. I know what that look means. Our family is nothing like that. Not mine or Mark’s. The thought of any of them sacrificing any part of their lives for someone else's child is a ludicrous thought.
She turns back to Adam, her smile huge. “Your parents must be generous people with huge hearts. I can’t imagine any of that was easy.”
He pauses to take a bite of his dessert and moans.
“This is so good.” He nods in my direction, his eyes rolling back in his head before he continues.
“And you’re right. It wasn’t. And yes, they are.
Or my momma is; my dad passed several years ago.
They always wanted a large family, but that wasn’t in the cards for them.
So, they made a family in whatever way they could. ”
A comfortable silence settles over us as we eat our dessert and finish our wine. I could get used to this. Adam makes a nice addition to our broken family, and I hope he sticks around.
Lizzy pushes her empty plate aside and moans. “Everything you cooked today was amazing.”
That puts a huge smile on my face. I made this meal for her just so I’d get that reaction. “I’m glad you enjoyed it.”
“More than you can possibly imagine.” Lizzy stands and clears her plate. On her way into the kitchen, she calls over her shoulder. “I haven’t eaten this good since you left. I’ve missed it.”
“I’ll feed you for however long you stay.”
She returns, hugs me, and kisses my cheek. “Keep cooking like this and I might not leave.”
“Promise?” I know she’s joking, but I pin her with my most serious stare.
“You never know.” She hugs me tighter before standing with a sigh. “I better get my stuff together. Sara and her boyfriend will be here soon.”
“All right, sweetheart. I packed some food for you all. Let me get it.”
“You didn’t have to do that. I can fend for myself.”
“I know you can, but I want to.”
Lizzy runs to her room to gather her things while I pack up the food I made. Within fifteen minutes, she’s ready to head out the door.
“You all set?” I ask as I hand her the care package.
“Yep. We should be good.” She hugs me tight and kisses my cheek. “I’ll take lots of pictures.”
A honk outside pulls Lizzy from my embrace. “They’re here. Gotta go.”
“Have fun, sweetheart.”
With one last kiss, she waves goodbye and leaves Adam and me alone in the dining room.
As soon as she’s gone, I feel Adam’s eyes on me, but I’m too nervous to look at him.
Instead, I sit down and take a sip of my wine.
With every second that passes, the tension in the room intensifies.
I want him to stay, but I don’t know how to express my desires.
I haven’t done this in decades, if ever for that matter.
I was so young when I met Mark, and dating isn’t something I did a lot of before meeting him.
He clears his throat, pulling my eyes up to meet his. “Let me help you clean this up before we call it a night.”
I nod before I stand. I don’t want to call it a night. At least not a night where he leaves, and I go to bed alone. I need to find my bravery and figure out how to tell him exactly what I want.
We load the last of the dishes in the dishwasher in silence.
I’m standing at the sink, washing my hands, when Adam snakes his arms around my waist and kisses my neck.
I involuntarily melt into him. It feels good to be in his arms again.
I’ve missed these little touches. These seemingly small moments when we let the other know we’re here and we care.
Since Lizzy arrived, we haven’t had many of these.
Tonight, I hope we take it further. I want him to kiss me like he did that night in the foyer.
Only this time, I won’t stop him.
“Thanks for inviting me to stay. I enjoyed the evening very much,” he whispers in my ear before kissing my cheek. “I’m gonna head out, so you can get some sleep.”
I spin around in his arms, my shocked gaze meeting his. “Don’t leave. Not yet.”
He tightens his grip around me, pressing my chest close to his. “But it’s late. You’ve had a busy day, and you have to be tired.”
I cup my hands around his face and let my fingers run down the smoothness of his beard. Finding my strength, I press up on my tiptoes and lightly kiss his lips. “I’m fine. I don’t want you to leave.”
His hands fist in the back of my shirt, and he nods as he drops his forehead to mine.
I can do this—tell him what I want. I start to speak, but his mouth is on mine before the words are out.
His kiss starts out slow, yet deep. His tongue brushes across my bottom lip, and I part mine to give him access.
The second his tongue finds mine, the kiss intensifies, and every cell in my body is on fire.