Chapter 5 #3
‘She was lying?’ Izzi guessed, sounding unhappy.
He nodded. ‘I’m pretty sure she didn’t have a grandma – at least I assume she didn’t, because as soon as I transferred the money, she disappeared.’ Now the story was out, he could feel a flush creeping up his cheeks. It was mortifying to realise how easily he’d been taken in.
‘You knew her well?’ Izzi asked kindly. She didn’t look like she thought he was a moron. Then again, he wasn’t sure what she was thinking most of the time. Whether she had a bad thought about anyone. Which was suspicious in itself.
‘I knew her well enough for someone I worked with.’ Cameron didn’t want to share that he’d cared for Sophie, that the blossoming friendship might have turned into something else in time.
Sophie hadn’t just stolen from him, she’d hurt him deeply, made him realise he couldn’t trust himself.
He was just grateful nothing had happened between them.
It’s why he had to hold himself back from Izzi now, why he had to ignore this attraction.
He sighed. ‘I trusted her,’ he admitted. Which had been a mistake – he should have known how things would turn out. Hadn’t his mother left his father when Cameron was barely four. All she’d wanted from either of them was money…
‘So—’ Izzi leaned forward and cupped her cheek, giving him her full attention, her amber eyes pinning him in place.
‘Yep.’ He nodded. ‘I loaned her most of my savings.’ He bared his teeth, still angry that he’d been suckered in.
‘Nothing from the business.’ He’d at least been sensible enough to keep his side of the company locked down.
‘But she pretty much wiped me out.’ He watched her carefully for signs of disappointment, but all he saw was sympathy.
‘And Maud, how does she come into it?’ Izzi asked, which proved she’d been listening. He didn’t know what to make of that either. Should he be flattered or suspicious? He didn’t trust his judgement anymore.
‘Sophie used to go to the café.’ He sighed as anger squeezed his chest. It was so easy to see what had happened in retrospect.
How his friendly, attractive business partner had deceived them both.
‘They became friends. She told my gran the same story about the care home, that she only needed the money for a week. I hadn’t mentioned it because Sophie told me she was embarrassed and asked me not to tell anyone else, and she—’
‘Maud loaned her money too?’ Izzi guessed, her forehead squeezing as the first hint of anger sparked in her eyes. ‘Well, that’s just…’
He jerked his chin. ‘Sophie disappeared soon after. When I tried to find her, to see if I could somehow trace her mystery grandma, I found out she’d packed up her flat, that she’d given notice on it a month before. She must have been working up to it, planning it for ages.’
Izzi nodded and her eyes slid back to the pumpkins. ‘And how does that relate to those?’ she asked gently.
He stood because he didn’t want to sit anymore. Adrenaline coursed through him and Cupcake growled. It was like the dog could feel the anger and shame radiating from him. He patted him on the head, soothing himself too. ‘My grandma and I were going to New Orleans for Halloween.’
‘She mentioned that,’ Izzi said. ‘And that you’d both cancelled the trip.’
He pinched his lips. ‘Because Sophie took the money we’d both been saving towards it.
I’ve offered to pay for everything—’ He’d wanted to get a loan, to sell his truck – he’d do anything to make sure they could still visit.
‘But she won’t hear of it. She says it’s her mistake and hers to solve.
So I’ve been buying pumpkins.’ He stared at the pile.
‘I’ve no idea what I’m going to do with them, but I thought perhaps I could make her something special for Halloween.
’ He pulled a face. ‘Carve faces in them, I don’t know… ’
Izzi nodded as if that were the most normal thing in the world. ‘That’s good of you,’ she said, her voice genuinely kind.
He snorted. ‘It’s useless,’ he said more angrily than he’d intended. ‘I want to give her the Halloween of her dreams; instead, she’s going to be stuck in Honey Haven probably staring at these.’ He pointed to the pile. ‘And it’s all because of Sophie.’ He sighed. ‘And me…’
‘Do you have any leads?’ Izzi asked.
Cameron thought about how much time he’d spent trying to trace his ex-partner without success.
‘Not really,’ he admitted. ‘Even if we do find her, we’re unlikely to get our money back, and Gran and I won’t get another flight to the States now because they’re pretty much booked up.
Also, her cousin – my aunt – has made other arrangements, she’s going to New York instead.
’ He’d have to content himself with taking Maud to New Orleans next year now. At least he had plenty of time to save.
Izzi picked up one of the pumpkins and twisted it in one hand, looking thoughtful. ‘I wonder if there’s something we could do instead,’ she murmured.
‘About Sophie?’ he asked surprised.
‘No.’ Izzi gave him a half-smile. ‘To save Maud’s Halloween.’