Chapter 23
CAMERON
Cameron stood rooted to the spot as his ex-partner and Izzi both stared at him looking shocked.
‘Sophie?’ Izzi repeated, shaking her head, her eyes so wide she could have been auditioning for a Disney movie – probably would have got the part. ‘No. This is my cousin, Lorraine, we’ve just met.’
Cameron thought he could hear surprise in Izzi’s voice, but he’d been deceived often enough to understand how easily lies tripped off a person’s tongue. How convincing they could be if they were trying to pull the wool over your eyes, so didn’t bother to respond.
‘Hi Cameron,’ Sophie said tentatively as her face grew paler. She slowly put the pen she was holding back in the drawer, the one where he kept his household bills, mortgage documents, bank cards and anything else he had to deal with.
Cameron felt sick. ‘What the hell are you looking for?’ he asked, his voice rigid as he stared at both women, scouring them for similarities.
Sophie had amber eyes, the same colour as Izzi’s.
It was the first time he’d noticed. He’d known Izzi looked familiar when they’d met, but this connection had never occurred.
Perhaps because he’d been so caught up in their chemistry.
She’d utterly bewitched him body and soul.
Then again, that had probably been her intention.
‘I’m sorry, Izzi, I think it would be best if I went,’ Sophie said, giving Izzi a meaningful look that Cameron couldn’t quite read before edging across the kitchen towards the hallway that would lead to the back door.
‘You’re not going anywhere. You lied, then stole from me and my grandma. She’s in debt because of what you did, and I’m worried it might affect the café,’ Cameron said, stepping into her path. ‘I’ve been looking for you. I want our money back.’
‘What’s happening?’ Izzi asked vaguely. ‘I don’t understand. Maud’s in debt, the café might be in danger?’ She turned to his ex. ‘And you’re really Sophie?’ her voice cracked on the name.
Oh, she was good, better even than Sophie.
‘Izzi, you know exactly who this is and what she’s done,’ Cameron snapped – he could feel temper gnawing at his restraint.
He wanted to explode, to rage and scream, but knew he had to remain calm.
He needed to get Maud’s money back, to find out what they’d been planning – and this was his best chance.
So he stood in place as every cell in his body tingled with fury and hurt.
His gaze moved between the two women as he tried to process what he was seeing.
He’d been expecting to find Izzi when he’d arrived home.
Had left Lockton early because he’d been so excited to see her and hadn’t wanted to wait around to search for Sophie for a moment longer.
It had been pointless anyway – it was clear she wasn’t there.
Even Scott had commented on his eagerness, joking that it had only been a few hours and he was in danger of appearing love-sick.
But Cameron hadn’t cared. When he’d seen Izzi’s car parked in his driveway, he’d sprinted to the door.
He’d been so excited to hold her again, to taste whatever magic she’d decided to conjure in his oven.
All he’d been able to focus on was how long it would take to get her into bed, how she’d smell and taste, how she’d feel under him.
Whether this deep yearning, this need, would ever be sated. Goddammit. He’d been such an easy mark.
‘What were you looking for in that drawer?’ he asked, his voice rough. Izzi was still frozen, clutching the handful of paperwork, her knuckles white.
‘We were…’ Izzi swallowed. She looked sick.
‘Sophie was going to draw me a family tree. I needed a paper and pen.’ She cleared her throat, perhaps recognising the game was up.
That her excuses were simply not good enough.
‘You’re really Sophie, you stole from Cameron and Maud?
’ she asked, turning her attention to his ex.
‘Of course not!’ Sophie blustered. ‘You can’t believe that.
He owes me money. He never paid for all the work I did here.
’ She swept a hand around the kitchen. ‘I told you I was hiding from someone. It’s why I’m using a different name.
I just didn’t tell you it was Cameron. I heard you’d got close and knew you’d be upset.
I was going to tell you once I worked out how.
’ She pulled a face and even Cameron had to concede she looked genuinely concerned.
‘Why do you think I was so reluctant to come to this house?’
‘I don’t understand,’ Izzi said, her gaze swivelling between them.
‘I’m sorry, but the truth is your boyfriend became obsessed with me when we were working together. He didn’t pay me because I told him I wanted to leave.’ Her gaze swept back to Cameron and his jaw dropped.
‘What?’ he barked.
‘I don’t think you know what kind of man he is. I wanted to tell you. It’s the only reason I agreed to come here. You have to believe me,’ Sophie pleaded.
‘You said you were afraid of Cupcake, but—’ Izzi’s gaze narrowed as it returned to him. It was like she was actually considering Sophie’s excuses. ‘You were obsessed with her?’
‘That’s bullshit!’ he snapped and Izzi flinched.
‘Perhaps you’ll understand now why I’ve been trying to keep a low profile. Look how angry he is,’ Sophie said and Izzi’s eyes widened.
Surely she didn’t believe what the woman was saying? Emotions, fear, fury swirled in his chest. For a moment, Cameron didn’t know who he was most angry with or why he suddenly felt afraid.
‘She’s lying,’ he said tightly, his mouth pinching because he was being suckered in again.
He was listening to Sophie. The two of them had probably been plotting this for months.
They were just trying to confuse him, to make Izzi look genuine.
Hadn’t he just caught them both going through his paperwork drawer? ‘But you know that.’ Didn’t she?
Izzi’s eyes were wide and she looked pale – it was almost like… No. Cameron shook his head. He hadn’t been born yesterday.
‘I’m leaving,’ Sophie said, sidestepping him. ‘Do you want to come with me?’ She directed her question to Izzi.
‘No, I’ll stay,’ she said, finally placing the papers back in the drawer and closing it, while her eyes remained trained on his face.
Neither of them spoke until the door into the garden slammed.
‘I don’t know what just happened,’ Izzi croaked and Cameron had such an overwhelming need to reach for her that he had to tighten his hands into fists.
‘I need a drink,’ he growled, going to open the cupboard where he kept a bottle of whisky and pouring himself a large glass.
He could feel Izzi’s eyes on him as he swallowed, sucking the fiery liquid into his throat.
At least it warmed him, made him feel less numb, so when he spun around to face her again, he was able to form words.
‘What were you looking for, Izzi?’ he asked coldly, nodding at the drawer. ‘Because there really is no more money; your partner mostly cleared me out. Most of what I had left has gone to my mum, and my grandma’s only got the café.’ At least he hoped she did.
A tear leaked onto Izzi’s cheek and she swept it away. ‘Sophie said she was afraid of you,’ she said. ‘Have you been lying to me about what she did?’ Her forehead squeezed and she slowly shook her head. ‘But that would mean Maud’s been lying and…’ Confusion swept across her face.
‘This isn’t going to work, Izzi.’ He shoved his hands into his pockets. ‘Whatever game you’re playing with Sophie, I’m not going to fall for it.’ He had to say the words aloud because he was dangerously close to doing exactly that. Izzi looked so stricken. So genuinely disoriented.
‘I don’t care about your money, Cameron.’ She lifted her gaze. ‘I’m telling the truth. I just—’ She scrubbed a hand over her eyes. ‘I don’t know what to believe anymore.’
‘Neither do I.’ His insides twisted. He wanted to believe her, but the evidence – finding her here searching through his desk with the woman he’d been trying to find for months…
He wasn’t stupid, despite all evidence to the contrary.
‘Except, it’s clear now that you’ve been playing me and my grandma since we met.
’ It was the only explanation that made sense.
He had to believe it, he’d be an idiot if he didn’t. ‘Just give it up, Izzi,’ he demanded.
She made a choking sound and slowly shook her head. ‘Cameron. I’m telling the truth. I hadn’t met Lorraine, Sophie, whatever she’s called, until tonight. I’ve no interest in your money or Maud’s.’ Her forehead squeezed.
Cameron sucked in a breath as his brain continued to process what had happened, following fictional trails, imagining the worst. ‘Is that why your aunt Regina left everything to a cat home?’ he asked and saw her flinch. ‘Or was that a lie too?’
‘What do you mean?’ she croaked, reaching out a hand and placing it onto the marble counter, as if she were trying to hold herself upright.
Oh, she was good, he could see that now. But he couldn’t let her get to him, not this time.
‘Were you in cahoots with Sophie even then?’ he asked, warming to the subject, shoving down a wave of concern when Izzi wobbled.
Was she okay? Was she about to faint? He shook his head. This was all just part of her clever game. Hadn’t she made him feel like she cared about him? He had no idea what she was really thinking. Not even a hint.
‘Regina used to find fault with everything I did. She wouldn’t listen to me either,’ Izzi whispered.
‘She made a decision about me, believed I was just like my mum. No matter what I did, how many times I proved myself – she’d never look beyond the person she’d decided I was.
’ She shook her head. ‘The truth didn’t matter, only her truth.
Only the image she’d created in her mind and that’s exactly what you’re doing now.
Not everyone is out to get you, Cameron. Not everyone is Sophie or your mother.’
‘You think I’m seeing what I want to see?’ Cameron asked, shocked.
She nodded as a new tear streaked down her face and his insides knotted.
He couldn’t stand to see her crying. But he ignored it, even as his body continued to react viscerally to her being upset.
‘And now I’m wondering if I’ve been doing the same.
’ She studied him. ‘You’re obsessed with Sophie.
She was right – and she did look afraid of you just now.
She’s been in hiding.’ Her eyes widened.
He almost laughed, would have, only what she was suggesting was so messed up. Was she trying to manipulate him – to wound him? He had to put a stop to this now.
‘You need to leave,’ he said flatly and watched her fold her arms over her middle as if trying to hold herself together.
‘What do you mean?’ Izzi asked.
‘I mean you should move out. Leave Honey Haven,’ he said roughly. ‘I don’t want you here. You said you have a job lined up, you can go now.’ At least if she was out of the village, Sophie would have no way of conning him again.
‘What about Maud?’ she whispered, her eyes leaking more tears. ‘I can’t just leave her in the lurch. There are cake orders, orders she won’t be able to fulfil – and what about the Halloween festival?’
He sucked in a breath and shut his eyes. He wanted Izzi gone, wanted her out of his life. But she was right. His grandma needed at least a couple of days to figure out what she was going to do. Nobody baked like Izzi and he had to talk to Maud at least, to explain before he forced Izzi to go.
His mouth tightened. ‘You can move back into the cabin. Take everything that belongs to you from the house. Don’t leave anything.
’ He didn’t need reminders in his home. ‘The fix I put into the roof should hold.’ He lifted his eyes to ceiling.
‘And there are no storms forecast. I want my key.’ He held out a palm and Izzi handed it to him looking dazed.
‘I’ll give you two days – time for me to speak to Maud so we can work out how we can cover your work.’ He’d help out in the café himself if it would mean Izzi leaving more quickly.
‘What about the Halloween festival?’ she asked, her voice trembling.
Cameron frowned. ‘I need you to make the food – it’s up to you if you want to stay for it. Just make sure you stay away from me and keep Sophie away too.’
Izzi’s lips trembled. ‘You’re making a mistake about me,’ she said, fixing him with her amber gaze, reminding him of Sophie all over again. ‘But it seems I’ve made a mistake about you too.’
He fought a wave of grief, a need to convince her that Sophie had been lying. But instead, he watched Izzi round the counter and grab her bag before sweeping past him into the hallway.
Beside his feet, Cupcake let out a low whine. But Cameron refused to turn. He was done with Izzi – done with believing and trusting, done with falling in love and letting his barriers down. It was time for him to move on. Alone.