9. Cameron
CAMERON
Ihated myself for how easily I was folding around Nico.
My skills at materializing an unexpected errand or crisis every time my brother’s best friend planned to swing by the farm were well honed over the years, but this time I’d been caught off guard.
It had been years since there had even been a risk.
And now I was going to have to work alongside him in a space that felt smaller by the second.
And I’d basically agreed to let Nico flirt with me the whole time.
What a nightmare.
I wasn’t prepared to let him back into my life, but I was desperate enough to take his crazy deal. See if he proved me right or if he truly meant what he said about making it up to me. I’d spent much of last night tossing and turning in bed, sleep evading me.
When I reached Frosty’s back door, I was surprised to see lights on.
Faint classical music drifted from the front of the store.
Nico was standing in front of the half-painted wall, shirt off, bandana tied around his head, paintbrush between his lips.
His rings were piled up on the counter next to his Bluetooth speaker. He turned when he heard the door close.
“Morning,” he said. “Coffee’s on the counter.”
“You didn’t have to do that.” I didn’t want to be further indebted to the man who’d broken my heart.
Still, I couldn’t help the way my eyes slid over Nico’s broad shoulders and lean stomach, his chest hair and defined Adonis belt making my mouth water.
Nico smirked as he bent over to swap out his paint trays, and I held my breath.
I was just a man, after all, and he was hot as hell.
Even if he was untouchable, I could let myself appreciate him from afar.
I cleared my throat, which suddenly felt dry. “Did you go home last night?”
I hadn’t seen the farm truck roll back up the driveway before I went to bed last night, and it had still been missing this morning.
Maybe he’d gone to Sleigh Queen after work or gotten on the apps and found someone to share the night with since I’d turned him down.
It shouldn’t matter, but the thought felt like a rock in my stomach.
“For a bit,” Nico said, still assessing his work. “But I was up early. I wanted to get as much done as possible before you had customers in.”
I breathed a sigh of relief, then immediately scowled in frustration at myself.
We opened at eleven today and wouldn’t close until nine.
I stepped beside him, sipping the peppermint mocha I didn’t want to be enjoying to gaze at the mural I didn’t want to love.
But it was exactly as I’d imagined it. Better, even.
The ombré of the sunset sky faded together perfectly, and the clouds looked light and fluffy, like cotton candy that would float off the wall if I breathed too hard in their direction.
“What do you think?” Nico knocked my flannel-clad shoulder with his bare one. It was going to be sweltering today by Vermont standards, but we kept Frosty’s cool, so I’d worn layers. I didn’t know how he was working in here shirtless. Probably to torment me.
“It’s coming along.” I couldn’t help the small smile that tugged at the corner of my mouth. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Told you I’d give you the best you’d ever had.”
I raised one eyebrow. “This is the only mural I’ve ever had.”
“Ergo, the best,” Nico said with a bow.
“You’ll have to put a shirt on before we open. This is a family-friendly establishment.”
Nico laughed and spread his arms before grabbing an oversized tee and throwing it on.
I wasn’t sure if I was relieved or disappointed as I watched his bare chest disappear.
Heat spread through me as I watched him run those long, delicate fingers through his hair.
His nails had chipped black polish, and they were smattered with paint.
“I’ll probably head to the farm and sleep for a few hours while you’re busy with customers and swing back by at the end of the day to get a few more hours of work in,” he said.
“Good to know your sleep schedule is as confusing as ever.”
“I’m an artist, baby.” Nico winked at me, and my cheeks flushed despite myself. “Anything you want me to adjust in the design?”
I shook my head. “You’re the talent. I’m sure you know best.”
“Have you been following my career, Cameron?” Nico smirked, his eyebrow raised.
“No—I—uh…” Now my face was truly red as I tried to think of some sort of cover. “I wasn’t going to let you paint my shop without checking out your work online, obviously.”
“Obviously,” Nico said with a smug grin as he saw right through me.
“Well, I’ll leave you to it,” I said, clinging to my coffee cup like a lifeline. I retreated to the kitchen as quickly as I could without looking like I was running away. The proximity was already getting to me, but I was not going to let myself be swept away by Nico’s charms again.
Thankfully, the morning was fairly quiet, and I was able to spend plenty of time in the relative safety of the back room.
“Ok, I’m heading out for a shower and a nap.” Nico popped his head into the kitchen. “I’ll be back before you close.”
I attempted to fix my face into a disinterested stare. “Sleep well.”
“Aww, sugar, I knew you still cared,” he said with a flirty grin.
“Fuck you very much,” I called out as I followed him into the front of the store. His laughter carried from outside as the front door jingled to a close.
I had to keep reminding myself that he was here for a week, and then he’d be gone.
After this week, it’s not like we’d have much reason to see each other outside of Mark’s future wedding celebrations. Nico would finish the mural, I’d end up going with him to Boston, and we’d be even. I could wipe the slate clean, and we could go back to being polite strangers.
Sleighbell Springs and I would carry on without him.
Once Nico was gone, I was banking on having a few hours to breathe before Gwen arrived for her shift. She’d handle the evening rush of teens on bikes, grabbing ice cream for the late summer nights, and I’d have the silence of the kitchen with the creamsicles and my thoughts.
But I could barely take a breath, because all too soon, the front door jingled open again.