Where I Belong (Pine Valley Book 2) Read online

  He hung up and remained still for several moments. Then he replied to Crystal’s text with: I need to think through everything. I’ll contact you tomorrow. Cameron might have to let go of Jane, but he refused to let Crystal worm her way back in. Until the child was born, he wanted very little contact with her.

  Cameron pocketed his phone and went downstairs to wait for Jane.

  The thirty minutes was closer to an hour when her truck finally drove up the road to his cabin. Cameron went outside immediately and watched her climb out.

  She was wearing a V-neck black shirt and slim-fitting capris with sandals. Her hair was down, framing her shoulders. The dark, troubled look in her eyes tugged at his heart and made him feel terrible. As she walked toward him, he came down the stairs to meet her. Before he could stop himself, or think of how much he was confusing her, he pulled her into his arms and buried his face in her hair. He breathed her in for a long moment, feeling her soft body against his as she held onto him.

  “Cameron, what’s wrong?” she asked, drawing away, even though he didn’t let go. “You’re scaring me.”

  Finally, he released her and stepped away. He scrubbed a hand through his hair. He moved back to the steps and sat down.

  Jane came to sit by him. “Just tell me,” she said. “My stomach is in knots.”

  Cameron met her steady, worried gaze. She was right. He just had to say it. “Crystal’s pregnant.” He looked away then. When it came to it, he didn’t want to see the pain and questions in Jane’s eyes.

  After a long moment, she said, “I’m assuming it’s your baby.”

  “That’s what she says.”

  Jane went quiet again. “Are you getting back together again?”

  “Hell, no,” Cameron spat out. “I’ll provide for the kid, of course, and I want to be a decent dad.” He spread his hands. “All of this isn’t fair to an innocent kid. It’s not fair to you either.”

  He finally looked at her. She wasn’t looking at him like she was disgusted. But she was hurt, and there were tears in her eyes.

  “Jane, I’m really sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to make a mess of things, of us, but this kid is going to keep Crystal in my life forever. And I don’t anticipate things getting any easier. Crystal has already been texting over demands this morning. I can hardly stand to open her texts, but I have to look beyond my own ego and feelings and think about the baby.”

  Jane blinked. “What are you saying, Cameron?”

  He swallowed against his dry mouth. “I don’t expect you to... stick with me. Ever since we started becoming friends, I’ve been on a rollercoaster. And it’s not fair to expect you to deal with my problems. You’re dealing with your dad and—”

  “Cameron,” she cut in. “Crystal’s pregnancy isn’t something that would make me give up on you.” She brushed her fingers along his jaw, and he wanted to lean into her, take comfort from her touch. But she wasn’t finished talking yet. “I believe you when you say your relationship is over, but I also understand how things can change. You just had life-changing news, and I don’t want to stand in the way of you making the decision you need to. I get that our friendship started under stressful circumstances, but life is stressful in general. I’m not saying that you’re on the rebound with me, but I am saying that you have a lot of things to work out before you can consider getting into a new relationship. And maybe I do too.”

  The tears were back in her eyes, and Cameron felt his heart start to rip.

  “You’re a lovely man, Cameron Vance,” she said, leaning close and kissing his cheek as her hand strayed to the other side of his face. She drew back, holding his gaze. “I like you too, and when you’re ready, call me. Maybe I’ll still be around.” She rose to her feet and brushed off her pants. “Thank you for everything.”

  Cameron couldn’t speak over the lump in his throat. He watched her walk back to her car and climb in. As she turned the car around and started to drive away, he rose to his feet to call after her. But she couldn’t hear him, and he knew she was right. He had to figure his life out. Crystal had torn him to pieces. And now there was a baby in the mix.

  Cameron pulled out his phone, wanting to call Jane. To beg her to come back. But she didn’t deserve a confused man. So, instead he called his mom as he walked to the backyard. As he paced the deck, he told her everything. About how he was falling in love with Jane. About her mom. About her dad. About Sparks. Then he told his mom about Crystal and how she was having his baby in February.

  His mom was silent for a long time, and Cameron wondered if the call had dropped, or if he’d shocked his mom into a heart attack.

  “Son, did you not use birth control?”

  Cameron exhaled. It wasn’t too fun discussing this with his own mother. “She was on the pill.”

  His mother scoffed. “Sure she was. Or... have you considered the other alternative?”

  “I don’t think Crystal slept with another man,” Cameron said. “She was practically with me twenty-four-seven.”

  “No, I mean that she’s not pregnant,” his mom said.

  “What?”

  “Think about it,” she said. “Crystal is desperate to get back together. You’re a great catch—sorry to be blunt—but you know that money attracts the piranhas. Crystal might use this to get back together. You marry her after all, then she’ll conveniently have a miscarriage.”

  Cameron sat down on the edge of one of the deck chairs. “How do I find out if she’s really pregnant?”

  “Well, time will tell, of course, but there might be a quicker way,” his mom said.

  “How?” Cameron prodded.

  “Tell her you want to go to her next doctor appointment with her,” his mom said. “Insist on an ultrasound. And even then, when the child is born, do a paternity test.”

  Cameron exhaled, his mind reeling. “Do you think another human would really stoop this low? Even Crystal?”

  “I don’t know,” she said. “But I do know you shouldn’t let this come between you and Jane. If anything, you need her more than ever. If you really like her, son, you shouldn’t be choosing Crystal over her.”

  “I’m not choosing Crystal,” he said. “Things are so screwed up right now, how is that fair to Jane?”

  “Life is messy,” his mom said in a firm voice. “You’re choosing Crystal over Jane if you are letting this come between you. No matter the outcome of Crystal’s pregnancy, do you still choose Jane?”

  Cameron closed his eyes. “Of course.”

  “Then choose her now,” his mom said. “Waiting will drive a wedge between you. If you choose Jane now, before the paternity is verified, before the baby is born, then Jane will believe that your feelings are true.”

  “You’re right,” Cameron said. After he hung up with his mom, he remained on the back deck, sitting in the sun and letting it warm him through. He was going to follow his mom’s advice and tell Crystal that he was coming to her doctor’s appointment. He was also going to figure out how to keep Jane in his life.

  Jane didn’t know why she bothered to dress up for game night at the assisted living center. It wasn’t like anyone under the age of seventy would be seeing her. This time last week she was anticipating Cameron coming. But all had changed. Last week seemed like a lifetime ago. Everything had seemed so different then, so simple.

  Cameron was out of her life now; she hadn’t heard from him since Monday night when she’d gone to the shop to pick up her car. The starter had been replaced, but the invoice had a zero balance. When she confronted the shop cashier, he had raised his hands, saying he wasn’t sure who paid the bill but there was no balance for her to pay.

  Jane had immediately thought of Cameron. She’d sent him a text even though they hadn’t had any contact since their goodbye on Sunday.

  He’d texted back: Let me do this one thing for you.

  In truth, he’d done a lot more than just one thing for her.

  This morning as she’d loaded up Sparks in her car
and driven him back to her mom’s, she’d thought of the drive she’d taken with Cameron and the excitement she’d felt being around him. She wondered how he was doing with the whole revelation about Crystal being pregnant. Would they get back together after all? Having a child together would be a pretty strong bond to ignore.

  She missed him. She missed his laugh, the way he looked at her, even their arguments. But she’d known from the beginning Cameron Vance was too good to be true.

  Jane faced her bedroom mirror. She’d gone on a mini shopping spree on the way back from her mom’s. It was probably therapy to get over the incessant questions her mom had asked about Cameron. Jane wore a new pale violet blouse with a tiny print, along with new jeans—which looked old because of the trendy rips in them. But they’d both been on clearance, so Jane was proud of her find.

  “Jane?” her dad called.

  She’d delayed long enough, and her dad would be driving himself if she didn’t hurry. “Coming,” she said.

  Her dad waited by the door, and they walked out together into the cool summer evening.

  “Looks like rain,” her dad said.

  Jane glanced up at the dark clouds hanging low in the sky. It did look like rain. Yet she didn’t feel like she needed a jacket. The center was always plenty warm. “Do you want me to grab your jacket?” she asked.

  “No time now,” her dad said.

  Jane hid a smile; her dad was so strict about being on time to game night. They climbed in her newly repaired car, and just like that she was thinking of Cameron again. She wondered how many weeks would have to pass before she didn’t think about him every other minute.

  “Is Cameron coming tonight?” her dad asked on the drive to the center.

  She wondered if her dad was just trying to get under her skin. “I told you he’s not coming. He’s out of town or something.” She didn’t want to spell it all out for her dad—explain that Cameron’s ex-fiancée was pregnant. She figured if Cameron wasn’t coming around anymore, her dad would eventually stop bringing him up.

  Once they arrived at the center, Jane was once again caught up with Bea and the ladies in their art group.

  Bea, who wore a pink striped shirt and a pink cardigan, along with her usual silver glittery headband, waved Jane over. “We’ve got water colors!” she pronounced.

  “Oh, great,” Jane said, smiling. “You ladies are getting spoiled.”

  The women smiled back at her, and Jane went about setting up water cups. “We’ll work off our sketches we did last week. You want to start with the darker colors first, then add bits of the lighter colors.” She moved around the table, getting each lady started on her project. Then Jane settled in her own seat. She’d finished her sketch of the ladies, and tonight they were sitting in a different order. But that didn’t matter when adding color and the sunset background.

  She pulled up the picture she’d taken last week on the drive with Cameron. It was a sunrise, and so she decided to paint the colors of a sunrise instead. After all, these women were like a sunrise in Jane’s life. Soon, she became absorbed in her work.

  “Is your man coming tonight?” Bea asked, pulling Jane from her concentration.

  She looked up. “Um, I don’t think so.”

  “My eyes aren’t very good anymore, honey, but isn’t that him sitting by your father?” Bea continued.

  Jane looked over at the card table where her dad was sitting with Pete. Her breath caught when she saw who was sitting next to her dad. Cameron was wearing a pale-green, button-down shirt, his sleeves rolled up to his forearms, and a loosened navy tie. He looked as if he’d come from a business meeting and didn’t have time to change.

  She knew she was staring, but she was truly shocked. There’d been no communication with him since Monday night, yet... he was hanging out with her dad? She didn’t know whether to laugh about it or be annoyed.

  Cameron chose that moment to look up, and their gazes met. Jane had no idea what to think. He gave her a nod of acknowledgment and went back to playing the card game.

  “I guess his meetings got out early,” Jane said, realizing the women at the table were watching her. She felt a slow heat creep up her neck, and she refocused on her watercolor. But the colors all seemed to blend together, and she realized she had tears in her eyes.

  Oh no. She couldn’t cry here, not right now. Not with Cameron sitting a few tables away. Bea would notice too. She waited as long as she dared, then said, “I’m going to the restroom. I’ll be right back.”

  She rose and hurried away from the table. She bypassed the hallway with the public restroom and walked out the front doors. It had started to rain, but she didn’t mind. She leaned against the wall, protected by the awning from the driving rain. Closing her eyes, she wondered why Cameron had come. What was he trying to prove? Surely, he and her dad hadn’t bonded that much over burning rubber.

  So, that left only one option. He’d come to talk to her. Did he feel obligated to tell her in person that he and Crystal were going to get back together after all? It was just like him to have the courtesy to tell her in person. Well, then, she’d just have to take it like the adult woman she was.

  Something shifted in the air, and the sound of rain seemed to dull. Jane sensed Cameron’s presence. She opened her eyes to find him walking toward her

  He stopped next to her. “Jane?” he said, touching her arm, concern in his eyes.

  What did he have to be concerned about?

  She moved a couple of inches, and he dropped his hand. It hurt to look at his handsome face and the mouth she had kissed and the eyes she’d become so caught up in.

  “I was just hot in there,” Jane said. “What are you doing here?”

  “I came to find you,” he said, his gaze searching hers.

  Why did he have to look at her like that? As if he was still interested in her?

  “But you seemed so absorbed in your work, and your dad called me over to play,” he said.

  Jane exhaled. “You could have called instead of coming to tell me.” She felt petty for saying it, but the blow wouldn’t have hurt so much over the phone. And there wouldn’t have been the risk of crying in front of him.

  “Believe me, I’ve thought about calling you every minute of each day, but I just got back in town an hour ago.” Cameron stepped closer. “This isn’t something I wanted to say over the phone.”

  Jane’s heart sank. After Cameron told her what he came to say, she didn’t think she could go back in and face a roomful of people. Maybe she could hang out in the bathroom until her dad was finished.

  Or the car. That would be better. “I don’t need to hear every detail,” Jane said. “I’m happy for you and Crystal. Every kid deserves a two-parent home. I understand that more than a lot of people.” She pushed off the wall and headed across the parking lot toward her car.

  “Jane,” Cameron called after her.

  But she ignored him, just as she ignored the rain pelting her face. She was almost to the car when she realized she’d left her purse and keys inside the center.

  “Jane.” Cameron caught up with her and wrapped a hand about her arm. “What are you talking about? Crystal and I aren’t getting back together. I came to tell you I don’t want to do this without you.”

  Jane gazed up at him in the rain. “You don’t want to deal with Crystal and your kid without me?”

  He exhaled and moved closer. “I don’t want to do anything without you. Whether or not Crystal is really pregnant, it doesn’t matter. I don’t want it to come between us.”

  “What do you mean?” Jane stared at him. “She might not be pregnant?”

  “My mom has her doubts, and I’m going to Crystal’s next doctor appointment to find out for sure,” he said in a rush. “Even if she is pregnant, I’m going to have a paternity test done when the kid is born.”

  “And if it’s your kid?” Jane prompted, folding her arms.

  “Then it’s my kid, and I want shared custody,” Cameron said.
“But that’s all.” He rested his hand on her shoulder and leaned in. “You’re the woman I want, Jane. Not Crystal. Not anyone else. Whether or not Crystal is having my baby, I want to be with you.”

  Jane brushed at the tears on her cheeks that had mingled with the rain. She’d started to tremble. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes,” he whispered back. He moved his hands to cradle her face as he gazed into her eyes. “Jane, I want you back. It’s killing me not to be with you. I was shocked, confused, but I never stopped wanting you.”

  Jane blew out a slow breath. Then she slid her hands up his solid chest. His shirt was damp from the rain. She raised up on her toes and pressed her mouth against his.

  Cameron wrapped her in his arms and kissed her back with an intensity that made Jane feel like she was floating above the ground.

  When they both got to a point where they had to catch their breaths, Jane drew away. “Wait. Does your mom know... about me?”

  Cameron grinned. “She does. And she’s thrilled.”

  Warmth buzzed through Jane. “Really?”

  “My dad too,” Cameron said. “You were the first person he asked about before our meetings started. The question is, will your parents be okay with us?”

  Jane smiled. “My dad was looking forward to you coming tonight, but I told him you were out of town. And, well, you know my mom.”

  “Um-hm,” Cameron said, placing a light kiss on her lips. “We’re really wet.”

  Jane laughed. “I think everyone’s going to be staring at us when we go back inside.”

  “So, let’s go get hot chocolate or something,” he said, sliding his hands along her arms, then linking their fingers. “I’ll go tell your dad, and then we can come back here to pick him up.”

  Jane was tempted. She knew she’d probably kiss Cameron for the next hour if they were in his car. “I need to get back to the art table.”

  Cameron nodded, although he looked reluctant to agree. “Okay. Let’s get you out of this rain, then.” He tugged her toward the center, and she laughed as they ran to the front entrance, narrowly missing a growing puddle of water.