‘Hello?’
‘Cam, it’s me, Graeme. Listen, I need to tell you something. It’s about the cameras and the accidental blind spot. I wasn’t going to tell you, but something came up.’
‘What came up?’
‘I er, it’s sort of… well, the camera that was supposed to cover that spot was rigged up a metre away covering the actual blind spot in the PANTRY. It’s the only camera that Porscha doesn’t know about, and we didn’t tell her because she’d have a fit. But our team caught her threatening poor Libby so many times. It’s really upset them.’ There’s some crackling as the reception breaks. ‘Boss, we also have her on camera blackmailing you and Libby. We don’t know what to do.’
Cam looks at me. ‘Bring me that footage pronto. Tell no one.’ He clicks off the call. ‘Looks like we have our secret weapon.’
Chapter 29
Cam drives the car off the main beach road, onto a dirt track and cuts the engine. We are set back just enough that we can still see the sun twinkling off the sea as pelicans dive for fish. It’s a hugely serene and romantic spot enclosed by jungle. ‘We’ll be a good distance from the crew and your sister here. But we’ll have to go on foot the rest of the way once it is time to do the switch. You go back to… Christ, what’s he called?’
I flick through Cam's notes. ‘Eugene. He’s twenty-seven years old. He’s a dental nurse. He is a single father to a cute puppy called Floppy and he loves boats. He spends a lot of time in the gym when he’s not hanging out with Floppy.’
Cam looks impressed.
‘I have a class of over thirty children every year. I have to get to know them inside out or else they play you like a cheap fiddle. Speaking of which,' I say, flipping the notes over. 'This new guy Winston will be perfect for Amber.’
‘Would you miss going back to England if I asked you to stay here with me?’ Cam says with an earnest expression. ‘It’s justthat I wondered if you want to… no pressure, but I just thought that it would be good if we…’
‘Yes.’
‘You don’t know what I’m going to ask,’ he says, smiling. Sparkles of joy radiating from his face.
‘It’s still a yes.’
He’s just about to lean in and kiss me when we hear the rumbling of cars going past from our hiding spot behind a dense thicket of trees and vegetation. Cam checks his phone. ‘It’s them. They’re setting up and filming in twenty. We should give them at least half an hour before we approach.’
‘Half an hour sounds about right,’ I say, licking my lips. Cam watches my tongue, so I slow down the movement and give him the look he has come to fear.
‘Oh no,’ he says. ‘Don’t look at me like that.’
I reach out my hand to stroke his thigh.
‘No. Not happening,’ he says laughing. His eyes are telling a completely different story.
I swirl my fingertips lightly around his crotch area, teasing him so that he hardens inside his denim shorts.
‘You’re terrible,’ he says, looking at me awestruck. He visibly gulps and looks about to check that we are completely secluded.
Without taking my eyes from his, I slowly unzip his shorts. His breaths are coming short and sharp.
‘I’d like to give you something to remember me by,’ I say huskily.
Cam makes a choked sound in response, nodding his head vigorously. ‘Yes. Yes. Definitely. Oh, God, yes,’ he manages to say just before my lips make sweet contact.
Cam is sitting in a complete daze. It was all over very quickly due to theunusual circumstanceshe says. ‘I’ve never been so turned on in my entire life. That was insane.’ He looks over at me with dark, enticing lovey-dovey eyes. His pupils are greatly dilated, and I am thrilled at his response. I feel like a powerful, wanton woman, firmly in control of her sexuality.
‘Let’s rescue my sister,’ I say, getting quietly out of the car. We make our way along the beach front, following the sound of the waves crashing. We step over brambles and duck under tree branches. The forest is alive with creatures making noises.
‘It’s incredible,’ I whisper to him. ‘It’s such a spiritual feeling to be here surrounded by mother nature, and the intricate synergy between all of these plants and insects and animals. I feel so small in comparison. It really is wondrous, don’t you think?’
Cam is still giving me goo-goo eyes. At that moment a snapping sound nearby causes us to stop. The snapping is followed by a popping sound and a whistle. I look up and there above us in the tree is the cutest-looking family of monkeys sitting watching us. Next to them are the most brightly coloured birds I’ve ever seen, tapping away at the branch.
‘Mating calls,’ says Cam. I mean, he would know all about that, wouldn’t he? ‘Quick look, a flying squirrel.’
‘This place is magnificent. I wish I’d trained to be a conservationist rather than a teacher. Imagine if this was your classroom? Imagine if you could show future generations what we’re losing if we don’t change our ways.’
