Page 61 of Sophia & Cameron
“Why not?” he demanded. “I’ve given you space. I’m working on myself?—”
“Are you seeing someone? A therapist?”
The way his expression hardened was all the answer she needed.
“Cameron, we can’t.”
His brows pulled together, but rather than anger, she saw concern. He reached toward her and miraculously, she didn’t retreat. The calloused pad of his thumb wiped at the apple of her cheek, brushing a tear from her skin. Her breath shuddered as his eyes returned to meet hers. “You’re upset.”
The pain and loss of it all had consumed her for so long that all she had left was anger. She swatted his hand from her face. “Of course I’m upset. I’m heartbroken. Because I want nothing more than to be with you. I love you, Cameron?—”
“Then give us a chance.”
“Don’t you understand? The cycle will only continue. Sure, you could make little improvements now on your own, but eventually…” She heaved a sad sigh and forced herself to meet his eyes with a steady stare. “Eventually you’ll revert back to the person that you’re most comfortable with. Unless you’re willing to make a change, develop better habits, nothing is going to stick.”
She wasn’t innocent in all of this either, but at least she’d seen what she needed to do to fix it. Making time for therapy wasn’t easy. It was tedious, and sometimes it didn’t feel like she was making any progress on her healing. But she planned to stick with it. She still had insecurities that flared up.
His frown turned into something of a scowl. Cameron might not be voicing it, but he clearly didn’t believe he needed help.
There was nothing she could do to change his mind. It hurt knowing that if she chose to wait for him, she might be left hanging indefinitely.
Before he could get past her weakening defenses with his touches, his smile, or those pleading eyes, she brushed past him.
Emma and Camilla weren’t where they’d been seated before. And Sophia could feel Cameron’s presence behind her as she headed into the crowd. A slow song started, and her heart pounded angrily in her chest. She was desperate. She couldn’t be stuck dancing with him. One touch was all it would take to melt her hardened heart like butter.
She latched onto the first cowboy she found. “Want to dance?”
His surprise was short-lived.
As was her relief when he agreed.
Ugh! She’d resorted to being with another guy in front of Cameron. Again.
Only this time, it wasn’t to feed off his jealousy. This was out of self-preservation.
The stranger slipped his hands around her waist and smiled at her. He was objectively attractive and that flirtatious smile only added to it. He had brilliant blue eyes that normally would have had her pulse fluttering.
But all she could think about were the dark eyes that were drilling into the side of her face. Cameron wasn’t in the middle of the dance floor. He leaned against the wall at the side of the room. When she glanced at him, she noted his stiff stance and his arms folded tight at his chest.
He continued to stare at her, his jaw flexing. A girl approached and Sophia looked away. Cameron didn’t belong to her anymore. He could dance with another girl even if the thought of it made her sick to her stomach.
She was such a hypocrite.
When she glanced in his direction once more, she found he hadn’t left with the girl. She was gone, but he remained. What was he trying to express? That he would rather be alone and miserable, watching her in someone else’s arms, than try something new with someone else?
No. She couldn’t believe that.
The Cameron she knew was obsessive, and he simply hadn’t found a new plaything to focus his obsession on.
He didn’t bother coming up to her when the dance ended. In fact, he kept his distance. He didn’t even dance with anyone else.
The worst part was that every time she took on another dance partner, she saw the emotions warring in Cameron’s eyes—even from where she stood on the dance floor. There was pain—heartache—in those eyes of his. Perhaps she saw a little bit of fury, as well.
And it wasn’t until she made it home and was lying in her bed staring at the ceiling that one thing became clear in her head.
She’d gone over the night again and again. One thing stood out.
Cameron had been restrained.
