“That’s it,” Cameron laughed. “Take your water and your banana upstairs. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Night, Mom.” He was still laughing as he hugged her and kissed her on the cheek before doing the same to Melanie. “Night, Aunt Mel.”
He whispered something into her ear that made Melanie laugh and blush as she playfully patted his back. Jonah trotted up the stairs, leaving them alone again.
“Kids,” Cameron rolled her eyes. “What did he tell you?”
Melanie hesitated for a moment. She walked toward Cameron, stopping a few feet short as they both leaned onto the kitchen island. “That it was okay with him if I stayed over.”
The words hung between them like a dense fog. That thought hadn’t crossed Cameron’s mind yet. She tried not to worry that ithadcrossed her sixteen-year-old son’s mind, though. Shaking that image from her head, Melanie must have misunderstood what Cameron was doing.
“I’m not expecting that, by the way. I didn’t pack an extra bag of clothes or a toothbrush or anything. And I didn’t ask you to be my girlfriend today because I wanted to sleep over tonight. I just wanted you to know that the divorce was final and to ask you to be my girlfriend so I didn’t have to spend another minute not being able to freely kiss you. I don’t want to stay over. Or have sex. Not right now. Cause you were right. We need to do this right, you know? And you deserve that and…”
Cameron shut up Melanie’s ramblings with a kiss. She knew it would be the only way to get her to be quiet long enough for Cameron to think of a response. As she pulled away, Cameron noted the dreamy look in Melanie’s eyes.
“You shut me up by kissing me.”
“I did.”
“I thought that only happened in movies.”
“And in my kitchen, apparently.”
Reaching out her hand, Cameron gently tucked Melanie’s hair behind her ear before cradling her cheek in her hand. She looked into her beautiful green eyes, studying the specks of brown that she’d never paid attention to before.
“I’m not expecting anything more than the amazing day you have already given me.” She smiled softly. “But if you wanted to stay over tonight, you could.”
Melanie started to say something, but Cameron put a finger to her lips.
“Let me finish first,” she grinned, loving having the upper hand for a moment. “I don’t want to have sex. Not tonight. We’re not ready for that step yet. But,” Cameron inhaled sharply, “I’ve had an amazing day with you and the kids and I’m not ready for that to end. So, stay. Spend the night with me like we used to when girls’ night went too late and you were too drunk to drive home.”
Again, Melanie started to say something, but it was Cameron’s turn to ramble away.
“Just think about it. We can watch the rest ofHome Aloneand start another movie or we could play a game. And then you can let me snuggle with you and smell the lavender in your hair. I’m not expecting anything more than that. And in the morning, I’ll make us breakfast.”
“Well,” Melanie’s eyes sparkled, “you know I’m a sucker for snuggles and breakfast.”
Cameron couldn’t hide her excitement. “So, you’ll stay?”
“Cam,” Melanie placed a hand gently on Cameron’s chest, “I was going to sayyeswhen you cut me off the first time.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
And to Cameron’s excitement, that was exactly how the night played out. She offered Melanie a set of her pajamas to wear to bed after they finished watching the movie. Out of respect, she offered to sleep on the couch if Melanie wanted the bed to herself.You promised to cuddle with me, Melanie had said as she crawled into bed.
Not once had Cameron had a woman she was dating in her bed. Never. And even though she and Melanie had shared a bed before, it was so much more special now. Cameron had wondered who would be the big spoon, but Melanie had surprised her by taking the position as soon as Cameron lay down beside her. Melanie wrapped her leg over Cameron’s, pulling her body closer to hers. As Melanie wrapped an arm around Cameron’s waist, she felt a rogue tear slide down her cheek.
To be loved by anyone was a gift. But to be loved by Melanie Wright was the best gift Cameron could have ever gotten for Christmas.
Chapter 20
Melanie
Melanie still wasn’t sure how she pried herself out of Cameron’s warm embrace three mornings ago. As she sat in an uncomfortable office chair staring at a computer screen, Melanie let her mind wander back to that morning. She’d felt so safe and loved in Cameron’s arms. More so than she ever had before. And waking up beside Cameron?
Damn.
