“No. That won’t fix this. My dad even told him that he has to make it business, not personal.”
“What are you going to do?”
“The only thing that I can think of.”
“What’s that?” She eyes me warily.
“I have to break up with him.”
Chapter 26
Cameron
I check my phone yet again, but there’s still no reply from Paisley. That’s not like her. I try to tell myself that she and Willow are just lost in catching up, but something nags at me, telling me it’s more than that. That’s why when Miller says he’s heading out, I use it as my chance to bail too.
“I’m heading out too,” I tell them.
“You and Paisley have plans later?” Henderson asks.
“I’m not sure. She’s with Willow now.” He nods like he already knows. “Something going on there?” I ask.
“Not sure yet.”
“But you want there to be?”
He gives me a slow, gradual nod. “Yeah, I think I might.”
“Treat her right.” I point at him.
“No other way, my man.” He holds his hand out for a fist bump.
With a wave to the rest of my teammates, I head to my truck. It’s taken me longer to get home than usual, due to traffic. There’s a concert tonight, and the town is already packed. When I pull into my parking spot in front of my condo, I have a small sigh of relief when I see both Willow’s and Paisley’s cars parked in front of theirs.
I shake my head at my craziness, and all because she didn’t text me back. I know she’s been missing her best friend, and they’re more than likely caught up in chatting each other’s ears off. However, there is still this underlying sense that some things are not right. I know what will fix that. I just need to see her. I need to wrap my arms around her and breathe her in, and all will be well. I can go back to my place and wait for girls’ day to be over.
That’s what I need. I’m grabbing my phone from the cupholder and the keys from the ignition, and my legs carry me to their front door. My knuckles rap on the door three times, and I wait.
When the door opens, it’s Willow who answers. “Hey, Willow. Is Paisley still here?” She gives me a sad nod and steps back.
“Hey,” Paisley says. Her eyes are red and swollen, and my gut twists. I fucking knew it.
“What’s wrong?” I step into their condo and pull her into my arms. She starts to sob, gripping my shirt. I look over her shoulder at Willow for guidance, and she, too, has tears in her eyes. “Baby?” I hold her tight, absorbing her tears and feeling her pain. I don’t know how long we stand here, me holding her and her gripping my shirt as if her life depends on it while tears soak us both.
When she steps out of my hold, I run my eyes over her, looking to see if she’s been hurt. “Paisley?”
“I need a minute,” she says, not meeting my eyes. “Can you head on over to your place, and I’ll be there soon?”
“What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”
She holds her hand to her mouth and shakes her head. “I’m okay,” she finally says.
“Is someone hurt? Anyone?”
“No. It’s okay. I’ll-I’ll be over in a minute. I just need to talk to Willow quickly.”
“I don’t want to leave you.”
She looks me dead in the eye. “I promise you I’ll be right over. Five minutes tops.”
My eyes flash from her to Willow and back again. “Okay. Five minutes, and I’m coming back.”
“You won’t have to,” she assures me.
I nod, and against my better judgment, I give her the time she needs and walk out the door. My head is spinning, trying to figure out what could have her so upset. And Willow, she had tears in her eyes too. I pace back and forth in the living room. Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I check the gossip rags, but there are no new headlines about me or her or us. So it’s not that. I’m at a loss. I don’t know what caused her pain, but I know seeing her cry like that is like taking a knife to the gut. I hate seeing her so upset and in pain and not knowing why or how to fix it.
I look at the time on my phone, and it’s been six minutes. “Time’s up, baby,” I mutter, stomping toward the door. When I pull it open, she’s standing there. Her arms are hanging at her sides, and her face is streaked with tears. My heart shatters in my chest. I offer her my hand, and she hesitates for two heartbeats before placing her hand in mine and allowing me to lead her inside and shut the door.
I guide us to the couch and sit, pulling her gently into my lap. She curls up in a ball and cries softly. I don’t know what to do. I can keep asking her what’s wrong, but she’s not going to tell me until she’s ready. So, instead, I wrap my arms around her and hold her close. My hand runs up and down her back in an attempt to soothe her.
Eventually, she stops crying, but she doesn’t move, so neither do I. I hold her, giving her my strength, if that’s what she needs. Silently telling her that I’m here for her. Whatever this is, we’ll get through it together. Hell, I may even be able to fix it if I knew what was causing her pain. If I knew what was causing her tears.
When she finally moves to sit up, the sun has long since dipped, and nightfall has set in. “Baby, I need you to talk to me.”
She nods and scoots to the other end of the couch, pulling her legs under her. She reaches for a pillow and grips it tight against her chest, almost as if she’s afraid she may reach for me or that I may reach for her.
“Paisley.” My voice cracks.
“My mom called me today.” I nod, not sure what to say to that. Did she give her a hard time about us? “She needed me to pick Peyton up from school. She was stuck on the other side of town, and Dad had a meeting too.”
“Okay.”
“When I dropped her off, I went to say hi to my dad.” Her voice cracks, and I watch as she visibly swallows. “I heard him. He was on the phone.” Her eyes find mine. “He was talking to Drew.”
It doesn’t escape me how she doesn’t call him Uncle Drew. “What did you hear?”
“They were talking about you. About the media shit show that follows us.”
“It’s calmed down a lot,” I defend, as panic grows in my gut.
“They’re trading you,” she says. “Unless—” She bites down on her lip.
“Unless what?” More tears race down her cheeks. “Unless what, Paisley?”
“Unless we’re no longer together.”
“No.” I stand from the couch and begin to pace again. “Fuck that. No. Just no.” I turn to look at her. “That’s not happening.”
“Cam, listen to me. We don’t really have much of a choice on this. This is your career. It’s doomed regardless. Either we end this or you get traded. Who knows where you will end up, and you know it won’t be close, so you’ll be further away from your mom and from me.”
“We. Will. Figure. It. Out,” I say through gritted teeth.
“Come on, Cam. You know long distance never works.”