Page 10 of See You Again
“Why?”
“Because…” Her mouth opened and shut a few times before she settled on, “…Your brother understands the importance of participating. He did it every year when he was single!”
“I’m not my brother.”
This was the James she remembered. Blunt, not caring what anyone thought. But always sweet to her.
Until he wasn’t.
“What about Kip?” Cami turned a dazzling smile on the chef. “He’s single.”
“He doesn’t live in Atlanta,” Kevin pointed out.
“No, but he is opening a restaurant here. Plus,” Cami intentionally widened her grin, winking at Kip. “He’s a celebrity. That would bring in a ton of money for the charity.”
Kip preened. “I’d be happy to help you ladies out.”
“That would be huge!” Alanna exclaimed, James temporarily forgotten.
“Let me buy you ladies a drink, and we can get to know each other better,” Kip said, throwing his arms around the two women’s shoulders again.
The four wandered back to the couches by the entrance, leaving Cami alone with James. The second they were gone, James pulled his arm back, though Cami would swear she could still feel its heavy weight against her. She was left with no choice but to hop off the stool and step away from him.
“I’m really sorry about all that,” Cami began. Now that their audience was gone, the reality of what she’d done hit her, and her cheeks flamed.
James grunted and turned his seat so that he was facing the bar, his eyes staring straight ahead. He lifted his glass and took a large swig.
Cami caught her bottom lip with her teeth. “I’m trying to renew a contract with him. Kip can sometimes be… He’s just had too much to drink. I told him I had a boyfriend, thinking it would get him to back off so that we could keep it professional. But he kept pushing the issue, and we’d already used the same excuse for Madison…” She was babbling, and by the ticking muscle in James’s jaw, she was only making the situation worse.
“So, um, thank you I guess.” His face could give granite a run for its money. Cami tried again. “It’s nice to see you.”
That seemed to annoy him further because his jaw clenched. Disappointment flared. They had been friends once. Good friends.
“So… how was your decade, James?”
James blew an angry breath out his nose.
“Look, I know that was weird, and I’m sorry I put you in that position, but you don’t have to be a jerk about it,” Cami huffed, turning to go. “Have a nice life.”
James’s hand clamped on her wrist, keeping her in place, still not looking at her. “You can’t leave yet.”
Cami glanced down pointedly at the large hand encircling her wrist. James slowly let go and wrapped his hand around the glass in front of him.
“They’ll wonder why you’re leaving already… alone.”
She groaned silently. He was right.
“Have a drink. Hopefully, they’ll have left by the time you finish.” James looked to where a server was delivering a tray of shots to the group. “…Or passed out.”
“What are you drinking?”
“McCallan.”
“Twelve or eighteen year?”
James darted a surprised look at her, and Cami chose not to roll her eyes.
Why do men always think they are the only ones that know about good scotch?