Page 2 of Tastes of Him
Not seriously.
~*~*~
“My gosh! I am so glad we hired another part-timer. I think I’m getting too old to be on my feet for twelve hours straight.” Cameran’s groan echoed my own, and I leaned back against her couch with a sigh.
“If you’re old, I’m ancient.”
“You’re like ten minutes older than me.”
I glanced over at her with a smirk. “Still older.”
“You two are ridiculous,” Julie said as she walked into the living room. She smiled as she shook her head at us before putting two plates down on the coffee table. “Anna made those brownies you two love so much.”
My eyes widened, and I grabbed a plate. Anna’s brownies were like little bites of heaven on your tongue, and I could use a little heaven to make up for the aches and pains of being on my feet all day.
“I wasn’t kidding about her making these to sell at the café. I’ll seriously have our lawyer draw up a contract like tomorrow,” I said before taking a bite. The moan I let out was completely involuntary. “Seriously, what the hell does she put in these things? Is she using artisanal chocolate? Well water? Magic? I’ll sell my left nut if she gives me the recipe.”
Julie’s laughter was warm as she sat down beside Cameran. “I’ll pass on the slightly disturbing message, but truthfully, I have no idea. I’m never there when she makes them.”
Cameran shook her head. “As long as she keeps making them for us to eat, I don’t care what she puts in these bad boys.” She took a bite of her own brownie and made a similarly appreciative noise.
“Facts,” I agreed. For the next few moments, my focus was wholly on the brownie I was trying to find myself in, but as always, the universe couldn’t let me have my win for long.
“So, Cami tells me Rod comes home in a month.”
I cut my eyes over at Cameran, but she didn’t even glance my way. “She did, did she?”
Julie nodded. Her smile was open and genuine, but the girl worked in the corporate world. Keeping a genuine-looking smile on her face was what she did on a daily basis. It was not to be trusted.
“I’m sure you’re excited.”
“Now, why would I be excited?” I asked, playing off her words. “He’s not my brother.”
Julie’s smile didn’t change, and that’s when I knew she was cut from pure evil. She and Cameran were the perfect hellish match. “But he’s yoursomething,right?”
“No.”
Cameran spoke up then. “Oh, come off it. You and Rod have been doing this pining from afar limbo thing for longer than is healthy. I’m getting tired of playing telephone with you two.” She set her plate back down on the table, giving me time to gather my denials. Before I could let them loose, she turned to face me fully. “You know, he actually considered staying in Washington for good.”
I felt my stomach tighten. “What? When did he tell you this?”Stay in Washington? Why the hell would he do that?
She shrugged. “He didn’t tell me. He told our parents, and they told me. Mom was pretty upset that the option even got thrown out there.”
I nodded, not surprised by that. The Davis clan was tight-knit, and I knew Mama Davis would not have liked that bit of news. “Well, you said he considered it, so clearly he decided against staying out there.”
“Yeah. He missed us, so he decided to come back home.” Cameran paused before giving me a pointed look. “He missedallof us. Some more than others.”
“While we’re on the subject, babe,” Julie said, jumping in and thankfully taking the attention off me, “I hate to tell you, but I won’t be able to fly out there with you. I’m sorry.”
Cameran’s face fell. “What? Why not?”
Julie put a hand over hers. “The guy who was supposed to take over my projects for that week decided to quit, and no one else can cover all of my clients.”
“Oh. Well…I guess that makes sense.”
“Kind of a dick move for him to up and dip out, knowing you were counting on him to help out when you’re on leave,” I added.
“I know. I’m sorry, Cami.” Julie leaned forward and kissed her cheek. “I know you bought the tickets already and everything, and I’ll make sure to pay you back for mine. Unless…”