Page 18 of Sophia & Cameron

“You’re beautiful, but I’m guessing you already know that,” he said. His voice was gravelly and low. Its husky timber immediately made her think about Cameron again.

Ugh! Why couldn’t she get him out of her head? He was everywhere. It wasn’t fair.

Sophia closed her eyes to shut out Cameron’s face from her thoughts. He wasn’t allowed to make her feel this way.

“You okay?” the stranger murmured near her ear.

She gasped, and her eyes opened. His dark brows were pulled together, though his eyes were bright with interest. Sophia nodded with a laugh. “Just a little dizzy. Maybe I should get some water?—”

His hold on her tightened. Or was she imagining that? He offered her a knowing smile. “It’s okay, beautiful. I can hold us both up.”

“She said she wants a drink of water.”

That voice. It was the one she heard in every single one of her dreams. It was the one that sent chills racing down her spine. That voice was the voice of an angel, and she knew before she turned around who would be behind her.

“If she wants to go, she can go,” her stranger said to Cameron over her shoulder before looking down at her.

Before she had a chance to respond, Cameron’s hand grasped the one she had resting on the stranger’s shoulder. In a move that was as exhilarating as it was terrifying, he spun her away from her dance partner. He kept ahold of her hand with one of his own while placing the other on the small of her back.

Sophia glanced over her shoulder at the cowboy she’d left on the dance floor, her head still spinning. Then her eyes narrowed as she gave Cameron a disgruntled look. “What are you doing? I was dancing with him.”

“And he wasn’t listening to you.”

“You don’t know that?—”

“I know more than you realize.” Cameron jerked his chin toward the cowboy, who had already managed to find a replacement to dance with. “That guy is trouble.”

She scoffed. “And you know this how?”

“Call it a gut instinct.”

Sophia tugged at the hand he held, but he didn’t release her until they made it to the counter, where he ordered her a bottle of water. She had the hardest time remaining mad at him for his intrusion as she leaned against the counter and peered up at him.

Cameron’s eyes remained locked on her. He actually looked concerned. Maybe it was his proximity, but she found herself smiling at him from beneath her lashes.

“Thank you,” she murmured.

“For saving you from that guy?”

Sophia rolled her eyes and lifted the water.

He nodded, and then his focus shifted to the room. “You should be more careful.”

“Please,” she drawled. “You realize that this town isn’t exactly a crime capitol, right? I’m perfectly safe.”

“That doesn’t mean anything,” Cameron said. “Crime can happen in small towns, too. Your town is growing. People are moving here.”

“So what does that make you? Are you a criminal I should be worried about?”

With an expression that was far too serious, Cameron shook his head. “I would never hurt you.”

She arched a brow, tempted to tell him it was too late for that. But she shrugged that thought off. “Sorry, I’m not taking applications for a knight in shining armor. You’re gonna have to go elsewhere.”

That got him smiling, and geez it made her stomach flip like it had jumped off a plane without a parachute. He leaned in close to her, and his breath fanned her face as he said in a husky voice, “I’m well aware you don’t need saving. But maybe you’d consider a partner in crime.”

She laughed. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d laughed like that.

And the grin he gave her after he heard that laugh? There went her stomach again.

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