Page 42 of Sophia & Cameron

“Yeah, peachy,” Cameron said. “Get your ice cream. Let’s go.”

She hurried after him, falling into step at his side. “Are you sure? What did those guys do?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Cameron bit out. “Don’t worry about it.”

Sophia frowned but didn’t press the issue. Maybe Tanner had come up to him and said something about her after she’d gone. Cameron was protective. If he thought that Tanner was being inappropriate, she wouldn’t put it past him to say something.

Cameron took her hand in his, pulling her to a stop. He studied her for a moment before he leaned in close and kissed her forehead. “I’ve got two options for us. Star gazing or bookstore.”

Her brows lifted, and her smile returned. “Ooh. How could I possibly choose?”

“Both it is.” He chuckled. And just like that, the tension was cleared away.

18

Cameron

Cameron had his reasons for confronting the cowboy at the chocolate shop. The guy was clearly coming onto her. Cameron had clocked the guy and his friend the second he’d entered the shop. He’d seen Sophia walk in with Cameron. He’d noticed that they were holding hands. He’d blatantly disregarded everything and hit on Sophia like he could steal her away.

If Sophia hadn’t returned so quickly, Cameron wasn’t sure that things wouldn’t have escalated. What was it with people like his brother who thought they had the right to encroach on another’s relationship? He would have never dreamed of coming between a girl and the guy she went out with.

Unless it was Sophia.

He shook that truth from his mind. Sophia was different. They were made for each other. He could see that plain as day, and if someone wanted to claim he was crazy or obsessed, hecouldn’t care less. Sophia’s heart belonged to him, and his heart was irrevocably hers.

They’d spent plenty of time perusing the shelves in the local bookstore and then they headed out to the hills away from the lights of town so they could get a good look at the stars.

When it was just the two of them here like this, he was at peace. No one could make him feel so at ease. Sophia had a way about her that made him feel seen and cherished. Her attention remained on him, and it didn’t matter if he stumbled over his words or made a fool of himself in other ways; she still looked at him like he was everything.

Currently, they were sprawled out on a blanket he’d pulled from the back of his truck and were staring up at the sky. Sophia rolled over and propped herself up on one elbow. “Tell me about your brother.”

He frowned, which spurred her laughter.

“I know you two didn’t have the best relationship in your later teenage years, but it couldn’t have beenallbad, could it?”

Cameron worked his jaw and shifted his focus to the darkened sky. He laced his fingers behind his head and heaved a sigh. “No, it wasn’t all bad.”

“So, tell me about him. The good parts.”

He took in a deep breath before cutting a glance at Sophia out of the corner of his eye. “He’s my older brother—just over a year older. We were friends with all the same people which was both good and bad.” He let out a mirthless chuckle. “As you can imagine, there were moments when we were very competitive with one another. Sports. Grades. That sort of stuff. Up until he’d… intervened… in my relationship with my first girlfriend, he’d been there for me. He was a protective older brother in every sense of the word.” A smile fell to his lips unbidden. “We were actually very close.”

“But not anymore?”

He blew out a heavy breath. “No, not anymore. I hear from him on occasion, but we don’t really see each other except at big family events. I don’t even know if he realizes I’m so close.”

She shot up. “Close?”

He chuckled ruefully. “Yeah. He relocated to Colorado Springs about the time you and I met.”

Sophia was quiet for a long moment. She chewed on her lower lip. “I can’t imagine my siblings doing anything to betray me so thoroughly. I don’t blame you for your feelings toward him. But at the same time, he’s your only brother. And what happened… it’s been years.”

Cameron shrugged. “He’s got his life, and I’ve got mine. We’re cordial. That’s good enough.”

She scrunched up her face in the most adorable expression that he’d seen in ages. “Not really. There’s nothing more important than family. It’s not like he’s going to hurt you again. You’ve both changed.”

He couldn’t help the scoff that left his lips. “There’s no guarantee of that.” The mere suggestion that Samuel wouldn’t interfere with his current relationship put Cameron on edge. He would never risk letting that happen. Until Sophia had a ring on her finger, she wouldn’t be meeting his brother.

Cameron turned toward Sophia and forced a smile if only to distract her. “I don’t think I was ever as close to my brother as you are with your siblings. There’s been a good dose of rivalry between us even as kids. While he wouldn’t let anyone pummel me or bully me, he didn’t seem to mind—” He cut himself off before he said what was really in his heart.

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