Page 50 of Sophia & Cameron

Emma shrugged. “Don’t you have your own sort of jealousy issues? I recall that you used your flirtatious behavior to get back at that guy when he first moved here.”

She covered her flushed face with her hands again. “Don’t remind me.”

“I don’t know,” Emma hedged. “I can see both sides.”

Upon Sophia’s confused look, Emma sighed.

“Honestly, it’s nice to know that he doesn’t want you to give your attention to anyone else. It shows how much he cares about you?—”

“Narcissists behave the same way, you know,” Sophia interrupted. “It’s the whole ‘if I can’t have her then no one can’ mentality.”

Emma rolled her eyes. “And do you think that Cameron fits that profile?”

Sophia hunched back into her seat with a sigh. She picked at the fries on her plate. “No. I think he’s got past scars that make it difficult for him to deal with the idea of losing me.”

“That’s my point. He might be obsessive, and while that can feel suffocating, it can also be reassuring in a… different kind of way.”

“I sense a ‘but’ coming,” Sophia hedged.

“But…” Emma drawled. “It’s not healthy when it interferes with your relationship. If it’s changing your personality and you can’t hang out with friends… if it puts you on edge and stresses you out… then maybe he’s not right for you.”

A pit opened up in her stomach like a black hole. Sophia didn’t like the sound of that at all. When Cameron had told her he loved her, she’d been so thrown off that she hadn’t responded. It had been a couple days, and they hadn’t spoken of that moment—or anything intimate, for that matter. He was giving her space, and she had appreciated it. Now, she was missing him like a phantom limb. “You think we should break up.”

“I won’t say it’s not…concerning.” That said it all. Emma had noticed, and she was worried.

Sophia chewed on her lower lip, wondering if she could actually walk away from him. They’d shared so much with each other that she felt like doing so would break her more than what Brent had done.

Emma’s hand wrapped around hers, drawing her attention. “All I’m saying is that you need to have a long conversation about this. There needs to be ground rules—clear expectations. And maybe it wouldn’t hurt for Cameron to see a therapist. Honey, you could see one too.”

At that suggestion, Sophia balked.

Emma held up both hands. “Don’t shoot the messenger. Seriously, we all have traumas that we don’t heal from fully. Everyone could use a good meeting with someone who knows how to listen and point out the obvious.”

Sophia snorted. “Yeah, maybe you’re right.”

“I know I’m right.” Emma grinned at her. “But to answer your question. No. I don’t think you need to break up with him. Has he made mistakes? Sure. But has any harm been done?” She shrugged again. “I mean, he hasn’t actually beaten anyone up, right? For me? That’d be the line he couldn’t cross. So, I guess you just have to decide where that line is for you.”

Drinking in her suggestions, Sophia allowed her thoughts to wander. Emma was right. Cameron hadn’t really hurt anyone. He wasn’t controlling her—preventing her from leaving her home or spending time with friends. He was just… overprotective.

Geez, now it sounded like she was making excuses.

The best bit of advice Emma had given her was that bit about the therapist. Cameron could use something like that. He hadn’t gotten over what had happened with his brother. And if what her gut was telling her was correct, then Cameron would consider doing just that if only to ensure their relationship continued tostrengthen. She gave Emma a nod. “I like the way you think. I’ll talk with him tonight.”

Sophia rana few more errands in town after her meeting with Emma. She wasn’t sure if she was delaying the inevitable when she decided to grab an ice cream and eat it in the park. Bringing up therapy with Cameron had to be done with care. She couldn’t imagine anyone would want to be cornered and told that they needed help.

She released a heavy breath, one that felt like she’d been holding since her coffee date with Emma. But then that air got caught in her throat as her eyes locked with a pair of familiar blues.

He was dressed casually, and he held a bag from the local bookstore in his hand. A slow smile stretched on his lips as they continued to stare at each other from about ten feet away. “Sophia, as I live and breathe.”

Heat immediately flooded her face, and she glanced away as if she could escape. It had been four years since she’d seen Sam. She’d met him the summer after that debacle with Cameron, and they’d hit it off—well, as much as she could with any guy. He was the only other man who convinced her to go on additional dates, though they didn’t call them that.

Hangout sessions. No pressure for anything more. He lived in the city, and she was here. Sam would come to Copper Creek just to spend the weekend with her, and she’d kept him a complete secret from her siblings.

Shoot. He was coming right for her.

She cleared her throat, making sure she hadn’t lost her voice, even though at this moment it certainly felt like she had. “What are you doing in town?”

His smile broadened, and the natural charisma the man had seemed to melt some of the anxiety swirling within her. Why she felt that anxiety, she couldn’t be certain. She didn’t still have feelings for him. In fact, compared to how she felt about Cameron, they were non-existent. If anything, she’d continued to spend time with him because he was familiar—comforting.

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