Page 51 of Sophia & Cameron

Sam took a seat beside her on the bench and, without a word, reached for her cone.

She gasped indignantly when he took a decisive lick of her treat. “Hey!”

He chuckled and leaned back on the bench, his legs sprawled out. “I’m visiting family.”

“Family?” She wracked her brain. “I didn’t think you had any family in town.”

With a shake of his head, he let out a sigh. “I didn’t. But apparently now I do.”

Sophia studied him.Apparently. Whatever that meant.

His eyes swept over to her once more. He wasn’t shy with the way his gaze raked over her body with appreciation. “You’re looking as good as ever.”

With a roll of her eyes, she settled back against the bench and took another lick of her ice cream. “Looks like you haven’t changed at all. Empty compliments meant to get me to swoon for you?” She hid a smile behind her ice cream. That was another reason why they’d never worked out. They were just too similar.

Sophia had expected him to laugh and toss a teasing statement to her, but when he didn’t, her happy expression faltered and she stared at him again. He looked utterly serious.

“What?”

Sam sat upright and turned to face her, a contemplative look replacing the easy smile he’d worn upon approach. “Do you really think that?” Was there pain in his voice? Or was she imagining it?

Her ice cream forgotten, Sophia stared at him right back. “What?”

“Do you really think that I gave you empty compliments?”

She forced a laugh, not liking the tension that had suddenly wrapped around them. The way they’d ended things had been clean. He’d wanted more than she did, but they were both happy to go their separate ways.

But looking at him now, she couldn’t help but wonder if he’d been pretending. “Well,” she swallowed hard, “that was just the way we were with each other.”

His frown deepened. “I never said anything I didn’t mean, Sophia.”

A confession that should have given her goosebumps did nothing but put her on edge. Guilt slipped past her defenses, and she suddenly didn’t feel hungry enough to finish her treat. “Yeah, okay. But you can’t tell me that you were being serious when you said we were fated to be together.” She said it flippantly. It was the only thing that popped into her mind from their interactions. “I mean, you were always sweet, and you made me feel special, but?—”

He placed a hand on her knee, cutting her off, and she glanced down at the touch. His warm hand was a stark contrast to her cool skin, and she couldn’t drag her attention away until his words ripped her to the present.

“Sophia, I was in love with you.”

Her head snapped up and she flushed hot and cold all at once—not because she’d felt anything for him then or even now. She was embarrassed she’d blinded herself to the fact that his feelings ran deeper.

She choked out a laugh as if that motion alone would be enough to shatter the weight that was suddenly pressing down on her. When he didn’t even do her the decency of cracking a smile, she stilled. “You were not.” Her voice was flat, void of emotion. And yet it almost felt like she was pleading with him to admit that she was right.

Sam lifted a hand and ran it through his hair with a heavy sigh. “I was.” He peered up at the sky and a ghost of a smile touched his lips. He didn’t meet her gaze when he continued. “You were the one who got away, Sophia. You were the girl I thought I might marry one day.”

She blinked several times, her head feeling dizzy. “But we were friends.”

This time he gave her a wry smile. “Yeah, we were.”

Then she poked him in the chest, her frustration edging her voice. “You said that it would be best if you stopped coming around.”

He shrugged. “What can I say? It was torture to be around you, knowing you didn’t feel the same.” His eyes flicked to hers several times, and if she wasn’t mistaken, she thought she could see coloring flood his cheeks. Was he embarrassed? “I don’t suppose anything has changed? Seeing me hasn’t sparked something in you?”

When she couldn’t find the words to say anything, he barked a laugh.

“No, I didn’t suppose it would.” He heaved another heavy sigh as he got to his feet, and as if against her will, she followed suit.

“I’m so sorry, Sam. I didn’t know.”

He cocked his head, his eyes delving into hers for longer than they should. “Nah, I think you did. I just think you weren’t ready. Or maybe you were, but your heart belonged to someone else.”

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