Page 9 of Sophia & Cameron

Cameron

Present Day

“That’snotmy name.”

Cameron smirked, hands shoved in his pockets. At first, he thought he was seeing a ghost. He’d been busy settling in the last couple of days, but he’d thought he’d seen someone who looked exactly like Red last night.

Apparently, his eyes hadn’t been playing tricks on him.

“Will you wipe that stupid grin off your face?” she snapped.

“Not until you tell me your name.” He glanced around the immediate area. “So, are you working here? Friends with the owners?” He’d spent the last five years being furious with this woman. Yes, the anger was still buried deep, but right now, all he could think was that he’d finally found her.

She was so close that he could smell her light perfume scent.

Her cheeks were flushed beautifully. The dimple in her chin was more pronounced with the frustrated set of her jaw. His elation was bound to wear off, but for now he was going to indulge in it. Maybe later he’d get his own form of payback.

“This is myhome,” she gritted out through clenched teeth. “And you need to leave.”

Home?

So, this was where she’d been hiding all these years. He’d done what he told Hugo and left his job after meeting Red. He’d made it his mission to find her and that meant becoming the best at what he did. Contracts with some of the most prestigious ranches across the country had him traveling from state to state, which gave him a lot of opportunities to look for her.

Who knew that agreeing to a year-long contract with Mateo Palmer would grant him his greatest wish. He leaned in closer to her, his smile growing. “You’re Mateo’s sister.”

She stiffened. That was all the answer he needed.

“So, Red. Are you going to tell me your name, or do I have to ask around? I’m sure I could find someone here who knows you.”

Her jaw tightened further before she opened her mouth to speak. Unfortunately, they were interrupted.

“Oh, good. You’ve metSophia.”

Sophia’s eyes rounded briefly, and then her glower returned when Cameron smirked at her and mouthed her name. Then he turned to face Mateo. “Yes. We were just getting to know each other. Isn’t that right, Sophia?”

He didn’t miss the way her hands flexed and clenched several more times. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, and he itched to reach out and take her hand to prevent her from bolting.

She wouldn’t go far. This was her home. He’d finally found her, and there was nothing she could do about it.

There was so much lost time to make up for. In five years, not one woman had managed to draw his attention like Sophia had. She looked just as good as he remembered, better, even. Her hair was still medium length, but she’d added more streaks of red to her hair. The fire in her eyes was a change.

Cameron rocked back on his heels as he swung his focus to Mateo. He’d been told that he’d be working closely with Mateo’s sister, as she was the one who oversaw the horses. He never dreamed that person would be the woman who got away.

Sophia spun toward her brother and opened her mouth, but Mateo cut her off. There was a woman and a child at his side, and he brought the woman’s left hand forward.

Sophia’s eyes widened, and the fury that had been lingering in her eyes faded away. She let out an excited squeal and pulled the woman into her arms. “I can’t believe he finally did it!” She shot a firm look at her brother, to which Mateo just chuckled. That was all it took for Cameron to be forgotten.

That was fine. Cameron didn’t need to be swept up in a celebration that he wasn’t invited to. He stepped back slowly, withdrawing into the crowd of people who were mingling. It didn’t take long for most of the people around them to get wind of the engagement and crowd the happy couple. Apparently, this union had been a long time coming.

Cameron watched from the outside. He’d always been an outsider with how much he’d traveled. But now that he’d found her, that was going to change. With everyone’s attention shifted to Mateo and his bride-to-be, Cameron permitted himself to watch Red.

Here, she was in her element. He could see bits and pieces of the woman he’d met in Texas, but the woman standing on the other side of the yard didn’t feel the need to have her guard up. She was relaxed and carefree.

And man, if that didn’t make him want her even more.

But he couldn’t get ahead of himself. If Hugo were here, he’d be reminding Cameron that just because he’d found Red, he didn’t need to go in with guns blazing. The progress he’d made with her during that week had disappeared.

How many times had Hugo told him that he needed to let her go? That her behavior on that last night indicated exactly how she felt.

---