Page 12 of Camilla & Dallas
As her eyes continued to sweep over his form, she couldn’t help but notice the way he filled out his Henley and jeans.
Yes, he looked mouthwatering good. Life wasn’t fair.
“Dallas,” she said, her voice too high-pitched.
He cocked his head, his eyes drinking her in and making her feel uncomfortable in her own skin.
Standing there, she felt utterly exposed to him. This kind of vulnerability had her panicking as she lost the venom and fury she’d harbored for the man who broke her heart.
Dallas sighed. While there was an appreciation in his gaze, there was also a sort of sadness and a surprising familiarity—one she wanted to hold against him. Especially when the next words fell from his lips. “Hey, Beautiful.”
She crossed her arms and her eyes darkened as they narrowed into slits. Somewhere deep inside, she knew if she attempted to speak, the words would come out cracked and painful. So, she spun on her heel and stormed away from him.
“Camilla, wait. We… I wanted to talk to you.”
“You’re seven years too late for that,” she snapped. Camilla could hear his footsteps behind her getting closer, and her whole body practically vibrated with the return of her anger. He’d made her fall in love with him. He’d made her believe they had a chance at a future. Then he’d shattered her dreams when he’d walked away.
His fingers wrapped around her wrist, and with a gentle tug, he pulled her around to face him. “Camilla,” he said firmly.
“What?” she bit out.
“We need to talk.”
She scoffed. “You had more than enough time to talk. You could have called. You could have written. You could have done something. But you didn’t.”
His brows furrowed, and for a moment her dedication to maintaining the distance between them wavered. Thankfully that flicker of doubt was snuffed out like the flame of a candle in the wind.
Camilla scowled. “I don’t want to hear it. Whatever it is you think you want to say. Whatever the excuse might be. I don’t want to know.”
Dallas took a step forward and she stepped back. The hurt in his eyes nearly tore her in half, but she stuck to her plan. Without waiting for him to reach for her again, she charged away. If she could get the keys, she could slip into the building and lock him out.
The rest of the day was spent with her looking over her shoulder—or rather out the windows. She kept expecting to see him through the pane of glass. Worst of all? Camilla couldn’t shake the disappointment in not seeing him.
After several hours of hiding away, Camilla pressed the heel of her hand to her forehead. Eventually, Dallas would demand to hash things out. She saw it in his eyes. Her only hope would be to get her work done at an hour of the day when he was less likely to drive the ATV out to the main part of the property.
Early morning?
Yes, definitely in the early morning.
“I can’t believeyou came out! Things must be going okay?” Cheyenne shouted over the sound of the music playing at the country club. It had been a week and a half since Dallas had shown up.
Either he’d listened to her and was leaving her alone, or he was too busy getting situated with his job. Camilla couldn’t bring herself to dig too deep into why she hadn’t seen him.
“Camilla?”
She startled and met Cheyenne’s eyes. “What?”
“Everything going okay? At home? Dallas isn’t…”
“What, Cheyenne? Dallas isn’t what?” There was a bite to her tone—one that made Cheyenne flinch. Camilla sighed. “You know what? I’m going to get some air, okay? You want to come?”
Her friend frowned. “No, you go ahead. I’m going to get something to drink.”
Guilt hit her like a throat punch. Camilla couldn’t breathe. Cheyenne hadn’t done anything wrong. She was just trying to be there for her the way any friend would. And how did Camilla thank her? By practically biting her head off.
She pushed through the crowded room toward the open doors and nearly reached it when an arm snaked around her waist and pulled her against a firm chest. Her palms landed on his chest, and she stared up into a familiar pair of blue eyes. “Dallas,” she whispered.
“Hey, Beautiful.” His eyes roved over her face. “Dance with me?”
