Seeking His Love (5 page)

“Cam helped me move into my new apartment.” She gave a coy shrug of her shoulders. “We were both hungry after that, so he ordered pizza and Cokes. Unfortunately, he chewed on an ice cube and broke his tooth.” She sighed and
shook her head. “My dentist always told me never chew on ice. I should’ve warned him.”

Lilly tilted her head. “Wow. He helped you move, and then ordered pizza?”

“Yes. Wasn’t that thoughtful?” Rachel couldn’t hide her smile any longer.

A nerve in Melanie’s jaw twitched. “Yes. Very.” Her tone was as cold and jagged as a chunk of ice.

Rachel’s stomach tightened. She wasn’t really being dishonest, just letting them come to their own conclusions. Still, she shouldn’t give them the wrong impression about her and Cam. What if it got back to him? How would she explain?

Just then, Cam walked in the door.

Her stomach dropped as if she’d just ridden a fast elevator from the top floor to the basement in five seconds flat.

C
am glanced around the room at the three women. Rachel’s eyes widened, and the color drained from her face. Lilly tucked her hand in her skirt pockets and bit her lip as she frowned at the floor. Melanie crossed her arms and glared at him like he’d stomped on her cat’s tail.

He had definitely walked into the middle of something.

“So, how’s the tooth?” Melanie asked.

He shot a glance at Rachel, and then reached up and rubbed his frozen jaw. So they’d been talking about him. “It’s okay. Still feels pretty numb, but I’ll live.”

Rachel cringed slightly, as though the broken tooth was her fault. It wasn’t, but he appreciated her sympathy.

He reached into his pants pocket and fingered the copy of the apartment key. He’d stopped in to give it to Rachel. But glancing at Lilly and Melanie, he decided now might not be the right time.

Melanie’s sour expression made him wonder if she already knew Rachel was now his upstairs neighbor.

“Well, we better get back to work.” Lilly took Melanie’s arm and tugged her toward the door.

Melanie scowled at Lilly, but gave in and followed along.
“I’ll stop in and see you later, Cam. I need to talk to you about the plant donations for the landscaping project.”

“I’m headed home. How about tomorrow?”

“All right. I’ll stop by tomorrow morning.” She wiggled her fingers at him. “Bye.”

Cam waited until they left, then took the key from his pocket and held it out to Rachel. “I got this copy made for you on my way back from the dentist.”

“Thanks. But…why don’t you keep the new one, and I’ll hold on to the one you gave me last night.”

“Okay.” He dropped the shiny new key into his pocket. “So…is everything okay with Melanie and Lilly?”

Her eyes widened. “Yes. Sure. Everything’s fine. No problem at all.” She looked around, snatched the plate of brownies, and held it out to him. “Would you like a brownie? Lilly made them.”

“No thanks.” He tapped his numb jaw. “Don’t think I could taste anything right now.”

“Oh. Yes. Of course. You should probably wait awhile before you eat anything.” She studied his face for a moment, concern filling her eyes again. “Sorry about your tooth.”

“Hey, it’s okay. I’m a tough guy.” He chuckled, then rubbed his upper arm. “Except after a day of hauling boxes and furniture to the second floor. You should’ve warned me that you have a huge book collection.”

She laughed, looking relieved, and it was the nicest sound he’d heard in a long time.

“Knock, knock,” Melanie called.

Cam stifled a groan and looked up from his computer. “Hey, Melanie.”

She sauntered into the shop and sent him a slow, suggestive smile. Her clothes looked fine, but he couldn’t help noticing the large clumps of navy, green and pink beads dangling
from her ears. They hung so low they almost touched her shoulders. Must be one of her new designs.

How could she stand having something that heavy hanging from her earlobes? Didn’t they get in the way when she turned her head? And if the earrings weren’t enough, she wore a matching necklace and bracelet. The whole heavy jewelry thing made him glad he was a man, and he didn’t have to deal with that kind of nonsense.

“Wait until you hear my news.” She laid a file folder on his desk and pulled up a chair so she could sit next to him, her beads jangling the whole time. A cloud of musky perfume settled around them as she scooted her chair closer.

Cam sat back and tried not to breathe too deeply.

She nodded toward the file. “Go ahead. Open it.”

He did and found a list of donors and plants for the landscaping project. “Looks good.” He ran his finger down the page. “What about the larkspur and columbine? Do you think you’ll be able to get those?”

A slight pout replaced her smile. “I thought you’d be happy to see how much I’ve done.” When that had no effect on him, her smile resurfaced. “I’ll make a few more calls. I’m sure I can get the rest. Paxton’s Garden Center is the main donor. They said they’d deliver and give us some free mulch. Isn’t that great?” She gazed at him expectantly. “When do you want it delivered?”

At this close range he could see she wore contacts and way too much makeup. He rolled his chair back and got up. “Let me talk to Ross and the others about a date for a work party, then we can schedule the delivery.”

His thoughts shifted to Rachel, and he frowned slightly. Hadn’t she promised to work on plant donations? Why hadn’t she followed through? Maybe she was all talk and no action. He shouldn’t be surprised. She probably wasn’t as committed as everyone else. Still, he had expected more from her.

A squeal of laughter from the hallway pierced his thoughts, followed by the sound of running feet and more laughter. Cam scowled. What was going on?

Two young boys dashed by—at least he thought it was two young boys. They ran so fast it was hard to tell.

Melanie spun toward the door. “What in the world?”

The boys darted by again, calling out as one chased the other in the opposite direction. Their squeaking tennis shoes, pounding footsteps and high-pitched voices echoed off the walls and tile floor, making the hair stand up on the back of Cam’s neck.

Melanie clicked her tongue. “Where are their parents?”

“I don’t know, but I intend to find out.” Cam got up and strode out the door. Following the boys’ voices, he rounded the corner and found them at the water fountain, one boy gleefully squirting the other. A fast-spreading puddle of water surrounded their feet.

“Hey!” Cam hustled toward them. “What do you think you’re doing?”

The boys froze and looked at him through large blue eyes. Water dripped down their faces onto their T-shirts and shorts.

Cam squinted. One boy wore a blue shirt and the other red, but their faces were identical. “I asked you boys a question.”

The twins exchanged nervous glances. “We were just getting a drink,” the boy on the left in the red shirt said.

“Right.” Cam scoffed. “You were doing a whole lot more than that and you know it. Where are your parents?”

“They’re at work.” The boy on the right spoke this time, his chin quivering. “We’re here with our sister.”

“Where is she?”

Both boys pointed down the hall past Cam’s shoulder. “She’s talking to Ms. Clark,” the boy in the blue shirt said.

Heat flashed into Cam’s face, and he clenched his jaw. These must be two of Rachel’s drama students. “Let’s go.” He grabbed the boys by their soggy shirtsleeves and towed them back toward Rachel’s office. “You and Ms. Clark have some explaining to do.”

The boy on his left began to sniff. “We didn’t mean to get the floor wet.”

“We just wanted a drink,” the other boy added in a whiny voice.

Cam opened Rachel’s door and marched them into the room.

Rachel stood near her desk with the three teens who had helped her move into her apartment. She stopped mid-sentence and turned to him. “What’s going on?”

He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at her. “That’s what I’d like to know.”

“Why are you guys all wet?” Haley asked.

“We just stopped to get a drink of water.” The boy in the blue shirt held out his hands. “We didn’t mean to get water on the floor.”

Haley gasped. “Brian! I told you guys to go straight to the bathroom and come right back.” She crossed the room and stood in front of her brothers.

Brian dropped his chin and refused to look at her.

Haley turned to the other twin. “Jeff? Tell me what happened.”

“Brian started it. He squirted me.”

Brian’s head popped up. “Well, you squirted me back!”

“I did not!”

“Yes you did!”

“I’m soaked!”

“That’s your fault!”

Haley held up her hand. “Guys! Stop!”

“The point is,” Cam said with a definite edge to his voice.
These boys were running through the halls and having a water fight at the drinking fountain.”

Rachel opened her mouth, no doubt intending to argue with him, but he was not about to listen to any excuses.

He pointed an accusing finger at her. “You promised your students wouldn’t cause any problems.” His voice grew more strident as he continued. “Summer camp hasn’t even started, and they’re already making trouble.”

Fire flashed in Rachel’s eyes. The twins quivered in their soggy tennis shoes. Ryan, Steve and Haley stared at him like he was some kind of evil villain.

“I’m sorry, Ms. Clark,” Haley said. “I should’ve walked them to the bathroom.” She laid her hand on her brothers’ shoulders. “Come on. Lets go clean up the mess.”

“We’ll help.” Ryan looked at Steve and nodded toward the door. His friend picked up the cue, and they followed Haley and the twins into the hall.

“You’ll find a mop in the janitor’s closet just past the drinking fountain,” Cam called.

Rachel watched the kids hurry out the door. When she was certain they were out of earshot she spun around. “How could you treat those children like that?”

“
Those children
need to learn there are consequences for destructive behavior.”

“I would hardly call getting a little water on the floor destructive behavior.”

“Well it would’ve been a flood if I hadn’t stopped them.”

“Don’t you think you are exaggerating just a little?”

“The issue is you promised to supervise your students, and you failed to keep that promise.”

She sucked in a quick breath. “Those boys aren’t my students. They’re too young for our program.”

“It’s still your responsibility to keep an eye on them.”

“We sent them to the bathroom. I had no idea they’d get distracted on the way.”

“The water fight started after they ran screaming down the hall. I can’t believe you didn’t hear them.”

“My door was shut!”

“Oh, well, that explains it.” He huffed. “Maybe you should’ve kept it open so you could hear what’s going on.”

“Look, I never promised every child who enters the building would never speak above a whisper!”

He leaned toward her, his intensity matching hers. “And I never said I expected silence. I just asked you to keep your kids under control and not tear the building apart!”

She clenched her jaw. “All right. I get the point.”

“Good. Because if this is going to work, you’ve got to do a better job overseeing your kids.”

His words cut through her like a knife. “A better job?”

“Yes. Be in charge. Supervise what’s going on. Take your promise seriously.”

Her mouth dropped open. Of all the rude, pompous things to say! How could he make such sweeping judgments about her based on one small incident. A flaming rebuttal rose in her throat, but there was too much at risk to blurt it out now, no matter how unfair his words were. She grabbed her purse off the desk. “I…I can’t talk about this right now.”

Without looking back, she rushed out the door. But she couldn’t run away from the memory of his brooding scowl.

The gray, wind-whipped waters of Bellingham Bay came into view as Rachel traveled west on Taylor Avenue. Dancing whitecaps ruffled the surface of the harbor, and threatening clouds rose in the west. The rain hadn’t started yet, but a storm seemed only moments away.

Rachel scanned the sky, certain the weather was a perfect
reflection of her life. A downpour of trouble was due to dump on her at any moment, and no umbrella was going to keep her from being soaked this time.

Why had she ever promised Cam she would keep her kids quiet and never disturb anyone? Who was she kidding? Keeping two rambunctious boys under control for ten minutes had proven impossible. What was she going to do when all fifty kids showed up for summer drama camp? Had she locked herself into an impossible situation that was doomed for failure? Would she end up losing her lease at the Arts Center before summer camp even began?

Straightening her shoulders, she pulled in a calming breath. Whatever it took, she had to find a way to make this work. There was no other option.

She rolled to a stop at the corner and tapped on the steering wheel as she waited to make a left turn. Perhaps things weren’t really as bleak as they seemed. Not all of her co-op partners were so difficult to please…just a certain frame shop owner who needed to lighten up and learn how to take things in stride.

Kids made noise! Their energy, laughter and goofy antics were going to disrupt the peaceful ambience of the Arts Center. Their music and dancing might even shake the walls of that old building, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. He just needed to adjust his expectations.

She parked near the Taylor Avenue dock and climbed out of the car. Perhaps a stroll on the South Bay Trail would clear her head and give her a chance to pray through everything.

A wave of conviction washed over her, slowing her racing thoughts. It was past time she consulted the One who knew how to resolve this situation rather than plowing ahead under her own steam and running straight into more trouble.

A cool, salt-tinged wind blew the hair away from her face as she trudged toward the dock and path that ran
north through Boulevard Park up the South Bay Trail from Fairhaven to Bellingham proper.

Gulls hung on the breeze circling the sailboats anchored in the harbor. One lone walker in purple capri pants and matching sweatshirt strode toward her, a hot pink sun visor shading her eyes. The walker looked up and smiled.

Rachel lifted her sunglasses and waved to Hannah Bodine, curator of the small Fairhaven Historical Museum that shared space at the Arts Center. Moving N.C.Y.T. there had been Hannah’s idea. Maybe she could help smooth things over with Cam, or at least give her some direction. Rachel strolled over and greeted her friend.

“Out for walk and a little fresh air?” Hannah asked.

Rachel shrugged, struggling to summon a smile.

“What’s wrong, dear?”

Hannah’s kindness and interest in N.C.Y.T. had won Rachel’s trust and friendship, so she plunged ahead. “I had a run-in with Cam.” Her throat suddenly felt thick, and a weight seemed to press down on her shoulders. “I’m afraid he’s going to ask us to leave.”

“Oh dear. What happened?”

Rachel related the story, even confessing how she’d spoken her mind a little too freely. “I don’t know what it is about that man. I just can’t seem to keep a lid on my temper when he’s around.”