Gatlinburg Getaway (Destination: Desire) (23 page)

“Please.” Warrick snorted. “This one’s easy. He’s finally using that big brain of his and chasing the California girl all the way to the West Coast.”

Delight shone on Opal’s face. “You’re marrying Camille?”

“If she’ll have me.” He nodded. “I’m moving out there, starting my own practice.”

“Good deal. When you find the right woman, you do whatever it takes to keep her.” Landry clapped him on the shoulder. “Also, I’ve got some ideas and suggestions for striking out on your own. Let’s talk.”

Relief flooded Dalton, a tiny kernel of doubt and tension dissolving over how his family would react to him bailing for California. He should have had more faith in them. “I’ll take all the useful advice I can get.”

“Not that you would have stopped us from handing out advice anyway.” Savannah’s lips pursed.

He shrugged. “That’s family.”

“So, I hate to bring up something so mundane and underwhelming, but I’m starving.” Warrick arched his eyebrows. “Mema Hunt’s?”

“Definitely.” Opal sighed. “I’m not up for cooking tonight. I’ve been dealing with real estate agents all day. Half-wit crackpots, most of them. I’m lucky I don’t have a migraine.”

“I’m sure you’ve got something in your purse for that.” Landry bussed his wife’s cheek and she rolled her eyes.

Dinner was a lively, celebratory affair, and Dalton soaked it up. This would likely be one of the last times they were together this way, with all of them living in Gatlinburg. It was bittersweet. Sad because change often was, but wonderful because they were all moving into brighter futures. Not that their lives hadn’t been great, but there was always room to improve. Like Leigh, he felt this was the right choice and the right time to make it. His family would always be his family, no matter where they were in the world. Their love could easily bridge the distance.

It wasn’t until the end of the meal that he realized Bobbie Jo hadn’t bothered him once. He glanced around to see that, yes, she was working tonight, but hadn’t come near their table. Dare he hope she’d fallen for someone else?

Opal noticed where he was looking and leaned toward him, a conspiratorial glint in her gaze. “I finally sat her down and had a long talk about how serious things were between Camille and you. I told her if she wanted a husband and babies, she was going to need to cast her hook back in the dating pool and try to catch another one.”

“Bless you,” he said fervently.

“I couldn’t do that while you were still footloose and fancy free—she’d never have listened.” She patted her mouth with a napkin. “Trust me, she’ll leave you alone from now on.”

“Until he moves west, you mean?” Leigh interjected. “A short reprieve.”

He stared at his cousin as if she’d gone mental. “I’ll take what I can get. You never had her jump out from behind a tree and grab your privates.”

Her grin was evil. “She might have gotten a completely different reaction from me.”

“On that note, I’m going to call it a night and give Camille a ring now that she’s off work.” He pushed back from the table. “See y’all tomorrow.”

A round of goodbyes followed that, and then he wandered back to the main road. He’d walked to the batting cage, and he didn’t feel like asking for a ride from his uncle, so he stretched his legs.

“Wait, I’ll walk with you.” Leigh jogged to catch up with him. Her apartment was on his way home, so he shortened his stride to match hers. She stuffed her hands in her pockets. “So…bombshell of a night.”

True enough. “It’s all been coming for a while.”

“Amen to that.” She bumped his shoulder with hers. “I can’t wait to have Camille for a cousin. What did she say about you moving out there?”

Busted. He shrugged. “Don’t rightly know yet.”

She cast him an incredulous glance. “You haven’t told her?”

“I fly out to see her tomorrow.” His tone was a shade more defensive than it needed to be, but damn, he was nervous about how Camille would react. He hoped she’d be happy, but she was probably going to try to be practical first. “I want to tell her face to face.”

Leigh smirked. “And ask her to marry you and make babies.”

He didn’t bother to deny it. “She’d make beautiful babies.”

“She’d be a no-bullshit mom,” she observed.

“Just like Aunt Opal.”

She nodded. “Yep—those are the best kind.”

He reached over and tugged on her ponytail. “So, when’s this Janie planning to visit? I want to meet her before I move.”

“Two weeks.” She ducked her head. “I texted her from Mema’s. She’s excited and nervous. She knows how important family is to me.”

“Am I going to like her?”

“Yeah.” A sweet smile curled her lips, dreamier than he’d ever seen from her. “She makes me happy.”

“That’s enough for me then.” He probed his feelings again to see if he had any issue with this, any concerns that this wasn’t good for Leigh. Nope. It was nice to see her less…guarded. If she was happier, freer, then he was all for her pursuing a relationship with whomever she wanted and living wherever she was most comfortable.

He imagined she—and the rest of the Wakefields—had had similar thoughts about Camille and him. He could only be glad Landry and Opal were open, loving people who’d raised them to follow their hearts, wherever that might lead. Those two could have left their abandoned half-Asian nephew to an uncertain fate all those years ago—especially since Landry had never really gotten along with his brother—but they hadn’t. They could have turned their backs on Leigh when she came out about her sexuality, but they hadn’t. Others in the crazier branches of the family tree had and would have issues with both decisions, but Landry and Opal lived their lives as they saw fit. Good people, good friends, and Dalton would always, always be grateful for everything they’d given him, for rescuing him, for loving him.

For showing him what it meant to live a life to be proud of. He’d been coasting for a few years now, stuck in neutral, but it was time to take everything they’d taught him and put it to good use.

* * * * *

Dalton’s flight was delayed. It was a little scary when that was enough to make Camille’s eyes well with tears.

She missed him desperately, and the feeling was getting harder to bear rather than easier. How she was going to survive a year or three this way, she didn’t know. She just knew she counted the minutes between visits, and she was racking up frequent flyer miles like it was going out of style.

But the idea of walking away from him, from the constant ache of missing him, didn’t even cross her mind. It was a non-option. Missing him was so much better than not having him at all. It just…sucked.

Ah, well. As she’d once told Nora, a lot of things in life did. At least this one had benefits that compensated for the suckitude.

When Camille finally picked him up from the airport, she hopped out of her car and threw herself into his arms. The kiss he gave her elicited catcalls that she ignored. It wasn’t until a security guard barked for them to get moving that they came up for air.

Dalton smiled and brushed her hair back from her face. “Love you.”

More tears smarted her eyes. “I love you too.”

“Let’s get on the road before they arrest us.” He stowed his suitcase in her trunk. “If we’re going to be in handcuffs tonight, I rather it be in your bedroom and not at a police station.”

She waggled her eyebrows and slipped into the driver’s seat. “I don’t own any cuffs, but I could be talked into sacrificing a couple of really pretty scarves for the occasion.”

“Save that thought for when we’re back in Half Moon Bay. Until then, let’s change the subject or I’m going to have a very uncomfortable ride.”

Offering up a cheeky grin, she seriously considered dirty-talking the whole way, but torturing him would mean torturing herself. She didn’t need to spontaneously combust behind the wheel. “I’ll behave for now, but know I intend to jump your bones the moment we get inside the house.”

His accent thickened the way it always did when he was turned on. “Lookin’ forward to it, sugar.”

“Me too.” She bludgeoned her brain to find something else to talk about, trying to stomp down on all the filthy ideas racing through her thoughts. “We’re wrapping up the project for that big tech company in Cupertino, which is good. The new guy is working out well, but if we take on another project of that size, we might need to hire one or two more people.”

“Expansion is good.” He reached over to squeeze her shoulder. “You can share the load, though training newbies can be stressful. It was when my cousins started, and it is now that we’ve got a new optician working in our office.”

“Yeah.” She nodded and blew out a breath. “On-boarding took a lot more time than I anticipated.”

They chatted about their respective weeks on the drive back to her house, and the traffic was thankfully light. Dalton’s stomach rumbled loudly halfway home, so she stopped off at her favorite Thai restaurant in HMB and picked up some take-out for dinner. Cooking had zero appeal tonight—she wanted to focus on Dalton.

After they pulled into her garage, she grabbed the bags of food, he got his suitcase out of the trunk, and they went inside the house. She headed for the kitchen while he dropped his stuff off in the bedroom. She could hear him moving around while she dished up plates of food and poured them both a glass of soda. It felt comfortable to have him here. So much so that the place felt empty when he was gone. Which seemed odd, considering she’d lived happily alone for years and he was only ever here for a few days at a time, but Dalton had taken up residence in her life and heart, so his absence was definitely felt.

“Have I mentioned how much I like your place?” he asked as he came up behind her, kissing her nape.

She shivered at the sweet contact. “Once or twice. You can thank my sister Nora for the decorating tips. It probably would have stayed university dorm chic otherwise.”

He chuckled and took his cup and plate. “Well, if you like that look…”

“No one likes that look.” She grabbed her dinner and followed him to the sofa. “Some of us are just too busy or too lazy to care unless an older sister kicks us into buying curtains and a couch that your college roommate never had sex on.”

He bit into a piece of the chicken in his Pad Thai. “Ah, the joys of sexy sofa surfing.”

The description made her chortle, but she pointed out, “Our first time was on your couch.”

“I know.” He winked. “I wouldn’t have had it any other way.”

She took a spoonful of the green shrimp curry she’d ordered, and the layers of spiciness and creaminess exploded over her taste buds. This dish was the reason she loved that restaurant so much. Dalton seemed just as happy to inhale his dinner, and his plate was empty in rapid order. She finished up a minute behind him, licking the last bit of sauce off her spoon.

He set his plate on the coffee table and sat back with a sigh. “That was delicious.”

“Glad you liked it.” She tucked her hair behind her ear and just enjoyed the sight of him in her living room. As always these days, she tried not to think about how quickly the clock ticked down on their time together. She focused on the pleasure of having him here, not the pain of his departure. “Have you sufficiently carbed up enough for me to jump you?”

The smile he gave her was slow and full of heat. “I’ll race you to the bedroom.”

“I thought we discussed the relative merits of doing it on a couch.” She patted the cushion next to her hip.

“I’ve spent a few hours today cramped into the tight confines of a flying tin can.” He stretched his legs in front of him, crossing them at the ankles. “I’d rather not repeat the experience while trying to enjoy myself. On your nice king-sized mattress, we can spread out, roll around…it’s a winning combination.”

“Okay, you convinced me.” She pushed to her feet and set her plate on the table beside his. Normally, she’d be anal retentive about washing them immediately, but a lot of things had changed these days, both big and small. Dirty dishes could wait.

He took her hand and they walked down the hallway to her room. Every step made her anticipation grow. Heat filtered through her at the thought of his hands on her skin, his body over hers, in hers, melding them together. God, yes. That was exactly what she craved right now.

They watched each other as they stripped, every inch of them soon bare. She soaked in the sight of him. The lean lines of his body, his dark hair, his lightly tanned skin…she’d never get enough of him. She didn’t even want to.

“You’re lovely, Camille.” He looked her over as thoroughly as she had him, a flush running under his tan. “I’ve missed you so damn much.”

“Then come here.” She slipped onto the bed and held out her hand to him.

“One second.” He fetched a condom from the bathroom, dropped it onto the bedside table, then crawled in beside her, and they lay facing each other.

She cuddled close to him and their legs tangled together. The feel of his rougher skin against hers was a visceral delight. He crooked a finger under her chin and leaned in for a kiss. His lips molded hers, the taste of him filling her mouth. She flicked her tongue out to meet his, deepening the contact. The kiss fed the fire burning within her, quickly building it to an inferno. They ran their hands over each other, caressing every centimeter of flesh they could reach. She felt his cock rise to a thick column that pressed into her belly. Her nipples tightened as they rubbed over his chest hair, tingles raced over her flesh, and her sex clenched on an emptiness that ached to be filled. By him. Only by him.