Soul Sweet (12 page)

“No one’s ever feasted on that delectable pussy up against a wall before?”

Misha smoothed her shaky hands down her T-shirt. “No.”

“That’s a shame.” Cameron shook his head. “A crime, in fact.”

Misha had to agree as she wrapped her arms around Cameron’s neck and kissed him. She revelled in his rough groan when he embraced her, crushing her body against his as he hungrily kissed her back. Misha loved the taste of her passion on his lips. His hard cock pressed against her and she hungered for much more than Cameron’s kiss.

Cameron longed to feel the softness of Misha’s body on his. He wanted to pick her up, carry her to the bed and claim her with slow, relentless strokes until she screamed his name. She’d got so wet, responding to his touch, his mouth as if she’d been made for him to pleasure. He’d never felt lips so soft and full, made for kissing. It took considerable effort to break away. He looked down at Misha, loving the latent desire evident in her expressive brown eyes. “You’re delicious.”

He could still taste her on his tongue and he wanted more, was almost certain he could get it if he reached for her, but he refused to rush things between them.

“Mmm… Thank you.”

“I should be thanking you for dessert.”

Misha smiled and he could see a tiny shudder move over her body. She wrapped her arms under her breasts and his gaze was drawn to the outline of her hard nipples against the thin fabric of her shirt. Everything about her tempted the small measure of control he had to continually keep in check whenever she was around. His hard cock stiffened even more when he imagined the delicious whimpers she’d give him if he’d spent the time he wanted licking her pert buds.

He hoped like hell she didn’t have any reservations about what had just happened, because he hadn’t a single one about their unexpected sexy encounter. He’d had every intention of walking out of her hotel room without acting on the myriad of torrid thoughts running through his mind the moment she’d opened the door. But when she’d touched him with that look of longing, all restraint had failed him. The intensity of it, the need he’d seen shimmering in the mocha depths of her eyes had surprised him. He’d been under the impression that he was the only one wishing they could just give in to the intoxicating chemistry between them.

Cameron glanced at his watch. “It’s getting late. I should let you get that beauty rest for tomorrow’s big challenge.”

“I’m not sure how much sleep I’m going to get.” Misha sighed. “I’m so nervous.”

“I’m sure Vivian is too. You’re both damn good. Just stay focused. Channel all that energy and cook your ass off tomorrow.”

Misha laughed. “I will do my best.”

“I know you’ll do great.” Cameron placed his hand on the doorknob. “Win or lose, I want to see you tomorrow night.”

“If I lose”—Misha looked down at the loose thread on her T-shirt she was fiddling with—“I’ll be too busy packing to go home.”

Cameron lifted her chin up to meet his gaze. “You wouldn’t leave without seeing me first, would you?”

“Of course not.”

“Good. Get some rest.” Cameron pulled out his vibrating phone and read his new text message as Misha stepped in front of him to open the door.

It was really great talking the other night. I miss you. ~Jess

Cameron re-read the message and wondered what the hell was going on with Jess. She hadn’t reached out to him in all this time. First the phone call and now this?

“I’ll tr— Vivian!”

Cameron looked up from his phone to see the other chef standing outside Misha’s door with her hand raised ready to knock.

“Hey, I know it’s a little late. I brought my famous hot cocoa. I thought I’d stop and see if you were
Sleepless in Seattle
like I me—” Vivian’s voice trailed off and her eyes widened. “Chef Banner? What are you doing here?”

Fuck.

“Hello, Vivian. I’m staying at this hotel.”

“Wow.” Vivian blinked in surprise. “I really should’ve called first.” Her gaze darted between them. “Oh, my God. I can’t believe this.”

“Vivian, calm down.” Cameron put his phone into his pocket. “This is not what it looks like.”

Vivian smirked. “Oh no? Because it looks like the two of you just got done having se—”

“We did
not
have sex.” Misha cinched her robe. “Chef Banner stopped by to wish me the best of luck for tomorrow’s challenge.”

“Were you coming to my hotel room next?” Vivian asked cheekily as he moved past Misha and stepped into the hall.

“Absolutely.” Cameron give her a broad smile. “Why don’t we all go down to the hotel lounge and share a drink? We’ll toast to both of you making it into the final three.”

“I’m in.” Vivian passed Misha the two covered mugs she’d brought. “If you’re buying.”

“Of course. Misha?”

Misha shook her head and Cameron could tell she regretted the two of them being seen together by Vivian. “You two go ahead. I think I’m going to enjoy the cocoa you brought, Vivian, and go to bed.”

He didn’t like that they’d been seen either, though Vivian seemed amused by it all.

Vivian beamed. “Are you sure, Misha?” Vivian asked, obviously excited by Cameron’s proposal.

“Very.” Misha gave them both a bright smile. “I’ll see you both in the morning.”

”That cocoa has a little bit of a kick. Enjoy.”

“Thanks, Vivian. Goodnight, Cameron.”

“’Night, Misha.” Cameron turned to Vivian, offering his arm. “Shall we?”

The bubbly chef blushed as she took hold of his arm with one hand. “We shall.”

Cameron led the way to the elevator, wishing he had thought of another way to distract and appease Vivian’s interest in what she’d seen. He engaged her in conversation about the show, his thoughts going back to Misha as she talked. The intimacies they’d shared in such a short amount of time amazed him. He hadn’t shared some of the things he’d told Misha with anyone, not even his brother.

It had felt good to tell her. Everything felt good about her.

He walked out of the elevator with Vivian, nodding at something she said as echoes of Misha’s little moans replayed in his head. As much as he appreciated and enjoyed being a part of the show, he couldn’t want for
Celeb Chef
to be over. Only then would he get the uninterrupted time he craved with Misha.

* * * *

Cameron looked out of the window of the limo as he listened to his phone ring a third time. He prepared to hang up when Jess answered.

Damn.

He’d been hoping for her voicemail.

“Cameron?”

“Hey, Jess. I wanted to call and make sure you’re okay. It’s not like you to reach out to me.”

“I know it’s uncharacteristic of me.” She sighed. “I’m fine. I’m sorry for sending that text last night. I’d opened a bottle of wine. Remember the red we got in Napa?”

“I remember.” Cameron looked at the taxi that pulled alongside the limo he was in at a traffic light. “You were adamant you only liked white wines up until we’d gone wine tasting there.”

Jess laughed. “I know. Anyways, I found a bottle in the basement and couldn’t resist, started reminiscing about the good times we had together.”

Cameron remained silent, not sure what to say. He’d done his best to close himself off to all the past hurts that had eaten away at him after the dissolution of their marriage and had tried to move on.

“There were good times, weren’t there, Cameron?”

“Of course there were.”

The silence between them was punctuated by the limo driver honking his horn.

“Well, I should go. The limo is stopping any minute, Jess. I’m glad you’re doing well. I was worried about you.”

“You still worry about me?”

“You were my wife. I’ll always be concerned about your well-being.”

Jess let out a humourless chuckle. “You were always so careful with your words. I told you I missed you. What do you have to say about that?”

“What do you want me to say? Wait, that I miss you too?”

“Do you? Do you think about the family we almost had?”

Cameron closed his eyes as the limo came to a stop in front of the studio, remembering every detail of the baby room they’d worked on together. “Jess, there isn’t a day that goes by when I don’t think about the baby we lost, what we lost. I never wanted to lose either of you, but it happened. It was, I think, one of the most difficult things we’ll ever have to endure. We both grieved differently.”

“We grieved apart.”

“We did.”
And that destroyed us.

“I just keep thinking about how different things could be if we could just go back.”

“You’ll drive yourself crazy doing that.” Cameron opened his eyes. “Stop dwelling in the past.” He got out of the limo, grateful for the fresh air as he walked towards the studio doors. “Jess?”

“I’m here.”

“Did you hear what I said?”

“Yes, you said ‘stop dwelling in the past’.”

“Yes.”

“I’m not sure I can. The past is where you and I were still together.”

Cameron entered the studio, oblivious of everyone and everything as he frowned. “Jess, you couldn’t wait to get out of our marriage. Everything I did, everything I tried to do, only pushed you further away.”

“I couldn’t talk about what I was feeling. I felt like I’d failed you and I hated myself for losing our baby.”

“You know I never blamed you. What happened was a terrible tragedy. You did everything you could to bring our child into this world.” The sniffles he heard in the background blurred his vision. “This is the conversation I wanted to have with you a year ago.”

“I know and I’m sorry.”

“Stop apologising. You dealt with things the way you needed to. I understand that now. I don’t want you to keep harbouring these feelings of guilt. You deserve to be happy.”

“I was happy with you. I know it might not have seemed like it, but I was, very much so.”

Cameron nodded to Shannon when she frantically waved him to his seat, but remained immobile. There was a time he’d wondered if he’d ever pleased her. “In the beginning, we were both happy. Look, Jess, I’ve gotta go.”

“I still love you, Cameron.”

Stunned, Cameron struggled for an appropriate response.

“Are you there?”

“Yes.” Cameron numbly walked towards the stage where the other judges were already seated.

Jess laughed harshly. “Wow. You’re at a loss for words? This is new.”

“I wasn’t expecting this.”

“You don’t have to say anything. Your silence speaks volumes. Lately, all I’ve thought about is telling you how I feel, felt when we were together. I know it’s not fair of me to lay all this at your feet now. I also know you don’t love me anymore.”

“Jess, you will always be special to me.”

“Likewise, Cheffie.”

Cameron smiled sadly at the use of her old nickname for him.

“Hey, at least I can breathe without the oppressive weight that’s been weighing me down.”

“I’m glad. I wanted that for you.”

“Goodbye, Cameron.”

“Goodbye, Jess.” Cameron slipped the phone in his suit pocket and sat down in his chair. He lifted the mug in front of him and took a sip of the coffee prepared to his specifications with a grimace. It was only eleven o’ clock in the morning, but he wanted a stronger drink than the java in his hand.

Don leaned over to him as the production assistant counted down the seconds before they were live. “I’d say good morning, but it doesn’t look like it’s been so good to you.”

“I’ve had smoother mornings, for sure.”

“Well, we’re about to see how smooth things go for these two ladies.” Don rested his hands on his belly. “I can’t wait to taste what they whip up.”

Cameron finally looked at the two kitchen stations set up for the cook-off challenge. His gaze locked with Misha’s and instantly some of the tension within him faded. The barest hint of a smile played upon her lips before she directed her attention to her team. He watched Shannon walk on stage to thunderous applause as the show got underway, his mind on Jess’ call. Her admission about still loving him had shocked the hell out of him.

Cameron clapped along with the other judges as Shannon finished introducing Vivian and Misha. The heartache in Jess’ voice had bothered him when she’d said she knew he didn’t love her anymore. She was right. They couldn’t go back, especially when he was finally ready to try to move forward.

Chapter Eight

A trickle of sweat slid down Misha’s back as she waited for Shannon to share the results of the cook-off challenge. She glanced at Vivian and the chef gave her a tremulous smile, clearly just as nervous as she was. Both of their breakfast quiches had been prepared without any major culinary disasters. Vivian had chosen to make a blueberry torte and she had prepared strawberry-filled biscuits. The feedback from the judges had all been favourable—there was no way to tell who’d won and the suspense was killing Misha.

She cast a quick glance at Cameron. Something was off with him. She’d noticed the moment he’d sat down at the judges’ table and she wanted to know what it was.

“And we’re back, ladies and gentlemen. Are you as excited as I am to find out who was the winner of our
Celeb Chef
Cook Challenge?” Shannon asked and the crowd cheered and whistled. “Remember, the winner of this challenge enters into the final competition with Jackson.” She waved to Jackson sitting near the judges, who looked relaxed, smiling and waving at the audience. “Only one will be named this year’s
Celeb Chef
. Now, without further ado, let’s find out from our judges who won this breakfast showdown.” Shannon walked up to Cameron. “Chef Banner, what decision did you all collectively make? Who won the challenge?”

“It was a hard decision, Shannon.”

Misha drew in a deep breath as Cameron continued.

“We want both chefs to know we enjoyed everything we tasted, but we are all in agreement there was a clear winner here today.”

“And”—Shannon waved her hand and chuckles arose in the studio—“that winner would be?”

Cameron smiled. “The winner of today’s
Celeb Chef
Cook Challenge is Chef Ryan.”

Misha gasped, clasping her hand over her mouth as members of her team cheered and hugged her. She glanced over at Vivian’s station and laughed when she gave her a mock bow.