Warrior's Cross (13 page)

Cameron stiffened slightly and pulled back, thinking Julian was reluctantly humoring his stolen moment of cuddling.

“What?”

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“I wish I’d known I’d be here for Christmas,” Julian answered while tightening his arms around Cameron’s waist to stop him from moving away. “I would have… gotten something,” he finished uncertainly.

“Gotten something? Like a present?” Cameron asked.

“Yeah,” Julian answered with a nod, and his cheeks flushed.

Cameron gazed at him for a long moment. “You’re more than enough of a present,” he finally said.

Julian raised a wry eyebrow. “You got coal in your stocking as a kid, didn’t you?” he asked flatly.

Cameron thumped Julian’s chest again. “You’ve already told me how you’d embarrass yourself in front of an entire restaurant to try to get me to go home with you, and you think you can come up with a better present than that?”

“I can’t help it if your standards are low.” Julian laughed as he pulled Cameron even closer and trapped his arms to protect his sore chest.

“See if you get laid tonight!” Cameron told him with a huff.

“Is that a challenge?” Julian asked as interest sparked in his dark eyes.

Cameron narrowed his eyes. “Challenge? Are you gonna get on your knees again?”

“If that’s what I need to do,” Julian purred as he kissed gently behind Cameron’s ear, holding him as if they were slow-dancing.

“And the challenge would be resisting you?” Cameron asked, sighing softly as Julian nuzzled the tender skin.

Julian hummed in the affirmative and nipped at Cameron’s neck.

Cameron moaned and tilted his head back. “For how long?” he asked hoarsely. His jeans were already getting tight across the front, damn it.

“You said tonight,” Julian reminded in a murmur as he slid his hands under Cameron’s shirt.

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Cameron whined softly. “Did I?”

Julian lifted his head and sniffed the air pointedly. “Smells like dinner,” he announced with an evil grin as he began to pull away.

Cameron growled and yanked him close. “One more kiss,” he demanded. Julian grinned just before it was snuffed out by the meeting of their lips.

“All right,” Cameron said reluctantly as he finally let Julian go.

“Dinner.” Then he got a crafty look in his eyes. “Can’t have you weak and hungry before bedtime.”

“That’s right.” Julian grinned happily as he rubbed his hands together in exaggerated anticipation.

Cameron shook his head slowly. “You just amaze me, you know that? Sometimes I don’t know what to say.”

Julian watched him with an unreadable expression before lowering his head slightly.

Using hot pads, Cameron carefully lifted the lasagna from the stovetop and set it on the trivet.

Julian chewed on his bottom lip, for once not making eye contact as he frowned thoughtfully. “I suppose it’s hard to find common ground with a man you don’t know,” he offered.

Cameron nodded slowly. “Is there… is there something beyond the fact that you liked to watch me?”

Julian raised his head and met Cameron’s eyes again. “At first?”

he asked. “No. You
were
fun to look at,” he admitted with a smile that said he might still be fun to look at.

Cameron’s eyebrow jumped, although Julian had already said something along those lines earlier. “And then?” he prodded.

“You weren’t afraid of me,” Julian said promptly.

Confusion crossed Cameron’s face. “Afraid of you? Why would I be afraid of you?”

Julian shrugged slightly. “Some people are,” he admitted.

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Cameron considered that, tipping his head as he recalled Julian dressed all in black and towering over him. And the gun. “I guess I can see that,” he admitted. “You could look sort of intimidating, if I’d met you somewhere else, maybe. Hadn’t occurred to me, though. Not in the restaurant. I mean, in general, like leaving with a stranger after admitting no one was waiting for me, and then the gun, yeah. That’s scary. But not you specifically.”

Julian smiled weakly and nodded.

Concerned, Cameron set down the spatula and leaned one elbow on the counter, peering at Julian. “It hurts you,” he said in realization.

“What does?” Julian asked as he unconsciously placed his hand on his chest again.

“People being afraid of you. Maybe even… lovers being afraid of you?” Cameron asked softly.

Julian raised his eyes and met Cameron’s with what might have been hints of surprise and sadness. They were gone just as quickly as they had come. “Maybe,” he acknowledged at a whisper.

“Have any of them
not
been afraid of you?” Cameron asked, meaning the lovers. His heart hurt for him.

Julian studied him searchingly for a long moment. “Can I include you in that answer?”

Cameron swallowed. “I
am
a person,” he said.

Julian smiled slightly and nodded. “You are,” he affirmed as he continued to look into Cameron’s eyes. “Then just the one,” he added in answer to the question.

“Person?”

“Lover,” Julian corrected.

Cameron blinked, amazed he’d pried that answer out of Julian, but the implication really bothered him. “I’m your only lover who’s not been afraid of you?”

Julian nodded silently and shrugged. Cameron frowned in sympathy. How could anyone be afraid of a man who had turned out to be so gentle? Was Cameron just missing something? Was there another Warrior’s Cross 87

part of Julian he hadn’t yet seen? Was it the gun people couldn’t get past? He couldn’t believe that.

“How do you stand it?” he whispered. “Don’t you have anyone?”

Julian gave his head a slight jerk in answer and smiled. “A few people.”

Cameron relaxed a bit and nodded. “Good,” he said as he stepped over to the refrigerator to pull out a bowl of tossed salad and a bottle of dressing. “Everyone should have someone.”

Julian gave a small smile and shrugged in embarrassment.

Cameron frowned. “What about the restaurant?”

“I go there to see Blake, not eat the food,” Julian admitted. “And then it became to see you. Because I don’t like the cranky bastard all that much,” he added with a laugh.

Cameron’s jaw dropped. “You don’t like the food? But why eat?

Why not just see Blake and leave?”

“I didn’t say I didn’t like it,” Julian pointed out. “It’s….” He trailed off and shrugged. “The scenery is much better.”

Cameron colored a little and smiled shyly. “How about dinner now?” he asked as he slid the bottle and bowl onto the bar.

“Sounds good,” Julian agreed.

Cameron nodded and turned away to start scooping thick, sauce-dripping pieces onto cobalt-blue stoneware plates. “So, now what?” he asked. He had no idea where they would go from here, besides to bed.

“Well. Logic tells us that perhaps we need to get to know one another,” Julian pointed out as he watched Cameron work on the lasagna.

Cameron’s lips twitched. “Yeah, that would make sense,” he commented. He pushed one filled plate toward Julian. “We’ve already skipped ahead several steps to the sex.”

“Better to get that out of the way first to make sure we’re not wasting our time,” Julian deadpanned as he moved to stand behind Cameron. He tugged at Cameron’s hip to turn him around and then 88

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stepped back to put a little space between them and held out his hand.

“Julian Cross,” he offered with a twitch of his lips.

Cameron reached out automatically and slid their hands together, stifling a chuckle. “Cameron Jacobs,” he answered. His lips curled into a true smile. “Pleased to meet you.”

“Oh, no, no,” Julian murmured in a low voice as he held onto Cameron’s hand and slid his other hand up Cameron’s arm. “The pleasure’s all mine, I assure you,” he drawled with a smirk.

Cameron laughed softly. “Debatable,” he replied. He looked down at the lasagna and glanced back to Julian. “Um. Would you like to have dinner with me? Tonight?” he managed to get out, the oddness of the fact he was asking at all, much less in these circumstances, making him nervous once more.

Julian looked down at the lasagna and then back up at Cameron with a brilliant smile. “As long as it comes with dessert.”

Cameron raised an exaggerated eyebrow. “I thought you didn’t like desserts. To my knowledge, you’ve only ever ordered one.”

“Ah, but it was a good one,” Julian affirmed with a wicked smile.

CAMERON popped open what must have been the twentieth bottle of champagne for the night. It was a little past ten, and the restaurant was in full swing, filled to capacity. New Year’s Eve was always a crazy, busy night. He’d been going full steam since before noon. He broke free of the table of twelve he was helping and headed to the service area while all his tables were safely occupied with the festivities.

Miri thumped her tray down next to him. “Geez, I’m tired. New Year’s is always a madhouse,” she muttered.

“A very good-paying madhouse,” Cameron reminded her absently as he punched numbers into the register.

“Well, yeah,” Miri said drolly. “I make more tonight than I do in a month. And you working all day when you don’t have to? You’ll be able to retire soon.”

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Cameron shrugged. “What else am I going to do? Sit at home by myself and watch the ball drop on Times Square? I’d rather be here with you, gorgeous.” He leaned over and kissed her cheek.

Miri swatted at him playfully. “Get back to work, Romeo.”

Cameron nodded as she moved off and hit the button to review the next order, tapping his finger on the counter. Once done, he took a breath and glanced at the small clock. Ten twenty-four. On a Tuesday night.

Since Julian had left his place the morning after Christmas, Cameron had heard nothing from the man. He didn’t have a phone number to try calling. And tonight should have been the night when Julian returned to the restaurant, but he had yet to show. It was far past his usual time, and Cameron was telling himself a lot of things to keep from getting depressed about it all. It was New Year’s Eve, after all.

The restaurant had been booked weeks in advance, and even a regular customer like Julian couldn’t just walk in. Or maybe he had prior plans for tonight and couldn’t change them.

Maybe he’d had to work.

Cameron closed his eyes for a moment and sighed. Julian hadn’t asked for Cameron’s phone number to get in touch with him, much less offered one. He’d merely left the next morning with a farewell kiss. It didn’t bode well for any future between them.

Cameron was relieved when the soft bell signaling a ready order sounded so he could go back to work and stop thinking about it. He’d been delivering appetizers in the party room for about fifteen minutes when he glanced up from taking orders to find himself looking straight at Julian. Julian’s eyes were on him, and when Cameron looked at him, the big man smiled slightly.

Cameron blinked a few times and then returned the smile brilliantly. He nodded ever so slightly and went on his way back to the service area, tempted the whole time to look over his shoulder. When he got back there, Miri was waiting, arms crossed, a smile on her face.

“Trade you tables,” she offered. Cameron flushed, and she laughed lightly, patted him on the shoulder, and handed him a table chit.

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“Happy New Year.” Then she was out the door, moving toward the party room.

Cameron stood and looked at the chit before he shook his head and grinned. He snagged a bottle of wine and a glass and headed out to greet Julian.

Julian looked up from his examination of his little notebook, and he smiled discreetly as Cameron neared him. Cameron expected to be nervous when he saw Julian again. But he wasn’t; not really. He set down the wine-glass and tried not to grin. “Good evening,” he greeted, eyes sparkling and a soft smile curving his lips.

“Happy New Year,” Julian murmured to him.

“Not quite,” Cameron responded, pulling the corkscrew out of his pocket. “About an hour yet.” He worked the tool into the cork. “But if you order all the courses, you’ll be here at midnight.”

“That’s what I’m counting on,” Julian told him in a low voice, his eyes not leaving Cameron’s.

It was a long moment later when Cameron realized he was just standing there with his hands on the wine bottle, looking back at Julian.

He shook himself slightly as his cheeks flushed, and he pulled the cork.

“Good thing your back is to a wall,” he murmured. No one could see the silly look on his face except Julian.

Julian raised an eyebrow and glanced around before looking back up at Cameron. “You like my back against a wall?” he asked in a suggestive manner.

Cameron’s cheeks darkened more, and he offered a flustered murmur as flashes of Christmas evening came back to him. More wine had certainly made Cameron more adventuresome than usual, and Julian had taken full advantage.

“I’ll take that as a ‘yes, thank you, I’d like some more’,” Julian drawled with a barely restrained smirk.

Picking up the wine-glass, Cameron bit his lip and then smiled ruefully as he poured. “You’re quite a bit like this wine,” he finally said as he sat the half-filled glass down in front of Julian.

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“What, not drunk yet?” Julian asked as he fiddled with his notebook.

Cameron shook his head as he pocketed the corkscrew and deliberately met Julian’s eyes. “Intoxicating,” he explained breathlessly. After two heartbeats, he escaped, heading for the service area to get the water pitcher and a bread basket.

His cheeks were still burning when he got there. After placing the basket and pitcher on a small, cloth-draped tray, Cameron took a few deep breaths to settle his heart rate before he headed back out the door.

Lord knew what Julian would say next or how he’d react to it. Julian was right; he could easily bother Cameron at work just by being there.

He stopped in front of the table and waited for Julian to look up.

Julian finished writing and set his pen down, looking up deliberately and meeting Cameron’s eyes.