That Night In Texas. Joss Wood
to feed and clothe him. He’d taught him how to roll a cigarette, to spot a mark, to lift a wallet. He’d taught him to fight dirty, to run from cops and social workers, to distrust the system. He’d been more like a delinquent older brother than a father, and consequently all Cam knew about fatherhood was how not to be one. Had Vivi recognized that in him? Was that why she never informed him of his daughter? Clementine. Clem.
He had a daughter. Cam blinked furiously, annoyed at his moist eyes. Okay, she was only two, but he was no longer completely alone. There was another person in the world he was linked to. She was young and defenseless, but that link existed, it meant something.
Cam rubbed his hands over his face and pushed his fingers through his hair. What now? He couldn’t prop up this wall for the rest of the day. At some point he’d have to go in and face Vivi, deal with the situation he found himself in. Cam glanced at Vivi’s closed door and sighed. He also needed to deal with his instant, hot-as-hell attraction that was arcing between him and the mother of his child. Supposed mother of her child. Cam grabbed on to that cynical thought and held on with every fiber of his being. He just had her word that he was her kid’s dad. She could be scamming him, running a con. If he was sensible, he’d walk out of here right now and demand a paternity test. He should wait for scientific proof...
No, that wasn’t going to happen. He was upset, confused, utterly side-slapped by this news, but his gut instinct told him that she was telling the truth. He was a daddy.
God.
Cam watched a doctor and nurse walk toward him. They stopped at Vivi’s door and handed him a harried greeting. They entered her room and he followed them in, standing at the back of the room out of their way as they approached the bed. Over their heads he saw her resigned expression.
“I’m fine,” Vivi firmly stated, but Cam heard the tremor in her voice. “I need sleep and a couple of painkillers and I’ll be fine.”
“I went to med school and studied for a dozen years. Do you not think I should make that call?” the female doctor replied, amused. She jerked her head in his direction. “Someone you know?”
Vivi’s eyes collided with his and Cam felt the air leave his lungs. God, she was so damn beautiful. He’d thought so three years ago but there was a strength to her now, a maturity that had been missing in that girl he’d slept with so long ago. Back then she’d been a fun night, a diversion, a break from a hard job and constant loneliness. Lying in that hospital bed, she was now...what? He didn’t know.
“I know him,” Vivi said, resigned. “When can I get discharged?”
The doctor examined her eyes as the nurse wound a blood pressure cuff around her arm. The doctor pushed and prodded Vivi’s slim body before stepping back and folding her arms. “I will only discharge you if you promise not to drive.”
Frustration flashed in Vivi’s eyes. “My car is, I presume, waterlogged and at the bottom of a gully, so I won’t be driving anywhere. I’ll catch a cab or Uber.”
The thought of her being trapped in that car iced his veins and Cam placed his palm on the wall to anchor him. He couldn’t imagine a world, didn’t want to imagine a world, that didn’t have Vivi Donner in it. A surprising thought, given that he’d never expected to see her again.
Vivi released a small moan and Cam’s eyes flew back to her distressed face. He quickly moved to her side, placing his hand on her thigh. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
“No car, no money, no phone.” Vivi bit her bottom lip and he saw fine dots of blood appear there because she’d reopened her cut.
“Stop biting your lip.” Her eyes flashed at his order and he noticed irritation replacing fear. Good, he could work with anger; he’d couldn’t cope with tears. “I have a car and money. I’ll get you home.” He ignored Vivi’s annoyed squawk and looked at the doctor. “Since she has a concussion, must I wake her up every couple of hours?”
The doctor shook her head. “Not necessary. I’d suggest rest and lots of it.” She directed a stern glance at Vivi. “You had a nasty experience, Miss Donner, but I also suspect that you’ve been burning the candle at both ends lately.”
Vivi wouldn’t meet her eyes, so Cam asked for an explanation.
“Ms. Donner is a bit thinner than I’d like, and those blue stripes under her eyes aren’t the result of the accident but nights without sleep. She’s also slightly anemic.”
Vivi looked like she wanted to roll her eyes. “I am the single mother of an energetic toddler who isn’t fond of sleep.”
And just like that, both the nurse and doctor turned sympathetic. The nurse rested a hand on Vivi’s shoulder and sighed. “Oh, honey.” Without doubt, she was a mother, too, Cam thought.
The doctor shook her head. “I have a three-year-old and a six-year-old and a husband, and all three exhaust me. I feel your pain.”
Cam thought they were laying it a little thick. How difficult could a two-year-old be? But Cam was bright enough to realize that if he disagreed, he might be verbally skewered by three mothers. Better to keep quiet. Safer, too.
“The point is,” he said, pulling them back to the matter at hand, “I will take Vivi home.”
Vivi looked mutinous. “That’s not going to work for me.”
“Well, it’s the only way you’re going to get discharged,” the doctor told her. “No driving for twenty-four hours, plenty of rest and no physical activity.”
Cam’s eyes met Vivi’s; her eyes widened and her cheeks turned a pretty pink. Sure, his thoughts kept wandering to the sex they’d shared, but because she’d suffered a smack to her head, he hadn’t figured hers had, too. But that blush, spreading down her neck and disappearing under her hospital gown, told him a completely different story. Well, good.
No! Hell. They didn’t need the complication of still being ridiculously attracted to each other. And acting on that attraction, which he really wanted to do, would just be stupid.
He’d made a point of not acting stupid, but damn, this time it was hard.
He saw confusion in her eyes, noticed her embarrassment. Cam hauled in a breath, saw that they were alone—when had the medical staff left?—and sat down on the edge of her bed. Unable to resist touching her, he allowed the tips of his fingers to trace the fine line of her jaw. “Hell of a day, huh?”
Vivi nodded. She started to pull her bottom lip between her teeth, but he tapped her lip and she let go. “You’ve really got to stop doing that.”
“I know.”
“I’ve got a better idea.” He shouldn’t be doing this, but he needed just one taste, one kiss. He needed to know whether she tasted as good as he remembered, or whether his imagination had played tricks on him for the past three years. One kiss couldn’t hurt...
Could it?
Under his lips, hers were soft and silky. Holding her jaw, Cam moved his lips across hers, breathing in her scent, sweet flowers touched by dark waters. Keeping his kiss gentle because of the cut on her lip, he inhaled her breath and tasted her essence. He remembered her as being hot and sexy, but this woman, this new version of the girl he’d met, held more depth, was a hundred times more interesting. Her lips parted, and his tongue slid past her teeth and he tasted sweetness and sin, vulnerability and strength. Determination and independence masking a ribbon of fear.
Fear? What was she scared of?
He pulled back, looked into her eyes and saw that same emotion reflected in her eyes. A second later it was gone, shut up and put away. Vivi Donner was almost as good at masking her emotions as he was. The realization both intrigued and fascinated him, and the fact that he was both intrigued and fascinated worried him.
Complications weren’t his thing.
Vivi swallowed and