Total pages in book: 109
Estimated words: 104252 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 348(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104252 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 348(@300wpm)
My mama is a trigger for my brother and she’s too selfish to realize when she would get angry with him it only made things worse. So I helped lessen the behaviors for him, not her or to hide who my brother is. Although all that work has gone a long way in helping us now.
Caleb clenches his fists and grinds his teeth. “I can do this, Cam. I want to do this.”
Determination fills his eyes and my heart swells with pride. This guy is going to shock the shit out of the world one day. I can’t wait to see him prove our parents wrong, our mama more so than our daddy.
Daddy only wants the best for Caleb and to protect him from the world. Sometimes, in her own twisted way, I believe my mama wants the same.
“Then we will go. If you hate it once we’re there, we’ll leave.”
“Thanks.”
“You got it, bro.”
CHAPTER 11
Hanging Out
Maribel
My chest warms as I see Cam up ahead. He looks great even from this distance. He’s wearing a pair of light blue jeans that are hugging his thighs. His head is down, and his hands are in his pockets. The jean jacket he has on over his white tee fits his broader shoulders nicely.
As I get closer, he lifts his head, and a smile comes to his face that blows me away. His eyes sparkle with it and his face lights up. I’m pulled into his smile as we close the small distance between us.
I’m so caught up; I lean in to kiss him but catch myself at the last minute and turn to kiss his cheek. Cam wraps his arms around me and pulls me into a hug. His cologne wraps around me as well, hugging me just as tight.
“How was the movie?”
“It was good. I needed the laugh,” I reply.
“Oh yeah? Want to talk about it?”
“Not at all. I came to hang out with a friend and forget all of that drama.”
“Then let’s go. I plan to have a ton of fun kicking your ass in bowling,” he says and frowns.
“What? What’s that look about?”
“If I knew you were going to wear boots like that, I would have planned something else. It’s going to be a shame for you to trade those out for them ugly-ass shoes.”
I burst into laughter and shake my head. “Whatever, Cam.”
“See. I already made you laugh.”
I smile wide. “That you have. Now, about you kicking my ass. Not going to happen.”
“We’ll see.”
He wraps his arm around my shoulders and leads me into the bowling alley. Cam keeps me laughing the entire time we’re renting our shoes and setting up our game. We’re having so much fun as we play neck and neck.
I think I take him by surprise when he sees how well I play. Both of our competitive sides come out. Cam throws another strike and turns to taunt me.
He looks so hot as he does a little celebration. I bite my lip as I watch him and the way his muscles flex beneath his T-shirt. Cam has this effortless way of drawing you in.
“Your turn, twinkle toes,” he croons.
“You’re celebrating like you’ve won or something. You do know I’m one strike away from tying this up for good.”
“No way you’re going to get another strike.”
“Sounds like you want to place a wager.”
He shrugs and pulls a face. “If you get another strike to tie the game, I’ll buy you lunch for a week.”
“If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re just trying to get me to hang out with you during the week,” I tease.
He winks at me and shrugs. “If you don’t mind waiting around for me to finish practice, we can have lunch all week. Friends have lunch together.”
“You know what, you’re on. If I win, you’re treating me to Chinese at least twice next week. Not for lunch, I want dinner,” I say.
“You’re on.”
“At your place?”
He takes a pause to think for a second. I’m testing him. I feel like Cam has been trying to hide something from me.
I have a lot of nerve since I haven’t told him my real name, but I’m still curious. He runs his hand through his hair and turns on that smile of his. I start feeling like a mouse caught in a trap.
“Yeah, sure. We can have dinner at my place. That’s cool,” he finally says.
“Deal.”
I stand and grab my bowling ball. I go to take my turn, but Cam comes to stand behind me and wraps his arms around me. He leans to whisper into my ear.
“When you come to my place, make sure you don’t dress like this. I don’t know if I’ll be able to keep my hands to myself. Especially if you smell this good.”
I roll my eyes in my head and try not to moan. Butterflies fill my belly and that pulse between my legs that’s starting to become a constant when I’m around him begins to throb viciously.