Her Forever Hero (Unexpected Heroes) (26 page)

“What are you talking about, Grace? This is James Wells. He would never use a nickname like Jimmy. That’s so hickish,” Kitty said with a squeaky laugh.

“Darling, you don’t need to defend me. I knew Cam when I worked for his father in my youth,” he said, bending over and kissing Kitty’s cheek. “I vaguely remember Grace from that time, too.”

“Who are you?” Grace gasped.

“I’m not that poor little boy from back in the day, Grace. I got a great job at an art studio and worked my way up. That’s where I met the love of my life, Kitty,” he said, and hugged his fiancée tightly.

“Oh, pookie, you’re so sweet.”

Cam felt nausea roll into his throat. “You’ve done well for yourself in the last few years,
Jimmy
,” he said. “Nice suit.”

“Yes, I have. I’m not your whipping boy anymore, that’s for sure,” Jimmy snarled.

“It takes more than a suit, Jimmy,” Cam said with just enough smugness to set the man off.

“James, don’t let this man speak to you this way,” Kitty said, her eyes rounded in shock, and she turned to Grace. “Why did you bring such an unpleasant man to my party?”

“I apologize for the misunderstanding, Kitty. There’s . . . history between all of us,” Grace said through gritted teeth.

“You have nothing to apologize for. Did your mother know you were planning the wedding of a man who once attacked you?” Cam said, fury echoing through every bone in his body.

“What?” Kitty gasped.

And that’s when Grace lost it. This was all way too much for her to handle. She couldn’t do this. No person could be expected to act professional in this situation. Not even with flashbulbs going off as cameras snapped the entire scene for the world to see.

“Do you practice that outraged gasp, Kitty? You never were much of an actress when we were younger,” Grace snapped.

“How dare you!” Kitty’s claws came out as fire lit in her eyes. “Don’t forget who you’re working for, little girl.”

“Number one, I’m a year older than you, Kitty—”

“And a spinster, too!” Kitty shouted.

The entire room quieted as all eyes zeroed in on the four people in the center of the room. The sound of indistinct whispering filled the space as Cam wrapped his arm around Grace to protect her from these venomous people.

“You spoiled little bitch. I can’t believe I let my horrid mother talk me into doing this wedding. I couldn’t stand you from the first day we met, but you know what . . .” Grace paused as a waiter walked by. Grabbing two champagne flutes, she handed one to Cam and gave him a false smile before she turned to the rest of the room.

“I’d like to make a toast.” Her raised voice caught the attention of the few who weren’t aware of the battle royal that was under way.

“Grace, stop this right now.” Victoria rushed to them and tried to pull her daughter away.

Cam sent Victoria a look that made her falter. “Grace has something to say. Let her be.”

Victoria wisely took a step back.

“As I was saying. I would like to make a toast,” Grace continued. “To the bride- and groom-to-be. They are obviously made for each other. May they tie the knot . . . around their throats.”

With that, she clinked her glass against Cam’s and then downed the champagne. Cam was shocked but also proud. Finally, Grace wasn’t doing as her mother expected. Finally, she was freeing herself from the bonds they’d had her under her entire life.

“Each one of you has been nothing but a liar and a user in Grace’s life. We’re going to take our leave, and from now on you can stay the hell out of her way,” Cam told her parents before downing his own glass and taking Grace’s arm.

They turned to leave, and everything happened so quickly that Cam didn’t have time to stop it. With a wild screech, Kitty ran after Grace, grabbing her hair and spinning her around.

“Don’t you dare mock me at my own party and walk away,” she yowled before her arm shot out and she slapped Grace in the face.

Cam again was frozen. He couldn’t hit a woman, but he couldn’t stand idly by while Kitty beat up Grace. But he didn’t need to worry long.

“You pampered, spoiled little brat.” Grace didn’t bother with slapping. She made a fist and slugged Kitty in the nose, making the girl bleed all over her expensive white evening gown.

“Daddy!” the girl wailed as fat tears rolled down her cheeks.

“What has gotten into you, Grace?” Edwin Grier, Kitty’s father, scooped Kitty into his arms while he scowled at Grace.

“Had I known I was planning the wedding of this scum of a man, I would never have agreed to this,” Grace replied, fire in her eyes, but her voice calm. “He will use you and abuse you. Don’t think for a minute that you’re special.”

“You’re a liar,” Kitty cried as she tucked herself against her father.

“I think it’s best if you leave now, Grace,” Edwin told her.

“Gladly.”

With that, Grace turned and began marching toward the front door. Cam smiled at Jimmy—a promising smile, a look that assured the man he wasn’t finished with him. He didn’t move until he saw fear enter his eyes. Then he chased after Grace.

It was time for them to finish speaking about both of their pasts. They had no shot at a future while secrets still lay between them. Whether she wanted to or not, tonight they would be talking.

“Are you going to be silent the entire way back to Sterling?”

“I don’t feel like talking right now.”

Grace was still fuming, her adrenaline pumping, her nerves shot. When Kitty was gushing about her fiancé, James, she had never thought it could be the same person Grace had been stupid enough to have dated after he’d abused her.

Had she known what was happening, she would have had more time to prepare, more time to face the man she hated so much. But it was too late to kick herself now. The damage was done. Jimmy had managed to catch her off guard at a party with reporters present.

Grace’s humiliation would be complete when her face was splashed across the society pages for being a bitter ex, and her career most likely had just gone down the drain. So much time put into something that was gone in one weak moment.

“Are you still in love with him?” Cam asked.

That broke Grace out of her reverie, and she turned to look at him. “How in the world could you ask me that?”

That’s when she noticed that he seemed to be holding himself together by a very thin thread. She didn’t understand why he was so upset. If anyone should be upset at this point, it was certainly her.

“No, I’m not in love with him. I’ve never been in love with him,” she snapped, not in the mood to coddle Cam while she was feeling her own hurts.

“That’s bullshit and you know it, Grace. You were with him when you were still supposed to be mine,” he growled, his anger rising.

“What in the world are you talking about, Cam?”

Her anger drained in her confusion. She was also grateful for the privacy glass between them and the driver, although she wasn’t so sure it was soundproof.

“I saw you with him. I came home my first vacation from school and I saw you with Jimmy Wells behind my father’s barn, and he was kissing you.”

Grace was silent as she processed his words. “I never cheated on you, Cam. I wouldn’t have done that. I loved you,” she said, trying to think of what he was talking about.

“Don’t insult me by lying, Grace. I saw you!” he yelled.

“When?” Her voice was quiet. Maybe he didn’t notice how quiet, but it was very, very quiet as she waited for his response.

“It was the beginning of summer after my first year of law school. We were supposed to get all summer together. I got home early and came searching for you. I found you—in the arms of another guy.”

Grace’s eyes flooded with tears, but she managed to push them back before she let them fall. What good was it to rehash this? Why were they doing this to each other?

“You told me you were staying there that summer to work,” she said instead of asking all the questions she wanted to ask.

“After finding my girlfriend making out with another guy, I wanted to be as far from this farm as possible, so I went back and worked all summer near campus.”

“Why didn’t you say anything to me?” she asked.

“I was young and stupid—and ticked off,” he said, his voice draining of anger. “Look, I told myself this didn’t matter, that I wasn’t going to dredge up the past, but I was just so angry . . .” He took a breath. “Seeing Jimmy just brought out the worst in me. I’m sorry.”

“I didn’t cheat on you. I didn’t even entertain the idea of doing such a thing.”

“Grace!” he shouted, then stopped. When he spoke again, he was more in control. “I saw you kissing him.”

She had to think for a minute to remember that summer. Jimmy had kissed her. But it hadn’t been a wanted kiss and she’d immediately pushed him away.

“I didn’t date Jimmy until I knew you were gone, until you dumped me on the phone and then I heard rumors of all the girls you were dating. Then I only dated him because I was lonely . . .” Her voice trailed off. This hurt so much more than she wanted to admit, even to herself.

“No . . .” He stopped again. “The kiss . . .”

“If it was at the beginning of summer, he did kiss me, and I stopped him. I didn’t want it,” she told him. “But then you came back . . .”

“I was pissed and I wanted to prove something.” Cam hung his head in shame.

They were both silent for several more minutes. Then Grace had to say something. “We had sex, and I thought everything was fixed and then you were supposed to come back in a couple of months for the dance. But I didn’t hear from you again.”

Cam didn’t say anything for so long that she didn’t know if he was going to answer. Her heart was breaking all over again as she remembered that painful time. She was so confused, so frightened, and she was all alone.

“I was saying good-bye to you in one way and thinking that I was getting what was owed to me in another. I was young, Grace. I was an idiot. I shouldn’t have done that,” he finally said.

“I guess we were both pretty foolish, weren’t we?” she said, unable to keep the tears from her voice this time.

“I’m so sorry for hurting you.”

They weren’t looking at each other, and Grace was trying desperately not to fall apart, but when his hand reached across the space between them and grasped hers, she wasn’t able to hold back the tears anymore.

They pulled up to Cam’s house without saying another word. The driver opened the door and he helped her out. Her feet felt leaden as she walked up his steps and inside his house.

This night was ending so much less brilliantly than she’d planned. They’d started with smiles and were ending with tears. Why did life have to be so difficult? Why did there always have to be these roadblocks?

“I am sorry, Grace. I was hurting,” Cam said, taking her hand again before she climbed up the stairs.

“Me, too, Cam. I guess we both made assumptions that we can’t take back,” she said, unable to make eye contact with him.

“Let’s not leave it like this tonight. Let me take you to bed,” he said, tugging on her hand, trying to pull her into his arms.

“I can’t, Cam. Not tonight,” she replied, not pulling back, knowing it would do her no good.

“Gracie, I care about you. We’re good together.”

“Please, Cam. I can’t take any more tonight. Please just let me go.”

“Do you mean forever, Grace?” he asked, his hand tightening on hers. “Or do you mean just for tonight?”

She said nothing for several heartbeats. Could she let this man go? Or was he once again wedged so deeply within her soul that losing him would destroy her? She really didn’t know.

“I don’t know, Cam—I just don’t know,” she whispered.

“Okay. For tonight I’ll give you space,” he told her, and then released her fingers.

Grace climbed slowly up the stairs, knowing she couldn’t turn around for fear that she’d go running back to him. But she desperately wanted him to run to her, to tell her he’d been a fool and that he would never hurt her again.

But even if he did that, she wouldn’t believe him—not tonight, at least.

“I’m here when you’re ready, Grace.”

His words stopped her on the landing at the top of the stairs. She blinked and nearly turned back to him, but then she walked away, to the guest room. It was time to leave his house.