Pieces of Us (8 page)

“Please, Charlotte, will you just talk to me?”

“About what? There’s nothing to say!” I yelled, giving him the full force of my anger. I pulled my arm out of his grasp and tried to get into the car again.

Cameron slammed the door closed just as I was about to get in and stood in front of it. I could feel the fury building inside me, and before I even registered what I was doing, my hand shot up and slapped him hard across the face. He let out an “oof” as it made contact, and he looked at me in shock.

My hands covered my mouth as I realized what I’d done, and I took a few steps back. I wanted to apologize, tell him I didn’t intend to hit him, but I couldn’t find the words. No matter how horrified I was, I also felt quite justified.

“I deserved that.” He rubbed his bright red cheek. “Is it out of your system now, or would you like to take another shot?”

The rage surged through me again. He was joking around as if we were play-fighting. He obviously didn’t take me or our situation seriously at all.

“Let me get into my car,” I stated firmly.

He stared at me for a moment, testing my resolve, and finally stepped away. I pulled the door open and sat down. Before I could pull it closed, however, Cameron stood in the way and leaned down.

“Where are you staying?”

I just glared at him.

“I would just like a way to contact you. I think we need to talk…sort this all out.”

His eyes were sparkling, and I could feel my anger ebbing away.
Danger!
my brain shrieked. I could tell he wasn’t going to move or let me leave without giving him some information, so I sighed and twisted in my seat so I was facing him.

“My
fiancé
and I are staying with Dad until we find a place of our own,” I said angrily.

His face went pale, and he leaned back as if I’d slapped him again. His eyes traveled down my arm and froze on the ring on my left hand.

“I believe you met him last night. Owen,”

He nodded slowly, and I could see tears forming in his eyes. Any elation I felt at causing him pain for the first time, instead of him crushing me over and over again, quickly disappeared. As angry as I was and as much as I wanted him to leave me alone, it still hurt me to hurt him.

“Goodbye, Cam.” I pulled the door closed and started the car.

For the second time in my life, I drove out of that parking lot, watching Cameron in my rear-view mirror. My hands shook on the wheel, and the thought of going home to an empty house was not appealing. I could imagine myself sitting and crying all day, not to mention that Cameron now knew I was staying there, and he could show up without warning.

I stopped quickly at Dad’s to drop off the groceries and grab a blanket, and then I got back in the car and drove out of Fairfield. I’d often enjoyed driving through the forest when I was a teenager, and I took the turnoff to Southport, the next town over. I drove the usual fifteen-minute drive in ten and pulled up in the parking lot at Southport Harbor.

Grabbing the blanket off the passenger seat, I opened the door and took a deep breath of the fresh air, feeling instantly calmer. Walking slowly down to the harbor’s edge, I soaked in the view. It was just as beautiful as I remembered.

I kept walking until I found a spot of soft grass where I could sit. I wrapped the blanket around my shoulders and pulled it under me as I looked out at the waves. So many of my memories of Fairfield were tied up in Cameron, but this was one place I could come and have memories where he wasn’t featured.

Cameron and I had come here together, of course, but I’d had many childhood friends in Southport and spent plenty of time here with without him. I lay back on the grass and looked up at the sky. I felt completely at ease here and made a mental note to bring Owen to my special place.

Cameron’s words kept running through my head, and the sound of the water, relaxing as it was, did nothing to drown them out. Was he right? Did we need to talk? Did I even want to sort things out with him? And if I did, where would that leave us? I was with Owen now, and I was happy. But Owen had told me he
wanted
me to talk with Cameron. Would he be upset to learn I’d had that chance and run away? I needed Owen and couldn’t bear the thought of hurting him. Despite my urge to run, I knew Owen was probably right. I’d have to talk with Cameron eventually.

I breathed in the salty air and watched the sun move across the sky and behind the clouds. I don’t know how long I lay there thinking, but when the clouds started to turn pink I decided to head home. I took one last look at the water lapping at the rocks and stood up, brushing the grass from the blanket and giving it a quick shake before heading back to my car.

The drive back to town went quickly, and before I knew it, I was turning into my dad’s driveway. His car was there so I knew they were home from their fishing trip.

“I’m home!” I called as I came in the front door.

Owen appeared from the kitchen with a big smile on his face and pulled me into his arms, kissing me and spinning me around in the air.

“I missed you today,” he whispered, placing me back on the floor and leading me into the kitchen with one arm around my waist.

“We have dinner, Char. Fresh fish,” Dad said, beaming as he prepared the filets in the sink.

“That’s great!” I smiled as I pulled away from Owen and opened the fridge, taking out some of the vegetables I’d bought to make a salad.

“What did you do today?” Owen asked.

“I went grocery shopping and then out to Southport to sit at the harbor.”

“The harbor used to be your favorite place to think,” Dad said with a smile.

Owen gave me a curious look, and I cursed silently. Now Owen was going to wonder why I went there today.

“Yeah, I just went there to ground myself and see if it had changed.” It wasn’t a lie. I couldn’t help it if some thinking had occurred while I was there.

“How was the fishing?” I asked, changing the subject.

“Great!” Owen said, hugging me to his chest.

I loved how he always had his arms around me, as if he couldn’t get enough. I snuggled into his embrace. I felt safe there.

“Your boy is a natural fisherman,” Dad said with a grin. “Don’t let this one go!”

“I won’t.”

Owen kissed the top of my head and sighed contentedly. “Can I do anything to help?”

“You could peel the carrots,” I said with a giggle. “But don’t peel your fingers!”

Owen was good at almost everything he tried, except cooking. He’d offered to help me in the past and had come away injured several times.

“I’ll do my best,” he said, giving me a wink.

I chopped some parsley and garlic, mixed it with butter, and spread it over a freshly halved loaf of bread. I put it in the oven to bake, then started on a lemon pepper dressing for the salad as Dad went to grill the fish. Owen mixed the vegetables together next to me. We didn’t talk, but it was a comfortable silence.

Once all the food was ready, we sat at the dining table, ready to dig in.

“Damn!” Dad swore, jumping out of his seat.

“What is it?” I asked, alarmed.

“I forgot the beer!” He chuckled and pulled three bottles from the fridge.

“To coming home,” Dad said, holding his bottle in the air.

“To coming home,” I echoed.

“To a new life,” Owen added with a smile.

We clinked our bottle necks together and took a sip before turning to the food before us.

“So how was your first day back in town?” Dad asked through a mouthful.

“It was a little bizarre, to be honest. Everything is exactly the way it was when I left. It’s like traveling back in time.”

I remembered my conversation with Ellen and promise to join her and David for dinner next weekend. I knew Owen was going to be uncomfortable with that.

“I bumped into Ellen in the store,” I began.

Dad froze, fork halfway to his mouth, and stared at me. Owen looked from Dad to me curiously.

“Who’s Ellen?” he asked.

“Ellen is Cameron’s mother,” I said, reaching across the table to hold his hand.

He just nodded and took another bite of his food.

“How was that?” Dad asked cautiously.

“It was okay, actually. You remember how lovely she always was to me. She treated me like her own daughter. She actually invited me to dinner next weekend.” I took a long drink from my beer, watching Owen carefully and cringing when he choked a little on his food.

“That was, um…nice of her?” Dad questioned, shifting in his chair.

“Yes, it was
very
nice of her. She invited me and Owen to come over, so you’ll be on your own.”

He shook his head at me. “I’ve been doing fine on my own for years, I think I can manage for one evening.”

“You agreed to go?” Owen asked, looking shocked and a little annoyed.

“I’m sorry. She was being so nice, and it seemed rude to say no. You don’t have to come if you don’t want to. I know it will be really uncomfortable for you.”

“Oh, no. I’ll be there,” he replied firmly, taking another bite of fish.

We ate the rest of the meal in silence, and afterward I helped Dad with the dishes and Owen went upstairs. I knew when I got up there we were going to have a very uncomfortable conversation, and I was dreading it.

“Thanks for helping, but I can finish up,” Dad said.

“Okay, goodnight,” I said, kissing his cheek. When I walked upstairs, I could see the light on under the bedroom door, and I knocked softly before going inside. I wasn’t sure why I’d knocked on my own bedroom door, but I felt like I should let him know I was coming in.

Owen sat on the bed with his legs out in front of him, ankles crossed. He patted the mattress next to him and gave me a half-smile.

“I’m sorry,” I blurted as I sat down.

His arm wrapped around my shoulder. “Is this dinner important to you?”

“The dinner isn’t important…but Ellen is.”

Owen flinched at my words, and I realized how they must have sounded.

“Let me explain. To me, Ellen has nothing to do with Cameron. I mean, I know she’s his mother, but she’s so much more than that. When I left Fairfield, I felt like I walked away from
my
mother, and it would be nice to have her back. It has nothing to do with Cameron, I swear.” I paused for a moment. “I feel guilty, Owen. She didn’t deserve to have me walk out on her without a word. I owe her one dinner.”

Owen stroked my hair, and he let out a long sigh. “Okay, let’s go to dinner.”

I reached up and placed my hand on the back of his head, pulling it down so I could kiss his lips.

“Thank you,” I whispered against his mouth.

He smiled and kissed me again, pulling me into his lap.

“But I need you to promise me
he
isn’t going to be there. I couldn’t handle that. I mean, I know you’ll have to talk to him at some point, but I’d prefer not to see him again,” he said, looking vulnerable.

“Of course. I made Ellen promise it would just be her and her husband. No one else,” I assured him.

He nodded. “Okay. Dinner.”

I snuggled against his chest and thought about how lucky I was to have him in my life. A pang of guilt hit me, and I knew immediately it was because I hadn’t told Owen I saw Cameron. He deserved to know.

“Owen.”

“Mmm?”

“I also saw Cam at the grocery store today,” I said quickly. I knew he’d heard me because his hand stopped rubbing my back, and he sucked in a quick breath.

“He said he wanted to talk to me, but I yelled at him and told him I didn’t want him in my life and then I…” I hesitated for a moment before deciding to tell the whole story. “And then I slapped him.”

Owen was silent, and I felt his body shake slightly beneath me. I was horrified that I’d made him cry, but when I sat up I was surprised to find him smiling.

“You — you slapped him?” he asked between gasps. He was laughing in earnest now.

“Yes,” I said, looking down and picking at a loose thread on the bedspread.

“He must have really pissed you of
f
!”

“He did!”

Owen’s face went serious for a moment, and he looked down at me with concern. “Are you okay? Did he upset you? Hurt you?”

“I’m fine. I told him about you,” I added, hoping this would help Owen feel more secure.

He nodded, pulled me back into his arms, and switched off the lamp. His fingers ran through my hair soothingly for a moment, and when his breathing slowed, I knew he’d fallen asleep. For the second night in a row, I fell asleep in the arms of the man I loved, who meant everything to me, while thinking about the man who’d hurt me deeply enough to make me doubt everything.

***

I woke up the next morning to the sounds of Owen rustling around again. I opened my eyes and watched him packing clothes in his bag. It was nice to have a moment to observe without him knowing it. He was so masculine. The toned muscles in his back moved lithely as he picked up his boots and sat on the bed to put them on.

“Good morning, beautiful,” he said, smiling when he saw me watching him.

“Morning. Do you
have
to leave today? Can’t you stay a little longer?”

“It’s only for a few days. I’ll be back this weekend so we can look at some houses,” he said, leaning down to kiss the top of my head.

“I’m going to miss you,” I pouted.

Owen chuckled and bent down to put his boots on. I sat up and rubbed his back, trying to stay close until he had to leave.

“Okay, I better get going. I have to work this afternoon.”

I got out of bed and followed him downstairs. “Please drive safely, and call me as soon as you get home.” I kissed him on the lips and savored his taste.

“I will. I’ll call you every night. Just enjoy being home and spending some time with your dad.”

“I love you.” I squeezed him tightly and tried to hold back tears. I knew it was stupid because he’d be back in a few days, but I’d really grown to depend on him.