Kiss This (26 page)

Standing, she grabbed a different set of
gloves for the speed bag. But Tim stood too and caught her arm. He
paused, searching for the right words to say. “Cam, just…just enjoy
life, okay? Be happy. You deserve it, sweetheart.”

After her nod, Tim gave her a quick hug and
left her alone. She finished up forty minutes later, grabbed
something light to eat, and headed for High Point Dance Studio to
teach a ninety-minute dance workshop.

The owner of the studio, Mimi Gonzalez, was
a friend of Camryn’s from high school. They’d even considered
opening the studio together three years ago, but Camryn had been
touring at the time and couldn’t commit. Sometimes she wished she
really had gone in with Mimi because what she truly liked to do was
teach. Thankfully Mimi used her to fill in as often as she could,
or hired her for special classes or workshops like today.

As she headed for her car following the
class, she heard her phone vibrate. She pulled it out of her bag
hoping it was Teague, but it was her sister’s smiling face that
popped up on the screen. She rarely ever missed one of Melanie’s
calls just in case something was wrong, and this turned out to be
one of those moments she always dreaded.

“Cam?” Melanie sniffled. “I- I need your
help.”

And then she broke down and started to
bawl.

Chapter Twenty-Four

What would normally be a six-hour drive from
Fresno to San Diego took Camryn five and a half. She pulled up to
an apartment building that her GPS landed her at. Melanie was
already waiting for her outside the entry because Camryn had called
a mile out to let her know she was close.

Camryn tried not to gape at her little
sister. She looked like shit. Her hair was messy and her eyes were
puffy; mascara was smudged across her face. Camryn was going to
give her a hug but Melanie dragged her inside and up a set of
stairs without a word.

“So what’d you decide?” Camryn finally
asked.

“I don’t know. What should I do, Cam?”

Camryn frowned as they entered an apartment
on the second floor. “Melanie, I can’t make your decisions for
you.” Even if she could, it fell on deaf ears.

“I know that, but you’re my big sister!
Please help me.”

“That’s what I’m here for.” Camryn sighed
and looked around the room for the first time. It was a decent
apartment—pretty basic and bachelor, but nice. Of course the focal
point of the place was the gigantic entertainment system in the
middle of the living room. “So you really did move in here?” she
finally asked.

Melanie looked around the place and
shrugged. “Well, he asked me to stay. I don’t know if I’ve ‘moved
in’ since I barely have anything here. I had to go shopping for
more clothes.”

Camryn narrowed her eyes. “With what money?
I could have shipped a box of your things and it would have been
cheaper.”

Melanie looked away and didn’t respond.

“With what money?” Camryn repeated
firmly.

“I charged it, okay?” her sister answered
gruffly. “I didn’t have a choice.”

“There’s always a choice. Like maybe come
home before you make another stupid decision?”

“So now I’m stupid?”

Camryn groaned as she walked across the
room. She glanced at the kitchen, which was better than her own,
and down a hallway with three doors. Wandering down the hall, she
peeked into the first door—a bathroom. Then she pushed open the
second door—a bedroom with a king-sized bed and a few articles of
clothing draped here and there, including her sister’s.

“Why are you snooping?” Melanie asked from
the living room. She was using a tissue to clean up the makeup
around her eyes.

Camryn returned to her and ran her fingers
through her hair. “Just wondering what’s here that made you decide
such a thing. What’s this guy’s name again? Jackson?”

“Yes.”

“Where is he?”

“At work. He stayed late to finish a
project.”

“Where does he work?”

“In an office. He’s an architect.”

Camryn raised both eyebrows. Pretty tame for
her sister, but it explained the cool photos of buildings all over
the walls. If he had a nice apartment and a good job, that left one
more question… “How old is he?”

“Um…”

Camryn raised her eyebrows again, but this
time with impatience. “Melanie Elizabeth Jacobs. How old is this
guy?”

“Thirty-one,” she whispered.

“What the fuck!? Are you kidding me!?”

“Don’t yell at me, Camryn!”

“What is wrong with you?
Thirty-one
!?” She pressed both of her palms against her
forehead and exhaled. Yelling at Melanie wasn’t going to get her
anywhere and she had to rein in some composure. Okay, thirty-one
wasn’t forty-one. Things could be worse, which is why she had to
ask the next question. “How old did you tell him
you
were?”
She dropped her hands to her hips and waited for an answer.

“Twenty-five,” Melanie replied.

Camryn felt a major headache coming on as
she sank into the dark leather couch. She closed her eyes for a few
seconds, trying to regulate her breathing. Three seconds in, three
seconds out.

“He’s really sweet, Cam. I think you’d
like—”

“It doesn’t matter if I
like
him,
Mel,” her eyes flashed open. “And how is he a friend of McKenzie’s
brother?”

“Jackson isn’t the guy I met that night.
Well, not at first. His younger brother Gavin is. We walked here
because we were just a few blocks away, but Gavin was so wasted he
just passed out. Jack was here so…we just started talking and…”

Camryn could only stare at her for a few
seconds. “My God, Mel. I can’t fucking keep up with you and all
these guys.”

“Shut up, Camryn! And quit with the
language. I hate it when you say the f-word!”

“Melanie, this whole time I thought you
moved in with that other guy—Gavin? When did you ever tell me you
hooked up with his older brother?”

“I didn’t because you would have lectured
me!”

“Well duh! Someone needs to because
sometimes you have no common sense!” She popped up from the couch
and added, “Grab your stuff, Melanie. Now. I’m taking you
home.”

“I am
not
leaving! Quit bossing me
around, Camryn. You’re such a bitch sometimes!”

“And I’m not going to deny that. But
Melanie, you’re
nineteen years old
. You’ve been lying to men
for God-only-knows how long, and you get yourself in these
situations that could have easily been avoided.”

“Well I’m sorry I’m not perfect like you!
Miss Goody-Goody that can’t even kiss a guy without wanting to cry
over it! ‘Ooh, I have to be in love with him first,
wah
wah
!’ ”

Camryn wanted to slap her for that remark.
Melanie had taken one of the most painful things in her life and
thrown it in her face. Thankfully her phone rang, preventing her
from doing something very aggressive to her sister. Just seeing
Teague’s picture on the screen made her take a deep breath and
relax little.

“Hey,” she answered, walking over to look
out the window.

“Is everything going okay?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” she mumbled.

“Well…what can I do?”

“Nothing right now. Haven’t really dealt
with it yet.”

“Oh, so now you have to ‘deal’ with me?”
Melanie scoffed from across the room.

Camryn turned around to glare at her only to
find Melanie doing the same to her, complete with arms angrily
crossed over her chest. She looked like a twelve-year-old about to
stomp her feet and Camryn wondered how in the hell any guy would
mistake her for anything older. But then again, she had a set of
boobs and a dazzling smile that distracted the men just fine.
Combine that with her sultry flirtations and guys were putty in her
hands.

“Let me call you back when Melanie’s done
throwing a temper tantrum,” Camryn said angrily. She wasn’t meaning
for her frustration to be directed towards Teague, and she was glad
he didn’t take it that way.

“Of course. Call me anytime. I’ll be
waiting.”

“Okay. I’m sorry, Teague.”

“Don’t be sorry. Just… You know. Do the best
you can and I’m here if you need me, okay?”

“Yeah, okay.”

“I miss you, Camryn. Damn, if you had called
me
before
you passed through LA, I would’ve hopped on my
motorcycle and hauled ass to kiss you on the way. You wouldn’t have
had to stop.”

“Oh yeah?” Camryn smiled. “And what kind of
crazy stunt did you have in mind, lover boy?”

“That’s just it,” he chuckled. “It would’ve
been crazy.”

She missed him. So much. Even though he
called and texted often, if felt good to know he cared. Hearing his
voice again did wonders, but she desperately wanted to see him
right now.

Noticing Melanie’s angry face cut down the
momentary bit of joy and she said, “I gotta go, Teague. I’ll call
you in a bit.”

“Bye, Cam. Don’t hurt anyone, okay?” he sort
of teased.

She agreed but didn’t admit to how timely
that reminder really was. When they hung up, Melanie was grabbing a
drink from the fridge and she set one on the counter for Camryn.
The two of them sat on barstools as they each twisted open a bottle
of juice.

“I can’t believe you told him,” Melanie
grumbled.

“So what’s going to happen?” Camryn asked,
ignoring the complaint. “What are you going to do?”

“I really like Jackson.”

“You’ve already lied to him,” Camryn said
dryly. She took a drink and added, “How much you like him might not
matter if he kicks your ass to the curb.”

“You’re always so optimistic,” Melanie
scowled.

“I’m being
realistic
so when he’s
furious for being deceived, you’re not surprised.”

“He’s not like that. He’s really mellow and
sweet and… He’s just a nice guy, Cam.”

“And you’ve known him for how long? You
can’t judge someone in that short of time.” Camryn realized just
how hypocritical that sounded. There was something about Teague the
first time she met him.

Melanie narrowed her eyes and said, “And how
long have you known Teague?”

“I know, I was just thinking that,” Camryn
sighed. “Look, Mel. I don’t know what it’s like for you with this
guy, but you’ve been so frivolous with just about every man you’ve
dated. It’s how you are. And to be honest, this isn’t the first
time you’ve claimed insta-love with someone. I believe the first
time was when you were fifteen with Matt Seymour; the second time
you were sixteen or seventeen with that Aiden guy; the third time
was with Mimi’s brother Juan last year; and then there was—”

“Shit, Camryn! Okay, I get it!”

“Do you? Really? Do you really get it?”

“Stop being rude!”

“Melanie, I don’t know how else to act with
you sometimes. Maybe I should’ve sent Tim here instead. At least
he’s a parental figure that might have a little more experience
than I do. I’m just your stupid sister that barely knows anything
more than you do. If we had a mother that gave a fuck about
anyone’s life but her own, then we might have that option, but no,
Mel… You’re stuck with me, and whatever shitty advice I might give
you. Do you think I
like
this?”

“Okay!” Melanie groaned. “I’m sorry. I just…
I hate it when you’re mad at me, Camryn.”

Camryn softened because Melanie presented
her classic “I’m just your little sister” look, complete with a
pouty lip. But it didn’t even have to come to that for Camryn to
show a gentler side because she loved Melanie and was worried about
her. She didn’t come with her guns drawn, but the second she found
out her sister had lied to the poor guy, her sympathy faltered.
Even so, she was protective of Melanie and wished she could prevent
more of these kinds of things instead of just being good enough for
damage control.

“I’m sorry, Mel,” she said softly. “I
totally raged on you because I love you. Let’s talk about this. Are
you sure about the results?”

“Yes,” she replied, dropping her chin into
her hand. “I took three tests. I’ll show ‘em to you if you want to
check.”

Camryn waved it off. She could at least
believe that her sister would read a pregnancy test correctly. But
something didn’t add up, and she wondered why it didn’t occur to
her before when she listened to her sister sob as she drove. “Wait
a sec… You only met Jackson over a week ago. How could you know
you’re pregnant already?”

Melanie’s reaction was not what she wanted
to witness.

Camryn dropped her head on the counter with
a
thunk
and groaned. “No, Melanie… Please tell me this isn’t
what I think it is.” She looked up and stared at her sister,
practically pleading for her assumption to be incorrect.

“It isn’t his,” she answered softly.

Camryn felt a mixture of emotions. She was
angry, sad, and worried, and it was all boiled together in one big
cauldron of panic. However, she tried to keep calm for her sister’s
sake. She’d already blown up at her once, and that was not the way
to go. “But you know who got you pregnant, right?” she asked
calmly.

Melanie crossed her arms over the counter
and laid her face over them. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure,” she replied
weakly. She was going to cry again, and when she did, Camryn
scooted her stool closer so she could put an arm around her.

“It’s gonna be okay, Mel. You don’t have to
go through this alone. Just tell me how you feel. Tell me what you
want to do.”

“I don’t have to ‘do’ anything, Camryn. I’m
happy here with Jackson and—”

“Melanie Jacobs, don’t you dare assume that
he’s going to be okay with this. No I don’t know a single thing
about him, but open your eyes, hon. This is truly going to suck.
You guys just met.”

“I know.”

“So how are you going to tell him? I mean
your first priority should be making sure you know who the baby
belongs to.”