Chapter 18

eighteen

Fiona sat snuggled up in her robe on her window seat, basking in the late-morning sunshine while she sipped the matcha latte she'd made for herself after a long shower. Sighing, she closed her eyes, enjoying the luxury of doing absolutely nothing.

It felt good to be still—even better to be entirely relaxed. When was the last time she'd let herself rest?

She frowned when she realized maybe never. For the entirety of her childhood and young adult life she'd chased her dreams, caught up in her ambitions and desires for her big, exciting life.

Then her world had crashed down around her and she'd lived as if her feet were on fire—as if she had dared to stop, she would have perished. Because she'd never been willing to feel or deal with the pain of losing the man she'd loved to her core.

Mom walked down the hall, stopping in her doorway. "Good morning, sweet girl."

Fiona smiled as she turned her head, studying her mother dressed in stylish capri jeans and a pink V-neck button-down. She'd tied her hair back in one of her typical summertime ponytails. Other than the small scar on her forehead and the new splint on her wrist, it was impossible to tell she'd been in an accident. "Good morning."

"How was the Smith party last night?"

Fi nodded. "Really good. When I left, everyone was having a great time."

"That's because you're great at what you do."

Fi grinned, forever treasuring her mother's support. "Thank you."

"Are you going out to Cam's today?"

She shook her head. "I don't think so." Because she needed to show herself that she could stay away. It concerned her some that on a day when she was free to do anything, the only thing she wanted was to be with Cam and Brady.

"You've been spending a lot of time out there."

She nodded. "Cam's needed my help."

"Quite a bit of help, I guess."

As they held each other's gazes, she knew from her mother's comment—from the look in her pretty blue eyes—that her mom knew it was more than that.

She'd been out at the lake every day. If she wasn't watching Brady, she, Cam, and his son were spending time together at the house or out in the community. After Brady went to bed, she and Cam couldn't keep their hands off each other. She'd even stopped by after the Smith party last night, staying until nearly three a.m.

"The sparkle's back in your eyes. That's something I haven't seen in a long time."

"It's nice being home again." Fi sipped her drink as the silence hung heavy between them, knowing her mom wanted to say more. "Are you taking today off or are you heading to the theater?"

"We have our first full run-through next week, so I'll probably be over there for most of the day."

"Have fun."

"Okay." Mom winked as she blew Fiona a kiss, took a step to leave, and then stopped. "You're going to do what you want to do. I raised you to be strong and independent, which you are. Just be careful, baby girl."

She nodded. "I am."

Mom winked again. "Love you."

"I love you, too."

Several moments later, the front door closed as Fiona stared into her half-empty mug in the silence. Exhaling a long breath, she rested her head against the wall, thinking about the conversation she just had.

She was being careful. Ultimately, she adored Brady as if he were her own, and she loved Cam just as deeply as she always had. It did her no good to deny those facts. But knowing she was leaving—that her life in Seattle would begin again sooner rather than later—was something she was never foolish to forget.

Ultimately, she and Cam were heading down different paths. During their long nights of conversation and loving, Cam never mentioned wanting anything more than what they had right now. And that made sense. Because simple was working perfectly well for both of them.

Eventually, he would find a woman who would help him raise his son and give him more children like he'd always wanted—something she most likely wouldn't be able to do.

And as much as that hurt, she had her own dreams to follow, even if she'd quietly grown restless for something more than just her thriving career.

For the last couple of years, she'd yearned to find a love like she'd shared with Cam and to make babies of her own. But the Universe had made her blatantly aware that those dreams were not meant to be. So she planned to focus on reality—on what she could have. Upon her return to Seattle, she had every intention of catapulting to the next level at Laurier Group after she and Leo knocked the governor and First Lady's socks off.

In a few more weeks, she and Cam would go their separate ways again, but they would do so on both of their terms. Saying goodbye wouldn't be easy, but ultimately, it was for the best.

She startled when her phone alerted her to a text. Looking at the screen, she smiled, realizing Cam had sent her a video.

Clicking on it, she grinned when Brady's blurry face popped up.

"Hi, Fiona! I have a surprise for you." He waved a wrapped box around for her to see. "Grammy helped me wrap it. And I picked out a bow." He tried to show her, but as he looked at the bow himself, it was out of view. "Okay, bye, Fiona!"

She laughed when the video abruptly ended.

Seconds later, her phone rang. Immediately, she swiped right, already knowing it was Cam. "That was a pretty great video."

"Brady did the camera work himself. I'm not sure if you could tell."

She grinned, always adoring Cam's humor. "I got that impression."

"I imagine you're pretty sick of us at this point, but I'm fairly certain Brady will either explode or break whatever he wrapped for you if you don't open it soon."

Laughing as she gained her feet, she headed for her chest of drawers, picking out a black tank top and denim shorts for the day.

"Do you have a couple of minutes for us to swing by? Or you can come out here."

"I can head your way if you want."

"Definitely. It's supposed to be pretty hot. We might swim later and grill some chicken for dinner. You're welcome to join us."

"I'm not sure how long I can stay." But even as she said so, she grabbed her bathing suit and an extra change of clothes.

"I guess we'll play it by ear."

"Sounds good. Let Brady know I'll be there in just a few minutes."

"We'll be impatiently waiting."

She chuckled, catching a glance at herself in the mirror as she grinned, seeing the pure happiness in her eyes that her mother had spoken of. "I'll see you soon."

"Bye."

Her smile faded as she turned away, already knowing she wouldn't be home again until the wee hours of tomorrow morning. But it was no big deal.

Cam waited with Brady by the window in their home office, watching as Fi pulled up. She looked good in the truck she was still borrowing with his family's name logoed on the side—the name that would have been hers if things had turned out differently.

"She's here!" Brady ran for the front door in his dinosaur T-shirt and black shorts, opening it and running outside as Fiona killed the engine. "You're here!"

Cam chuckled as he followed, standing in the doorway in athletic shorts and a T-shirt.

Fiona grinned as she got out of the driver's seat, settling her sunglasses on top of her head. "Here I am."

Brady took her hand, pulling her toward the house. "You always have surprises for me and Dad, but today I have one for you."

"I'm very excited." She smiled as her gaze met Cam's. "Hi."

Sending her a wink, he remembered not to reach out and kiss her like he had when she came over last night. Once they made it upstairs, they'd destroyed each other behind his locked bedroom door into the wee hours of the morning. "Hi."

He closed them inside, following Brady and Fi down the hall to the couch, sitting on one of the arms.

Brady hopped around, buzzing with excitement. "You have to sit down and close your eyes."

"Got it." Doing as she was instructed, Fiona took a seat on the nearest cushion and shut her eyes.

Brady ran to the blanket he'd hidden the present under, yanking it from the center of the heap.

Cam winced, noting how the bow had been crushed . The paper had been taped within an inch of its life, and there was plenty of slack around the box from a five-year-old's wrapping job.

Brady hurried back to Fiona. "Now you have to put your hands out."

Fiona did.

Brady plunked the present in her palms. "You can open your eyes."

She did, beaming as she examined the red dinosaur wrapping paper. "Did you wrap this for me?"

Brady grinned as he nodded. "Yup."

"I love the dinosaurs. And the bow."

"It's pink. 'Cause girls like pink sometimes."

Fiona grinned again. "That's true. I certainly do. Is it okay if I open the gift?"

Brady nodded again. "You can."

Fiona struggled to rip through the tape but eventually made it to the white gift box beneath. "I'm almost there."

Brady jumped up and down. "You'll like it."

Fiona opened the box, and her eyes softened in the irresistible way that they did when something touched her heart. "Brady, I love this." She lifted the 5x7 frame, examining the image.

"That's us! From Great-Grandpa's secret birthday party."

"Yes, it is," she said as she touched her hand to her chest. "You and your dad look so handsome."

"And your face is very beautiful."

Her eyes softened again. "Thanks, buddy."

She held the picture up for Cam to see—the three of them standing snuggled up, grinning for the photographer. "Did you know about this?"

Cam shook his head, loving how the three of them looked together. "Nope. Mom and Brady cooked up this surprise when she picked him up to have breakfast with Grampy."

"We have a picture, too," Brady told Cam. "I snuck it up to my room when Grammy came in to give you a hug. That way you could be surprised, too."

"Thanks, bud."

"You're welcome." Brady sat next to Fiona. "The lady at the picture printing place said we're a gorgeous family."

Fi's eyes darted to Cam's as she wrapped her arm around Brady's shoulders. "Friends are a special type of family."

"Yeah," Brady said as he hugged her. "'Cause you're my best friend."

She hugged him back, holding on, kissing the top of his head. "Thank you so much for my present. I love it."

Brady smiled. "Now you can put your picture in Seattle."

She nodded. "I definitely will. Right where I can see it every day."

"You have to go there because that's where you live."

"I do. In a big building that reaches up to the sky."

Brady's eyes popped wide. "In the sky ?"

She nodded again. "It's called a high-rise because it's so tall. I have to take an elevator to get to my house."

"Wow!"

"This week I'll show you some pictures on the computer."

Brady nodded excitedly. "Okay."

Cam restlessly scratched his jaw as he watched the two people he loved most talking about Fiona's life that didn't include him or his son. "Who needs a snack before we go swimming?"

Brady stood in a rush. "I can get us granola bars. And there's cantaloupe in the fridge. But I can't get that because the bowl's too big."

Gaining his feet, Cam walked to the kitchen, grabbing the bowl, looking at Fiona as she looked at him. "Are you sticking around for snacks and swimming?"

She nodded. "Sure."

He took the lid off the bowl, only to glance up from what he was doing when he felt her eyes still on him. "What's up?"

She shrugged. "You tell me."

He grabbed a serving spoon from the drawer. "I'm good."

Or he would be after he took a couple of deep breaths. The last thing he wanted was to spoil their day because of his problem. Fi lived in Seattle. Brady seemed to understand that. Both he and Fi regularly explained that to his son. And it wasn't changing. Fiona dug the fast-paced, high-rise lifestyle. That's how it was.

She nodded again. "Okay."

Brady walked over with two boxes of granola bars. "Fiona, you pick first. That's what you do to be polite."

She smiled. "That is polite. I'll take chocolate chip, please."

He brought the box closer for her to take one.

She grabbed one. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Sitting next to her, he selected a birthday cake granola bar. "This kind is good."

"It looks good with all of those colorful sprinkles." She opened her package as Cam came back with three cups of fruit and forks. "This looks good, too. Thank you."

"No problem."

Fi picked up a fork, spearing a piece of cantaloupe as she gave Brady her attention. "You know, this is our last week of hanging out full-time. We'll have to think about what we want to do."

"Let's look at your house in the sky," Brady immediately said.

Fiona smiled. "We'll definitely do that. What else?"

"Um, we should swim and make more cookies."

"Okay." She looked at Cam. "Is there anything we can do to help Brady get ready for day camp next week?"

He shook his head. "It's pretty straightforward. We pack his swim trunks and a towel. I pack him a lunch and provide some gluten-free snacks."

"Well, that's easy."

Cam nodded.

Fiona looked at Brady again. "Are you excited to go to camp?"

He nodded as he chewed a bite of granola bar. "Except I didn't get to have the sleepover."

"Oh," Fiona said as her brow furrowed. "They had a sleepover?"

Brady's shoulders sagged as he nodded. "It was outside in tents."

Cam hated seeing Brady so disappointed, especially when Brady had missed out because of his injury. "What if we have a sleepover here? We could invite Owen and Davis."

Brady rushed up. "We can?"

Cam nodded. "Sure. We can set up a tent on the deck upstairs. You guys can sleep out there."

Brady jumped up and down. " Yes !"

"I'll talk to Owen and Davis' parents, and we'll make it happen."

"Can we have hot dogs on the grill?"

Cam nodded. "Sure."

"And Fiona, you can make me balloons like you make for your parties?"

She nodded. "If you can help me."

"I can!" Brady ran to the counter, grabbing a pad of paper and a pencil, bringing them back to Fiona. "We can make a list."

Cam tossed his head back on a laugh, getting a hell of a kick out of Fi and his son. "You've taught him well."

She narrowed her eyes before she grinned. "Successful parties are highly organized. That starts with a list. Right, buddy?"

Brady sat next to her. "Right." He handed her the paper and pencil. "We can make balloons that look like a rainbow, like that one you showed me on your computer."

She nodded. "That's a good one. Do you remember the colors we'll need?"

"Yup. Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple—those are the colors in the rainbow song."

Fi wrote it down. "We'll have to add some of the balloons with confetti in them for some extra fun."

Brady nodded excitedly. "Uh-huh." He patted the cushion next to him. "Dad, you can come over and help."

"Sure." Getting up, Cam walked over as Brady threw out ideas when Fiona asked about sleepover snacks. Brady was happy, and Fi was here now, helping to make his son's very first sleepover a special event. That's what he needed to focus on. "What about s'mores if we can find some gluten-free graham crackers?"

Brady beamed. "I like it, Dad!"

Cam grinned as Fiona did, tossing her a wink before she wrote down the idea. This was the time they had. He planned to make it count.