Page 37 of Best Laid Plans (Rock Harbor #1)

CHAPTER NINETEEN

ELLE

“ H e’s at football practice,” Elle said, feeling the way Cam hadn’t settled back against her headboard.

It’s not like she was looking for a declaration of undying love, but a little post-sex cuddling would be nice.

And the restaurant would be open tomorrow, so their window for a fun, daytime tryst was closing today.

She’d coaxed Cam into her bedroom after Wyatt had safely left for football practice, and hours later, they were finally coming up for air.

If there was one thing that Elle knew, it was that she was quickly becoming addicted to Cam, in whatever circumstances she could have him. It was a thought that she refused to follow too far, intent for the first time in her life on enjoying what was right in front of her.

Cam ran his hand across his jaw. “It feels wrong, lying to your brother.”

The Wyatt of it all. Of course. Some type of bro code that Elle had stumbled into the middle of with very little vision on how to navigate through it. Whenever Wyatt had been in the apartment over the last few days, Cam gave Elle a wide berth that she’d been less than pleased with.

“Do you tell my brother everyone you’re sleeping with?” she asked. Even if she had to ignore the slightly sick feeling in her stomach at thinking of Cam with anyone else.

Cam made a sullen face that Elle found cute more than anything. “No. But we’re in his house. And you’re his sister. I don’t think that the same rules apply.”

Fair point, but one that Elle didn’t want to consider.

Because that meant they’d have to talk about what they were, and decide if the possibility of this all coming out was worth it or not.

And that meant putting labels on things, at least in defense of themselves to other people.

That was the real can of worms. “We’re both adults,” she said lamely.

But would it be so bad…

It had been nagging at her, how she was going to miss whatever it was that they were doing. How maybe she wanted to explore it more, to see where they could go. But she was the one that promised stress-free and simple, and trying to box Cam into a corner of commitment was anything but that.

Ugh . She was trapped in a prison of her own making.

“Cam,” she said softly, and the tone of her voice pulled his focus to her, his green eyes present and staring intently at her in a way that she felt in her bones. Being looked at like that forever was an enticing proposition. “I’m really not trying to make your life harder. I promise. I just…”

“Can’t seem to stay away from me?” Cam asked, straddling a line between joking and serious, given the intensity of his stare. He reached over and placed one of his solid hands on Elle’s thigh, resting his weight comfortably on her. “The feeling’s mutual.”

The admission sent flutters through Elle’s stomach, at the same time her lips tipped into a smile. “ We’re not hurting anyone. It’s clear that we have chemistry. And I mean… once we’re both back in Boston, no one, including Wyatt, really needs to be the wiser, right?”

There. She’d said it. The thought that had been sitting in the edges of her consciousness. She didn’t want them to stop what they were doing. If anything, she wanted more time without her nosy brother to figure out what was happening between her and Cam. Maybe it was nothing. But maybe…

“I’m not sure I’m going back to Boston.”

That was a cold douse of ice water that Elle hadn’t been expecting. She sat up a little straighter, but not enough that it would cause Cam to remove his hand. “What does that even mean?”

“I may have overstayed my welcome there,” Cam hedged, his fingertips which had started to massage Elle’s thigh stilling.

Like that explained anything. She ran a steadying hand through her hair. “What happened? This is about you showing up a few weeks ago like you’d just gone a few rounds in the ring, isn’t it?”

Cam said his next words infuriatingly matter-of-factly. “My boss and I got into a disagreement.”

Elle turned her body then, missing the warmth of his hand but knowing it was for the best. This wasn’t a cuddled up, talking casually conversation. “With your fists?”

He nodded, and she wondered if she was imagining the way it looked like his chest was rising and falling a little faster with the admission. Like it was something that really was hard for him to talk about.

“So…” Elle was trying to put her next words delicately. “You got into a physical altercation with your boss, and now you’ve either decided or been told that you’re effectively banned from the city of Boston?”

“The entire state of Massachusetts, if we want to get technical,” Cam said dourly. “It’s in my non-compete. Specifically if I want to open my own restaurant. And even if I try to get another Executive Chef position, Michael will have my name blacklisted at every restaurant within a hundred miles.”

Elle blanched. Obviously, the fight had probably been ill-advised, regardless of the reason, but a state-wide ban felt like something only a complete asshole would do. She was starting to think that Cam’s old boss had gotten whatever was coming to him.

But, Elle knew a little something about business. She sat up straighter, her mind beginning to whir. And after everything Cam had done for her and her family, it was the least she could do. “Non-competes aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on unless he’s going to fight you.”

Cam’s stoic face didn’t change, but his hands balled into fists against the mattress.

“He will absolutely fight me. And even if I could do it, he’s going to smear my name up and down the coast.” A muscle flexed in Cam’s jaw.

“People like Michael get what they want, and if he wants me out–on his terms–then that’s what’s happening. ”

Elle shook her head. This wasn’t about wanting to keep Cam close.

Or wanting to continue exploring what was happening between them.

This was about stopping someone with power from pushing someone around because they had less of it.

Especially when it was Cam at the heart of it all. “What do you want?”

It was genuine surprise on Cam’s face then, like he’d never been asked that question before.

A dull ache spread out through Elle’s chest, Cam looking so much like the younger version of himself that was peppered around Pierce family photos down at the restaurant.

She’d been too young to understand then, that it wasn’t normal how much time Cam had spent with her family.

All she’d known, in her nine-year-old mind, was that she’d loved it, the way Cam had never seemed to mind that she tagged along with him and Wyatt at every chance .

One day, Cam had just sort of been there. And now, at the prospect of that not being the case anymore, Elle didn’t know what to do.

She grabbed his hand, running her fingers against his warm palm. He still hadn’t answered her question. “What do you want, Cam? Because that’s where we need to start. Everything else is just red tape.”

Cam cleared his throat, and she could see a vein in his neck beating erratically as he took in a deep breath.

“I’d like to have my own place. Or at least be somewhere with more creative control.

Not at the mercy of people like Michael Vittori.

” Elle kept stroking his palm, letting the quiet settle between them until Cam spoke again.

“By the end, I felt like I was more important to him when he was trotting me around to investors instead of in the actual kitchen. I fucking hated that.”

Elle saw it so clearly then–how Cam had probably felt like most of his life was out of his control.

And she wanted to do anything she could to wipe that sad, resigned look off his perfect face.

“Then we’ll figure it out. You need to send me a copy of your non-compete.

I’ll review it and see exactly what we’re working with, and then we’ll go from there. ”

“You don’t need to do that, Elle. You already have so much going on.”

Elle laughed and squared him with a look.

“We both know that’s not true. I feel like my brain is basically atrophying here.

My parents keep making excuses for me to not come over.

Wyatt won’t stop with his confused looks because I’m not the wounded bird he left a few weeks ago.

And I’m just here in this liminal space while I try to get a job.

Please,” she begged, “you’d be doing me a favor.

Let me help, Cam.” So, maybe she wasn’t finding her time here boring at all, but Cam didn’t need to know that.

She needed him to let her do this for him, and she wasn’t above playing a little dirty to do it.

“Yeah… I mean… It couldn’t hurt, right?” Cam admitted, whic h sent warmth flowing through Elle. “To have all the facts about the non-compete.”

“Exactly,” Elle answered excitedly at the same time her phone rang.

She twisted her body back toward the end table to check the caller ID.

It was an unknown number, but given her current situation, she was picking up calls like that was her actual job.

Grabbing her phone, she answered quickly so they weren’t sent to voicemail. “Hello, Elle Pierce speaking.”

“Hi, Elle. This is Tara from Reynolds Consulting. I heard that you and Dan had a great conversation a few days ago, and I was hoping that we could get you into the office some time this week to discuss a project that we think you may be a good fit for.”

Elation . It was the only way to describe the euphoric feeling cascading through Elle’s body, like she was awash in positivity and hope and the possibility of what came next.

But she didn’t have time to dwell on it. “That would be great,” she said, keeping her voice as even as possible. She could squeal with delight on the inside.

“Perfect. How about Friday? Our team has more flexibility then, so we can get you in to meet with all the relevant stakeholders.”