Hold On Tight(37)

“You can do this,” I said one last time before opening the door.

Cam was dressed in a pair of khaki pants and a light blue polo shirt. I had dressed appropriately. One worry off my list.

“Hello,” he said with a grin. “You look gorgeous. I feel like I need to go back home and try to make myself look like it’s actually believable that we’re out together.”

Yes, he was doing wonders for my self-esteem. “Thank you, but you look very handsome yourself. I don’t think anyone will question that we are together.”

He chuckled, then shrugged. “I’m not sure how you’re that blind, but I’m just counting my lucky stars.” He held out his arm to me. “Ready?”

I nodded and stepped outside onto the porch, then locked up behind me before sticking my keys in my purse. I’d had a key made for Tabby this week and given it to her, so if she needed to get inside to get Micah anything, she’d be able to.

“I made reservations at Le Cellier. I hope you like steak,” he said with a smile. I had heard of Le Cellier, but I’d never been there. “I love steak,” I told him. And I intended to eat a filet, which felt nice. I wouldn’t have to pick at my food because I was worrying about what he was thinking. This was going to be a good night. I could already tell.

* * *

Two hours later I was ready to go back home and put on my pajamas. Cam was really nice, but I was a little bored with him. He talked about work and asked me about myself. He did everything right, but there was something missing. I wasn’t sure if I was just being picky because my last relationship had been with someone I was already so close to.

“You want to stop in Live Bay and listen to Jackdown play? I hear they’re good. I haven’t been to see Jackdown yet, but Live Bay seems to be the place to go to hear live music and dance.”

For the first time all night, something sounded exciting. I hadn’t been dancing in forever . . . since the prom, and I wasn’t sure that counted. I danced with Micah all the time around the house, but live music and actual dancing sounded like fun. Maybe it had been the stuffy fancy restaurant he had taken me to that had bored me. If he liked to dance, he couldn’t be completely boring.

“Sounds like fun,” I said, trying not to bounce in my seat like a kid.

He pulled his Volvo into the parking lot. The place was packed. I soaked it all in. This was a world I didn’t know. One I wanted a taste of. Live Bay had been around when I was sixteen, but I hadn’t been old enough to get inside. Now I was getting to see what the fuss was all about.

“Isn’t that your . . . uh, son’s uncle?” Cam asked.

I swung my gaze over to where he was looking and immediately wished I hadn’t. Seeing Dewayne pressing some girl up against his truck while attacking her face was not what I wanted to see. I was sure she was gorgeous. Surprisingly enough, she had red hair. That’s all I could see of her. Maybe my hair needed to be a lighter red for Dewayne. She also looked tan. I didn’t have time to get tanned. I should make time. I could play outside with Micah and get a tan.

Wait . . . How did Cam know who Dewayne was?

I tore my gaze off Dewayne and the lucky female to look at Cam. “How do you know Dewayne?” I asked. Had he researched me? If he had, I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. It seemed creepy.

Cam pressed his lips together as if he was thinking hard about something. Crap. I needed to get away from this man. He could have stalked me! “Dewayne paid me a visit at work today. He wanted to check me out before you went out with me.”

I didn’t have any words. None at all. Cam was telling the truth. I didn’t have to ask Dewayne to know that Cam was telling the truth. It was something Dewayne would do. He didn’t trust me to keep Micah safe, so he was doing that for me. I understood that to an extent, but he had crossed the line. I wasn’t going to let him walk into my private life and stick his nose where it didn’t belong. Maybe I should find out who that woman was who currently had his tongue down her throat. If he was going to be around Micah, I deserved to know if she was suitable.

“Stop the car,” I ordered, and Cam didn’t argue. He put the car in park, and I jumped out without an explanation and marched over to Dewayne’s back, letting my anger burn brighter with each step. I hadn’t thought this through, but in the moment I was so mad I didn’t care.

I slapped him hard on the back without thinking that he could knock me across the parking lot with one swing. Luckily, I’d had the forethought to take a step back as Dewayne spun around and reached out to grab my arm. His eyes were bloodshot, and he was pissed. His grip on my arm made my knees buckle because it seriously felt like he was about to snap my arm in two. But I fought back a cry of pain and tried to keep the angry glare on my face.