Stolen Bases (The Miller Brothers #3)

5. Cameron

five

Cameron

There’s no missing the way my calling Talia out knocks her off balance.

Good. I’ve found myself off-kilter since the little minx withheld her identity and let me kiss her like there was no tomorrow in sight.

Fuck, that kiss. What I wouldn’t give to have a repeat.

I can still taste the sweet lemony flavor of her drink on my tongue. It’s just my luck that she’s related to the one guy who hates my guts more than he hates buttoning his shirt.

“If it makes you feel any better, I was thinking about you.” I can’t stop the confession from slipping off my tongue. I told her I was honest.

“It does not.”

Don’t I know it.

Her eyes linger on my bear tattoo for a fraction too long before she sighs and drops her head back, along the tub’s edge. I watch her as she stares at the stars above us. The steam lifting off the water’s surface mixed with the pale moonlight makes her already steel-gray eyes glimmer like diamonds in the night. Condensation droplets fall from her neck, beading at the tops of her perky tits.

As I suspected, Talia Romero is thick in all the right places.

I nearly choked on my tongue when she dropped the towel and stepped into the hot tub with me. When she slipped, my heart almost leaped out of my chest. Instinct had me reaching for her hand to steady her.

The hand I used to help her into the whirlpool of hot bubbling water prickles, itching to push the damp hair on her cheek behind her ear. To graze her silky skin. To see if the electric current that shoots through me when our hands connect is an anomaly, or if the energy doubles when I touch her somewhere else.

Keep your hands to yourself, asshole.

Touching reminds me how I wanted to rip Nico’s fingers off his fucking hand when he grabbed Talia. I scan her arm, looking for telltale signs of bruising. Thankfully, there are none. I don’t think I could let that fucker get away with it. I don’t care that she is his sister; no one touches a woman with anything other than care in my presence.

Fuck .

She’s off limits, I repeat the mantra, forcing it to sink in, but the words are too light and float into the air like helium balloons, disappearing into the atmosphere.

I need to call Mason and have him set me straight.

Damn, he’s on his honeymoon. In Hawaii, no less. I’ll call Eli, or better yet, Jace. I’ll call Jace. Yes. That’s perfect.

My oldest brother will have no problem setting me straight. He’s always been a rule follower. Hell, he’ll probably enjoy telling me to stay the fuck away from Nico’s baby sister.

The hot as fuck sister, who you can’t stop thinking about kissing?

“That can’t happen again, you know?” Talia’s melodic voice breaks me from the dangerous cycle my brain has jumped on.

“What can’t happen?” I ask, feigning ignorance.

She narrows her eyes at me, her pretty pink lips pursing, and fuck if I don’t want to kiss them again.

“Kissing. Me and you. None of it.”

I lick my lips, keeping my gaze on her face as her eyes betray her and bounce to my mouth.

Oh, itty bitty. You naughty little liar .

“Not a problem, babe. Wouldn’t want your brother to get his panties in a twist now, would we?”

“Don’t,” Talia warns. The authority in her voice makes my dick perk up. “Don’t use this against him.”

I scoff. Use this against him? Is she kidding me right now?

What did I expect from her—a woman I barely know? She’s his sister, after all.

“I think you have things mixed up. It’s your brother that has a problem with me. Maybe you need to check your facts. There is no evidence of me ever speaking about your precious brother, Nico, to the press. Or anyone, for that matter. I bet you my entire fucking salary that you can’t say the same for him.”

Talia’s face morphs into shock, and I quickly regret my outburst.

Too late. I’m pissed.

I climb out of the jacuzzi with a grunt, water sloshing over the edge and down my body onto the deck. Grabbing my towel, I turn to leave, not bothering to dry myself off.

I need to get away from her.

“Cam,” Talia whisper-shouts.

Ignoring her is impossible as I look back at her.

“I’m sorry. I—”

“It’s alright, Talia. This isn’t your problem.”

“Tell me why he hates you so badly.”

Even if I knew the answer, I’m not sure I’d tell her. I don’t want her getting involved in whatever this feud is with Nico. He’s her brother, and she will always side with him. I don’t need her digging and Nico thinking something is going on between us.

Besides, it’s like she said—nothing can happen between us anyway.

Even though I like the way she looks at me. Me, Cameron. Not me, the MLB pitcher with a huge bank account. Or me, the playboy who has a different girl on his arm every week.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll figure it out.” My reply is shorter than I intended, but if it keeps her away, maybe it’s for the best .

“He’s not a bad guy once you get to know him. And now, I know neither are you.”

With a nod, I rush towards the glass door that opens directly into my room, leaving Talia behind. Her words follow me as I battle the pull she has on me.

Fuck, I’m so screwed.

After taking a shower, to rinse the jacuzzi smell off my body, it's too late to call Jace, so I dial Eli instead.

“‘Sup, dude? How’s AZ treating you?” he asks.

It’s quiet in the background, and I can picture my brother sitting in his leather chair at the office. He pretty much lives there.

“Hot as fuck. My balls can’t stop sticking to my leg,” I joke.

Eli chuckles, and sure enough, I hear the squeak of his chair.

“I, uh, kind of have a problem.”

Eli’s voice turns serious, his fix-it instincts taking over. “What do you need me to do?”

Damn, I love my brother. He doesn’t even bother asking what’s wrong; he just asks how he can help.

Expelling a breath, I let the stress drain from my body. “I met this chick at the restaurant I was supposed to meet Romero at. We hit it off, but—”

“Please tell me you didn’t fuck this girl in the bathroom or something. I’ll throw up.”

I bark a laugh, thinking about finding Jace and Rylann in a similar compromising position.

“No, nothing like that. We just kissed.”

“So?”

“So … I, uh, kissed Nico’s sister.”

He shouts into the phone, “Are you fucking crazy?”

Yes. Because I want to do it again .

“Don’t even think about it,” he grumbles, reading my mind.

“I won’t,” I lie. Given the information beforehand, I still might have kissed Talia. She is too damn irresistible.

I explain everything that went down from start to finish, including the way I got angry at Romero for yelling at Talia and then grabbing her. Red tinges my vision just thinking about his hand wrapped around her upper arm.

“See, nothing happened.”

“You fucking kissed her?”

“Yeah, I kissed her. So what?”

“How was it?” he asks, his voice calm.

I pause, envisioning the kiss again. A smile pulls at my lips as I think about the way she melted into me, letting me take control, and the sweet taste of her in my mouth.

“Fuck,” Eli mumbles, pulling me out of my thoughts.

“What?”

“Dude, you paused for too long. You’re so fucked.”

“Why?”

“Stop asking stupid-ass questions you already know the answer to.”

Okay, fine. I know what he’s hinting at—it’s nothing but trouble, full steam ahead, if I keep going down this road with Talia.

“Tell me to stay the fuck away from Romero’s sister,” I plead.

“It’s a waste of my breath, but fine. Stay the fuck away from Romero’s sister, kid.”

His words are a hollow warning. We both know I’m not going to stay away.