The Fall (Colorado Coyotes #6)

Chapter 18

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Rowan

Dom and Tess have a huge rectangular dining table that seats up to sixteen people, so we all sit there for Thanksgiving dinner. I want to sit next to Cam, but I’m late getting into the room because Dom was talking my ear off about fantasy football.

Instead, I take a seat right across from her, giving me the best view in the house. There’s commotion all over the place. Sergei and Sam are throwing a football back and forth over the table. Dom’s dad is arguing about politics with Stella. Hannah is pleading with Tess to stop eating meat as Tess carves the turkey, Tess giving Dom a grateful look as he takes over the carving.

“We respect your views and buy you all the tofu you want; you need to respect our views, too,” Dom tells Hannah.

Wow. He’s making progress. Normally he’d make a smartass comment.

“Why is anyone a single-issue voter?” Dom’s dad is getting louder. “I’ve never understood that.”

“Sam, no more football,” Cam says. “Go wash up for dinner.”

“Aw, man.”

Sergei tosses the football onto a chair in the corner and sits down on the other side of me.

“I think we should teach Sam chess,” he says. “He has a good mind for it.”

“Yeah, good idea.”

“Why, because he’s a nerd?” Tate asks.

He’s sitting next to Cam, who leans over to speak softly in his ear, after which he mutters, “Yeah, I get it.”

“Tess, what’s this part?” Dom calls into the kitchen as he carves. “Is this the turkey’s penis? Aren’t you supposed to take that off before you cook it?”

“Disgusting!” Hannah cries.

“I’m not eating turkey penis!” Tate gives Cam a horrified look.

Tess comes flying into the room, food splashed all over her apron. “Dom, what the hell is wrong with you? They take all that stuff out while they’re processing the turkey.”

He shrugs. “Well, I didn’t know. I didn’t want to feed our guests?—”

She glares at him, daring him to continue.

He clears his throat. “Anyway, thanks for all your hard work on this, babe. What else do you need before we eat?”

The rest of us echo his thanks. Cam stands up, but Tess points to her.

“No, sit back down. Literally all I have left to do is to pick up the bowl of rolls and bring them in here. Everyone, start eating while it’s still hot, please.”

Sergei and I each pick up a dish and start passing them. Everyone quiets as we start filling our plates. While I wait for a dish to be passed my way, I watch Cam. She’s helping Tate make his plate, trying to convince him there’s nothing but “bread and spices” in the stuffing.

She’s so much more than just beautiful. I want to be worthy of her. I don’t even know if I can trust myself to know if I deserve to be the man in her life, but I’ll find a way to figure it out.

I have to.

Cam gives me a skeptical look from the passenger seat of my Bronco. “Has no one mentioned to you that the day after Thanksgiving is literally the busiest shopping day of the year?”

“I’ve heard that.” I smile over at her, glancing in the rearview mirror to see the boys in the back seat. “But with our schedules, today works.”

“True. So tell me more about your friend we’re shopping for.”

“Arthur’s eighty-two. He likes chess and crosswords. He lives in a nursing home.”

“Hmm.” She considers. “Maybe a nice soft blanket. Oh—does he have an iPad?”

“He doesn’t, and that’s a great idea because he says the cable is always out at the nursing home. How about a big iPad with all the apps prepaid and a blanket?”

She grins at me. “That was easy. We can look for the blanket at Home Goods. I need to find a picture frame, too, for one of my gifts to Tess.”

I wasn’t sure if she’d say yes when I asked her and the boys to go shopping with me today, but she agreed immediately. This is a chance for me to show her I want to be in the boys’ lives, too.

“Hey, you guys like hot chocolate?” I ask.

“Are we getting hot chocolate?” Tate’s already lit up with excitement. “I want lots of marshmallows in mine.”

“They love hot chocolate,” Cam says.

“Great. We have a stop to make first and then we’ll get some hot chocolate. We’ll go to a place that has really good hot pretzels, too, if anyone wants a snack.”

“Rowan, you can sleep in my room if you want,” Sam offers. “I have a sleeping bag.”

Tess told them I’d be spending some nights at their house, though she didn’t say why because she didn’t want to scare them. Neither one of them seemed to think it was unusual. They think I’m coming to play with them.

“He’s sleeping on the couch,” Cam says. “You guys still have to do your homework, brush your teeth and get to bed on time.”

“Only on school nights!”

“I mean, you still have to brush your teeth even when it’s not a school night, but not the other things.” She glances at me. “But remember, Rowan might not want to play all the time.”

I shoot her a wicked grin. I do want to play all the time, but not in the way she means. Her cheeks flush a sexy light-pink shade. It’s going to be hell knowing we’re sleeping in the same house and I have to stay on the couch. But for right now, I know that’s best.

When I pull up in front of Cypress Lane, a furniture store, Cam gives me an excited look.

“Do we get to help you pick out new furniture?”

“Sort of.”

She lowers her brows, puzzled. “New rugs?”

I grin. “Just come in and see.”

Cypress Lane is owned by Abby Campbell, the wife of a Chicago Blaze player, Luca Campbell. It’s a rapidly growing company with a reputation for well-made furniture in modern and traditional styles. I know it’s the perfect place for what I want.

As soon as we walk in, a greeter smiles at us from behind a lectern. “Welcome to Cypress Lane. What are we looking for today?”

“We have an appointment with Sharon.”

The greeter nods. “I’ll let her know. In the meantime, there’s coffee, water, tea and snacks on the table over there.”

The boys are already there, loading up their pockets. Cam gasps and races over to them.

“Stop acting like no one feeds you. One snack for each of you, that’s it.”

Tate frowns. “Aw, Mom. They’re free.”

She just looks at him, unblinking. He unloads his pockets and Sam does the same.

“Sorry, Mom,” Sam says.

A middle-aged woman comes walking toward us with a confident smile. Her grayish blond curls are unruly and she’s wearing a leopard-print shirt.

“Mr. Kelly, welcome to Cypress Lane.”

“Thanks.” I shake her hand and walk over to the snack table. “This is Cam, Tate and Sam.”

“Very nice to meet you.” Sharon shakes Cam’s hand and smiles at the boys. “You kids help yourselves to as many snacks as you want.”

Tate side-eyes Cam. She ignores him.

“I’m excited to help you refurnish your home,” Sharon says to Cam. “I thought we could start with living room pieces?”

Cam gives me a baffled look.

“Here’s the thing,” I say. “Your couch could be better in the comfort department. And I figured if I got you a new couch, it wouldn’t match the rest of the house. So Merry Christmas—I’m buying you new furniture for your whole house.”

She gapes at me. “You think my furniture is crappy?”

That wasn’t the reaction I was going for. Shit. This was supposed to make her happy.

“No, not at all. I just wanted to do something for you and I figured you’d like this.”

Her shoulders sink slightly. “If you want to get a new couch to sleep on, that’s fine. But you should take it with you when you’re done sleeping at my house.”

Sharon’s smile fades. She regroups, looking back and forth between us. “Hey, why don’t we just go take a look at the living room pieces and see what you think?”

Cam gives me a look as she follows Sharon. I think she’s pissed. What the hell? I thought she’d jump into my arms. It goes to show how bad I am at all this, I guess.

“Everything we make is solid wood,” Sharon is telling Cam as I follow them. “Everything comes with a lifetime warranty.”

Cam shakes her head, turning so both Sharon and I can see her. “The furniture is lovely. It’s not that. I just don’t feel right about this. We’re only looking at couches.”

Sharon’s eyes widen with panic.

“Please,” she says in a pleading tone. “I really need this commission. My dog has to get his anal sacs removed and it’s two grand.”

Cam’s lips part with surprise and she looks at me. I shrug, not knowing what the hell to say.

“Seriously. He’s leaking yellow pus all over my carpet and furniture. It’s disgusting.”

Cam closes her eyes for a second and when she opens them, I see she’s fighting a smile. There’s my opening.

“Let’s do this for Sharon.” I move to stand next to the salesperson. “And for...what’s the dog’s name?”

“Caesar. Droolius Caesar. I could show you some pictures of him.”

“For Droolius,” I say.

Cam bursts out laughing. “Okay. If you’re sure, then...okay.”

I sigh with relief and Sharon lights up, clapping her hands together.

“Let’s get started, shall we?”

For the most part, Cam is decisive. She asks for my opinion on a few things and lets the boys have a say in what we get for their bedrooms. When the boys are both occupied, I give her hand a quick squeeze, testing the waters to see if we’re still okay, and she smiles.

“Thank you, Rowan. No one has ever given me such a generous gift.”

“You deserve it. I wanted to do something that would make you happy.”

“This is so much. I can’t even wrap my mind around it.”

I want to kiss her, but I can’t with the boys watching. Maybe tonight I will, after they’re in bed. Just one kiss, and then we can both go to sleep, me on the couch and her in her bed.

It’ll be a perfect prelude to blue balls. Guess I better get used to it.

For now, anyway.