Hiding Out At The Circle C

she'd always been around people much older than herself, maybe because while her brain was overly developed, she'd ignored her social skills… She didn't know.

But she'd read plenty, and her deepest, most secret fantasy was to have a romance. A real, true romance, just like in the books she loved. Last night, with nothing to read, she'd actually started a journal. She'd kept a record of her life before, plenty of times. But those had always been careful notes of her studies or projects, never anything personal. This time, and for the first time, she'd outlined her feelings in detail, purposely steering away from anything technical. Just feelings. And she'd been shocked by what she'd discovered.

She was infatuated with her new boss.

Confused and a little frightened by the depth of her unexpected feelings, she put a little too much 'oomph' into dusting the top of the mantel, and two picture frames slid down. Reaching for the first one, she slid her rag over the dusty top of it, then went still.

The snapshot showed Cameron, maybe several years ago, dressed in a suit and tie. But the surprising elegance of his dress wasn't what shocked her, or even how good he looked-it was the possessive way his arm was wrapped around a tall, beautiful and very pregnant woman.

'That was my wife,' he said quietly, from behind her.

Chapter 5

At Cam's softly spoken words, Haley's rag fell to the floor. Dismay came first, then embarrassment, as she stooped down, but Cam gently took her wrist and pulled her up.

With a small smile that didn't quite mask the sorrow in his eyes, he touched the frame. Running a finger over the dusty edge, he remained silent.

Haley watched as with exaggerated care, he returned the picture to the mantel.

'This was taken a little over five years ago,' he finally said. 'We met in high school-'

'Don't,' Haley said quickly, lifting a hand to stop him. 'You don't have to.'

'I know. I want to.' He stared at the photo. 'I've not spoken about it except to my family in all his time…' His gaze met hers then. 'But I want you to know.'

She knew what he was doing. He was going to open up, share himself, in the hope she'd do the same. But she'd done nothing to deserve him or his friendship-nothing but lie. She couldn't possibly feel worse. 'Cam.'

Taking the rag from her hands, he ran it over the glass in the frame. 'Lorraine was gorgeous, smart. Funny. Everything I could have asked for, except one thing.' His eyes pierced hers. 'She couldn't he honest to save her life.'

Haley's mouth opened. Then closed.

'She lied indiscriminately, about anything. Everything. Where she'd been, what she'd done. Strangely enough, not about other men, but about everything else… I know now she couldn't help it. She was sick. But it drove me crazy.' He stared at the picture. 'By the time I finished college, we'd been on and off so many times I'd lost count, but I wanted her. No matter how many times she hurt me, I wanted her.' He sighed, then slipped his hands into his pockets, and she knew his hands were fisted. 'She kept lying, and I kept wanting. We had no business getting married, but I… Well, I was stubborn.'

He let out a little laugh. 'The way I went through women during our off times before our wedding drove Lorraine mad. She came after me one night, I think to skin my hide, but we ended up taking it out in passion instead.'

God, she didn't want to hear this, but she couldn't tear herself away. And the pain and regret on Cam's face squeezed her heart.

'She got pregnant.' His melancholy smile disappeared and Haley's stomach tightened.

'I worked as a stockbroker then-fourteen, maybe fifteen hours a day.' He broke off at her look of surprise and nodded grimly. 'Yeah, believe it or not.'

Something ached inside Haley at the look of pure torture on his face. She dreaded whatever was coming next. 'Cam-'

'I worked hard and long,' he said harshly, ignoring her. 'No matter what, regardless of what Lorraine wanted. I don't know why, really. I hated the work, but I was driven. And I hated the lies. Always, more lies. But I wanted that baby.' He shook his head. 'I was working the night she went into labor, and because she'd been paging me nightly for no particular reason except she was lonely, I didn't call back right away. Didn't want to stop working.'

He closed his eyes and Haley reached for him, unable to stop herself from offering comfort she knew wouldn't help. She touched his shoulder and he opened his eyes to look at her, his deep, dark brown eyes shiny and full with emotion.

'She died ten minutes after my son did. I wasn't there.'

'Oh, Cam,' she said softly, 'I'm so sorry.' The words were hopelessly inadequate. Awkwardly, because she had never become accustomed to giving any part of herself, she stepped closer. He might resent her sympathy, or reject any offer of comfort, but she found she had to try because watching him suffer hurt. So, for the first time in her life, she reached out to another human being by choice and gave what she had.

He went unhesitatingly into her arms, making her understand how actions could soothe more than words. This was what life was really about, she thought, awed. The intermingling of lives, love… death. Her own life had been so sorely lacking in these experiences, so sheltered, she could only hold him, and hope it was enough.

Silently they stood there, locked together, grieving; him for what had been; her, for what never had been.

Max came upon them that way, and his joy at finding two of the people he cared most about in the entire world proved too much. Yipping and jumping at their feet, he peed everywhere.

Haley leaped back, hopelessly flustered and a little embarrassed. The puppy just sat in the puddle, wagging his tail and panting happily.

Cam gave a hoarse little laugh as he studied the wet dog, who didn't look in the least bit humiliated by his faux pas. 'The least you could do is pretend to be humbled.' And when, amazingly, the puppy did, bowing his little head, Cam bent to rub his neck, murmuring sympathetically, 'I've told you, buddy, you can't show your eagerness so quickly. Make them come to you.' Cam obligingly hunkered down when Max rolled over to offer his belly for scratching. Then Cam rose, shaking his head at the puddle. 'All right, Max. We've put this off long enough because I understood how you felt about such things, but we can't delay this another minute. Bath time.'

Max stood, too, looking unusually alert and wary.

'I'll clean this up,' Haley said quickly, needing to escape the unfamiliar closeness. She moved to get a mop.

'Don't, I'll get it.' Cam lifted his head from the dog long enough to give her a smile, though sadness lingered in his eyes. His voice sounded husky, intimate. 'I don't expect you to clean up this kind of stuff.'

At a loss for words, Haley picked up the forgotten rag, then stuffed it awkwardly into her bucket of supplies. Cam was still looking at her in a way that made thinking difficult. She moved toward the door, then stopped. He'd given her something new. Closeness. She felt she had to give something back. 'Cam?'

'Yes?' Their eyes met, clung.

She felt something pass between them, some sort of silent awareness. 'I'm… in trouble.' She braced for the barrage of questions she knew was coming.

But he said nothing; just waited, his expression so open and unexpectedly patient, her eyes suddenly stung. 'I am-was-in charge of a team of geologists. And I'm on the run.'

'From the co-worker you told me about?'

'Yes.'

'Are you safe here?

'Yes.'

'Are you sure?'