“Okay, so that wraps up my presentation,” Josh said when he’d finished, a broad grin on his face.
“You need to ask if anybody has a question,” Michael prompted him.
“Oh yeah.” Josh slapped his face with the palm of his hand. “I keep forgetting. Ladies and Gentlemen, do you have any questions?”
Cam put his hand up.
“Yes?” Josh grinned at him.
“What’s your favorite part of the human body?” Cam asked him.
Mia bit down a smile. That was actually a good question.
Josh pressed his finger to his lips, eyes narrowing as though he was deep in thought. Then his face lit up. “The anus,” he told them. “That’s where all the waste goes out. If we didn’t let the waste out, we’d slowly be poisoned. So that’s probably the most important part of our body, and therefore my favorite.”
Cam was shaking next to her, his mouth twitching in an attempt not to laugh. Mia elbowed him in the waist, wincing as her bone connected with his hard muscle.
“Ow.”
Michael turned to look at them. “What’s happening?”
“Your mom elbowed me,” Cam told him. “It hurt.”
“It hurt me more. Your body must be made of titanium or something,” Mia muttered, rubbing her arm.
“Actually, Mom, bodies are made of cells,” Josh pronounced. “Tiny little production factories that make us up. Isn’t that cool?”
Cam leaned in closer to her. “You hurt my cells,” he whispered. “My tiny little production factories might go on strike.”
She shot him a look that made him grin widely. He was enjoying this.
Yeah, and maybe so was she. Just a little. It was nice having another adult here. Maybe too nice.
The doorbell rang, and Michael jumped to his feet. “It’s pizza time,” he said, rubbing his palms together.
“I’ll get some money,” Mia said, pushing herself away from Cam. She was thankful for the space. Her body needed it.
“Cam already paid with his card,” Josh told her. “He ordered on the app. It’s cool.”
She looked at Cam who shrugged. “I’ll add it to your bill,” he told her, standing and rubbing the back of his neck. “Come on, let’s go eat pizza.”
He liked watching Mia when she didn’t know his eyes were on her. Cam sat at the kitchen table, his long thighs crossed as he sipped on a mug of coffee. He’d tried to help clean up, but Mia had shooed him away, telling him if he was buying dinner, then he didn’t get to tidy up, too.
Instead, she’d made him coffee and he’d sat down and watched as Michael rinsed the plates and Josh loaded the dishwasher.
Sam still had an old fashioned drip filter machine, the kind Cam could remember growing up with. It was surprising how good it tasted, even though his buds were more used to flat whites and Americanos than simple old fashioned drip.
“We’re done,” Josh said, closing the dishwasher with a loud bang. Cam smiled into his mug. He really liked Mia’s kids, despite their first awkward meeting. Josh was cute and funny and always made everybody smile.
Michael was more complicated. Part of that came from his age. And some probably came from being the eldest man in the family – if you didn’t count Sam. Cam could remember how his mom’s death had made all the brothers grow up. It had made them more protective of Becca, too, much to her disgust.
Michael probably felt the same way about Josh.
“Can I go upstairs and finish my homework?” Michael asked.
“Sure, go ahead.” Mia nodded.
“Can I go up, too?” Josh asked, always wanting to be like his big brother. “I can think about my presentation while I play on my tablet.”
“Okay, but say thanks to Cam for dinner first.”
“Thanks.” Josh threw his arms around Cam’s neck. He froze for a moment, then wrapped his arms around the little boy’s body. “I love pizza so much. You made my life a better place today.”
Cam looked over Josh’s shoulder at Mia. She was watching them, her face expressionless.
“You’re welcome, buddy. Break a leg tomorrow.”
“He means good luck,” Michael interjected before Josh could say anything. “Seriously, don’t break anything.”
Cam laughed. “Yep, no trips to the ER. Your mom would kill me.”
“Thanks for your help. It looks so cool on that stand. I think I’m going to get an A.”
Josh hugged him again, then ran out of the room.
Michael gave him a nod. “Thanks. The food was great.”
“It’s a pleasure.”
Mia was leaning on the counter, her mug in her hands as she sipped at her hot coffee. As Michael left, she stayed exactly where she was, her gaze fixed on Cam. The room was loaded with silence, punctuated by her soft breaths. Her chest was rising and falling rhythmically, the sharp lines of her collarbone visible through the open neck of her cream blouse.
“You should always wear skirts,” Cam told her. “Your legs look amazing.”
She put her cup down on the counter. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here.” She didn’t sound angry. More perplexed than anything.
“I wanted to help. You’re busy, Michael was bitching about having to finish this project, and I know that Josh likes me. It felt like the perfect solution to come and work with him. I wasn’t kidding, I know a lot about anatomy. I studied it at college. My plan was to help, then leave when you got home, but then you didn’t come home and the boys were hungry, so I ordered food.” Cam shrugged. “That’s it. No hidden agenda. I’m not trying to rile you.”
“I know.” She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. “I’m glad you were here. Josh looks so happy.”
“He’s a good kid.”
“Michael seems to like you a bit better, too.” Her lips curled. “You’re obviously growing on him.”
Cam sipped his coffee. “How about his mom? Am I growing on her?”
Her gaze flickered to the door. The boys were
