In Too Deep(37)

“I’d be worried if you didn’t. Take all the time you need, I'm not trying to force anything on you."

"Thank you. But I think tonight, I'm going to need to sleep alone. Good night, Cam."

Melina stood up and left the office, leaving me there. I listened and a few seconds later the door to the guest bedroom closed, followed by a soft click as she locked the door.





Chapter 23





Melina




After I got in bed, I couldn't sleep. Part of it was the mind bomb that Cam had dropped on me. Shadowy agents, a computer with super powers that held the world hostage, and a double life? What the hell had I gotten myself into?

Well, you were the one complaining that things were boring, the little voice inside my head spoke up, always willing to state its opinion. Don't tell me that you weren't bored. Or are those new curtains in the living room just because you wanted to spend money on the house?

"Oh, shut the f*ck up," I told myself quietly. I have this thing where I tend to think out loud. Someone who didn’t know any better might think I was crazy. “There's exciting, and then there's this. I was thinking a bit better shopping, maybe a decent movie theater or something, not whatever you call this!"

I'll admit, it's not what we were planning when we went on vacation, but you know as well as I do that your life needed to change. And admit it, you love him.

There was no arguing with that. Even as pissed off as I was at times that day, I never had any doubt about how I felt about Cam. "Sometimes, though, love isn't enough."

And sometimes, love can conquer the world.

I didn't have an answer to that. I didn't think I was ready to fall asleep, but at least the voice inside my head fell silent.

I was surprised the next morning when I woke up, not realizing that I'd fallen asleep at all. I checked, and the door to the bedroom was still locked, and I was still alone in the bed. I felt like crap, to be honest. I hadn't realized how quickly I could become used to having Cam's presence next to me when I went to sleep or woke up, and the fact that I couldn't smell his essence or hear his soft breathing if he was still asleep disturbed me more than the icky morning breath. I rolled out of bed, my feet recoiling as they touched the tile floor.

I found Cam in the living room, and he looked like hell too. He hadn't shaved that morning, his stubble standing out against his cheeks. His eyes were hollow, and he looked exhausted. "Did you sleep at all last night?"

"Not really,” he said quietly, shaking his head. "I was trying to find out who did this to us. And thinking, worrying."

"Worrying about what?" I asked. "About Albertine?"

Cam laughed derisively and shook his head. “About you. I was worrying about you."

"Why?" I asked. "Did you think I'd not be here in the morning?"

Cam snorted, then sighed, nodding. “Maybe? I dropped some pretty scary shit on you. Every time I started to drift off, I'd hear you tossing and turning or groaning in your sleep, and I'd jerk awake again. How’s your neck?”

It was my turn to shake my head, and I made my way over to the couch and sat down slowly. My back wasn't too bad, but I didn't want to turn my head in any way. Even nodding hurt like hell. "Not so much until this morning," I said, wincing again. "But I didn't sleep well. Too many questions and voices inside my head."

"This isn't a minor thing like finding out I had a drunk driving conviction in my past, so I can understand it being overwhelming. I really am sorry about all of this. I never expected to find someone like you in the world, someone who made me think that my duty to humanity isn't as important as one person. Since meeting you, Albertine has become, well, just not as important to me."

It's not every day that a woman is told she's more important than the fate of the entire world. It floors you, to say the least. I was stunned. "So I guess you kind of like me, huh?"

Cam growled, then caught the humor in my tone of voice and smiled back. "I love you."

"Then I guess you won't mind if I pepper you with questions all the time? I feel like I've walked into hour two of a three-hour movie, and there's a lot going on I don't understand."

Cam thought about it, then nodded. "Sure, I can deal with that. But to be honest, I don't even know all of the pieces in this game. I find out when I can, but there are gaps in even what I know."

"That's all right. We can start with two very easy questions."

"Shoot."

I sat back, resting my head on the back of the couch, and stretched out my legs. It was an immediate improvement in my neck pain. "First question is, just how smart are you? Are we talking super-genius?"

Cam laughed. “I’m not sure what qualifies you to be a super-genius, but I do have an Eidetic memory," I said. "Once I read or hear something, I don't forget it. What's your other question?"

I grinned and laid my head back all the way, relaxing. "What're you making for breakfast? Now that I know you're a super-genius who can do anything, I'm going to domesticate you fully."





* * *



I felt strange going into work. School started up for Cam in a week, and while I was feeling a bit better, my neck still ached. It was jarring, the normality of going into a part time job knowing what I knew.