Redeeming You (Before You #2)(50)

“Fine, but let go of my arm,” she replied through clenched teeth.

Dropping her arm, he started walking through the maze of hallways backstage. For a moment, she stood there unable to move. Turning, Cam stopped and raised his eyebrows. Casually, she strolled forward making sure to greet a few people along the way.

Cam opened a metal door at the end of the hall and waited for her to enter before closing and locking it behind her.

The room was a small office with a desk and a chair that took up more than half of the room. The veneer on the desk was chipped and peeling along the edges. The office looked as though it hadn’t been used for years. The seat of the chair was ripped exposing the dark yellow foam cushion inside.

Cam pointed toward the chair. “Sit down.”

“No, don’t tell me what—”

He tipped his head to the ceiling. “Just sit. Don’t argue with me right now,” Cam said, his voice weary.

Fuming, she sat down but not in the chair. She slid her body on top of the desk letting her legs dangle above the gray tiled floor. She swung them back and forth, letting her heels hit the hollow wood veneer, trying to release some nervous energy.

“What the hell happened today?”

“I needed to do some stuff for myself today. Do you have a problem with that?” she challenged.

“I see that.” His eyes roamed over her body starting at her face and ending with her new black lace up, corset styled heels. Even though she hated heels, something about these spoke to her in the mall and she bought them. His eyes returned to hers full of heat and a bunch of other things that made her squirm against the desktop. “I approve.” His lips just barely lifted at the corners.

“Good. Let’s get a drink in the green room. Only two more shows.” She started to slip off the desk.

Before her feet touched the ground, Cam stepped forward, his hands planted firmly against her hips as he moved between her legs. “In a minute. We’re not done talking.”

“Maybe later. I think you have a meet and greet after the show.” She shifted her body, trying to put more space between them so she could ignore the desire building in her body from his simple touch and his heated stare. She couldn’t do this with him tonight, not when her heart was still bleeding from the revelations this morning.

“I don’t care about that. The fans can wait. I have all night.” He pushed her hair behind her ear and she trembled.

“I don’t. I’m tired,” she lied. Tired or not, it didn’t matter when Cam touched her. His slightest touch never failed to send desire spiraling through her.

“Tay,” he pleaded taking her face between his hands, kissing her lips with so much tenderness, her breath hitched. “Tell me why you avoided me all day.”

“I didn’t—”

He held up his hand interrupting her. “The truth, Taylor. I can’t fix what happened unless you communicate.”

“This can’t be fixed,” she whispered in a ragged voice that she hardly recognized as her own. She despised all this emotional bullshit. She wanted to go back to being numb to life, to emotions, to touchy feely stuff. Life was easier that way.

“Of course it can. Don’t doubt it or us.”

“No, it’s not possible,” she reaffirmed, her voice stronger than before.

“Give me a chance.” He traced the side of her face with his guitar calloused fingertips and her body pitched toward him slightly, almost chasing his fingers.

Feeling herself being sucked into him again, she ducked her head covering her face with her hands. This thing with Cam wasn’t going to work. She needed to stop deluding herself into believing otherwise. “Why can’t you just let her go?” she yelled through her shaky hands.

“Who?” Cam pulled her hands away from her face, lacing her fingers through his.

“Bre,” she blurted out, her voice sounding bitter to her own ears. She hated even saying the name because it evoked enough jealousy and insecurity to last her a lifetime. She hated feeling this way. She thought she kicked the old Taylor to the curb the day she walked away out of her childhood home for good, but now that insecure hopeless little girl invaded her body again making her feel weak and pitiable once more. Not an enviable feeling.

“I don’t want Bre.” Cam eyebrows wrinkled in confusion.

Her head snapped up meeting his eye. “I heard you.” She slipped her hands free from his hold. “You. Said. You. Love. Her.” She punctuated every word with a pound of her open palm against his chest while willing her tears to f*ck off. This was not the time to cry like a big baby. She was better than that.

“What?” he asked disbelievingly. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I would never say that. It isn’t true.”

No. No. No. She couldn’t sit here and listen to him lie. She hated liars. Her mother lied about everything when it suited her. Her relationship with Miles was one big lie from the beginning. Cam could at least give her the respect of being honest with her. “Move,” she said shoving him away from her as hard as she could.

“No. Explain.” He pinned her hands to the top of the desk, blocking her escape with his body.

“I heard your conversation with Alec this morning. Why can’t you let her go? I don’t get it.” She flipped her hair away from her face and tipped her chin up trying to appear strong even though she felt like fading away into oblivion.