Camden's Redemption (Gloves Off #4)(52)

“I will.”

After he left, an awkward silence fell through the room. I could sense the anger in Camden; it was bubbling just below the surface. I knew what I wanted him to say, but it was wishful thinking. Or maybe I was just stupid.

“Are you mad at me?” I asked, following behind him to the kitchen.

He grabbed my plate and roughly put in the sink, the sound making my ears ring. “Nope. I didn’t realize you were going back home so soon. I just figured . . . well, I guess it doesn’t matter.” Turning around, he glared at me, his eyes stripping me to my soul. “So what was the point of coming out here if you’re just going to leave again? Is it payback for what I did?”

“Are you kidding me? I came out here to see you, to make sure you were okay. If I didn’t, you sure as hell wouldn’t. What else do you want from me? I already know you don’t want to have anything to do with me until your case is closed. I just don’t know if I can wait that long.”

Clenching his jaw, he gripped the edge of the counter and stayed silent. I wanted him to say something, anything . . . but he didn’t.

Slamming my hands on the counter, I grabbed my keys and bag off the floor and backed away. “You know what? This obviously isn’t going to work. We live two different lives and look,” I said, waving my hands around his house. “You live in a f*cking mansion on the beach. I’m a country girl who loves to shoot guns and get dirty. I’m not your type. I think we both know once you get your life back on track, there’s not going to be any place for me. I love you, Camden, but it looks like we don’t want the same things.”

He turned his head and I took another step back, feeling tears burn. All I wanted was to hear him tell me to stay, that I was what he wanted. I didn’t want a vow of lifelong commitment, but at least a chance that it could actually happen. When it didn’t come, I had no choice but leave, or make a total fool of myself.

“I’ll see myself out.”

By the time I got out the door and shut it, I broke down in tears. He wasn’t coming after me. Deep in my heart, I thought maybe this could work. That maybe he loved me enough to ask me not to go. Taking a deep breath, I opened my car door and threw my bag in. Before I got in, Camden grabbed me around the waist and slammed the door shut, pinning me against the car.

“Stay.”

“What?” I gasped.

His eyes were burning with emotion. “I don’t know why you have to be so goddamned stubborn when all I want to do is protect you. I want you to stay, Brooklyn. I want you so bad it f*cking hurts. Why can’t you see that?” He brushed his thumbs under my eyes, wiping away the tears.

I shrugged. “I don’t know. I saw you with those girls earlier and I got angry. Once you start fighting again, so many people will expect you to be the way you were. I don’t want to see you go back to that. That’s not the Camden I fell for.”

“And it’s not who I’m going to be,” he thundered. “Our lives were different before. I don’t want those fake bitches, they don’t make me happy.” Grasping my face, he held me firm. “I want you. You make me happy. And I never plan on letting you go, no matter how dramatic you get.” He chuckled. “Stay with me, Brooklyn. For as long as you want to be with me, I want you to stay.”

“What about my life and my home? Do you expect me to just up and leave everything? What if I wanted you to come back with me?”

He smiled before bending down to kiss me. I melted and opened myself up to him. “Then I would follow you, buttercup. I came back here because I thought it would keep you safe, not because I missed my old life.”

“But you love the ocean, the waves. I’ve seen you surf and I know it’s your passion.”

“It is, but I’d give it all up for you. There is no you and I, it’s only we from here on out. It’s your choice, Brooklyn. Are we going to stay, or are we going to go?”





The night passed quickly with Camden showing me the perks of living on the beach. I even had my first surfing lesson, where I learned an injured walrus could probably surf better than me, but Camden was optimistic. God bless his heart.

By the end of the night, the decision was made; I would stay in Malibu. Was I going to miss my home? Yes. But I could never ask him to leave everything behind for me. What did I have in Charlotte? Nothing, besides my brother and a couple of friends. My sister was gone and my parents were too hung up in their grief to notice me. I wouldn’t be missing a damn thing back home other than my land and traipsing through the woods.

My flight was scheduled to leave in four hours and I was going alone, but after I resigned from the department and handled my business, I was heading straight back to California. As soon as I took a shower and got dressed, I was leaving him . . . again. The sinking feeling in my gut scared me.

Taking a deep breath, I blew it out as the steamy, hot water rained down on my face. I jumped when Camden’s hands came down on my shoulders. I wasn’t expecting him to join me.

“Hey, it’s just me,” he laughed. Shutting the shower door, he turned me around to face him. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” I breathed. “I’m fine. Just a weird feeling is all.”

Smirking, he grabbed the bar of soap and slid it across my breasts, massaging them. “It’s because you don’t want to leave me. You can admit it.”