Make Me Up (Killer Style 3)

“And March Madness,” he said. “And baseball playoffs. And—”

She cut him off with a soft kiss that made him hard in an instant. It used to be he wanted nothing more than to kiss her in front of all their friends, but now he’d like nothing more than to have them all disappear in a poof. Sure, they’d helped unload the moving van this morning, but still…

She pulled away. “You’re lucky you’re cute.”

“No.” He snuck in a quick kiss. “I’m lucky to have you.”

A large shadow in the shape of Carlos, Lee, and Reggie fell across them. Cam looked up and couldn’t help but laugh at the mock horror on all three of their faces.

“Good God, this is painful to watch.” Carlos shook his head.

Lee elbowed the smaller Maltese Security agent in the ribs. “You should have heard him talk about her during the stakeout the other night.” His shoulders shook in an exaggerated shiver, as though he’d just swallowed a shot glass’s worth of worm guts.

“Cam.” Reggie held out his hand, palm up. “You have lost your man card, time to turn it in.”

He flipped off Carlos, Reggie, and Lee before standing and raising his beer for a toast. “To good friends and new beginnings. When it mattered, you didn’t hesitate to help us nail Fergus and get the charges against Drea dropped. Diamond Tommy may have gotten away without charges again, but his luck can’t hold out forever.”

“I’ll toast to that.” Drea lifted her beer, as did everyone else in the room.

They’d get Diamond Tommy eventually. Cam didn’t doubt it for a second. When the crime boss had zeroed in on Drea, he’d made the biggest mistake of his life. Maltese Security was family—Cam’s family, Drea’s family—and they protected their own. He looked around at them and realized how much his life had changed from being a junkie’s kid living on the streets to finding a home, a real one, with the woman he loved.

Cam cleared the emotion from his throat and pulled Drea up so that she stood beside him. Her hand fit perfectly inside his. “Not that long ago, it was safe to say that I didn’t do plans, I didn’t play well with others, and I didn’t fall in love. Then I bumped into Drea Sandford in a hospital hallway and my entire life changed without me even realizing it. Because I’m a dude and I’m slow about that stuff.”

Everyone laughed.

“But eventually the truth sank in.” He raised his drink. “To the woman who changed everything—who changed me.”

Not giving her time to get a word in, because God knew the woman loved to have the last word, Cam pivoted and kissed Drea. Their friends’ clapping and laughter faded into the background as soon as his lips touched hers, because he was right where he planned to always be—right by her side.