10 Years Later

I fidgeted, wondering for a moment how to go about this.

“Why aren’t you sitting?” Her face crinkled with confusion, and she looked so damn adorable I had to fight back the urge to lean in and kiss her.

Everything in me was fighting against itself as I looked at the waiting empty chair. Just sit the fuck down, I tried to order my body, but my legs refused.

“Dalton? Are you okay?”

Running a hand through my hair, I looked behind me one last time before I met Cammie’s concerned eyes. “It’s just, well, I can’t have my back facing an entrance. It’s sort of a—”

Her eyes wide, she interrupted me before jumping up from her seat. “It’s a cop thing. I remember. Here, you take this one.” She hopped into the other chair, leaving her back exposed and vulnerable without a care in the world.

“I’m sorry.” I apologized, embarrassed because I knew it seemed irrational to most people, but I’d been trained at the police academy to always sit facing a room’s entrance. It was drilled into me to be aware of a threat the moment it appeared, and not be taken surprise by it. If there were multiple entrances to a room, I made note of where they were and did my best to sit in the least vulnerable position, my gaze always moving.

My training didn’t simply disappear once I was off the clock. It was something that had become a part of me and a part of my life. Dalton and Dalton-the-undercover-cop meshed more than I liked sometimes, and I couldn’t help it.

“Don’t be sorr

y. My dad used to do the same thing.” Her voice softened as she mentioned her father, and I wondered how affected she still was by what had happened to him.

“Did he?” I asked, wanting to open this door. I needed this segue, and she offered it up to me again.

She averted her eyes, looking past me at the wall. “Everywhere we went. I can’t believe I sat there. I would have never done that if he—” She stopped, her eyes returning to meet mine, and I wanted to hold her, kiss her, and tell her everything would be okay.

“It’s been a long time, Cammie. It’s okay to sit there now,” I said. “I mean, obviously not right now now, ’cause I’m here.” I stammered, my words not coming out as cool and collected as I wanted them to, and she giggled into her hand as she covered her mouth. “Ah, shit. You know what I mean.”

She looked over at me, her eyes glistening a little. “I know it’s been almost twelve years, but sometimes it feels like it just happened. You know?”

I shook my head. “I don’t. I’ve never gone through something like that. But I can imagine you’d never truly get over it.”

“You don’t. It’s always there and the second you forget, something pops up to remind you. Stupid things like a scene in a TV show, or a song on the radio, or those damn bridal shows that are on all the time.” Her voice got quiet as she drifted off into her own thoughts.

I reached across the small table and grabbed her hand, squeezing it. “Hey, stay with me,” I said, needing her attention so I could get everything off my chest.

“I can’t believe you’re here right now,” she said softly. “I can’t believe we’re here right now.”

“I came here for you,” I admitted, putting it all out on the line. Ten long years had passed, and I refused to waste another moment of it.

She pulled her hand from mine as she inhaled a shaky breath. “For me?”

“Yes, Cammie. For you,” I repeated. Let there be no confusion, Miss Carmichael, I will not be letting you get away this time.

“Dalton! Dude! Where the hell have you been? No Facebook, no nothing! We’ve missed you.” Rob Jenkins sauntered up to our table, slurring his words and knocking the cocktail napkins off of the table.

“Hey, Rob. I’ve been in New York. And Facebook’s stupid.” I winked at Cammie before smirking.

“No, man,” he started to say before steadying himself by gripping the back of Cammie’s chair. “Facebook’s awesome! Everyone from high school’s on there, and all the girls are so hot.” He turned and breathed in Cammie’s face, his lips way too close for my liking.

“Too bad the guys aren’t,” Cammie shot back, and I laughed.

“Ah, Cammie baby, that was just mean,” Rob whined, then lurched even closer to her, if that was possible.

I pushed out of my chair and stepped next to him. “All right, Rob, back off. Cammie and I are trying to talk, so why don’t you head back into the ballroom and find your friends.” I smiled to soften my words and gave him a friendly shove in the chest away from our table.

He frowned and lifted his hands in defeat. “All right, all right. I’m going,” he said before stumbling away.

“Drunk guys are super fun.” Cammie winced as I moved to sit back down.

“About as fun as drunk girls.” I turned my head in the direction of the bar, which was slowly filling up with our classmates, who continually eyed our table.