We put on our robes and tucked Muriel into bed; she was out cold. I couldn’t help but admire her beautiful body, certain it was the last time I’d ever see it.
“So, what do you think?” Cameron excitedly asked once we’d made our way to the living room and shut the doors. “You know the saying, women always want more of Cameron Moore.”
I snorted. Perhaps I shouldn’t have, but honestly, where could this go? Why would an LA influencer with ambition move back to Georgia? To be in a three-way relationship with a small-time cop and an even smaller-time journalist? Unlikely.
“Don’t laugh,” Cameron said with a frown. “She likes us, otherwise why would she have done what she just did?”
I shrugged. “Experimentation? Curiosity? For the fun of it? Wanted to get something out of her system?” My suggestions were obviously more reasonable than Cam’s dreams. And he thought so too, judging by how his face changed from annoyed to worried.
“Look, we’ve had one incredible night with her; that’s more than we ever expected, so let’s not worry about the future right now.”
“You’re right,” Cameron agreed, although his tense features suggested he wanted to argue. “It’s three now, and I need to start helping Vic get ready at eight, so I’d better get some sleep. I saw some spare sheets in the bedroom. I’ll grab them, and we can sleep on these couches.”
I fell asleep, wondering how we would all handle the wedding. If Muriel did end up regretting our night together, it would be horribly awkward, and Cameron and I would have to keep a respectful distance from her. But keeping Cameron under control was sometimes like trying to train a puppy. I’d have to take care of him and his feelings like I always did.
Not long after I finally drifted off to sleep, an enormous crash woke me up with a start. It seemed like the world was ending, and that effect was only heightened by the fact that my open eyes saw only inky darkness. All the electricity had gone off.
“What’s happening?” Muriel shouted as she stumbled out of the bedroom. “I thought I was having a nightmare.”
She carefully made her way into our room and over to Cameron, who put a reassuring arm around her shoulder.
“I guess it’s something to do with the storm.” I stood up to fetch my phone from my still-soaked jeans.
I switched the flashlight on and scanned the room, all looked the same as it did before we went to sleep.
Outside was a different matter, and through the glass panel in the door and the window beside it our problem quickly became clear. An enormous tree lay on its side right outside the front door. It wasn’t there when we arrived. It had evidently collapsed in front of the bungalow, taking down the lines outside as well as blocking our exit.
“Is there another way out?” I asked.
“Yes. There’s a patio area down the hall there.”
“You stay here, and I’ll go check it out.” They looked comfortable enough, huddled together and still half asleep, so I left them in darkness while I investigated an alternative exit. It didn’t take long.
“The patio doors have been sealed shut, and, well, that’s illegal,” I reported back.
Cameron glared at me.
“What? It’s true.” Don’t blame the messenger.
“It’s also not very helpful right now. What are we going to do?”
I tried to come up with a plan, but I was barely awake. “We should definitely try to get out if we can. We don’t know whether that tree has affected the structure of this place. The whole place could come crashing down.”
“Oh, god,” Muriel moaned, and Cameron’s arm shot around her again.
He gave me an exasperated look, which was fair. This probably wasn’t the time for my particular brand of realism.
“Don’t worry, I’m just being, you know, me,” I said, making her laugh as I tilted her chin up to look at me. “You know what I’m like.”
“I know you’re an idiot,” she grumbled.
“You’re scared, so I’ll accept that. Right, my phone isn’t working; the storm must have affected things. Cameron, do you have your radio with you?”
He nodded, and headed over to his clothes to find it.
“Officer Moore here,” he spoke into his radio, his voice still rough from sleep. “Is anybody there?”
“Officer Moore, this is Officer Price.”
“Vic. Oh God, I’m sorry for waking you so early on your wedding day—”
We all heard bitter laughter coming through the radio. “You didn’t wake me, Cameron, and this isn’t my wedding day anymore. Haven’t you noticed? All hell has broken loose.”
I loved my best friend so much; he was the only person on earth who could get trapped in a house by a storm, assume this was the only damage, and still expect a wedding to go ahead at the exact same resort a few hours later. I had to admit I was sometimes jealous of his optimism, even if it did make him look a bit silly sometimes.