Page 87 of Made to Be

While I might have been planning to kidnap a man mere moments ago, I wasn’t a complete asshole.And this guy clearly was on good terms with Cam. So, behaved boyfriend mode was activated.

I discretely put the spell pouch back into my coat pocket before Cam could notice. Wasn’t too late to pull out the Morning After Bomb in my back pocket though and make a run for it, though. Always good to have a backup plan in case things went awry.

“Glad to see you’re doing well, Cam,” Avery said. “What brings you back to town?”

Cam wrapped his arm around my shoulders, tugging me into his side. “Victor.”

My heart skipped. Shit, was he too adorable.

“What about you?” Cam asked. “Didn’t you move to New York?”

“Mhm, just for the holidays. Going back tomorrow, so I’m glad I got to see you before I left.”

Are you, Avery?I thought sardonically.Are you glad you got to see him? Why is that, might I ask?

“So, uh,” I began awkwardly, hoping my face didn’t betray me, “how do you two... know each other?”

Avery gave me a small smile. “Dolly and Delia are my moms, so Cam and I grew up together. Could say we’re childhood friends.”

“Camden!” a woman’s voice called out.

Our heads turned to see Dolly’s petite form scurrying over.

“I see you’ve already reunited with Avery, here,” she said as her son gave her a kiss on herwrinkled cheek. “He’s been asking all about you. Worried sick, he was.”

Avery blushed then rolled his eyes, “Mum.”

“What?” she demanded as she turned to hug Cam then me. “Victor, dear, lovely to see you again.”

I smiled fondly at the older woman as I pointedly ignored Avery’s blushing face. I didn’t want to think on whatthatmeant.

“Now that you’re here, let’s have a seat,” she told us. “What’s this about an accident?”

Cam took the seat next to me and immediately reached for my hand beneath the table. His fingers tightened around mine at the question. We hadn’t discussed what we would say when faced with this line of questioning which, thinking on it, we should have figured out before coming here.

Me, unprepared?Shocking.

“It was nothing serious,” Cam said after a moment of silence. I fought the urge to hug him at his cavalier words. “It’s actually how I met Victor.”

He quickly turned the conversation, sparking Dolly’s immediate interest. Her smile came back with full force, eyes crinkling deeply.

“He saved me.” Cam’s voice was velvet. When I turned to look at him, I caught him watching me.

I didn’t fail to also notice the way Avery’s eyes narrowed slightly. The look told me he seemed to know more than he was letting on but was staying silent. As for how much he knew, now that was the question.

“I’m really happy for you, Cam,” Avery said earnestly, confusing me slightly, just before his phone began ringing. He looked at the screen, and his face made a complicated expression. “I’m sorry, I need to take this. I’ll see you around Cam. Victor, take care of this old lug, will ya?”

He leaned down and kissed the top of Dolly’s gray head before she chimed,

“See you later for dinner, hon!”

He gave her a small wave before leaving the diner. I barely heard him as he answered his phone and snapped,

“I thought I told you not to call-”

“Dolly?” someone called from the back of the diner, voice urgent and drawing my attention. A blonde head popped out through the swinging kitchen door. “We need your help back here.”

Dolly sighed, “The fun never ends, does it boys?”