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“Come back to the reception,” I suggested. “I’m not leaving you alone after what just happened, and honestly, I’m not letting you out of my sight again.”
Chapter 20
HARPER
Cam had been right about driving. I got back into my dress as he waited downstairs trying to clean up his suit after scrambling up a dusty hill in it, and my hands shook as I tried to zip the back. My hair had fallen down in places, and I didn’t have the patience or steady fingers to fix it, so I let it all down instead, brushing it out and quickly curling a few ends. It didn’t take long, despite my shaking hands and the pounding of my heart. I tried to focus only on getting ready to go, keeping my mind from considering how close I’d been to real danger just moments ago, or the words Cam had just said, the idea that maybe something had shifted between us.
I let him guide me to the truck once the dogs were safely back inside his house, and I sat still with some relief, my blood still hot in my veins, my head spinning.
“I was terrified,” I realized, speaking in a whisper as Cam started the car. “I thought I really might die today.” A tear escaped the corner of my eye and I wiped it away, determined to keep my mascara in place.
Cam turned to me and put a warm hand to the side of my face, his summer blue eyes wide and warm. “I’d never let anything happen to you,” he said, and warmth washed through me.
We headed back to the reception, and I felt my mind clearing a bit, shock and terror subsiding enough for me to begin worrying over the wisdom of agreeing to come back, even for a few minutes. I’d already said my goodbyes, already committed to leaving. I snuck looks at Cam’s handsome face as he drove, trying to understand what had wrought a sudden change in him, if it was possible he’d really changed his mind. But his eyes stayed focused on the road ahead, and he didn’t offer any more hints about the “things” he wanted to tell me.
For now, I decided, I’d just be happy to be back among friends, around people. After the encounter on the hillside, I didn’t want to be alone, didn’t want to spend hours in my car heading to a place where I’d have to start over. Again.
We arrived at the Outpost and Cam took my hand as he helped me from the car, keeping it trapped in his as he led me up the front steps, through the door and out to the broad deck where the party was in full swing.
As soon as we stepped into view, Chance swept in from beside the buffet and leaned in close to Cam. “We convinced Maddie to put off the speeches until after dinner, just before the cake,” he said. “But I’m glad to see you, I wasn’t sure what the plan was going to be after that.”
Cam said, “Thanks, man,” and clapped Chance’s back. We crossed the deck together, winding through tables as people sat with plates piled high with food, and found Tuck. “Everything okay?” Cam asked him.
Tuck looked from Cam to me, and his handsome face broke into a broad easy smile. “Good to see you back,” he told me, and then his eyes fell to where Cam still held my hand. “Very good,” he said. “I’ve got everything handled. You guys go do wedding things. Have fun. I want to see a dance or two.”
I felt a bit like I was in a movie myself, holding on to Cam like a maiden in distress as the shock of the mountain lion fight wore off and everything inside me reached for him, for the hope that he really did intend to try to stop me from leaving.
We headed to the buffet, and Cam filled a plate for me, checking in about what I wanted, what I liked, and then he settled me at a table with my father and Miranda’s parents. “I have to sit at the head table for a few minutes,” he said, then fixed me in his blue-eyed gaze. “Don’t you dare leave. We are not finished.”
I found myself nodding, happy to be taken care of for once, and half in awe that it was Cam doing it.
Before he went to the head table, Cam leaned in close to Ranger George’s side, and I watched as Miranda’s father’s face took on a firm set. Cam was clearly telling him about the mountain lion encounter.
“We’ll have to send a team up with tranq guns,” the older man said, looking to me as he spoke. “This has gone on long enough. Thank God nothing happened,” he said. “Harper, I’m glad you’re all right.”
I nodded and felt my dad’s eyes on me. As Cam went to the front, I told the story of the mountain lion encounter to the table, feeling more like myself as I spoke. As I was finishing up, the microphone crackled to life, and Cam’s voice rang out over the deck, quieting the buzz of conversation.
“Hi there,” he began. “Hi everyone.” Cam stood next to where his sister and Connor sat, and Maddie beamed up at him, her eyes shining as Connor’s arm rested around her shoulders. Cam held the microphone with both hands, looking slightly nervous as he shifted his weight back and forth. “I’m Maddie’s brother, Cameron Turner. I know most of you, but for those I haven’t met before, you can just assume that I’m every bit as wonderful and charming as my sister here.”
The crowd laughed appreciatively, and Cam’s shoulders relaxed a bit as he smiled down at his sister and then looked back out at the crowd.
He chuckled and then went on. “If only that were true,” he said. “But it isn’t really. My sister got the lion’s share of charm and grace in our family, as I’m sure those who know her well realize.”
Cameron dropped one hand into a pocket, seeming to settle into his role a bit as he looked out at the crowd and continued. “For as long as I’ve known her—which was my whole life, really—my sister has been a role model for me. That might sound odd because I’m the older sibling, but from the moment I first saw Maddie when I was about three years old and my parents brought her home and told me it was my job to look out for her, she’s shown me over and over again the kind of person I want to be. She’s strong and determined, she doesn’t let anything knock her down for long. But beyond that, I think what I’ve always admired most is her willingness to believe in those around her, her commitment to seeing the best in people, even when they’re showing her their worst.”
Cam looked down at Maddie and Connor, smiling. “When my sister met Connor, she and I were barely speaking, so I didn’t get to know him right away as I would have liked. I wasn’t really doing the job I’d promised my parents I would—I wasn’t looking out for her. But I know the story, and I know that she gave Connor that same benefit she offered everyone—she doesn’t believe the rumors or the whispers about someone, no matter what people might be saying. She looks for the truth of a person, she looks for what matters. Maddie doesn’t allow people to be anything less than what they truly are around her, and I know that was part of the reason Connor fell in love with her—I know it’s a big part of why I love my sister so much. She makes us all better.”
“I don’t know Connor as well, but I see a similar authenticity in him, a matching desire for what’s real, and I think that’s why they’re a great fit. They live their lives fearlessly, side by side, taking on challenges together and moving through them, stronger. Watching them together is like having love explained to you in understandable terms, having the nuts and bolts of it made clear.”
Cam’s eyes moved to where I sat, and I sucked in a breath as he stared at me.
“Connor and Maddie are an amazing couple, and from them I’ve learned that it’s useless to let fear get in the way of love when you find it. They’ve demonstrated that finding the truth—the true nature of the person you love and your own—and letting that truth be exposed, is the only way to find the kind of connection we all want. You have to love fearlessly, you have to allow yourself to be vulnerable and exposed because the real beauty of true love is that when you’ve put yourself out there to be hurt like that, the person who truly loves you will step up to protect you.”
Cam turned and faced Maddie and Connor, but his words stayed in my mind and I wondered if they’d been meant for me, directed at me. I thought I knew the answer, but I was afraid to hope.
“To Maddie and Connor,” he said, raising a flute of champagne. “May you continue to love fearlessly and show others how to do the same.”
“Hear hear,” someone in the crowd shouted.
