16
Ididn't remember the drive to Cam's house. Only that my stomach ached and my eyes were on fire.
I groaned when I saw Cam's car in the driveway. She'd been at Brody's more than she'd been at home the last couple of weeks, but today of all days, she was there.
The temptation to back out of the driveway and just go back to my apartment in the city was strong, but I couldn't do that to Cam. She was my best friend. The sister I always wanted but never had.
If anyone would understand what I was feeling, it would be her.
So, I gathered myself and went inside. Cam was sitting on the couch, watching a cooking show, when I came in. She glanced up, grinning, when she heard the door shut.
As soon as she saw my face, her smile vanished and she got to her feet. "Sierra, what's wrong?" she asked.
I inhaled, my breath shaky. "Ben and I had a fight."
Cam stared at me. "About the fact that he wants to be more than friends or the fact that you can't admit it?"
I gaped at her. "What? No. We're just..." I trailed off when she crossed her arms over her chest.
"Do you really think I'm that stupid?" she asked.
"Uh, no?"
Cam rolled her eyes and huffed out a laugh. "Wow, thanks so much for your belief in me. It was obvious that you and Ben had the hots for each other every time we showed up for Sunday lunch at my parents. You couldn't take your eyes off each other. Mom said it was only a matter of time before you two stopped being idiots and admitted you wanted more."
Oh. My. God. All that ridiculous sneaking around had been for nothing. Everyone already knew.
"So Ben made a move, huh?" she asked.
I dropped my bag by the door and burst into tears.
"Shit. Okay. Shit," Cam muttered to herself as she came around the couch toward me. "It's okay. It'll work out, I promise."
Cam put her arms around me and hugged me. I hugged her back. I needed it.
"He t-t-told me he loved me," I sobbed.
Cam's hand paused on my back, where she'd been patting me. "He said what?"
"He said that we'd skipped dating and moved straight into acting like a married couple," I admitted. "And that he said if I would stop bullshitting myself for a minute, I could admit that I was falling in love with him, too."
"Wow, he pulled out the big guns, didn't he?" Cam said.
"I told him before we started this that I didn't want anything serious. That I wasn't interested in a relationship."
"Why don't you want to get involved?" Cam asked. "Why do you avoid anything resembling a commitment?"
"I can't fall in love. I'm incapable."
Cam's responding look was ripe with sympathy and disbelief. "Very few people are incapable of love and, I'm sorry, but I know you're not one of them."
I crossed my arms over my chest. "Why not?"
Cam ticked a list off on her fingers. "You love me, my parents, and my brother."
"That's different," I began.
Cam turned her hand so it was palm out. "Let me finish."
