Cameron took half a step toward the clothes.He closed his eyes for a moment.His stomach knotted around his doubts.
Forcing his eyes open, Cameron squared his shoulders and took several brisk paces forward in quick succession.A stripper shouldn’t have any trouble getting into or out of any outfit in seconds.That knowledge did him very little good right then.All his carefully honed skills deserted him.He mentally cursed his fingers for refusing to work quickly enough.
He glanced at the door leading into the en-suite once more, sure that it would swing open any moment, that Franklin would stride back into the room and catch him scrambling into the clothes with shaking hands.
By the time he was finally dressed and ready to stare into the mirror on the dressing table, Cameron was out of breath and more uncertain than ever.He had to force himself to stand up straight, tilt his chin back and meet his own gaze without flinching.
Taking a deep breath, he lowered his eyes and ran his attention over the suit.He…didn’t look like a whore in it.That was something.Swallowing down the bitter taste in the back of his mouth, Cameron lifted a hand and thrust it through his hair, impatiently pushing the long blond strands back off his face.
For a moment, he hesitated again, but when he’d made his decision, he moved quickly.A few quick strides took him to his backpack.In moments, his hair was cinched neatly back at the nape of his neck.
Cameron looked in the mirror again as he smoothed a few errant strands into place.A little less wild looking, perhaps a little more like the type of man who belonged at a table with Franklin and the kind of men he’d be likely to do business with.
The sound of the shower stopped.Cameron glanced toward the bathroom door.Taking a step back, he sat on the end of the bed to wait.
A few seconds passed.He got to his feet.Striding to the end of the room, he spun around and retraced his steps.He pushed his hands into his pockets.A moment later, he took them out and straightened his jacket.He looked to the en-suite door again.The guy was taking forever in there.
Cameron paced back to the end of the bed, but he couldn’t bring himself to sit down again.At this rate, he was bound to make a fool of himself when Franklin finally appeared.
Cameron frowned then.He didn’t have to wait for the guy.He wasn’t being paid for his time.There was no reason for him to twiddle his fingers there as if he had no choice but remain where he was.Cameron strode to the bedroom door and briskly out onto the landing.A moment later, he was at the bottom of the stairs, standing in the middle of the hallway without a clue as to what his next move should be.
Taking a deep breath, he glanced around to make sure no one had seen him make a fool of himself as he rushed down the stairs.No one was there.Walking across the tiles, he leaned casually back against the dresser on the far side of the hall and did his best to look as if he were bored as hell and not the least bit nervous.
Within moments, Cameron knew without the slightest doubt that the tick from the hall clock was the most annoying sound on the planet.His hand curled into a fist as he barely managed to resist the temptation to smash it.
“Some humans can be complete bastards.”
Cameron spun around.
Ellery stepped out of the doorway leading into the den.“I’ve no doubt you’ve got good reason to hate humans, Cameron.And, if you want to bitch and snap at me like a brat, that’s fine.I’m a safe target for you, and I really don’t give a damn.”He stopped for a moment, as if waiting for that to sink in.“But the cheap shots you’re taking at Kefir—they stop now.Lashing out athimis completely unacceptable.”
“I’m not afraid of you.”Cameron let a well-practiced mocking tone fill his voice.
Ellery stepped forward.He didn’t look scared of facing off against a lion either.He stared Cameron down as if he thought he was just a silly little cub, just like Luther or Blaine.
“Mind your manners with Kefir, and we’ll get on fine.”Ellery stepped past him without another word.
“And does he have to mind his manners with you, for him to be fine, too?”Cameron called after him.
“I’m not renting him by the hour, Cameron,” Ellery said, with something that sounded suspiciously like genuine sympathy in his voice.“I’ve taken him under my protection.Until you learn the difference between the two scenarios, you really shouldn’t babble about things you don’t understand.”
And he walked away, slow and sure of every step he took.It felt far more like he was dismissing a kitten than running away from the scary shape shifter.
Cameron had no idea how long he glared at the door Ellery had disappeared through and listened to the tick of that bloody clock.It felt like an eternity.He had the horrible suspicion that any time he spent away from Franklin was going to feel that way now.
“Cameron?”
Spinning around, Cameron glared up the stairs at Franklin.Finally!
Franklin had changed into a different suit from the one he’d worn to work.Cameron ran his eyes over him, not entirely sure if he wanted to rip the garments off Franklin’s body because it obviously cost more than he could have earned on a dozen trips to the alleyway behind the club, or just for the sheer joy of having him naked.
*
Franklin strode down the stairs as calmly and as assertively as he could.Projecting confidence was one thing.Feeling it something else.His heart raced so fast, he could easily imagine that it would leave him behind and race toward Cameron ahead of him.
“You look great.”
Cameron merely glared at him in return.His anger should have contorted his features into something short of perfection.Somehow, it just made his cheekbones appear even higher, his dark brown eyes even deeper and every single damn thing about him that little bit more glorious than before.
