A few hours after getting home from my surprise life-changing meeting, I heard Cam's motorcycle pull up onto the driveway. I was sweating over the stove in his kitchen with frogs jumping inside my stomach over my extreme nerves. I had decided to attempt to make Cameron dinner so we could sit down to talk about what happened today at the studio. I figured he might not be able to get too angry with me if he had a full belly.

My mom had given me a recipe for Chicken Alfredo with fettuccini and I buttered Ron up enough to convince him to take me to the store to get the ingredients to make it. The meal had become her go-to when she wanted to convince my dad to do something he didn't want to do. I was hoping it would work for me too.

The front door opened and I heard Cameron's jingling keys before he sat them on the counter. Ron stood up from the couch and fist-bumped him.

"Did she behave today?" Cameron joked with him.

"Perfect angel." Ron looked over and silently begged me not to say anything about his early morning roaming hands.

His secret was safe with me as long as he kept his mouth shut about our little excursion today.

I just smiled at Ron and turned back to the noodles that I was trying to cook perfectly. I was a terrible cook and would probably make them all mushy and inedible. As the steam rose up out of the boiling pot, I was reconsidering my game plan. Ordering takeout would have been a wiser decision.

"See you, Jessa." Ron waved to me before leaving. He was ready to duck out before he tattled on himself to Cameron. I was glad he was leaving so I could have some one-on-one time with Cameron. We were going to have a serious conversation tonight that would have been much more uncomfortable with a house guest.

When I heard the door shut, I knew it was only a matter of seconds before Cameron would come find me in the kitchen. I took in a deep breath when I heard his footsteps enter the room.

"Darling, something smells good." He walked up behind me and placed his hands on my hips. I turned my head towards him and leaned back into him. He returned the favor by holding me tighter and kissing my cheek gently.

"I hope it is good. I don't do very well this cooking stuff." I said, studying the boiling water like it had two heads.

"I could get used to this. Coming home to a gorgeous woman every night with dinner waiting for me." He whispered against my neck.

"Yeah, that doesn't sound at all sexist." I rolled my eyes even if he couldn't see it.

"Don't worry, Jess. I'll cook you dinner too." He kissed my cheek again.

"It will be ready soon. Go get cleaned up. You smell like a boy." I teased.

"Man, darling, I smell like a man." He pushed himself against my back. I could feel all of his hardness digging into the spot just above my tailbone.

Man, indeed.

"Man, boy, whatever that smell is, you still stink."

"You like my stink. Don't deny it." He patted my butt and left the kitchen to go to the bedroom to clean up. A few seconds later, the shower was running full blast. He began singing at the top of his lungs in a very off-key way. I could barely even figure out what song he was singing until he sang out about getting it on. Cameron was a mood all by himself tonight.

I took a deep breath, trying to ignore the puddle forming between my legs as I daydreamed about watching him take his shower. If I weren't cooking dinner, I would have gone in there to join him. I shook my dirty thoughts away and went back to concentrating on not ruining the dinner as I drowned out the ridiculous boy who was in desperate need of some vocal lessons.

Cam came out with his hair still dripping wet as I plated the food. For the first time ever, we actually sat down at the kitchen table to eat instead of sprawling out in front of the television. It was a nice change, but I was nervous for this conversation we were going to have. I wasn't sure how he was going to take it.

It was an unusually quiet dinner except when he praised me for my culinary skills. I felt giddy when he said he had never eaten anything so delicious in his life. I knew it was a lie, but I enjoyed the praise.

After dinner, I went to the bedroom to pull on my pajamas and then joined Cameron on the couch. He was searching for a movie for us to watch. I brought over a fleece blanket and spread it out over us as I practically crawled inside him. I had been too big of a coward to bring up the topic of going on tour with Stells at dinner. I almost said it a thousand times, but he just seemed so happy tonight and I didn't want to ruin it. I made up my mind that I would just tell him tomorrow instead.

What was one more night? It wasn't going to change anything if I kept it to myself a little bit longer.

About twenty minutes into the awful science fiction movie he chose, we both lost our attention span. He held up my hand and was running his fingers over mine, tracing them gently. He looked lost in thought as he stared at where we were connected.

"Something on your mind?" I asked softly.

"I want you to move in with me." He said, catching me off guard.

"You can't be serious," I said, dumbfounded. I wasn't expecting those words to come out of his mouth.

Shit. A new complication.

There was no way I was going to avoid this conversation tonight. I wondered what evil fairy I pissed off in a past life to deserve the curse I was under. Even true love's kiss couldn't break this spell. Every good thing that came my way always had a way of backfiring on me.

"I am completely serious. You like me. You love my bathtub even more. Why wouldn't we do this?" He swiped a rogue strand of hair off my face and tucked it behind my ear. There was so much joy in his gray eyes. This was something he really wanted and I was about to push him off a cliff.

"Cameron." I straightened my body up so I could look into his eyes. I grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly to my chest.

"What is it, darling?" He tensed up.

"Deep breaths. Deep painful breaths." Good Jessa whispered.

I threw my shoulders back and steadied myself. It was time to do this.

"Stells Leigh wants me on tour with her in the next three weeks. I would be gone for the next eighteen months." I vomited out the words before I could stop myself again.

Cameron pulled his hand away from mine. The smile he carried with him all night was gone from his face and I already wished I could steal the words back from his memory so I could see it again. His jawline hardened and his fists tightened. The couch was shaking from the vicious rage-filled tremors taking over his body.

"You told her no." His words sounded more like a command than a question.

"I told her I would think about it."

Cameron stood up from the couch and towered over me. I shrunk back into the cushions to hide. This side of him was my least favorite. I never really thought Cameron would ever hurt me, but it didn't mean he didn't scare me shitless when he was like this.

"So, that's it. You're just going to go and leave me behind after everything we have been through? This is just like you, Jessa. You have something good and you take a sledgehammer to it. You know that lifestyle is not good for you and your bipolar disorder. There will be no one there to catch you when you go off the rails again. You are not going. End of discussion." He was yelling so loudly that the whole neighborhood could probably hear him.

"It will be different this time," I said meekly.

"Why is that? Because your condition has been magically healed and you promise you won't ever screw up? I have heard it all from you before, Jess. Your manipulation bullshit doesn't work on me anymore." I flinched when he picked up the remote from the table and threw it at the wall. It shattered into pieces only inches away from the television screen.

"First of all, you are cruel. I never said my condition or issues wouldn't be a problem on tour. Second, if you would close your mouth long enough to let me explain, I would have told you it would be different because I want you to come with me."

"I don't want to go, Jess. That's not how I want to live my life. I am not a person who is cut out for that. I'm happy here in Ohio and I'm not leaving. You want me to drop everything to follow you around the country like a little puppy. My whole life is here. My job, my house, my family. Everything is in Ohio. I will have nothing left if I go with you, Jessa." He spoke through clenched teeth.

"We would have each other." I sobbed.

"I love you, Jess, but this is the one thing I will not do for you. I am not going to sit there smiling in some strange city while I watch you ruin your life again." He shook his head and stomped off down the hallway to his bedroom. The door slammed seconds later, rattling the house's foundation.

I collapsed down onto the couch on my side and wept for what felt like hours. My chest was still tight even when all the tears were gone from my body. Every few seconds, little sniffles and whimpers would escape my lips. I don't know why I thought things would work out for me this time around.

I closed my eyes and let the pain swallow me down.