sleeping, naked bodies intertwined in a deep sleep, both blissfully exhausted from lovemaking the night before. Cameron awoke to Nicole’s sudden movement. Her eyebrows were drawn inward, lips pressed together in a frown. He didn’t want to wake her. Curiosity struck him as he wondered about the inner workings of her beautiful mind. Her head swayed back and forth.
“No, please don’t go,” Nicole said in a low whisper.
Cameron wanted to embrace her and let her know he was there, but he hesitated. Was she dreaming? This was the first time he heard Nicole talk in her sleep. He wanted to hold her close and tell her he was right there and going nowhere. She was safe with him. She continued to toss and turn, her face tightening with frustration.
“Tyler, you can’t go. I need you. Please stay with me,” Nicole whimpered.
Cameron froze. His entire body went stiff, frozen. Did he hear Nicole call out to another man in her sleep? Who was Tyler? Then he remembered the note he saw in her kitchen. It read to call Tyler’s father. Was Tyler in Nicole’s past? Was she seeing Tyler now? Flashbacks of Shannon and the brief notes she left around her house gave Cameron pause. ‘Call Derek’, one had said. ‘Calendar lunch with Derek’, another note said. Shannon had cheated on him with Derek. By the end of their relationship, she got really messy and didn’t hide what she was doing. Nicole was a good girl. He had to dismiss those thoughts.
Heart frozen, Cameron felt all the feelings he was building for Nicole were in that instant, turning to stone. He felt the ping in his chest. The same ping he felt when he found out Shannon was seeing someone else. This couldn’t happen twice. It just couldn’t. He was immobilized. He just lay in bed next to Nicole, staring at the ceiling, still not wanting to wake her up. What was he going to do? What would he say when she woke up? A sharp pain gripped Cameron’s chest. His face now throbbing from the pain of clenching his teeth. He just lay next to Nicole, unable to move or wake her.
“Good morning, handsome,” Nicole said, rubbing sleep from her eyes.
Cameron drew in a deep, harsh breath, then said, “Morning.”
“Do you want breakfast?” Nicole asked, moving to make a pot of coffee.
“No, I’m good. I just realized I need to go home and take care of some things.” He couldn’t bring up what he experienced last night, Nicole’s conversation in her sleep. He needed time to process his feelings.
A sudden look of sadness crossed Nicole’s face. “Are you joining me at my parents’ house for lunch?”
Cameron promised they would spend the day together. “Yes, I’ll meet you there if that’s okay.” It pained him to leave Nicole. He always wanted to be in her orbit, be in her company.
“Sure.” Nicole looked at Cameron for a few seconds before sitting on her couch, scrolling through her phone.
Cameron wondered what she was thinking. The happiness seemed to leave her eyes. He was certain she detected the chilliness in his voice. They had an amazing night. Aubrey’s opening was a complete success. The event was trending on Instagram based on the notifications on his phone. Everyone posted live shots from the event to their stories. Their night together was the best nightcap. Cameron had to leave, though. He couldn’t stay for fear of saying or doing something he would later regret. Being in the comfort of his own home was necessary for him to ponder the events of the previous night. With no explanation and a quick kiss on Nicole’s cheek, Cameron was in his car, headed home.
Cameron felt his phone buzz in his pocket as he unlocked his front door. He threw his keys on the counter and pulled out his phone, and saw a text from Nicole.
He didn’t know how he wanted to respond to her text. He had a beautiful night, too. What he didn’t expect was Nicole calling out another man’s name in her sleep. He ached to be in her arms again. Was everything in his head? Did he hear what he thought he heard? Not wanting to be rude, he typed a response.
Cameron preferred not to discuss this over text. He doubted his ability to have the conversation. Not now. Maybe he was half asleep and didn’t hear Nicole call out another man’s name. His phone buzzed with another text message.
To rid himself of negativity, Cameron chose to run and pump iron. He sent one last text before this afternoon.
The gym wasn’t too crowded. Cameron walked toward his favorite treadmill and hopped on, turning up the speed and incline to increase the intensity of his run. His pace rapidly escalated, mind racing of thoughts of Nicole, his growing feelings, and the thought of her cheating. The rhythmic pounding of his footsteps mirrored the acceleration of his heart rate. His increasing heart rate was a physical outlet for the anger he felt in response to the scene at Nicole’s last night. Cameron held firm to his conviction that she wasn’t cheating. The best response to this was to talk to Nicole. What made it hard for him to open up and share what he heard? Was it fear? There was something special about his relationship with Nicole. He knew in the depth of his soul that she was the one. He had to own that, but would keep it to himself.
Drenched with sweat from head to toe, Cameron grabbed a towel to wipe off the perspiration before making his way to the weights. He craved the challenge of throwing some heavy weight. He began with barbell curls and overhead presses. Lifting at maximum weight, the exertion of the strained movements acted as a force, pushing out the negative energy he felt in his heart. With determination, Cameron transitioned to the sit-up bench, needing to push with maximum effort to complete one hundred stomach curls. Each repetition served as a deliberate confrontation of his discomfort regarding Nicole being with another man. He concluded his workout with leg presses. With each press he felt the release of the swirling, tumultuous thoughts that occupied his mind. Cameron put the unsettling scene to rest, choosing to continue his relationship with Nicole and not bring up her calling out another man’s name. Now, in his mind, nothing had happened.