Coming Home to Seashell Harbor (Seashell Harbor #1) - Miranda Liasson Page 0,65
some pics. Now let us go, okay?”
“Are you two dating?”
“Just friends,” Hadley answered, putting her head down as they struggled to move through the sea of reporters.
“Hadley. What’s your reaction to the news about Cooper and Maeve?”
Hadley’s head jerked up. “What news?”
“They’re baiting you,” Cam whispered as he steered her and Jagger through the crowd.
Hadley gripped him tightly and tipped her head in the direction of Pooch Palace, which was just across the park from where they stood. Cam gave a nod, signaling they should go for it. As Cam pressed onward for the last hundred feet, he wondered how much the photographers had captured. He knew the answer—enough for the scoop of him and Hadley as a couple to spread all over the world just as fast as the footage could be downloaded.
The sanctuary of the Palace was fifty feet away when a photographer elbowed forward to volley a final question. “Hey, Hadley,” the reporter persisted, “how do you feel about Maeve being pregnant?”
Hadley stopped dead in her tracks, her body stiffening. Cam turned to see shock spread over her face. He tightened his grip on her but nothing seemed to register.
He saw everything in that one expression.
The devastation. The hurt.
It hit him like a gut punch. Because for her to look like that, she had to have loved the bastard.
“Enough questions.” He tugged on her arm. Finally she was moving again. If only he could throw a few blocks to open a hole, he could get them safe.
Hadley surprised him by turning to face the cameras. “I’m thrilled for them,” she said with a wave and a smile. No one would notice, but he could tell her voice was stiff and unnatural. “I wish them the best.”
“Are you sad it’s not you?”
“Aren’t you still heartbroken?”
“How does it feel to know that the woman he left you for is pregnant with his child?”
As fury raged inside him, Cam stepped between Hadley and the cameras. She might just kill him later but he didn’t care. “Hey, folks.” He waited for silence to descend as everyone focused their attention on him. “We’re happy for Cooper and Maeve. But that’s old news.” He stopped talking until everyone quieted down. “I have another scoop.”
The commotion suddenly dialed down to complete silence as Cam faced more cameras than he had since his injury.
“I’m getting a new dog,” he deadpanned.
The crowd of reporters chuckled because Cam was…being Cam.
“Or, I should say…we are. Meet our dog, Jagger.” He took Hadley’s hand and smiled. She was frowning a little, but also looked a little confused. Later she’d probably have his hide for using words like us and our dog. But for now, he was desperate to distract the wolves from preying on her. “That’s way more interesting, in my opinion,” he continued. To help him out, Jagger sat down at his feet and began licking blueberry filling off his paws, which drew a few chuckles. He just hoped that Jagger’s licking would stay socially acceptable while he was in front of the cameras. “Plus, no one’s asked me how I like being home. Or the secret recipes for my new restaurant. Geez, you folks are really losing your touch.”
“How are you doing, Cam?” someone asked.
“Great, thanks.” He snuck a sideways glance at Hadley, who looked a little less thrown. If he could just keep the attention off her until they could reach the Palace, his job would be done. “There’ve been a lot of changes in my life since football ended.”
“Is Hadley one of them?”
He gave a little laugh for the benefit of the cameras. But the irony wasn’t lost on him. Hadley had crashed into his life like a giant ocean wave, throwing him sideways. But now she needed him. And he was going to do everything he could to help her.
So he kept steering them toward Pooch Palace.
“How about an exclusive interview?” someone said. He looked over to see a couple of reporters he recognized from a national network—probably the ones Ian had told him would be here. “We’ve been waiting months to sit down with you.”
“Call me later,” he said, forcing a smile. Oh no. Why had he said that? How could he not? It was the ultimate distraction from Hadley.
“Wait,” said a local reporter who’d pushed his way forward to stand next to the big guns. Cam had to admire his chutzpah. “If you’re going to do an interview, how about letting us do it, Cam?”