4

Cam

After a night spent searching the resort for Jessa, she seemed to be nothing more than a phantom after our shitscramble of a run-in. There was no other way of looking at it. That fucking bridesmaid, clinging to me like a child with her tits falling out of her shirt—Jessa had seen it all.

Maybe Jessa was just a ghost. That was it. She had to be a hallucination brought on by my lack of sleep, some liquor, and profound frustration at my current situation. Why else would I dream up the woman I never stopped loving, the woman I hurt most selfishly?

I sat in one of the empty cabanas, staring at the stars glittering in the night sky. It was hours before the sun would make its appearance, and I was trying desperately to convince myself that our interaction was a figment of my imagination. It wasn’t working, though, and this weak-ass coffee wasn’t working either.

For the hundredth time, I pinched the bridge of my nose, knowing that I wasn’t a man who created scenarios that didn’t exist. I didn’t live my life in frustration either—a trait handed down to me by my father. I was patient yet thorough in everything I did. Could I be pushed to my limits? Absolutely. Did this trip suck worse than I could’ve ever imagined and make me want to throw myself into the sea? Hell yes. However, despite my dismal circumstances, they weren’t bad enough for me to hallucinate my long-lost love.

I’d seen Jessa, and she’d seen me, so however unfavorable the situation might’ve been, it happened. No such luck deluding myself tonight.

I leaned forward and rubbed my forehead. “Jesus, has it really been sixteen years?” I whispered to myself.

“Since when does the confident Cameron Brandt talk to himself?” Jessa’s voice rang with humor.

My head snapped up to see her eyes glistening in the light of the full moon that rested peacefully above the ocean before me. I grinned, unable to withstand her beautiful smile and the reminder of the way I always loved hearing laughter in her voice when she talked.

“I’ve certainly turned into the worst version of myself, and here you are to amuse yourself with that,” I said, turning and placing both feet in the sand to face the lounge chair she took next to me.

She arched her eyebrow while she pulled her long, blonde hair casually into a ponytail. “Of all the people in this world who know,” she grinned playfully at me, “or should I say knew me so well, I could never amuse myself with anyone having so rough a time.”

“Not even the man who promised never to leave you, yet that’s exactly what I did?” I answered without hesitation.

She grew more serious. “We were both so young back then, Cam,” she stated. “We had a lot of crazy dreams and ideas about how our future together might look. It turns out that fate decided we should live those dreams separately.”

“You and your fate and always looking at the brighter side of things.”

She grinned again. I missed how Jessa smiled at everything. Even through tears, the woman found happiness. “I’m fairly confident that in your line of work, Dr. Brandt, you’re the same way now. Well, I hope so for your patients anyway.”

I softly chuckled. “If I weren’t, I’d have a lot of angry patients.”

“So, which medical specialty did you choose? I know you took the internship for pediatrics, and I heard through friends that you graduated med school, but that’s pretty much all I know.”

“The path I should’ve chosen was to stay with you.” I went for broke with that declaration.

“Answer the question, Casanova. Your charms aren’t going to work with me.” She smiled and then looked toward the ocean, more serious now. “Not now, anyway.” And in the way only my Jessa could do, she recovered her curious expression and smiled back at me. “So? Doctor of…” She left her question hanging in the air.

“Well, after busting my ass, I graduated and worked through fellowships, internships, and everything else that comes along with becoming a pediatric neurosurgeon.” “Wow.” She stared at me in disbelief.

“You say that as though it’s a shocking reveal. I might’ve been a jerk, but I was always ridiculously smart, you know.”

I tried my best attempt at humor, but the truth was that I wanted Jessa in my arms right this instant. I wanted to move past this awkward reunion and beg for her to take me back. It wasn’t all about me, though. Sixteen years had passed, and what had happened to her in all that time?

“I’m not surprised that you managed to accomplish so much. You were definitely ridiculously smart, and sometimes you were just ridiculous.” She flashed that halfsmile of hers that always made my heart skip. “So, tell me what it is you do. Brain surgery?”

“Close,” I answered. “I specialize in epilepsy and work with a pediatric brain and spinal surgery team. Do you remember how my sister passed away?”

“Of course, I do. She was born with a rare genetic epilepsy disorder. I remember you telling me that she passed in the night when she was five because she had a horrible seizure.” She shuddered at the thought briefly before recovering herself. “Wow. Your parents must be so proud of you for going into this line of work.”