Free A Perfect Fit by Heather Tullis Page A

when she realized
she’d have to wake up before five. “I’m up for it. Stop by for us on your way
out there.”
    “Will do.” He stopped when they reached the car and let Joel
and Sage walk past them. “I’ll see you bright and early.”
    Cami unlocked the car remotely for Sage, then shifted to
face Vince. “I’ll be ready.”
    “Good.” He lifted a hand, ran his finger along the right
side of her jaw. His eyes said he wanted to kiss her, and he held her gaze for
a long moment before putting a few more inches between them. “See you soon.”
    “Yeah, bright and early.” Shivers rose on Cami’s neck and
shoulder where he’d touched her. With some effort, she pulled away and took the
two steps to her door. She was both glad he hadn’t followed through with the
kiss, and a little disappointed. “Good night.”
     As they pulled out of the parking lot, Cami enjoyed the hum
of excitement zipping through her veins when she thought of the next day’s
balloon ride, and considered her relationship with Vince could make her summer
blues stay far, far away.
    When they made it through the center of town at a crawl so
as not to hit pedestrians, Cami noticed Joel behind them in his Jeep. She
looked at Sage, who was staring out the window. A pang of guilt flashed through
her. “Look, I’m sorry about what I said. I didn’t mean for it to sound like
that.”
    “Yes you did. But don’t worry, I’m used to it. And I
shouldn’t have said anything to Jeremy, it just popped out. Next time I’ll keep
it to myself.” Her tone was light and unconcerned, but she didn’t look back at
Cami.
    “I’m not trying to hurt your feelings.”
    “Just leave it, Cami. I’ll try not to embarrass you again.
But don’t be surprised when I’m right. I tend to be.”
    Cami glanced in her rearview mirror as she pulled in front
her the house and noticed Joel parking at the much-smaller place next door.
“Joel is our neighbor.” She needed a change of subject.
    “Yeah. He mentioned that.” Sage straightened, grabbing her
things.
    When they parked in the garage, Sage hurried from the car,
not saying anything as they separated to their rooms for the night.
    Cami thought she ought to be happy that Sage would avoid her
now, but she felt bad about embarrassing her in front of near strangers. She
decided to worry about it later. She had notes to make from her chat with Gage
earlier.

Chapter 12
    Cami couldn’t help but grin as she answered the door early
the next morning. Vince stood on the other side, and the sky was starting to
turn navy with the coming dawn. “Good morning.”
    “Hey. Are you ladies ready to go?” He brushed the hair back
from his face and took a quick scan over her blue jean shorts and form-fitting
spring-green blouse. “You might want a jacket; it can get pretty cool if we get
as much altitude as I expect.”
    “I’m prepared.” She gestured behind her to the jacket lying
across a nearby chair. “Sage should be here any second.” She’d been down for
breakfast earlier.
    As if in answer, the sound of steps on the balcony echoed
down to them, and Sage descended the stairs wearing a red, white, and blue T-shirt
and slim khaki shorts. Her dark curls were caught back in a white baseball cap.
“Let me grab my bag,” she said and moved to the kitchen.
    “I wasn’t sure if you ladies would actually be ready. My
sisters have a habit of keeping me waiting for fifteen or twenty minutes
whenever I’m supposed to meet them somewhere or pick them up.”
    Cami smiled, liking the way fondness entered his voice when
he talked about his family. “Dad didn’t tolerate tardiness well.” George hadn’t
been a bear about it, but it irked him, and she’d never wanted to displease
him.
    “No, he didn’t.” Vince tugged at an errant curl by her face
and tucked it behind her ear. “You miss him.”
    She wanted to deny it, but she couldn’t. “Yeah. I’m not too
thrilled with him right now, but I miss him.”
    Sage