Norah angled her head to study him, the lift of her brows indicating she’d caught his subtle flirtation. “How is it we’ve never met before this? In all the years I’ve known Miranda, all the times I’ve come home with her, I’ve met your entire family, including your mom. But never you.”
Cam leaned back against the wall, trailing his hand over Hush’s flank as he considered the question. “Well, when y’all were in school at Ole Miss, I was over at Auburn. It’s a much longer drive, so I didn’t come home as often.” A fact he now had cause to regret.
“You never visited Miranda in Chicago, while she was doing residency.”
“Hate the city.” He didn’t bother repressing the automatic shudder. “And you haven’t been back down here since she moved home. I’d have heard about it if you had. I’ve heard a great deal about you over the years. According to family reputation, you’re damn near perfect.”
Something flickered across her face at that, but her features smoothed quickly out into a self-deprecating smile. “Certifiable, type A overachiever, absolutely. But not perfect.”
“Lies!”
They both looked up as Mitch ambled over.
“Don’t listen to her, Cam. She’s just being modest.” He shifted his attention to Norah. “You’ve been hiding.”
“Not hiding. You’ve been circulating. I’m pretty sure I saw you making eyes at the woman who runs the hardware store.”
“Tyler? Nah. We’re just friends. Besides, you know I only have eyes for urbane brunettes.” Mitch held out both hands. “Come here and give me a hug.”
Norah dislodged the dog and let Mitch draw her to her feet, where he promptly bent her back into a dip. “Hello gorgeous. I hear that a breakup pie was purchased last night and that you are, at long last, on the market again. Finally coming back to Mississippi to date me properly?”
Cam felt an immediate and irrational desire to call dibs.
When Mitch made to kiss her, Norah stopped his mouth with a finger. “Just because you’re free with your kisses did not make it a date.”
“It was totally a date.” Mitch flashed an unrepentant grin.
“Liar, liar, pants on fire, Mitch Campbell.”
Mitch laid a hand over his heart. “Darlin’, you can light my pants on fire any time.”
She slapped him hard on the ass. “That’s as far as you’re getting with me.”
“More’s the pity. Who was the idiot? That shark in Armani I met that time?”
A woman like her had been with a man like that?
“Pierce. Yes, that would be the idiot in question.”
“Never did like him.”
“You only met him once.”
“He was too slick. And he had this look like he was calculating how he could use everything you said to his advantage.”
“Well that’s an astute observation. He did—does—exactly that. I never thought anything about it because that’s something we both do for a living.”
“With you it’s personal, though. You’re good because you can read people, figure out what they want, what they need, what they’ll respond to. Because you legitimately give a damn about them getting the best outcome. Pierce seemed a lot more self-serving.”
Because he was watching her, Cam saw the flash of surprise and relief before Norah leaned over and wrapped her arms around Mitch in a tight hug. “Thank you. I really needed to hear that.”
Mitc
h ran a hand over her hair. “Hey, I’ve got your back. Do I need to make a trip up to kick his ass?”
She favored him with an indulgent smile. “As gratifying as that might be, having you brought up on assault charges in my honor isn’t quite the resolution I had in mind.”
“I guess that’d be kinda weird since y’all work together.”