Chapter 11: Road Warrior

"This has been the most wonderful Christmas I can ever remember," Glynnis cooed as they lay entwined in their bed. "You spoiled both Jamie and me, especially with that car you bought me."

"The Oldsmobile was not ageing gracefully. I wanted to make sure you were driving a safe car, especially when I wasn't around to rescue you," Cam smiled, kissing her. "The Volvo will do you nicely."

"You don't always have to rescue me, you know. But, I do appreciate it. After all, that's how I got to meet the man I would fall in love with and marry."

"It's amazing, isn't it," he said softly. "Two people meeting purely by chance. What were the odds that your car would die right in front of my home?"

"What were the odds we'd fall in love," she murmured.

"Oh, I think they were pretty good," he grinned. "I think I was pretty much convinced I had finally met the right woman about two days after you entered my life. Besides, there was the subversive effect that Jamie had on me. A damsel in distress with a child to care for? Irresistible."

"And what damsel could resist the charms of the man who rescued her and took her and her son into his home? It took me a couple of days to get my head around the idea that you didn't want us to leave. I know, you gave me all the proper reasons for staying except the one you didn't use. And I gave you all the reasons I should leave, which were, of course, weak and illogical. I think ... somehow ... destiny had a hand in what happened that day back in June."

"I'm sure you're right, Glynn, but does it matter now? We're together and whatever the circumstances were that led to us meeting, it happened and the improbable storybook ending is in sight."

"I don't want an ending," she said, turning to him. "I want this to go on forever. I feel too good to think about an end. I waited a long time ... we both did ... before our destinies decided we should meet. So let's not talk about endings. This is just the beginning," she said, holding him tightly and raining soft kisses upon him.

"I'm going to miss you terribly over the next three weeks," Cam said, returning her affectionate kisses. "These tours are very tiring. A different city, and a different hotel almost every day. Happily, the organizers at Houndstooth were good enough to have it end in Seattle and Vancouver so that I can get home quickly. That will at least help with the jet lag."

"When you get home, I'll be here to restore you to your normal self. You always tell me I make you young again."

"You do ... and I'll be counting the days, crossing them off my calendar each night when I call you," he said, pulling her on top of him and stroking her naked form.

"Hello, Marjean," Cam said with a big smile. "I didn't expect to see you here. I could easily have caught a cab to the hotel."

"Oh no! I couldn't have my favourite author alone in New York. Besides, I wanted to introduce you to your tour guide and facilitator. Cameron Stuart, meet Lauren Niven," Marjean announced, guiding a young woman forward.

"Mister Stuart, it's so nice to meet you. I'm really looking forward to being with you on this tour."

"It's Cam please, Miss Niven. I'm assuming this is your first tour, so prepare yourself for a route march. I hope Marjean has properly warned you," Cam chuckled.

"Yes ... she has. And it's Lauren if we're going to be informal. But I am looking forward to our tour. I've read all your books and I'm a big fan, as is my family. You do what few authors can do, and that's make history really interesting."

"That's kind of you to say so, Lauren. There's my luggage," he said, moving to the turntable.

The two women led Cam to where a limo was waiting for them. Despite the late afternoon traffic, they were barely twenty minutes before arriving at the hotel.

"I'm staying here as well, Cam," Lauren said as they approached the reservation desk. "We'll meet tomorrow morning at eight for breakfast and we can go over your itinerary then. All the hotel and flight reservations are made and confirmed. Your first signing will be at eleven at the Manhattan Barnes and Noble. At three, we'll be in Newark and then back to the hotel for the evening. It'll be a busy day, but I guess you're used to that from what Marjean tells me."

"I won't call it being used to it, but it won't be a surprise," he chuckled. "So, we'll meet at the restaurant at eight then. In the meantime, I'm going to have a shower to get the smell of that airplane off me, call Glynn to let her know I arrived safely, and order room service. I don't usually suffer too much from jet lag coming east, so I'll have no problem being all bright and bushy-tailed in the morning," he smiled before turning to Marjean.

"I take it you got my first draft of #3, Marjean. Send me anything you've got starting tomorrow and I'll see what I can get accomplished in my open time. Sooner is better than later, right?" he grinned.

"Absolutely, Cam. I wish all my writers were as dedicated as you are. And if number two was any indication, we'll probably have a lot less work on number three. You seem to have caught on to what we're looking for quite quickly. I don't find myself going over the same issues too often. I'm sure we'll be in touch over the course of the next three weeks. I have your itinerary and I'll catch you on your cell phone if anything comes up that's urgent. In the meantime, we'll stick with email for our usual correspondence."

"Right ... same as last time," he nodded. He was interrupted briefly by the reservations clerk asking for a signature, after which she passed him a room key card. He turned back to Marjean and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Well, here we go again," he grinned.

"Good luck, Cam," the older woman smiled as she turned and left.

Lauren watched her go, then turned to Cam. "Here's my business card. It has my cell number and my email address, just in case we get separated for some reason."

"Thanks. I hope I don't have to use it. Well, I'll see you tomorrow morning then," he said as the bellman pulled the luggage cart ahead of him toward the elevators.

"Where are you today?" Glynn asked on his regular nightly call.

"Dallas," he answered wearily. "We're just beginning the western swing. Santa Fe, Albuquerque, and Denver later this week. We have a day off between here and Santa Fe. I imagine we'll do the tourist thing if the weather's decent."

"You'll be home in ten days," Glynnis said brightly. "The worst of the winter weather stops are over by the sound of it."

"Denver might give us some grief, but after that, the worst we're likely to see is rain. The weather in the northeast was pretty grim. We almost missed a couple of our stops due to snow and ice. Toronto was mild for winter, and I got a day to spend with Mom and Dad, so that was good. The next day we were on a plane to here, deep in the heart of Texas."

"What did you parent's have to say about our marriage?"

"My mother continues to be happy that it's finally going to happen. I'm sure she'd given up hope that I'd ever marry. You can be sure she'll be at our wedding with bells on," he chuckled.

"Oh, I'm so pleased. How about your sisters?"

"No different. Both they and their families will be there as well. I think this might be a premier event in the Stuart family."

"That's so good to hear, Cam. I'm so pleased that both families are happy about it."

"Yes ... that does take a lot of worry away, doesn't it?"

"I'm counting the days until you're back in my arms, lover."

"It won't be long now, Glynn. The only down note is that I'll probably be doing this all over again next year. Marjean thinks that number three is going to be ahead of schedule, so maybe we can get the tour out of the way before Christmas. Then, you and I and Jamie will head for Hawaii and a proper vacation."

"Oh that sounds wonderful. I've always dreamed of going to Hawaii. I won't say anything to Jamie, though. It will be a nice surprise if it happens."

"I'll do everything I can to make it happen. Marjean knows my plan already, so she's going to help."

"How are the sales doing?" Glynnis asked, changing topic.

"Very well, with some reorders already on hand, according to Marjean. She expects it will do as well or better than the first one, and with a third in the works, we've been letting our public know that there's more to come. If we can get it out before Christmas, then we'll really have a head start on the biggest book selling month of the year."

"How is your tour guide working out?"

"Lauren? She's doing very well. Very organized and since she's a very attractive young woman, she draws in men to our table. I'm sure she's responsible for some impulse buying," he chuckled. "She says she wants to be an editor like Marjean, but that's a long grind. I've been telling her of my days at Hunter and College Book Publishers and warning her about getting what she wished for. I think she sees it as nothing but best sellers to work on, but that's not the real world. I know ... I've been there."

"Well, you just keep your mind on selling books and not on Little Miss Hotstuff," Glynn warned.

"Oh my, is my future bride jealous?" Cam kidded.

"No ... just cautious. You've been spending a lot of time in her company and if she's as attractive as you say, I can see how you might become a bit distracted. Send me a snap of her on your phone."

"I'll send you a picture of her and put your worries to rest. She can't hold a candle to you, my dear."

"We'll see. We'll see," she warned. "Oh, by the way, Aaron called and left a message for you. He wants you to call him when you get a chance. He didn't say what it was about."