Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 76573 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 383(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76573 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 383(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
The thought of Cam going home right now made my chest a little tight, though. The idea of him being away from me, of spending a moment so intense together and then being alone, was too much to bear.
“Come to Red’s Tavern with me this afternoon,” I blurted out.
“The tavern?”
“Sure,” I said. “Why not?”
I pulled away, trying to read his expression, hoping I wasn’t asking too much. I knew we weren’t supposed to date, couldn’t date each other. But I just wanted to hang out with him.
He scratched the back of his neck, nodding. “Okay. Yeah. Let’s do it.”
“I feel like I just asked you to go to a dental appointment rather than a fun afternoon at a bar.”
“Believe me, I want to go.”
“You sure?”
“You just fucked me and it was one of the best things I’ve ever felt in my damn life,” he said. “And if I go home alone, it’s definitely going to be all I can think about. So yes, I desperately want to go hang out with you.”
Even though I felt ten thousand emotions surging inside me, I wanted to look completely calm and collected on the outside.
I shrugged one shoulder. “So then let’s go.”
He got a look of mischief in his eye. “Want me to help be your wingman so you can score a second hookup for tonight?”
“As if I can handle anybody else but you in one day.”
“Oh yeah?”
“You drained me pretty good, Cam.”
Cam rinsed off and we both popped our clothes back on before heading to my truck. We were inside sitting down and I put the key in the ignition, pausing to look over at him. The early afternoon sun came through the windshield, and I watched the tiny dust motes in the air.
“I actually haven’t hooked up with anyone else but you since the first night we spent together,” I admitted.
“You haven’t?” he asked softly. “You’re kidding.”
“Nope. I just haven’t been feeling it.” I paused for a moment, looking over at him. “Not that that means anything—I mean, if you are hooking up with others, as long as it’s all safe I respect that—”
He laughed, shaking his head. “Believe me, I am not doing a damned thing with anyone else. I don’t even think I could.”
Relief flooded through me, warm and comforting. I had figured Cam wouldn’t be looking for anything else, but I also knew that he was on the BackOutThere app. It was totally possible that he had private messages with multiple people, that he was pursuing things I didn’t know about.
I had no claim to Cam, but I still liked to hear that for now, I was the only one.
Cam’s words from earlier came ringing through my head. “You can fuck me anytime you want.”
I had no idea if he had meant it. People said things during heated moments, sometimes things they didn’t quite mean.
But I wanted it to be true.
I wanted to fuck him again. And again. And again.
It made me feel a little crazy, actually, how attracted to him I was. Even now, looking over at his milky skin as he clicked his seatbelt into place and checked his reflection in the passenger-side mirror, running his hands through his hair.
It would be easy to think I just wanted what I couldn’t have. But somehow I felt like I’d want Cam no matter what.
11
Cam
Red’s Tavern had a whole different feel to it in the afternoon than the evening. At night, it could become a veritable party hub of activity in Amberfield, but right now, walking in felt more like entering a sleepy old saloon. Two greying men were lounging in a booth by the jukebox, their lunch clearly over a long time ago, and another guy sat at the bar on his phone, nursing a beer. Other than that, the only people inside were Sam and Red behind the bar, and my brother Perry back in the kitchen.
“Afternoon, Cameron,” Sam said when he saw me, waving a hand at me. “And Luke, too, looking very sexy.”
“You flatter me,” Luke said as we both took seats at the bar.
I couldn’t blame Sam. He was right—Luke looked sexy as all hell, even more than usual today. He’d put on a tight white T-shirt and thrown a weathered brown army jacket over the top. The sleeves were rolled up partway, revealing the tattoos on his forearms, and as we’d driven here, he’d donned aviator sunglasses.
He looked ridiculously cool. And as we settled in, he took off his aviators, hanging them on one of his jacket pockets.
“I didn’t know you were dating,” Sam said.
“We aren’t on a date,” I said, waving a hand through the air. “We’re friends.”
“My mistake,” Sam said.
I watched him as he worked behind the bar. I had expected a lot more teasing and protesting from Sam. Typically he was a fountain of energy, and if anyone was going to see right through my act with Luke, it should have been Sam.