Chapter Thirteen
Cam
The sound of voices woke her from her dreams. She blinked a few times, taking in her surroundings. It took a minute for her to remember where she was. She sat up, but her head started to pound, so she laid back down. Her mouth was so dry you’d think she’d been living in a desert.
“Hey there.” The voice made her jump, which only made her headache worse. Kit lay in the sleeping bag next to her. He was shirtless…or just naked.
She couldn’t tell because the sleeping bag covered the lower half of his body. She looked down at her own body, realizing she was naked in the sleeping bag.
“Uh…did, we?”
He shook his head. “No, despite you begging for it.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her.
“Oh my god, tell me I didn’t.”
He laughed. “You did, and you pouted when I told you no. ”
She ran a hand over her face as her cheeks heated up with embarrassment. She only had bit and pieces of memories from last night, but she definitely didn’t remember trying to get Kit to have sex with her.
“We went swimming?” she asked, feeling her damp hair.
“Kind of…more like skinny dipping.”
She couldn’t believe she did that. “How much did I drink?!”
He laughed. “Enough to get wasted.” He got out of his sleeping bag, and she was relieved to see he had on a pair of sweatpants. He grabbed her bag from the corner and handed it to her before putting on a t-shirt. “I think everyone already ate breakfast, but I’ll try to find us some food.”
He unzipped the tent and left, giving her some privacy. What she needed was a warm shower and a hairdryer. She slipped on the swimsuit she’d packed and threw a sundress over it. She attempted to brush through her tangled hair before giving up and throwing it in a bun. Once she looked decent enough, she left the tent.
There were a couple of big picnic tables set up where people were sitting. A handful of kids ran around the large campsite playing tag. She didn’t remember seeing any kids last night, so they must have already been asleep. The fire was out, but people still sat around in the plastic chairs talking. She spotted Jen sitting at one of the picnic tables with a plastic coffee cup in her hand. Cam crossed the campsite and sat down next to her.
“Oh, hey sleepyhead,” Jen said, and laughed.
“I need a soda.”
Jen chuckled. “I think Kit just left to get you guys some food. Gunner’s wife made breakfast this morning, but these men eat so much, it was gone fast. So, spill what happened last night.”
Cam groaned. “I’d tell you if I remembered. I have no idea. Kit said we went skinny dipping--”
“Oh my god! I knew you were into him!”
“ Shh ,” Cam said, looking around to make sure no one could hear Jen’s outburst. “I didn’t say I like him… I was drunk.”
“Yeah, okay. Don’t try to use that excuse on me. Drunk Cam is Honest Cam, and you have a thing for Kit--admit it.”
“Fine, maybe I think he’s hot...like really hot.” She thought about his naked chest this morning and the tattoos that went all the way down his left arm. No wonder she tried to have sex with him in her drunken state. But it wasn’t just about his looks. His sense of humor drove her crazy at first, but now she liked that cocky grin that spread across his face before he told a joke. What he told her about his dad and his sister on the drive over was heartbreaking, but he still gave his sister a place to live. He was paying for an apartment he didn’t even live in. He had a big heart behind all that joking and arrogance .
“See, I knew it. You try so hard to make excuses for why you can’t have a relationship but you know what I think it is? I think you’re scared.”
“Scared of what?”
“Scared of actually trusting someone to help you. You’re scared that the moment you start to lean on someone for support, they’ll vanish.”
Jen’s words were like a knife to her chest. Was that true? Was she terrified to let Kit be a partner in her life? She thought about her strained relationship with her mom. Her mom was never someone she could rely on. Then, when she’d moved to Goldbeach, she’d had an actual parent for a little while. Her dad had been an amazing man. When he was alive, she had a place to stay, and she could help out at the bar when she wanted extra cash. All she had to worry about was finishing her degree. Everything changed once he got sick. In a matter of months, she was back to struggling to take care of herself.
An older woman sat down at the end of the picnic table. “I am ready to get out of here and get in the shower,” the woman said.
“Ditto,” Jen replied.
The woman smiled at them. It was a comforting smile that reminded her of a grandmother. There was something warm about her presence that put Cam at ease.
“Are you Kit’s Old Lady?” the woman asked.
“Yes, she is,” Jen replied with a fat grin on her face .
Cam shot Jen a glare. “I’m Cam. I run the bar.”
“Nice to meet you, Cam, I’m Lily, Gunner’s wife. Sorry for assuming. I just got excited when I heard Kit was bringing someone this year.”
“Does he usually not bring anyone?” she asked, already knowing the answer.
Lily shook her head and let out a sigh. “Most of the guys don’t. I don’t know what’s wrong with these men. We need more women in the club.”
“How many women are there?” Jen asked.
“Just a few of us.”
Cam looked around. All the women seemed to be at least five years older than her. The female to male ratio was definitely out of whack.
“Those hoochies don’t count,” Lily said.
Jen choked on her coffee, clearly holding back a laugh.
“Hey, Lily! Where are the plates?” a small boy called out.
“Looks like I’m needed. Hopefully, I’ll see you girls around. We always have brunch on Sundays at the club, so don’t be afraid to stop by.” She patted Cam’s leg before leaving the table.
After Kit came back with a bag of McDonald’s and a Coke for her, they ate and packed up the tent. Jen and Hugo stayed to spend another night.
Kit pulled his truck up in front of her house and helped her grab her bag from the back.
“I’ll start working on your truck,” he said.
“Thanks.”
They stood there for a moment before she cleared her throat. “So about us…”
He smiled that cocky grin of his. “What about us?”
“Are we like...dating?”
He laughed. “I had to hold your truck hostage just to get you to go on this camping trip.”
She smiled. “True. How about you come over sometime…to the house? Not now, but maybe one day when I’m showered and not smelling like lake water--”
She shut her mouth before she could babble on any longer.
He raised an eyebrow. “You sure?”
All she’d done up to this point was give him a hard time, so she wasn’t surprised by his response.
She nodded. “Yeah.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She turned and walked toward her house. “Goodbye, Kit.”
*****
The sound of the floorboards creaking woke her out of her sleep. Her heart raced as she tried to calm her breathing. Jen wasn’t supposed to be back until the morning. Venom. She’d been so wrapped up in her life she almost forgot about the threat dangling over her head. She looked around the dark bedroom searching for anything she could grab as a weapon. Venom would probably have a gun if he wanted to kill her, but the sick bastard probably intended to kidnap her and use her as his personal sex slave. Her hands were sweaty as she grabbed a hold of the lamp on the bedside table. If she was going down, she’d go down fighting. She quietly crept out of bed but paused as she heard laughter.
“ Shh , Cam is sleeping.”
Cam sighed with relief at the sound of Jen’s voice.
She opened her bedroom door to find Jen and Hugo pushed up against the wall in the hallway. Jen turned her head at the sound of the door opening.
“Fuck, I’m sorry, Cam. I didn’t mean to wake you.” Jen’s eyes moved to the lamp that Cam had clutched in her hand. “You were going to attack me with a lamp?”
“No, I was going to attack the intruder with a lamp.” Cam flipped on the hallway light and blinked a few times for her eyes to adjust. “I thought you weren’t coming home until the morning.”
“We were, but most of the guys ended up leaving, and it’s scary out in the woods alone. Plus, I wanted to shower.”
“Maybe call next time?” Cam suggested.
Jen nodded. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Cam walked past them into the kitchen to grab a cup of water. Her eyes flashed to the clock on the wall. It was only 10 o’clock. She barely remembered falling asleep. After drinking her water, she left the kitchen. Jen and Hugo had retreated to Jen’s room, so Cam went back into her own.
*****
She sat at the kitchen table with papers surrounding her. After class, she came right back to the house to get caught up. Jen was closing the bar tonight, so she had plenty of time to work on the homework that was piling up. Her phone vibrated next to her. Kit’s name flashed across the screen. She pressed ‘decline’, to ignore the call. Jen had offered to drive her to and from class today, so she hadn’t seen Kit. She was only able to focus on her homework for another minute before her phone started to buzz again with his phone call. She set her pen down and answered.
“Yes?”
“You didn’t need a ride this morning?” he asked.
She usually called him if she needed a ride or texted him the night before. It was still strange that she was regularly asking him for rides, but she didn’t have much of a choice. Kit said she’d get her truck back by Monday but he was obviously dragging his feet. She didn’t want to ask about it since he was fixing it for free.
“No, Jen drove me.”
He was quiet for a moment. It sounded like a garage door opening in the background.
“Are you at work?” she asked.
“About to be. Wanna come hang out with me?”
She looked at the table in front of her. “I have a lot of homework.”
“Bring it. I’ll pick you up.”
She let out a sigh. “What are we doing?”
Their relationship was turning into more than him just watching over the bar, but she couldn’t blame him for that considering she was the one that apparently tried to convince him to go skinny dipping.
“Let’s not make this complicated. Either you come here, or I’ll come over there.”
“Don’t you have to work?”
“I own the place. I can work when I want.”
She laughed. “I bet your customers love you.”
“I’m on my way,” he said before hanging up on her.
She looked down at the holy t-shirt and pajama bottoms she had changed into after class. She shouldn’t care, but for some reason, she didn’t want Kit to see her as a complete slob. Fuck. She got up from the couch and went into her bedroom. Laundry had piled up so she was limited on clean clothes. Choosing her typical shorts and t-shirt, she was able to change, apply a bit of makeup, and pull her hair up in a ponytail before the doorbell rang. She took a deep breath before opening the front door. Kit stood on the other side, just as tall and muscular as always. She doubted that he did anything to get ready to come over besides roll out of bed and get dressed. It wasn’t fair.
“Are you going to invite me in, or do I have to stay out here?” he asked.
She opened the door wider and waved him inside.
“It’s small, but it works for us,” she said to Kit as she led him through the house. It was strange having him in her personal space. He looked out of place next to their feminine decor.
“Why is it so fucking hot?” he asked as they got to her bedroom.
She sat on the edge of the bed. “Landlord hasn’t fixed the air conditioning.”
He removed his cut. “How long has it been like this?”
“Almost the entire summer.”
“You should have told me.”
She shrugged. “I thought you just fixed cars.”
He smiled that cocky grin of his that had her clenching her thighs together. “I can fix anything.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Oh yeah?”
He took a step toward the bed, and she had the urge to scoot back, but she forced herself to stay still. He leaned down and planted a kiss on her lips. His lips were soft like pillows, and they felt like heaven on top of hers. He placed his hand on the side of her head to deepen the kiss. She squeezed her legs together as the aching between her legs started.
He broke away from the kiss to look into her eyes. “You taste like trouble. ”
She smiled and leaned up to continue their make-out session. Kit’s tongue poked against her lips, demanding entrance. She opened her mouth, allowing him to explore. Her nipples hardened against her t-shirt, making her hyperaware of her breasts against the cotton shirt.
“Fuck that feels good,” he groaned as she rubbed a hand over his sweatpants, feeling the outline of him. His dick matched the size of his body, large and thick. She leaned back until her back hit the mattress. He followed her movement, hovering over her. He trailed kisses down her neck, causing her entire body to heat up. Fuck, his lips were like small electrical currents against her skin, sending sparks straight to her core. She spread her legs, and he took the opportunity to move in between them. His hard cock rubbed against her sex, and she wanted nothing more than to get these clothes off. As if reading her mind, he pulled at the bottom of her shirt. She sat up to haul it over her head. His eyes roamed over her tits before he bent his head down and took one nipple into his mouth.
She moaned as he swirled his tongue around the sensitive area.
“Keep going,” she begged.
It had been so long since a man touched her, she could get off just by Kit stroking her nipples. The coolness of his tongue ring sent chills over her body. After working on one, he moved to the next nipple. Lifting her hips up, she tried to gain some kind of friction between them. Losing her patience, she pushed at his sweatpants. Her body craved his skin against hers. He sat up and she watched in amazement as he removed his shirt, exposing his perfectly sculpted body. He had abs for days. It looked like a six-pack, but it could have been eight. He smiled that cocky grin at her as he got off the bed to drop his pants.
Her eyes bulged at his size. Fuck, he was huge. This was going to hurt. It had been so long since she had sex, she was basically a virgin. He grabbed her sleep shorts and tugged them off her legs before throwing them on the floor. Instinctually, she closed her legs, trying to hide herself. But he wasn’t having any of that. He placed his hands on her knees and spread her open. She was utterly exposed. Her juices were dripping onto the sheet, but instead of feeling self-conscious, she felt perfectly safe with Kit.
“You’re beautiful,” he breathed as his eyes moved from her tits down to her sex. Instead of climbing on top of her, he lowered to his knees at the end of the bed.
“What--”
Her words cut short as he grabbed her hips and pulled her to the end of the bed. Without warning, he buried his face in-between her legs. Her hands flew to his hair to grab on as his tongue licked a clean line down her slit. Her back arched off the bed. She never had someone go down on her, but she couldn’t imagine anyone else could make her feel this good. Her body felt like it was going to explode any minute.
“Kit. Oh, God, yes.”
His tongue was relentless as he sucked and licked every inch. Her legs shook on both sides of his head as her body tingled with the threat of an orgasm.
He pulled away from her body. “Ask me if you can come,” he demanded.
“Kit--”
He raised an eyebrow at her.
“Please,” she moaned. She was so close. If he would just give her a few more seconds…
“Please, what?”
“Can I come?” she snapped.
He smiled before lowering his head back down. “You can come,” he said against her sex before nibbling on her clit.
She let out a scream as her body vibrated, and she was finally pushed over the edge. Her hearing was momentarily lost as she tried to catch her breath. Kit moved his way up her body and lined his cock up with her entrance.
“Shit, I don’t have a condom,” he said.
“I’m clean and on birth control,” she assured him, her voice coming out breathless.
He seemed to be thinking for a second before he nodded.
She was too caught up in the most powerful orgasm she ever had to worry about his size. But as soon as he entered her, she was completely full. He groaned as he filled her to the hilt. Both of their bodies were covered with sweat.
“You feel so good, baby.”
She hooked her legs around his waist while he relentlessly pounded into her. His balls slapped against her ass. His stomach rubbed against her clit, adding to the orgasm that she hadn’t come down from yet. The headboard hit against the wall, but she could barely hear it in her daze--the room filled with the scent of her arousal.
“Fuck!” he groaned before emptying herself inside of her.
They stayed like that for a moment, both catching their breaths. Once they’d both come down from their high, Kit focused his blue eyes on her.
His lips twisted in a smile. “Again?”
She nodded. “Again.”
*****
“Thirsty?”
Cam jumped at the sound of Jen’s voice.
“You scared the shit out of me,” she whispered in the dark kitchen. She turned the faucet off and set her glass down before facing Jen. “What are you doing up?”
Jen opened the fridge. “As if anyone could sleep with you two going at it.”
Her cheeks heated up. Was she that loud?
“Don’t be embarrassed. It’s better than the buzz from your vibrator.”
“Shut up. There is no way you could hear that.”
Jen raised an eyebrow at her but didn’t say anything. Jen grabbed a piece of cold pizza out of the fridge and took a bite.
“So, is he any good?” Jen asked, her eyes zeroing in on Kit’s shirt that Cam had thrown on over her pajama shorts.
“Oh my god, I don’t ask you about Hugo.”
“You can, and I’d tell you how big his--”
“Okay, that’s enough.” Cam shoved her fingers in her ears, not wanting to think about Hugo and Jen’s sex life.
Jen laughed and took another bite of pizza. “Fine, but are things getting serious between you two?”
Cam pulled her fingers from her ears and let them hang at her side. “Yeah, I think so.”
They hadn’t talked about it, but after tonight, nothing more needed to be said.
Jen smiled. “I’m glad you got someone to clean out the cobwebs.”
Cam flipped her the bird before walking out of the kitchen and back to the bedroom.
*****
“Are you sure about this?” she asked him, for what felt like the hundredth time. “This is going to be on your skin forever.”
“Nothing lasts forever,” he said beside her in the truck.
“Tattoos do.”
She fiddled with her sketch pad as they got closer to the tattoo shop. Kit didn’t even want to look at the drawing. When she’d told him she had finished the tattoo, he’d simply said, “Alright, let’s go to the shop.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to see it?”
He pulled the truck up to a store with big windows on the front. Namaste Ink. The store name was written in window painting with big colorful letters that looked like graffiti. Whoever owned the store was at least talented. Why didn’t Kit just have the person at the shop draw his tattoo? He turned off the truck and rested a hand on her thigh. The feel of his touch sent flutters of butterflies to her stomach. After their first night together, Kit had been staying at the house pretty often. He fixed the air conditioner last week, so they didn’t have to sleep with the box fan on anymore. He still hadn’t returned her truck yet, and she got the feeling that he liked driving her around.
“Stop stressing out. I trust you.”
Her heart melted at his words.
“And if it’s bad, I can always get a cover-up,” he continued.
She slapped his arm and laughed. “Come on, let’s go.”
The door let out a chime as they opened it. Kit held the door so she could walk in first. A familiar man sat behind the counter.
“What’s up you guys?”
“Ace, how’s it going?” Kit slapped his hand .
Ace--that was his name. She was getting pretty good at learning all their names, but sometimes, it still slipped her mind.
“Good. Slow day, but I’m good. Getting matching tattoos?”
She let out a laugh. There was no way she was getting under a tattoo gun anytime soon.
“Just me,” Kit said.
Cam pulled the notebook from under her arm and set it down on the counter. Kit looked away as she showed Ace the drawing.
“Oh shit, this is good,” he said.
“Thanks. I’ve never really drawn a tattoo before, so if there’s anything you need to change--”
“Nope!” Kit interrupted. “I want exactly what she’s drawn.’
Ace rolled his eyes before focusing back on her. “How do you put up with him?”
She laughed. “One day at a time.”
“Alright, well, let me copy this and get the station ready.”
He took the notebook away to a back office area. Kit grabbed her hand, and they each sat in one of the green waiting chairs. They were the only people in the shop. One of the walls was filled with basic drawings--roses, butterflies, skulls, etc. The faint scent of cleaning supplies and rubbing alcohol hung in the air.
“Are you nervous?” she asked Kit.
“No, after so many tattoos, you almost become immune to it. Sometimes, it’s like I crave some new ink.”
“Does that mean you’re planning on covering the rest of your body?” She couldn’t imagine him covered head to toe with tattoos.
He shook his head. “No. I’m just filling in any empty spots where I already have something going on.”
“I’m ready for you,” Ace called from another area of the shop.
She followed Kit as he walked through an archway that opened up to a few different stalls. Ace must have a couple other people that work with him because she could see that the other stations held family pictures and other personal items.
Kit sat down in the black, leather chair at Ace’s station. He had the colors lined up and his tattoo gun sat beside them. She sat on a small chair in the corner of his station and watched him work. Ace shaved Kit’s arms and rubbed it down with an alcohol pad. She watched in amazement as he stuck the outline on Kit’s clean skin. Even though it was only a purple outline of the image, she could already tell it would come out great.
“Are you sure you don’t want to see the placement before we get started?” Ace asked Kit.
He nodded. “I’m good.”
Ace got to work, bringing her artwork to life on Kit’s arm. He used a perfect mix of reds and oranges to make the tiger and lioness look vibrant. Kit didn’t even flinch. He mostly kept his eyes closed and let his head hang over the back of the chair, as if the noise of the tattoo gun and the needle going through his skin didn’t bother him in the slightest. Two hours later and Ace gave a final wipe of Kit’s skin. The tiger looked better than it had on paper. The two scars down the length of the tiger’s body were red and fierce. The lioness had one an angry scar down her face. The part that drew her attention was the lioness whose head rested on top of the tiger’--two different animals. Different scars on their bodies, but they stood strong with each other.
“Alright, you’re all done. You want to see before I wrap it up?” Ace asked.
Kit stood from the chair and walked over to the mirror. She held her breath as he got a look. He didn’t say anything for a minute.
She opened her mouth to explain but lost her courage and closed it again. What if he hated it?
“It’s us?” he asked.
She nodded. His lips lifted into a smile.
“I’m the scarred tiger.”
She nodded again.
“I think this is the best tattoo I have.”
She let out a sigh of relief. “Thank god.”