Chapter Seventeen
Tucker
It’s six in the morning. Usually, I’m up with the sun, half finished with camp chores and fueled by two or three cups of coffee. Today, I’ve still got Tilly tucked against my chest, a little hum in her throat with each exhale.
It’s perfect and I don’t want to let her go, but Lord knows I don’t have a choice.
I’ve got to deal with whatever’s at the door and I have to deal with it now.
I scrub my hand down over my face and slide up from the bed carefully, tucking a pillow under Tilly’s arm where I was laying a second ago.
She looks so peaceful there in my bed, my T-shirt hanging off of her, her hair a wild mess, the scent of her pleasure in the room.
My cock stirs just thinking about the sounds she made last night, the way she bounced on my dick in the truck before we even came inside, the way I walked in on her touching herself, and the way I bent her over the desk and spanked that round ass. It’s all like a dream I never thought possible.
I blow out a breath and refocus. There’s too much to think about this morning. I can’t be getting lost in thoughts of her thighs or I might crawl back into this bed and let the moment bury me.
A heavy knock hits the door.
Jesus Christ. I toss on my jeans, and I pull on my shirt as I make my way to the solid wood door at the front of the cabin. I’m half expecting it to be the asshole looking for his ransom, but it’s Atlas’ shadow that’s casting onto the front porch.
“What the fuck, dude?” I swing the door open and step outside, trying not to wake Tilly.
“Not all of us are playing house this morning,” Atlas groans. “I’ve got a big fucking problem.”
“What could possibly be wrong now?” I groan as I stare down into the valley where campfire smoke puffs in the distance. It’s a cool morning, and the air is crisp. If it weren’t for all this bullshit, it would be the perfect fall day.
“Bowers never showed up with his cash last night.”
“What do you mean he didn’t show up? Why wouldn’t he show up? Last night was move night, right?”
Atlas nods. “That’s the fucking problem, man. I don’t know what’s going on. I can’t get ahold of him on the burner, and with this asshole coming to collect, we were counting on that money.”
My head is pounding. “Okay, so… I don’t fucking know. Without Bower’s, we don’t have enough to pay the ransom. I’ve got like fifty grand in a coffee can, but I don’t think he’s taking negotiations.”
Atlas nods and grips the edge of the porch. “We have like ten minutes to figure this out. There’s got to be something of value around here.”
I laugh. “We don’t have shit. All we have of value is this campground, and I don’t think he’s going to take that on trade. Might raise a few flags.”
Atlas huffs low under his breath, and we’re both staring off into the distance when a pickup truck I don’t recognize pulls into view, stones popping beneath the tires.
I’m not sure what’s going through my head as the man parks and climbs out. I’m doubly lost when Bowers slides out the passenger side door and makes his way up the driveway toward us, but I’ve got the feeling things are getting exponentially worse.
The taste of prison food is already on my tongue.
Atlas crosses his arms over his chest and stands with purpose, as though he’s ready to take whatever these people throw.
I’m not sure I’m feeling as calm or composed. In fact, that thing I told Tilly earlier about not being a killer might be a complete lie an hour from now.
“Gentleman,” the asshole says, climbing the steps up onto the old pine wood porch I should’ve gotten around to replacing this summer, “I assume you know my colleague.”
He doesn’t explain the situation further, and Bowers doesn’t say a word, though I don’t suppose they need to. Clearly, Bowers was a rat. I knew something was off about that deal.
“We don’t have the money,” I say, “so you should go. Call the police, tell your boy, do what you have to. You’re not getting a penny.”
“We can afford one fifty,” Atlas says, stepping forward. “That’s all we have.”
“That’s too bad,” the man continues, his hand in his pocket. “My partner and I are going to need two hundred to make this a solid deal.”
The morning wind carries the scent of roasted coffee beans from the campers below.
“Well then, we don’t have a solid deal,” I groan. “Do what you have to.”
“No,” Atlas insists, that damn crow cawing again in the background. “We’ll get the rest of the money. We just need more time.”
The asshole steps forward, the gun in his pocket on display like he’s trying to intimidate us. “That’s not going to work. The money transfer was for—”
He’s halfway through his sentence when the sheriff pulls up… because why the fuck not?
I swear to fucking God this day couldn’t get any worse. Why do I have a feeling this was Tilly thinking she was helping?
“Boys,” Sheriff Williams nods as he steps up the stairs with a folder in his hand, “I have that paperwork all signed and ready to go.”
I think he’s spent more time on his mustache than usual this morning.
“Paperwork?”
“Yes!” Sheriff Williams nods. “We talked about it yesterday. You wanted to sell me the campground for the youth program Mira and I are going to run.”
I glance down at the contract offering one hundred thousand dollars. It’s far less than this place is worth, but I know what he’s doing.
He glances toward Bowers and the ass as though he’s oblivious to what’s going on. “These guys are making a killing on me, but this place is going to do some real good for the community. I can already see the city kids down here learning how to start fires and roast marshmallows.”
This is robbery, but it’s the only choice we have.
Atlas bumps my shoulder and tugs me aside. “We should do it.”
“We would get four times this,” I whisper low. “Maybe five.”
Atlas rolls his eyes and tugs his hair up off his shoulders. “What good is any of that going to do us in prison?”
He’s not wrong. I know that, but fuck.
“We’ll sign the paperwork,” Atlas says, reaching for the sheriff’s folder. “Thanks for stopping by.”
His name is in ink within seconds, and soon he’s handing everything to me.
“There’s cash in my truck to cover the payment.” The sheriff clears his throat. “I figured this was easiest given Mira and I would like to take ownership as quickly as possible. We’d like to get a few rounds of kids down here before the snow flies.”
This feels a lot like making a deal with the devil, but up until recently, my life’s been hell, so I guess this is how it was always meant to be. I lean against the shaky porch rail and sign my name beneath Atlas’ signature, transferring ownership of the campground to the sheriff.
That’s it… it’s over. Whatever we were doing here… is over. The campground and the business… Serenity Pines now belongs to someone else.
That reality is still hitting me as the sheriff sets a duffle of cash on the porch and drives away.
“Looks like your Hail Mary came through,” the asshole says, his tone sharp as he lifts the bag and walks away. “This is the last you’ll hear of us. Good luck, guys.”
In less than twenty minutes, we’ve lost both our home and our livelihood. Some might say we deserve it. Hell, I might say that, but fuck if it still doesn’t sting.
“What are you going to do about your family’s property? I have fifty grand you can have, but—”
“No thanks. I need to take a walk, man. I’ll catch up with you.” Jaw clenched, Atlas hops off the side porch and makes his way across the field toward the back trail where the waterfall is flowing extra hard this time of year.
What the hell am I going to do?
I’ve barely started thinking about the next step when the cabin door cracks open and my sweet, nosy, little princess steps out, wiping her eyes as though she’s been sleeping.
“You can ditch the innocent act. When did you have time to call your brother?”
“What?” she says sweetly, tipping up onto her toes in front of me for a kiss. “What are you talking about? Did the men come to get their money?”
I nod. “When did you call your brother?”
There’s a long pause where she only stares up at me. “Last night before we got into bed. I only told him you were in trouble and that you needed some help. He fought me on it, but… I love you, Tucker. I had to do—”
“You love me?” My chest tightens as I stare down at everything I’ve ever wanted.
“Yeah,” she nods, swallowing the lump in her throat, “I love you. I don’t want you to go back to prison. Not now, not ever, so… I called my brother, and he said he’d think of something. What did he do?”
Another cool breeze passes through, knocking the wind chimes together.
“He bought the campground from me. Said he was going to use it for that youth center he and Mira wanted to start.”
“What? He bought the campground?” She pushes her hand back through her hair as the wind gusts. “I’m guessing he took it for a steal, didn’t he?”
I nod and blow out a heavy breath. “He did, but that’s okay. We needed the money, and he had it to give.”
“So what now? Where do you live? Where does Atlas go?”
I blow out a heavy breath and pull Tilly close to my chest. “Atlas is still figuring things out, but I’ve got Kade’s old place down in Whiskey Falls for the time being.” I kiss the top of her head and breathe her in. “You’re welcome to join me.”
She hooks her hands around my waist. “Are you sure? What would that look like? You need to sell me on it.”
“Well,” I sigh, “probably a whole lot of me bossing you around day and night. You up for that?”
A grin stretches onto her face as she tips up onto her toes. “That sounds perfect, Daddy.”
I squeeze her round ass and lean into her lips with a moan.
I’m not sure what the future brings, or where we’re headed, but something tells me everything will work itself out.