Chapter 10
Griz stepped into the cabin just as Jay entered the kitchen. “Hey, Jay. This place is amazing. I just saw a hawk hunting for breakfast and a deer crossed my path.”
Jay paused and narrowed his gaze. “Shit, man, who the hell did you find to fuck out here?”
Panic swept through Griz. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Jay rolled his eyes. “You know exactly what I’m talking about. Is it the owner of the cabin?” Jay glanced over his shoulder then stepped closer. “You’re older than me but heck, you’ve still got it.”
Griz stepped around Jay and grabbed a mug before he turned back to Jay. “Keep it to yourself.”
“Griz, you’re back,” Sharp said as he entered the kitchen. “And you’re wearing the same clothes as last night. Dude, how did you find a woman out here to sleep with?”
“Good God, can you all just be chill?”
“Fine,” Sharp said. “Is it the woman who owns the cabin?”
He’d just picked up the coffee pot and set it back down before pouring. He turned to face the guys. “We figured out we knew each other from when we were kids. Her family owned the plot of land next to ours. We’ve been friends since we were four. She’s just a friend.”
Sharp chuckled. “Sure.”
“I have condoms,” Jay said.
Griz stared at his buddy, his eyebrows raised. “Wait, why do you have condoms?”
Jay shrugged. “Nichole is having some health issues, and we are using condoms for a while.”
“Oh man, I hope she gets better soon,” Sharp said.
Jay shrugged. “She’s having surgery when we get back. It’s not a huge deal and she will be okay. She’s a little sensitive about it so don’t say anything.”
Sharp nodded. “I won’t.”
“I’m going to go up and shower and change before anyone else comes down,” Griz said.
“It’s not the clothes, it’s the goofy grin,” Jay called out as Griz took the stairs up.
He shook his head. Jay was probably right about the goofy grin.
Elowen made him happy. He remembered one hot summer day they’d been at the creek because neither of their parents wanted them inside.
They’d been swimming in their underwear when he saw a snake.
He’d screamed and Elowen had grabbed the snake and flung it out of the water.
She’d always been a badass. He shouldn’t be surprised that she’d come out here and made this cabin into an amazing retreat.
The place was beautiful, and now that he knew she’d been the one responsible for everything, he could see her influence.
He took a quick shower and changed clothes, showing up downstairs about twenty minutes later. Everyone was in the kitchen. There was a fresh pot of coffee and Squat was making eggs, while Shine had the waffle iron going. Someone had cooked sausages and his stomach rumbled.
“Hey, everyone. Good morning.”
Amelia met his gaze and winked. What did that wink mean? He stepped over to the coffee pot and Asher turned away, her shoulder shaking.
He poured a mug then turned around and surveyed the room. Everyone knew. Jesus, was nothing secret in this group? He turned his gaze on Jay and frowned.
Jay lifted his hands, like he was trying too hard to prove his innocence. Griz’s frown deepened.
“What?” Jay asked.
“Did you tell?”
Jay shook his head. “You do realize we all have honed our skills of observations. We all knew you’d spent the night away.”
“We saw you walking back,” Rowan said.
“Yeah, it was hard to miss you basically skipping down the path,” Amelia said.
He grunted. “I wasn’t skipping.”
Nichole came over and put her hand on his arm. “We’re happy for you.”
He let go a heavy sigh. “It’s not like she’s a stranger.”
“Oh really?” Asher asked.
“Yeah. I knew her from childhood. We both grew up in the farmland of upper New York. Her family lived next door.”
“Wow,” Shine said. “That’s wild that you two ran into each other.”
“No wilder than you and Rowan finding each other.”
Shine shrugged. “Well, I thought it was kind of odd that we found each other.”
Sharp laughed. “When I ran into Danika, it blew my mind.”
“But I’m glad we found each other,” Danika said.
“I went looking for Amelia,” Apple said.
Jay hugged Nichole from behind. “It sucks how we reconnected, but I’m thankful we’re together.”
“I was emailing you,” Nichole said.
Jay kissed the side of her head. “I’m glad you wanted to see me again. The time we spent together at that resort was amazing.”
Squat pulled Asher close. “I should have gone home at some point and found you.”
She turned in his arms and smiled up at him. “At least we’re together now.”
Griz was happy for all his friends. They’d found people who fit them. Maybe there wasn’t someone for him. What if he was supposed to be alone?
“I think we should invite Elowen for lunch,” Danika said.
“Oh, good idea,” Nichole added.
Rowan nodded. “I was going to go pick more blackberries after breakfast. I’d like some fresh berries with yogurt later. I could ask her then.”
“Why don’t I just send a text to her?” Griz asked.
Rowan shook her head. “We wanted to go see her.”
Griz grunted. “You can be nosy later. I’m going to text her now.”
“Gosh, you’re no fun,” Rowan said.
“Nope. I’m not. Ask Shine. I’m an asshole.”
Shine’s laughter boomed throughout the room. “You pretend to be an ass, but you’re really a great guy.”
Griz huffed a laugh then sent the text asking Rowan to come to lunch. “Just be nice to her when she comes over.”
Danika threw her hand on her chest and gasped. “We’re always nice.”
He nodded. “You all are. I just don’t want her ever feeling embarrassed because we were intimate.”
Nichole snorted. “Jay and I were having sex the first night we met.”
Amelia waved. “I have a baby, proving Apple and I were busy long before we were serious about a relationship.”
Danika patted Sharp on the ass as she passed him. “I got Sharp into bed as fast as I could. Trust me, none of us will judge. You two are consenting adults, and that’s what matters.”
He didn’t know what to say. The guys had never really talked about sex, not with these women. He hadn’t known about Danika and Sharp. He didn’t think less of these women. Trusting his team came easy to him, and he should trust their women. The guys wouldn’t be involved if they didn’t trust.
His phone buzzed and he glanced at the screen. “She’s coming to lunch and bringing cookies.”
“Oh, cool,” Danika said.
“Now we need to plan lunch,” Nichole added.
Sharp stood. “We’re going fishing this morning. Do you want to plan lunch around grilled fish?”
Nichole nodded. “Sure. And if you don’t catch fish, we have some steak that we can cook.”
“Sounds good.”
They ate breakfast then headed out to the river that was close by.
They had few responsibilities this week, and he was enjoying just hanging out with his buddies.
Fishing wasn’t his favorite activity, but Shine and Apple proved to be excellent and caught four fish each.
The fish he caught wasn’t big enough to keep, so he tossed it back.
“Looks like the two of you caught enough for all of us,” Sharp said.
Apple threw back his head, laughter booming out. “We shall eat like kings because of my skills.”
Griz rolled his eyes. “You’re such a dork.”
Apple raised his hands over his head. “King of dorks!”
“So are you calling all of us dorks?” Jay asked.
“We know you’re a dork,” Shine said.
“Damn straight,” Jay said.
A hawk swooped down in the river, picking up a fish before flying away. They all stared in wonder at the hawk.
“Damn, that was impressive,” Apple said.
“Hawks are very impressive,” Jay said.
Squat opened the cooler and pulled out a beer. “You know, when I was in Alaska a few years ago we ran into bald eagles that were drowning. Not all together, but they go to dive and maybe it’s the chop of the water, or the fish is too big, and they get pulled under.”
“How many did you guys save?” Sharp asked.
“Five total over the course of the week. It was so weird.”
Apple grabbed a beer. “It’s been a while since I’ve had a beer before noon.”
“Yeah, last time was on vacation,” Jay said.
Griz grabbed a bottle of water. “When I first joined up, none of us were legal age, and we all thought we were hot because we would drink at seven in the morning when we got off night shift. We were in Italy, so we were legal there, but still, we were such idiots back then.”
Shine laughed. “The first time I went to Europe, I thought I was hot shit being able to drink at eighteen.”
They all chuckled. It was almost time to get back, so they packed up their gear then left the river. The walk back wasn’t long. Sharp, Shine, and Squat took over cleaning the fish and wrapping them for either storage or use at lunch.
“Wow,” Danika said when she came inside and saw the fish.
“That should be enough for lunch,” Nichole said.
Sharp nodded. “Should be.”
Griz checked his phone, seeing a text from Elowen. She was on her way over. “I’m going to jump in the shower.”
“Is Elowen on her way over?” Danika asked.
“Yes.” He took the stairs two at a time as his excitement grew. No question, he had to jerk off in the shower. He would need to be quick and quiet. The last thing he wanted was everyone knowing about his obsession for Elowen.