by Bella Jewel
CAMP NERD
BELLA JEWEL 2022
Also by Bella Jewel
Jokers' Wrath MC
Bestie
Rumblin' Knights
Knights Rising
Knights Fury
Knights Lady
Knights Burden
Walker Hills
Camp Nerd (Coming Soon)
Standalone
Amore - Boxed Set
Wild Child
Table of Contents
Title Page
Also By Bella Jewel
DEDICATION | To my loyal readers, | This series is for each and every one of you. | Without you, I would be nothing. | Thank you xx
~*CAMP NERD*~
CAMP NERD | Copyright © 2022 Bella Jewel
~*ACKNOWLEDGMENTS*~
PROLOGUE
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
FOUR WEEKS LATER
THE END
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DEDICATION
To my loyal readers,
This series is for each and every one of you.
Without you, I would be nothing.
Thank you xx
~*CAMP NERD*~
All rights reserved. This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any form without prior written permission of the publisher, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorized distribution, circulation or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly. Thank you for respecting the work of this author.
CAMP NERD
Copyright © 2022 Bella Jewel
CAMP NERD is a work of fiction. All names, characters, places and events portrayed in this book either are from the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, establishments, events, or location is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
~*ACKNOWLEDGMENTS*~
As always, my heartfelt thanks to every single blogger, reader and author that has supported my journey. From reading my books, to sharing them, to raving about them, to being there for me. Thank you. My career would be nothing without any of you.
A massive thanks to the team at Valentine PR for taking me on, especially to Kim and Nina for helping me with this release and this new series. I am looking forward to working with you all on this book and future books, and I’m incredibly grateful for the hard work you all do.
A massive thanks to Ben Ellis from Tall Story Designs for this gorgeous cover. You’re the easiest, most efficient person I’ve ever worked with. You make my covers absolutely gorgeous every single time. I couldn’t do it without you.
To my favorite editor Wendi from Ready, set, edit, for always coming through for me on my edits, whenever I need them. You’re amazing and I’m so thankful to you. You’re super easy to work with and so nice. I’m glad to team up with you for these things.
And of course, to my admin, MJ, for ALWAYS keeping my page running beautifully. I couldn’t do it without you, girly. I love your teasers and your passion; thank you for taking the time out of your life to help this poor girl keep everything running.
To my good friend Melissa from next door, for always reading my books. I hope you see this, and I hope it makes your day. Thank you for giving my work a chance and always being the first in to get my books when they come out. You’re awesome!!
And, last but certainly not least, to my loyal readers. To each and every one of you that picks up my books and give me a chance. To the reviews you write, good or bad. To the time you take to make me a better person. You make this real for me; never stop giving such love and passion. You make our journey so amazing.
PROLOGUE
Shuddering, Emelia has no choice but to go closer to the body on the ground. As blood pools around the young woman’s head, she’s forced to accept the fact that she’s dead. Her soul, no longer with us on this empty earth ...
For crying out loud.
What the hell is wrong with me today? Empty earth? Someone needs to take me out of this empty bloody earth. I might as well throw my notebook on the ground and burn it, that’s how terrible my work is.
Why can’t I write today?
I slap my pen on my knee, as if that’ll change the utter trash coming from it.
Now I’m blaming the pen.
Exhaling, I swipe a sweaty strand of hair off my forehead and look up at the blazing sun. It could take a break, honestly. Why is it always so aggressive? I mutter a curse and find a shadier spot by a large tree. Leaning against it, I open my notebook.
Try again.
She wonders, as she nears the lifeless from, if he’s here. The man in the shadows. The man who has been everywhere, and yet, she can never get close. Is he the reason behind this murder? Is he the cold-blooded killer?
Great, now I sound like I’m writing in a bad doco series about murderers.
Surely, I can come up with something better than cold-blooded killer?
Death-defying monster?
Sweet mother of God.
Soulless monster?
So original.
I should just stick with band life and stay the hell away from writing.
But ... I know it’s in there.
Something about putting pen to paper calls to me.
I just can’t seem to get it right. What’s in my head never comes out onto the paper the way it should. Mysteries are my life; I should be able to write them in my sleep. I’ve watched just about every movie ever made that has even the slightest mystery, not to mention I’ve read them all. This should be as effortless as walking, yet here I am, writing trash like cold-blooded killer.
Could I get anymore unoriginal?
Skin prickling, she stands and moves closer to the shadowy figure. Wondering if this time he’ll leave, if this time he’ll just disappear like he has every other time she has tried to get close. She knows he has something to do with this, and yet ... she knows nothing about him. A mystery man, a monster in the darkness, a murderer?
Better.
Still not great.
I slam my pen down and slap my notebook shut.
If this keeps up, the shadowy figure will jump out wearing a clown suit and tell her that he’s her long-lost father and has been following her for years.
I snort.
Maybe this little break we’re taking to some new ranch retreat might help clear my mind.
Open me up to some sort of incredible writing inspiration that’ll make me a bestseller.
A girl can only dream, right?
1
“Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, we’re the first people using this facility. What if something goes wrong? Nobody has tested anything which means there could be an accident.”
“You read way too many books,” my long-time friend Kara says, rolling her eyes. “It’s going to be great.”
I scrunch my nose as we drive into the massive ranch that we just so happen to be the first customers to. It was built and created by a man named Rhett Walker and, with his group of friends, they made it into this retreat. You�
�re supposed to come out here for a month at a time, help out around the ranch, do activities, hikes, swimming, water sports, and everything else you can possibly think of that will benefit your mental health.
I saw a news report about Rhett and why he decided to open this place. It was interesting. He comes from a strong country family, and the ranch has been passed down through his family, or something like that, but he decided to take it in a different way. In honor of his mother, who passed because of suicide, he decided to make a place where anyone and everyone could come, book the whole thing out, and take some time away from the world.
It's incredible.
Did I mention that the guys who run it look like they’re straight out of a western porno? I mean that in the best possible way, of course. They’re gorgeous, all muscled, tattooed, masculine men in flannels rolled up at the elbows, just like they should be. It’s like the new age cowboys. Gone are the clean-shaven faces, the tight blue jeans, and the big hats. These guys are mountain men. Big, burly mountain men. But they operate a ranch, so I guess they must be a little cowboy, too.
“I don’t know,” I murmur, staring out the window at the trees passing by as we near.
“You need to relax, Lei, you’re freaking out and, honestly, I think it’ll be great for us. We’re well overdue for a break, we’ve been working so hard for finals, and we need this time to regroup. Everyone needs this.”
We’re part of an orchestra. We play all around the capital cities, for events and groups who hire us out. We’re a big old group of nerds and we just competed in some of the biggest finals in the state and came in second. But the toll it took getting there was exhausting and with our prize money, we decided to put some toward a month here. Our sponsors were more than happy to help, so together, a group of eight of us booked in and here we are.
Not everyone could come, but the eight of us that did are more than ready for the break.
Rolling down beside the green pastures toward a house so big and beautiful it belongs in a movie. The bus comes to a stop in front of it, and I take a moment to admire the incredible sight before me. Cabins can be seen off into the distance a little, right behind a massive paddock to the left, filled with horses and cows. To the right is a huge barn and behind it you can see rolling hills and the start of what is said to be an epic lake. There are tracks disappearing into the hills behind the house and oh, it’s beautiful.
The house itself is one story, but it has this amazing wrap around deck that makes it stand out. It is creamy colored with a dark red roof. It is a grand old home, and it’s apparent that it has been around far longer than any of us. It would have some stories to tell if it could speak, of that, I’m sure. I can’t help but feel the incredible warmth it radiates. I would love to sit on the porch and just bury my nose into my notebook, writing as the chair beneath me creaks.
It's with that thought I notice what stands on that incredible porch.
Six gorgeous men, and when I say gorgeous, I mean blow your damned mind gorgeous. They’re all waiting for our arrival, dressed in flannel, some wearing hats, others not, all of them except maybe one boasting beards of different lengths and styles. They’re something else entirely and my heart skips a beat when I realize the owner, Rhett, is walking toward the bus. I recognize him from the newspaper article, but up close, he’s better looking than the photos showed.
I’m going to have to be the one to get down and greet him, after all, I am the person who organized all of this.
I get out of my chair, glancing down at Kara before walking toward the bus exit. The door opens, I take a step, and then the worst thing in the world happens. I stumble. I’m so focused on the man looking up at me, with his silver eyes, olive skin, dark hair, beard, and breathtaking face, that I don’t look at the step and completely miss it. I fall forward, almost in slow motion, and land right into the arms of Rhett.
The very second I realize what has happened, I leap backward, slamming my head into the open bus door. Shame rises into my cheeks as I stare at him, horrified. He probably thinks I’m an absolute idiot. I’m already nerdy, awkward, and shy, then I just went ahead and threw that into the mix. “Ah, sorry, I, ah ...”
Rhett grins. “That was certainly a unique entrance.”
My cheeks burn. “Awkward is my middle name.”
His grin gets bigger. “I’m Rhett.”
He extends a hand.
I shove my tiny hand out. “I’m Lei.”
His hand is big and wraps around mine. God damn, I don’t think I’ve ever touched something so perfect and yet so rugged in my life.
“Good to meet you, Lei Awkward.”
I laugh, but it sounds more like a hyena on crack than it does an elegant woman. I slam my mouth closed. My nervous laugh is horrific, and I can guarantee the poor guy is probably wondering what the hell he’s gotten into. He releases my hand and steps back as everyone else climbs off the bus. The sly grin on his face can’t be missed.
“Hey everyone,” Rhett says, when they all gather around, eyes wide as they take in all that he is. “Welcome to Walker Hills. You’re the very first out here, and we’re hopin’ to give you an extra special good time.”
Eeek.
Shit.
I adjust my top, pulling it down. It rode up when I fell. I suddenly feel very self-conscious around a man that looks like him, and we haven’t even met the other ones yet. They’re all watching from the deck, looking like perfect wax statues, they’re moving that little. It’s like they’re posed to be intimidating and perfect, because that’s exactly what they look like right now.
I wonder what they’re thinking of us.
We’re all on the nerdy side. None of us are stunningly good looking, we’re not out here flaunting bikinis just so we can get our hands on these guys. I’m certain they’ve had many groups of women trying to book in, purely to spend a month staring at them. Yet they chose us to be their first group, and I’m still uncertain why.
I’m petite—at least, that’s the word I prefer to use. I’m tiny. I’m barely five foot and that’s stretching. I’m a little curvier than I’d like, and my tummy jiggles a little too much. I wear glasses, the cutest pair I could find, and my hair is long, sandy brown, and thick. I usually keep it tied up because it’s too hard to control otherwise. I have freckles on my nose, and my skin isn’t that perfect porcelain all the beautiful girls have. My eyes are the color of murky pond water, and although I’d say I’m pretty enough, I’m certainly not the kind of girl these men would ever take a second glance at.
No.
But I’m okay with who I am.
“We’ll show you to your cabins, get you settled in, and then I’ll introduce you to everyone and go over how this will all work. Don’t be shy to ask for anythin’ you want or need, that’s what we’re here for.”
I swallow and give Rhett an awkward smile, because he’s grinning at me and I’m not sure why. He’s probably trying to hold back a laugh after he heard the sounds I made earlier. Or the fact that I fell out of the bus. Or the fact that I hit my head. All within five minutes of meeting him. I can only imagine how the conversation with his friends is going to go when we leave.
I shift uncomfortably.
“Lei, I’ll take you for a tour around before you settle in. Discuss what you want out of your time here.”
“Me?” I squeak, pointing to myself.
“You’re Lei, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Then let’s go.”
He’s so intense. His eyes don’t even waver as they scan over me.
“Are you sure?”
God. Shut up, Lei.
He grins. “Oh, I’m sure.”
Sweet mother of mercy.
Someone help.
“HAVE YOU BEEN ON A ranch before?” Rhett asks as we walk around the grand old house, a place that makes me feel so warm inside, I’m almost certain I could live here forever and just be completely content.
“No,” I tell him. “I’m
not really much of a country girl. I don’t even think I’ve been on a horse. I did go on a pony ride once.”
Oh lord, Lei, shut the hell up.
A pony ride?
Probably when I was four.
He doesn’t want to know that.
He chuckles. “Good to know. Can’t say I’ve got any ponies around here, but I’m sure we’ll manage.”
My cheeks burn.
“Oh, wonderful,” I squeak.
“You’re in the main cabin, closest to the house. I’ll debrief with you daily, get an idea on what you want to do for the day. We’ve got a range of options, but bein’ that we’re starting out, things might not run as effortlessly as you’d hope. So, we’re just goin’ to do the best we can.”
“I’m sure it’ll be great, we’re just happy to have a break,” I say.
“I’ll show you the barn.”
He leads me out of the house and toward the massive barn. As soon as we walk in, the smell of horses and hay makes me smile. I don’t have a lot to do with the country life, but oh my, could I live it so effortlessly. I walk up to the stall where a beautiful black horse is poking its head over the railing.
“Don’t let him fool you, Diablo is a fuckin’ monster and will take your hand off with one bite.”
I was mid-way through stretching my hand out toward the beautiful horse, but quickly pull it back in. “He’s so beautiful, though.”
“Beauty is a lie, sweetheart, it’s just a skin over the ugliest parts of us.”
I blink.
Would it be bad if I pulled my notebook out and wrote that down? Because that, that right there, that’s the kind of thing I want in my book.
I make a mental note to write it down later.
“Why is he so mean?”
Rhett stops, and looks at the black horse, giving it a squinty eyed look. “Because he’s a fuckin’ dick, that’s why. Born that way, die that way.”