by Deb Rotuno
“I know; she told me most of that,” I stated when he trailed off. “She didn’t want trouble between us, nor did she want to hurt you.”
“Nah, I’ll live. I mean, seeing you two together, I know it was just…bullshit in my head. She and I made a good team, and that felt cool and all, but she’s better with you. I see it. I envy what you two have. It’s just… All this shit happening, you know? You’re like my little brother, man. I’d never fuck you over like that.”
I studied his face, my hackles still a little…prickly. If he’d been anyone else, I might have taken it further. If he’d overstepped or made her uncomfortable about it all, I’d have handed him his ass on a silver platter. But he was my flesh and blood, and I knew they’d depended on each other for survival—Sara had told me that much. I also knew he’d always thought her to be pretty, even before I’d stepped foot in Shelly’s Bar that fateful night, the night I’d truly met Sara. I also saw that where she was my other half, he merely was attracted to her, had developed a small bond, and that caused me to finally let it go.
Swallowing thickly, I finally said, “I don’t like it, Derek. I understand it, but I don’t like it. She’s my wife…one of the most important people I busted my fucking ass to get back to, so…”
He shook his head profusely. “No, Jack. I… She’s fucking awesome, but…no.”
Smirking, I nodded. “She is that. I still need to thank you again for taking care of them when I couldn’t.”
“I’d do it again, cousin. No question.”
When I relaxed, he sighed in relief, holding out his fist, and I bumped it, wincing at the sting from punching Matthews.
“Brody, on the other hand…” he continued.
Sneering at that, I sighed deeply. “He’s trouble. He’s always been trouble, Derek. And his selfish nature and that temper of his is gonna get someone hurt…or killed.” I shook my head. “I won’t allow him to jeopardize that camp, my family. I won’t. We need to have a long chat when we get back.”
“Or…” Derek said, drawing out the word. “We bring him on that Klamath Lake run.”
Smiling, I nodded. “Maybe. Though I have a feeling Sara’s coming along for that one, which means my dad and Joel need to stay back at camp.”
“That works,” he agreed, and we both looked up when the shuffle of leaves and the snapping of dry twigs met our ears.
“Well, what’choo know,” Derek sang, silently picking up his compound bow. “We’ll be home sooner than we thought.”
He was a stunning buck, with strong muscles and dark eyes that couldn’t quite see us yet. It was almost a shame to remove him, but we needed him. Derek’s arrow let loose, and the thump to the ground roused the two boys.
“C’mon, Quinn…Josh,” I called, standing up to kick dirt onto the remaining fire embers. “We’ll make it home in time for breakfast.”
Chapter 2
JACK
Clear Lake, Oregon
5 months & 3 weeks after Hurricane Beatrice
IT WAS A BRIGHT MORNING when we pulled back into camp. Most everyone was up and about, though I didn’t see Sara. Freddie was sitting with my parents at the table, along with some of the other kids, but he was up and rushing to me in an instant.
“Dad!” He grunted when I picked him up. “How’d it go?”
“You tell me, bud,” I said with a chuckle, practically hanging him over the trailer attached to the four-wheeler where the buck was.
“Whoa,” he gasped, clawing at my arms to bring him upright. “Did’joo shoot him?”
I laughed at his red face. “Actually, no. That was all Derek.”
“Awesome,” he whispered, giving Derek a fist bump when my cousin walked by.
“Thank you, thank you,” Derek said, giving a dramatic bow and a wink Freddie’s way, only to ruffle his hair.
“Where’s Mom?” I asked my son as he grumpily ran his fingers through his hair to straighten it out.
“Sleepin’. She had watch duty last night.”
“Again?”
“Yeah, something about Jesse being a new daddy.” He leaned closer to my face. “Do babies ever sleep? Baby Zoe cries all the time!”
Laughing, I shook my head as I carried him to the porch and sat down with him on my lap. “You didn’t. You were wide awake every minute!”
“Nuh-uh,” he argued, rolling his eyes at me.
“Oh, yes sir. You, my son, were a crazy man.”
He grinned but looked over when the kids at the table laughed.
“Should you be doing schoolwork?”
He shrugged, looking up at me pleadingly. “I don’t want to. I want to target practice with you.”
“School first, buddy. I think that’s Mom’s condition, right?”
He wrinkled his nose, and it looked so much like my belligerent Sara that I couldn’t help but laugh, but I gently pinched his chin between my thumb and forefinger, making sure he looked me in the eye.
“You promised her, Freddie. Don’t break your word. That’s important, kiddo.” I sighed, realizing I had to apologize to my wife for doing just that, but I focused on my son. “Look, things have changed, the world is crazy, but that doesn’t mean we have to forget who we are, what kind of people we are. Okay? If a man promises something, he needs to follow through.” When he nodded forlornly, I patted the side of his face. “That being said, I promised I’d help you with target practice, but only after you’ve finished with your school stuff.”
“So…later?”
“Definitely,” I vowed, kissing his forehead.
“Janie too? ’Cause she’s really good.”
Grinning, I nodded. “Janie too.”
“Okay, cool.” He scrambled down from my lap and ran back to the table to rejoin the group.
I helped Derek and Quinn string up the deer, but it was Hank who was going to help with dressing it. He hobbled my way, gripping my shoulder before patting Derek’s and then Quinn’s.
“Nice job, boys,” he praised, nodding slowly as he assessed the buck.
“How’s that leg?” I asked him.
“Bah, I’ll live. It’s healing okay, according to your mother. Though, these last few chilly mornings, it’s achy as all hell.”
“It’s gonna be a miserable winter,” Joel added, joining us. “We really should consider jackass’s suggestion of relocating. At least take a look…” He jerked a chin toward the far side of the lake, where Mose and Brody were adding another section of fencing.
“Not until I’m not limping,” Hank grumbled.
“I agree. And only because if we go, Brody will want to go too. As will Sara. I can’t make any promises that he’ll come back,” I stated firmly, shrugging a shoulder.
“That boy,” Hank sighed, shaking his head. “I don’t know… I used to think his problem was due to the loss of his mother all those years ago. I mean, he was about Freddie’s age when they had the car accident, and Leo tended to let shit slide with him because of it, maybe more so because he’d lost his ability to walk, but now I’m not so sure.” He looked to me. “When Sara ended things with him, it wasn’t just the cheating or the drinking, though that was a huge part of it, but he’d control her, manipulate her into thinking she needed to be a certain way. She quickly got tired of it—Sara’s always been damn strong, so she wasn’t changing for anyone. It was why I liked you, son. You never expected anything but just…Sara.”
I grinned, shrugging a shoulder. “She’s perfect the way she is. Why would I change that?”
He snorted but smiled indulgently, especially when Joel and Derek laughed. “But he got worse, so I chalked it up to a broken heart and all that shit, but…no. Leo always thought that Brody was kicking himself over losing Sara to you, but really, he’s just…angry. I don’t think it has anything to do with you or Sara. Without Leo here to control him, he’s getting worse, and he’s aiming it at everyone around him.”
“Which is damned dangerous, Hank,” Derek warned, raising an eyebrow. “He’s g
onna lash out at the wrong person or slack off at the wrong time, maybe even let something slide out of revenge. He’s been warned and threatened by everyone in this camp, and he’s been punched by too many.”
“I know,” Hank sighed again, nodding a little and readying his knife. “I promised his father I’d always watch over him, way before all this virus stuff, and we need the extra strong back around here, so I can’t—in good conscience—kick him out of here. I mean, where would he go? I don’t know what to do.”
“You know,” Derek muttered softly, “some people are just born mean and selfish. And there’s nothing gonna change that.” He shrugged. “He’s all about himself, not to mention that he truly blames Sara for Leo, and that makes him dangerous in this camp.”
“I agree,” I said, letting out a deep breath. “He’s got one more snide remark, one more accusation aimed at my wife, before I truly hand him his ass, Hank. I’m not kidding. The things I’ve heard from people, from Freddie and Sara—even the little bit I’ve witnessed… I won’t have it. I honestly don’t care why he’s an asshole. Dr. Phil doesn’t live in this damn camp. We do. He either shuts the fuck up, or…”
Hank nodded, gripping my shoulder. “I don’t blame you, Jack. And I agree. The first night I stepped foot in this camp, he was fighting with her, and after all I saw, it was all I could do not to break his damn neck. Maybe when we do scope out Klamath Lake, we’ll get a chance to talk to him.”
“I’m not sure talkin’ will do much good, Hank,” Joel stated with a grunt as he started to work on the buck. “Though, fists aren’t working either…”
I raised my eyebrows at Hank. “He’s got a point.”
“Well, I’ll see if I can talk to him,” Hank said, essentially ending it because Mose and Brody were coming closer.
Glancing around, I asked, “Joel, where’s Sasha?”
Joel grinned. “Probably sleeping with Sara. She was up all night with her too.”
Chuckling, I nodded. “Fair enough. I’d better go check in on them, then.”
I shot a wave to Mose as I passed through the camp, smirking at Brody’s bruised and battered face. Between Sara’s punch and my own, he looked to be pretty bashed up. Something about that was damned satisfying. Even better was that he was ignoring me. Waving at a few more people from the cabin, I stepped inside and grimaced that it was a touch chilly.
I stoked the fire, added another log in the fireplace, and quietly pushed open the door to our room. I couldn’t help but chuckle softly. Sara was curled up with Sasha, the big Rottweiler’s head on my pillow and Sara’s wrapped hand buried in dark fur. I scratched Sasha’s head and dropped a light kiss to Sara’s temple, which caused her to stir.
“You’re home,” she mumbled.
“Yes, ma’am. Get some sleep, Shortcake. I’ll be around when you get up.”
“No,” she whined, reaching for me.
“There’s no room,” I said with a laugh. “It seems I’ve been replaced and betrayed. You women, I swear…”
Sara’s giggle was light and easy but muffled by the pillow as she scratched Sasha’s face. “She’s cuddly.”
“She is, but she’s gotta move. C’mon, Sasha. I’ll let you out.”
Sasha hopped down from the bed and followed me to the front door. She trotted outside, aiming for Freddie and the rest of the kids.
When I walked back into the bedroom, I closed the door. Sara was curled up in a tight ball, and I shrugged out of my hoodie and yanked my T-shirt over my head as I toed off my boots. Once I’d stepped out of my jeans, I slipped in beside her, pulling her close.
“Jesus,” I hissed. “Baby, you’re free-eezing,” I sputtered when she put cold toes and fingers against my skin.
“Well, yeah,” she said into my neck. “You let my personal space heater outside to pee.”
Chuckling, I kissed her forehead and the palm of her wrapped wrist. “My bad.”
I pulled her closer so she’d warm up, but I stayed quiet. I had every intention of letting her go back to sleep, maybe even catch some sleep with her. I’d stayed up most of the night while we were gone. Tin-can alarm or not, I didn’t feel safe dozing off in the middle of the damn woods.
The fact that she was so cold made me consider Joel’s statement about winter. Brody Matthews may be a selfish asshole, but he had a point. There were too many of us, not enough cabins, and winter was right around the corner. Fall was already upon us, and it was chilly up in the mountains. We had children to think about, not to mention two older men who would not take the cold well. The RVs wouldn’t provide enough warmth for the snow that was sure to come.
Sara shifted, pulling back to look up at me with sleepy-sweet eyes. “You’re tense as hell, Jack…”
Shaking my head, I kissed her lips. “Sorry. Just thinking.”
“Did the hunt go okay?”
“Yes ma’am, we caught a buck before light this morning. Your dad and Joel are dressing it now.” I swallowed nervously because I needed to come clean. “I um… I owe you an apology, Sara.” When she frowned, I blurted it all out. “I know I promised I wouldn’t say anything, but I couldn’t stop myself. I saw… You’re right… Derek is…was…”
Her nose wrinkled a little. “Oh shit. Just tell me you two are okay.”
I nodded, kissing her lips again. “We’re fine. I wasn’t going to say anything, but…”
I trailed off. The only excuse I had was that I was stupid when it came to my wife and son, and I was protective and possessive. I was even worse when it came to my cousin. His being five years older than I was only made us competitive over damn near everything.
Sara’s fingers, now much warmer, tilted my gaze to hers. “You know nothing happened, Jack.”
I tsked. “I know. I know, Sara! I just… I busted my ass to get back to you, only to find…”
She was shaking her head. “Nope. You didn’t find anything but Freddie and me, happy to see you.” When I smirked, she kissed my nose. “Now…why are you apologizing?”
“Ah,” I scoffed a little. “I’d promised not to say anything.”
“Yes, well…I didn’t exactly take that promise seriously, Jack Chambers. You’ve always been pretty vocal about us.”
Grinning, I shrugged a shoulder. “You’re not mad?”
“You swear you two are okay?” she countered, and when I nodded, she smiled again. “Then no, not mad.” She studied my face. “What else?”
“I think… I think that we ought to consider the fact that this camp is too small, especially with the coming winter. It’s already pretty damn chilly, and it’s only the beginning of October.”
“Oh, God. That means Brody’s right,” she groaned, wearing a disgusted look on her beautiful face.
Laughing, I buried it into her neck. “Well, with who may be going on the scouting trip, he’ll have no one to gloat to.”
“I want to go.”
“I know you do, but what about Freddie?” I asked her honestly. “I don’t know about leaving him, but taking him?”
“Who else is going?”
“Umm, your dad, for sure. Derek, probably. Maybe Ruby and Lexie. I don’t know. Quinn is good to take.”
Sara took a deep breath and let it out. “If Freddie goes, I know I can keep watch over him. Leaving him makes me nervous, Jack. But I’d like to see these lodges Brody’s talking about. Besides, if we both go, he’ll—”
“Yeah, I know.” I kissed her lips to hush her. If both of us went, Freddie would lose his mind. “He wants to target practice later; maybe I can talk to him then…”
“He’s determined to help. So far, he’s only shot one zeak, and he froze then, which worries me, but it was understandable. The fishing thing… That’s important to him because he feels he’s contributing. He’s seven going on fifty.”
I laughed but nodded. “We’ve created a stubborn yet brave little monster, Shortcake.”
Grinning with pride, she nodded, reaching up to rake her fingers through my hair. “We
have. I love him with an insanity.”
“Me too. He’ll probably rule this new world with an iron fist.”
“Good,” she breathed, but a shiver racked her frame.
“Still cold?” I asked, skimming my hands up and down her back under her shirt. Her dark-blue eyes met mine as my hands slipped beneath the band of her shorts, and I smirked at her deep moan when I gripped her ass. “You know, I know an excellent way to warm up, Shortcake.”
“Mm, I bet,” she purred, gripping my hair and pulling me closer. “Why do I think it involves the removal of clothes…?”
“Mm, maybe.” When my hand pressed between her legs from behind, I moaned at the feel of her wet already. “Damn, baby…that was fast,” I crooned as my lips and tongue trailed along her throat.
“Dream,” she hissed, arching back into my touch as I continued to glide my fingers around her entrance, up to her clit, only to squeeze her ass again. Over and over… I couldn’t stop myself.
“About?” I dragged the word out, nipping her skin with my teeth when she barely breathed the word “you.”
Rolling her over, I slipped my fingers up her shirt, pushing it off her. Grabbing the sides of her shorts, I quickly tugged them down.
“Me what, Sara?” I asked against tightly peaked nipples and smooth skin. “What was I doing to you, baby?”
Trailing kisses across her sternum, her belly, and over each hip bone, I waited for her answer, which finally came as a chanting, “Your mouth, your mouth…everywhere.”
“That’s what I was hoping you’d say.”
Spreading her legs, I nipped the skin along the inside of her thigh, snorting when she babbled incoherently about not shaving and hair and nonsense.
“Not concerned, Sara,” I crooned, though internally I rolled my eyes. There were circumstances beyond control here, so a bit of hair or stubble didn’t bother me one bit; I was just ridiculously happy she continued to let me do naughty things to her. “I just want to taste you, baby.”