Fallen Crest Campout by Tijan

3

Samantha

The campsite was gorgeous—a clearing between massive redwood trees, with our own path leading to a beach. The water was sparkling and the sand so fine it was surreal. But the biggest surprise wasn’t the location or that as the lady had explained. There was another campsite right next to us. A path connected the two, with enough trees in between for privacy. The big shock was the three massive campers already in place next door, along with two others on the side.

“What the fuck?” Logan yelled.

Mason shared a look with me, a grin tugging at his mouth. “They got here fast.”

I grunted, “No doubt.”

The door opened on one of the campers and out walked Nate.

And walking wasn’t the best way to describe Nate. He strutted his way down the three steps, grinning wildly at us, and Matteo popped out right behind him. Nate always reminded me of Mason, since both were similar height and both had black hair. But over the years, Mason’s body had become more sculpted. It was a result from his job so maybe that was why Nate’s face seemed a bit more fuller than Mason’s chiseled jawline. Matteo was an inch shorter, more muscular than both Nate and Mason. He was proud of his Hawaiian ethnicity, but he seemed tanner than normal.

“Hell yeah!” Logan yelled. He was around the SUV in a flash, and the three guys were hugging and pounding each other’s backs.

Taylor sighed. “SBCers, all three of them.” She got out, but trailed behind at a slower pace.

Soul brotha connections.

Mason and I hung back.

I was in the twilight zone.

Mason should’ve been over there, hugging, pounding on the backs. Grins all around. He wasn’t. I knew this had nothing to do with Logan and Nate. Both guys were at our house constantly. Nate had recently been traveling more to Fallen Crest. There were issues going on with his family, so he and Mason had started calling each other more, but it was Matteo.

And guy tension was the worst tension there was.

Matteo hadn’t reached out to Mason. Mason had reached out, but was shut down so he didn’t call again. Matteo was close to Nate, so it wasn’t the issue where Matteo was talking shit about Mason. Nate and Logan would never stand for that, but the issue was that no one was talking about it.

It was felt. It was there. And the guys weren’t sure how to handle it.

Old Mason would rip into Matteo, but we’d been busy. We were across the country. Marriage. Careers. Our little Maddie. So, life happened and I was sure life was happening for Matteo too.

Matteo was a good guy. Always had been, but yeah, things were just weird right now.

I was almost hoping a fight would just handle this and everyone could go back to being normal.

Mason let out a sigh. “Logan’s pissed at me because I’m close to Channing.”

“Logan loves Channing.”

He shook his head. “But he’s pissed at how close I’ve gotten with Channing too.”

There was really nothing to say to that.

“And I don’t want to fight Matteo,” he added.

He must’ve been on the same brainwave as me?

Another breath of pain sliced through me for my man, but I ignored it. “Matteo will get over it too. It’s painful for him now, but it won’t be later.”

“Nate used to be my best friend, but he’s Logan’s now.”

These guys.

It’d been Mason and Nate. Nate left. Then it was Mason and Logan. Brothers. Then Nate came back, and I’d been in there instead of him. He’d been on the outskirts for the last few years, until Mason grew more serious about football. That meant more responsibilities, more pressure, more of a spotlight on him all the time. Nate didn’t get that spotlight. Neither did Logan. It wasn’t the same as when they’d grown up.

Mason had married me.

Mason had married his career.

And both Logan and Nate were in their own journeys.

They were in a different stage of life. It was just that simple.

But then there was Channing, who was in a different stage of his life altogether.

I knew my man was hurting, but I also knew only time would heal it.

“Hey.” I reached for his hand, sliding my fingers through his and lifting both our hands so I could kiss his. I smiled, resting the side of my face against our hands. “It will be fine. Having friends, being loved is never a problem. Fighting to keep the love is the challenge, and we all know you dominate when you’ve been given a challenge.”

His eyes grew dark, and his smile turned wolfish. “I love you.” His gaze fell to my mouth. “And I want to drive out of here, find somewhere private, and bend you over in front of me.” He leaned over, his other hand sliding around my neck. “Right now.” And then his mouth was on mine, and the world melted away.

We took a little time to ourselves in the SUV.