Chapter 3

Alone in my tent, I focused on setting everything up the way I liked it. I hung the lantern from the roof of the tent to provide maximum lighting when I needed it. After digging out my flashlight from my duffel bag, I placed it in a sidewall pocket for easy access. My sleeping bag and foam pad were set up away from the walls of the tent so I wouldn’t feel the dampness seep through in the early morning hours. Each task was automatic for me, with a lifetime of doing the same thing. Only this time, my attention was divided, my thoughts pulling back to the Printech poster boy.

For someone who barely knew I existed at work, Reed had seemed to decide I was his buddy. Which I supposed was the point of this whole thing, anyway. And maybe he wasn”t as douchey as I thought he would be. Reed was rather…helpless, and it was satisfying seeing the golden boy struggle. Maybe even a little endearing.

I didn”t hate having his attention, especially knowing he”d been checking me out. Reed fucking Dawson had been staring at my ass. And yeah, his caught my attention too. It was hugged perfectly by his likely designer jeans. Jeans that probably hadn”t ever gotten dirty until today when he knelt on the ground and assembled the tents with me. The way his full lips turned down when he stood and patted the dust off them had been telling.

Still, he did it, even taking a thwack to the face. As much as I found his immediate concern about his looks a bit much, I was glad he wasn”t hurt worse.

Reed followed me around like I was his only hope of surviving this thing. It would have been cute, except I”d been hoping for time alone. This was my refuge, my getaway, my adventure. Maybe I felt a little bad about how I brushed him off, but I needed time to myself. Except, with him flooding my thoughts, I wasn’t really by myself, anyway. Reed Dawson would be sleeping in a tent next to mine, mere fabric the only thing that would separate us as he undressed. Fuck! That was so much more appealing than it should be. Thinking of that Disney prince hair swoop moment and the way his soft cheek felt beneath my touch had my dick hardening.

Standing up as much as I could in the tent, which meant slightly hunched, I unzipped my tan cargo pants and adjusted myself. Not sure if he would come knocking soon, I would have to release the tension later. For now, I needed a distraction. I was in the woods, surrounded by trees, with endless stuff to do and see. I didn’t need to stay in my tent and not think about Reed.

With the single goal of getting him out of my head, I unzipped the tent door and swung my head to scan the area. My heart leapt when I caught him near the kitchen area talking to that blue-haired guy. Useless heart. Opting to go anywhere else, I spotted Strike and another young man standing near one of the trucks looking at a tub full of equipment, and headed toward them.

Strike looked up, and the wrinkles around his eyes crinkled with joy as he met my gaze. “Hiya, Jesse. Have you met Cameron?”

The guy in the green Portland Bigfoot hoodie smiled broadly and stretched out his hand. “You can call me Cam. Can you believe we’re actually out here?”

I shook his hand, appreciating the excitement in his warm brown eyes. “Nice to meet you. And yeah, it’s beautiful out here.” I pointed to his hoodie. “You from Portland?”

“No, I drove up from Southern California with my boyfriend. But my mom and her girlfriend live in Portland. Ever since my mom moved up here, I’ve been dying to go on a Bigfoot excursion. I’ve always kind of had a thing for ghost-hunting and the things that go bump in the night. Even if they freak me out at the same time.”

I chuckled. “Yeah, I get that.”

“Well, we have some great goggles that will help you observe from a safe distance,” Strike interjected.

“That sounds perfect. I’d love to see what you have.”

“Check out these beauties.” He pulled out a long, clunky pair of goggles that had numerous buttons and switches on them. He handed me a pair.

“Once it gets darker, you’ll be able to utilize the night vision better. It’s too bright just yet. But they also have infrared, which lets you see temperatures. It may not give you clear shapes, but if you see something with a big enough heat signature, it’s probably a living creature. And you can switch the infrared off and zoom in.”

Cam and I both looked through our goggles, scanning the campsite in regular mode. Strike clicked a switch on each of ours, revealing a colorful range of images. Heat signatures.

“I spy something really hot,” Cam whispered.

“Yeah? Where?” He pointed me in a direction where two yellow people shapes glowed brightly. I flicked the switch to turn off the infrared to see Reed and the blue-haired guy in view. They were sitting in chairs by the fire pit talking. Reed, holding an ice pack to his face and his pouty lips spread wide in a smile. Damn! Cameron was right: very hot.

“That’s my boyfriend. We’re actually celebrating our second anniversary. Is that your guy?”

I lowered the goggles and straightened. “My guy?”

“Yeah. That blondie, model-looking dude. You two came together, right?”

“No,” my voice croaked, and I coughed to clear it. “No! Reed is not my guy, and we didn’t come together. He’s just…someone I work with.”

“Really? Interesting. How is it possible that the two of you work together and just happen to end up on the same excursion?” Cam gave me a knowing look.

“It’s not like that. It’s this whole employer-sanctioned team-building exercise thing.”

“Sure, sounds totally reasonable. But, hey, no judgment. We’re out in the middle of nowhere. Seems the perfect opportunity to team-build.” He waggled his brows.

I couldn’t help the laugh that popped out of me. Today had turned out much weirder than I expected, and I was on a Bigfoot hunt. The weird meter was already pretty high.

Cam turned to Strike. “Can I borrow these?”

Strike pulled out a clipboard from the bag. “Sure, you just need to check them out.”

We each signed our names and took our loaner goggles with us. Cameron rushed back over to where the other two were sitting and crouched beside his boyfriend, excitedly showing off the features. I took another chair around the fire pit, across from Reed, offering him an awkward smile.

The one he returned wasn’t as brilliant as when he’d been laughing with Rider, but it was stunning all the same. Luckily, a few other campers settled in around us, saving me from our awkwardness.

Before long, one of the crew was busy cooking, and a fire was built in the pit as the sun went down. It was a fun evening filled with laughter and camaraderie. Now and then, I would catch Reed’s gaze, his eyes reflecting the fire’s light. There wasn’t anything planned the first night of the trip to allow everyone to settle in. Adventures would begin tomorrow.

I heard Cam mention something about star-gazing to Rider, which had an immediate effect, his eyes gleaming with amusement. Little by little, couples paired off and retired to their tents. Not wanting to be the last two out here by the fire and for things to get awkward again, I said goodnight, deciding it was time to hunker down and read by lantern light to nature’s soundtrack playing around us.

Inside the privacy of my tent, I undressed and put on my thermals. Even though it was early fall, and the temperature was moderate, it tended to drop at night. Knowing we were going to be off the grid, I brought a couple of paperbacks to read so I wouldn’t have to rely on electronics. If I laid on my stomach with my book in front of me and my pillow propped under my chest, it was the best angle to catch the light that hung above me.

The wind whispered through the campsite, the leaves of the trees rustled, and owls hooted. It was a lovely symphony, one that I missed often when the noise of the city filtered up to my apartment. Sirens, people shouting, dogs barking. The forest was loud, and it always amazed me how awake everything was at night, but I’d take a loud forest over a loud city anytime.

It wasn’t long before I heard footsteps outside that came to a stop by my tent door. With the light from my lantern, I could see a man’s profile outside the fabric wall. He stood there for a moment, turned away, and then came back.

“Knock, knock,” he whispered.

I sighed and tucked my book away before getting up to unzip my door. Surprised to see who stood there, and yet not surprised at all. He was in a hoodie and sweatpants, arms folded over his chest, looking out of sorts.

“Reed? What’s up? Everything okay?”

“Um…I didn’t think it would be so noisy here.”

“Yeah, the woods are like that.” There might have been a bite of sarcasm, though I managed to keep my eye roll internal.

“It’s just…I thought I heard something. Something big.”

“It’s probably just your imagination.”

Reed gave me a half-smile, one that didn’t do anything to ease the fear in his eyes. “Yeah, the thing is…I have a really good imagination, which is not at all helpful when it comes to nighttime noises. And with only a thin material protecting me from whatever is out there, whether real or perceived, I don’t think I’ll be able to relax. Is there any chance you’d let me bunk with you? Safety in numbers, right?”

My initial reaction was to turn him away and tell him he’d be fine. But with the way he stood curled into himself and the way his eyes darted every time the leaves rattled, it would be cruel of me to turn him away. As much as I wanted my tent to myself, I couldn’t be cruel to him.

“Sure. Grab your sleeping bag. I’m not sure there’s room for all of your stuff, but we can figure that out tomorrow.”

His eyes lit up, and he bounced off. Well, fuck me. There went my alone time, and my plans to jack off when it seemed everyone else was asleep. How could I relieve the tension caused by the dreamy company spokesperson, if said dreamy guy was sharing my space? Because, damn, if he was going to keep looking at me with those beautiful blues of his, I was in for a long, hard week.

While I waited for him, I rearranged my stuff, condensing it as much as possible, and slid my bedding over as far as I could without it being up against the side. It was going to get a little cramped.

The shuffling of footsteps outside told me he was back. I held the flap of the tent open, welcoming him in. Reed looked so young, standing there holding his bedroll like a little kid dragging their blanket into their parents’ room to hide from monsters. My heart did that annoying pitter-patter thing again.

“Come on in. We’ll have to get cozy, but there’s room.”

Reed stepped inside and placed his foam pad on the floor of the tent, pushing it right against mine. He laid the sleeping bag on top of it and sort of stared at it for a moment.

“Are you sure about this?” He asked hesitantly.

I managed to keep my sigh from escaping my lips. “Yes, it’ll be fine, I swear.”

“Okay.” He lowered down and tucked himself into his sleeping bag, pulling the zipper up. I had to step over him to get into my bed. Cozy was a polite word for how close we were going to be. I got in and faced the side of the tent, my back turned toward his back.

“Thank you. You didn’t have to do this, but I really appreciate it. It already helps to know someone is here,” Reed whispered into the dark.

“It’s not a problem at all.” It was the biggest problem. Especially with his decadent cologne now filling the small tent—and my cock. I shifted slightly, putting another inch of space between us.

We were quiet, both of us laying there awkwardly, our breathing sounding loud in my ears. The lantern was still on above us and I cursed myself for not having turned it off before laying down. Now, I was hard and trying not to move. I’d either have to wait it out and see if I could relax or risk slapping him in the face with my tent pole as I climbed over him. Yeah, that wasn’t happening.

“I’m sorry. I forgot to turn the light off. Is it okay if I leave it on for a bit?”

“Yeah, actually. I was going to ask if you minded if we kept it on. I’m not used to it being so completely dark. There are always lights at night in the city.”

Phew! Crisis averted. “Yeah, that’s fine.”

“Thank you,” Reed whispered.