Total pages in book: 68
Estimated words: 68143 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 341(@200wpm)___ 273(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68143 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 341(@200wpm)___ 273(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
I had a full captive audience, too, as I pulled into the campground with the full club to watch my every move.
They all held up whiteboards once I’d backed the trailer in.
I’d gotten all nines except for a ten from Apollo.
I bowed as I got out of the truck, and Sutton snorted. “Show off.”
I winked at her as I walked to the cooler in front of Cutter and withdrew a beer.
“Long drive?” he asked.
“Lottie forgot her bear. Had to turn around and get it. Must’ve picked up a nail or something while I was turning around because I made it like ten miles before I busted a tire on twenty,” I grumbled as I popped the top and took a swig.
“Bummer.” His gaze went past me. “Your girl’s hobbling over here…”
I hurried back to her, picking her up at the waist and tossing her over my shoulder.
She giggled when I put her on the picnic table next to all the ladies. “Don’t move. I’ll be back with your chair.”
Twenty minutes later I had Lottie sitting around the campfire making s’mores with the rest of the kids, Sutton deposited in her chair, and the camper set up.
I sat down on a log next to Webber and gazed out at the lake behind me.
“This place is awesome.” I watched as a kayaker floated past a cypress tree. “It’s beautiful here.”
“Have a good buddy that’s part of The Uncertain Saints,” Webber said. “Invited us to come out and have a weekend with them. They’re a couple of campsites over.”
I looked in the direction he’d indicated and saw a bunch of tents surrounding a couple of campers like ours.
“I’ve heard of The Uncertain Saints,” I said. “Good club.”
“One of the best,” he agreed. “Heard the Combs were denied bail.”
“They were,” I agreed, taking a quick look back at Sutton. “They could’ve killed her.”
“They didn’t.”
“But they could have.” I shook my head.
“But they didn’t.” He caught my shoulder with his hand. “You and Apollo. Creole. I’ll never know what it feels like to lose a child. I hope to God I never do. Y’all have gone through enough. If I have the power in me, I’ll break my back to make sure y’all never experience anything like that again. The Combs won’t get out of this. Aleah, that piece of shit woman you had the bad taste in fucking, will rot in jail, too. Yates won’t be able to find a job in Texas again. We’ll make sure of it.” He squeezed just a little bit harder. “Live your life, man. Soak it in. Don’t play the what-if game, because no one wins that one.”
With that, he got up and headed back to the other campsite where he met a tall man with buzzed hair.
I looked back to the lake just as Lottie screamed, “Daddy, look!”
I looked to see her marshmallow on fire.
I shook my head. “You’re gonna burn it, baby.”
Sutton reached over and brought the marshmallow to her face and blew the fire out.
It was black around the edges.
With her fingernails, Sutton pulled the black off and tossed it into the fire before she said, “Now it’s perfect.”
“Yessss!” Lottie promptly dropped the marshmallow onto the ground. “Aww, dammit!”
We all laughed.
Twenty-Six
If being introverted was a sport, I’d come in fourth so I wouldn’t have to get on the podium.
—Sutton to Gunner
SUTTON
Caddo Lake was paradise.
I loved being on the river. The campground was even better. Quiet and secluded, with a bunch of like-minded people that just wanted to spend time with their family and enjoy nature.
The only issue that I found was that being in an RV had sounded like a good idea at the time, but it wasn’t as good as I’d made it out to be in my head.
Why was it worse than I thought?
Because I’d spent the entire day watching Gunner prance around in short swim shorts that fit him like a glove, and no t-shirt.
Watched water drip down his defined pectorals, stomach, and into his waistband.
Enjoyed the way his body rippled and flowed as the men played a friendly game of football.
Needless to say, having nothing to do but watch, I got a front-row seat to the Gunner show.
And I was a needy little bitch by the time we were settling in for the night.
Well, the kids were settling in.
The parents had no intention of going to bed anytime soon.
I’d just gotten Lottie to sleep on the camper bed in the back bedroom—Gunner had gone on a beer run with Cutter and Copper—when I closed the door on Lottie.
Cutter and Copper went to their seats closer to the fire, and Gunner resumed the one next to where I’d been sitting before I got Lottie in bed.
The poor girl had fallen asleep in my arms with s’mores covering her face, and I’d had to get Audric to carry her inside for me.