“Hey, Finn. I think these girls are in bad shape,” I whispered to Finn as we stood at the edge of the campsite. Marcia and Susie were sitting on the camp chairs moaning. I could see that Susie’s calf muscles were spasming, and Marcia had thrown up. “I don’t think we should stay at the campsite tonight.”
“You’re right,” Finn said. “I feel absolutely awful. I shouldn’t have made them do the hike. I should’ve known it would be too much for them.”
“It’s okay. They enjoyed it, but I don’t think they’ll enjoy the night if they have to sleep in a sleeping bag on the ground.”
“I think there are a couple of hotels close to here.” He looked at his watch. “It’s kind of late, so I’m not sure what will be open.”
“Do you want to make some calls, and I’ll start packing up the tents?”
“Do you think we should start packing them up before we find a place to go?” he asked.
“Yeah.” I nodded. “Even if we have to drive a little farther, we can’t let these girls sleep in these tents, dude.”
“You’re right.” He stared at me for a few seconds and chuckled. “I never thought I’d see the day.”
“What?” I said.
“When Brody Wainwright was so considerate of other people’s feelings.”
“I’ve always been considerate of other people’s feelings. I mean, okay. Maybe not always. But Marcia is your girlfriend, and I assume she’s going to be your wife one day. And, well… Susie’s a cool chick.”
“I’m glad you see that.” Finn nodded, though there was a twinkle in his eye that told me there was something else on his mind.
“Yeah, I do. And she’s a pretty awesome storyteller as well.”
“She really is,” Finn said. He looked at me knowingly and grinned widely, and I wondered what he was thinking about.
“What is it, dude?”
“Well, you know I was about to buy that publishing house, right?”
“Oh, yeah. I remember you mentioned something about it. So, what? You’re going to offer her a deal or something?”
“I would, but she wouldn’t take it. I know her. She’s prideful and wants to make it on her own. And I respect that, but she’s got talent.”
“She really does.” I nodded. “Shit, if I were to ever write a biography, she’d be my ghostwriter.”
“Then you wouldn’t be writing it, dude.”
“And that’s the point.” I laughed. “But anyway, go make those calls. I’ll check on the girls.”
“Sounds good.”
I walked over to Marcia and Susie and kneeled down next to them. “You guys okay? Finn’s going to see if we can find a hotel reservation for the night so we don’t have to sleep in these tents.”
“Really?” Marcia looked hopeful. “Because I really don’t want to sleep in that sleeping bag again tonight.”
“Me neither,” Susie groaned. “It was a pretty sight and all, but my entire body feels like it belongs to someone else.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll figure something out.” I jumped up. “As long as you’re hydrated, right?” They both nodded. “Okay, I’m going to disassemble these tents and roll up the sleeping bags so everything’s ready for when Finn finds us a place. You just sit there, okay?”
“Okay. Thanks, Brody.” Susie’s voice sounded surprisingly chill.
“No worries,” I said. I walked away and started folding up the tent. “So, do you want to tell me another story, Susie? I’m in the mood to hear something sexy.”
“Oh my gosh.” Marcia said.
“What? You liked her previous story too,” I defended.
“Yeah, but it was sexy in the things that she didn’t say, not in the things that she did say.”
“Well, isn’t that always what’s sexiest?” I said as I took the poles out of the first tent. “The tease and the chase are always so much fun.”
“Isn’t it just?” Susie said, shaking her head.
“Hey, did I hit a nerve there?”
“No, but I feel like guys are always all about the chase,” Susie said. “And then once they have you, they no longer want you.”
“That’s not true,” I said. “Well, not for every guy.”
“Is it true for you?” Marcia asked me pointedly.
“That’s not a fair question. I don’t actually chase women.”
“Oh, let me guess…” Susie started laughing. “They chase you, huh?”
“Well, what can I say? I’m—”
“Brody Wainwright,” they chorused together, and we all laughed.
“Hey, what’s so funny?” Finn said as he walked back into the campsite.
“Nothing. Any luck?”
“Yeah, actually. I was able to find us two rooms. However…” He paused and looked at the two women.
“What?” Marcia said.
“They’re king-sized beds.”
“Okay. That works,” Susie said. “Me and Marcia and you and Brody.”
“I was kind of hoping to be with Marcia,” Finn said quickly. “But, I mean, obviously if you don’t feel comfortable sleeping in a bed with Brody…”
“I’ll be a gentleman.” I held my hand up. “I promise. You don’t have to worry about me, Susie.”
She stared at me.
“In fact, if anyone was worried about losing their honor, it would be me. I don’t know what you’re going to try and do.”
“What I’m going to try and do?” She started laughing. “Are you joking me?”
“Hey, I might wake up in the middle of the night with you on top of me.”
“I don’t think so.” She shook her head. “Especially not the way my muscles are feeling.”
“So if your muscles were feeling good, it’d be a possibility?”
“No, it would not,” she shouted.
Marcia shook her head. “I can sleep with you, Susie, if you really don’t feel comfortable with Brody.”
“I’m right here,” I said, feeling pissed off. My voice rose as I tapped my hand against my thigh. “What do you think I’m going to do? What sort of man do you think I am? I can be a gentleman, you know.”
“Really?” Susie said.
“Yeah. Did I do anything in the tent with you for the last couple of nights?”
“I guess not,” she said, blushing.
I was pretty sure things could’ve gotten a lot further if I’d pushed a little harder, but I had a feeling she hadn’t told Marcia that.
“It’s fine,” Susie said. “Marcia, you can be with Finn. I know you probably want to hug and kiss and whatever. Plus, Brody said he’ll massage my calves.”
“And your feet and your shoulders and whatever else you want.”
“There will be nothing else I want you to massage, thank you very much,” she said.
“Okay. If you say so.”
“I am saying so.”
“Let me help you finish up there,” Finn said as he headed toward me. “Girls, if you want to go and get in the car, we should be all packed up within the next couple of minutes.”
“Sounds good,” Marcia said as she stood up. She and Susie headed toward the truck, and I watched them for a few seconds.
“Dude, don’t be getting any ideas,” Finn said.
“Me?” I said innocently. “What ideas could I possibly have?”
“Wow, this hotel room is absolutely beautiful,” Susie said as she sat on the king-sized bed. She looked around the room, her eyes appreciative and happy. “And this mattress—oh, it’s so soft,” she said as she lay back.
I stared down at her, a wry smile on my face. I’d never seen her looking so ecstatic. I liked that look on her face.
“It’s pretty nice,” I said, nodding. A hotel room was a hotel room to me.
She sat up suddenly. “I’m going to go take a shower because I feel dirty and grimy, and I’m hoping the hot water will help my muscles.”
“Okay.” I nodded. “When you get out of the shower, don’t put too many clothes on.”
“Excuse me?” She blinked at me. “What?”
“If I’m going to massage you, it’ll be a lot easier if you’re not wearing much clothing.”
“Oh. Yeah, sure,” she said. “You really don’t have to massage me, Brody.”
“No, trust me. It will make you feel better tomorrow morning if you relax those muscles tonight.”
“Okay. I guess I’ll wear some shorts and a T-shirt. Does that work?”
“Yeah. And put on your bra and panties too.”
“Of course I’m going to put on my bra and panties.”
“Well, I’m just saying. You might need to take off your shorts and T-shirt.”
“Excuse me?”
“It’s going to be kind of hard for me to massage your back if you have a T-shirt on. Don’t worry. I’m not going to make you turn over.”
“Uh-huh. Sure you’re not.”
“I’m not,” I said. “Like I said, I can be a gentleman.”
“If you say so.”
I grinned at her and watched as she walked to the shower. She was sexy. And if she weren’t so tired and achy, I would definitely try something with her. But I didn’t want her to regret it in the morning.
It was weird, me thinking that, because I’d never really worried about how a woman was going to feel in the morning. As long as she consented to whatever we had planned, I’d been okay with it. It’s not like I’d ever lied to a woman or told her that we were going to have a relationship or that sex was going somewhere. Most of the women I hooked up with knew the deal. But I had a feeling Susie was different. I had a feeling Susie wasn’t the sort of woman that slept with men just to sleep with them.
It wasn’t that she was completely innocent. Her story had made me hard, and I had a feeling she had a kinky, dirty side to her that she hadn’t even explored yet. A part of me wanted to be the man that she explored it with, but I knew Finn would kill me. And maybe Marcia too.
But Susie seemed the sort that would definitely be down to try whips and handcuffs and pinwheels and all sorts of other accoutrements one could find at a sex store.
I groaned as I realized I was thinking about her in a physical and intimate way. I had to get those thoughts out of my mind. There would be nothing worse than me being hard while giving her a massage. She’d definitely be able to feel it against her. And while normally I wasn’t against a woman knowing how aroused I was, I didn’t want Susie to feel uncomfortable.
I liked her. I really liked her as much more than a sex object. She was someone I could see myself becoming friends with—if I didn’t want to fuck her.
But I did want to fuck her, so it was unlikely that I’d pursue any sort of real friendship with her. That would just make things complicated. And as I was a man, I knew my head down below would often win out above my head above. And, well, my head down below wanted to get to know her much more intimately, and that wouldn’t be a good idea for either of us.