Page 25 of Found

“Okay, good. You know I love you, man. You’re like my brother and I support you no matter what. You know that, right?” he asked.

“Yeah, I know that and the same goes for me,” I said. I swallowed hard around the lump in my throat. Brandon was the best friend I could have ever asked for and I was lucky to have him in my life.

“I know that too,” he said, and that time I could hear the smile in his voice. “Okay, I better get ready for another long, miserable day of standing in the corner while Mr. Douchebag Extraordinaire conducts budget meetings then goes out to an expensive restaurant and back to a hotel room with a woman who, by the way, is not his wife. Oh, did I forget to mention, he’s married too.” I could practically hear Brandon’s eyes roll.

“He sounds like a real prince,” I said sarcastically.

“Prince of the assholes, maybe. Seriously though, you don’t think I could get away with shooting him? I’d be doing society a favor. They may even give me a shiny medal for it,” Brandon joked.

“If only it were that easy, my friend,” I laughed.

“Fine. I’ll play nice,” he grumbled. “You take care and I’ll talk to you again soon.”

“You too,” I said.

I ended the call and then flopped back on the bed with a sigh. I hated keeping anything from my friend, and I felt awful for lying to him, but I was a selfish asshole and I wanted more time with Zach; more time to explore this thing between us, before I had to tell him the truth.

I rolled my head to look at the clock and, realizing how late it was, I jumped off the bed and ran to the bathroom to finish getting ready. I’d just finished pulling my clothes on when I heard a knock at the door. Zach stood on the front porch, his hands shoved deep in the pockets of his khaki shorts as he rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet as if he were nervous. He stopped as I opened the door and smiled up at me.

“Good morning,” he said.

“Yep. Now it is,” I drawled, giving him a sultry look. Zach rolled his eyes, but I could see the smile on his face as he ducked his head. I laughed. “Come on in, I just have to grab my shoes and my wallet, and I’ll be ready to go.”

Zach followed me into the house and shut the door. I went to my bedroom and grabbed my wallet off the dresser and shoved it into my back pocket then I went back out to the living room and sat down to put my shoes on.

“Is it busy out there?” I asked as I tied my laces.

“Oh my God, yes! It’s nearly wall-to-wall trucks and campers out there. I’m not sure we can take any more customers, but I’m happy for Edith that it’s been another great turnout,” he said.

I stood up and walked towards him, my brows pinching together the closer I got. “So, there’s lots of people out there?”

“Yeah,” Zach answered cautiously.

“Hmmm. Then I guess we better do this now, so nobody catches us.” I waggled my brows at him and he smiled as he realized what I was talking about.

Most of the regular customers were nice people who didn’t care what you did as long as you left them alone to fish. But there would be a lot of new faces that weekend and not all of them would take too kindly to seeing two guys holding hands or, God forbid, kissing. We’d have to be careful how much affection we showed each other outside of our cabins.

Zach’s hands landed on my biceps as I leaned down to kiss him. It started out gentle at first, but it didn’t take long for passion to ignite between us. Before I knew it, I had him backed against the door, my hands cupping his ass and his fingers tugging at my hair as his tongue dipped and swirled inside my mouth.

I pulled back and he let out the sexiest whimper that had me diving back in for more. I felt like I was drowning in him, and yet I was thirsty for more. Much more. After a few minutes, I backed away again and leaned my forehead to his. We were both panting heavily, our breaths blowing out in tandem as we breathed each other in.

“We have to stop,” I told him.

“Why?” Zach asked.

I pulled my head back, so I could see him. “Because if we don’t, I’m going to pick you up over my shoulder and carry you back to my bedroom and I won’t let you out of there until we have to work on Tuesday,” I warned him. Air whooshed out of Zach’s lungs. His eyes were dark and heavy-lidded, and his lips were swollen and wet. He looked totally debauched and it was sexy as fuck.

“I don’t see a problem with that,” Zach challenged, arching one eyebrow at me. I buried my face in his neck and groaned loudly. I could feel him chuckling against me and I savored the moment, breathing in his scent.

“I thought you were nice, but it turns out, you’re not nice at all,” I grumbled.

His hands cradled the sides of my head and I felt him lay a kiss on my temple. That was enough to have me melting against him and I kissed him sweetly. It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him I loved him, but I was afraid he would think it was too soon and I’d scare him away, so I kept quiet for now.

I held him for a few more seconds and then backed away reluctantly. “Come on. Why don’t we get out of here and you can show me how Bradbury Lake celebrates Memorial Day?”

Zach smiled at me as I held the door open for him and followed him outside. The weather was perfect for the outdoor festivities. It was warm, but a gentle breeze kept us from getting too hot and the fluffy white clouds overhead gave us relief from the sun’s rays.

We walked beside each other around the lake, our arms brushing against each other. I wished I could hold his hand, but I didn’t want to risk causing problems, so I shoved my hands into my pockets instead. Several of the fishermen called out to us as we passed by and we waved to them and wished them luck with their catch.

---