Page 25 of Stealing His Human

Huh. Does the hand job and blowjob make Ned my lover?

Naw. We were just a coupla guys scratching an itch.

Maybe a vacation fling. Right?

He probably does this with campers all the time.

Brett grimaced at his thoughts, barely registering the trees out theJeep’s window. He didn’t know why that thought made him want to growl... or hurl. While Brett hadn’t been considering finding a relationship until after college, the idea of Nedrick being with a whole bunch of random campers definitely caused a case of the green-eyed monster.

Shit. That can’t be good.

“Hey.” Nedrick’s soothing tenor filled the cabin. “What are you thinking about so hard over there?” He moved his hand from the gear-shift for a second to squeeze Brett’s thigh. “Everything okay?”

No. No, everything definitely wasn’t okay.

“Yeah, yeah,” Brett replied instead. He could think about his spiraling thoughts later...muchlater. After all, they were pulling into the campground. “Just spacing a little.” That wasn’t too much of a lie. “Probably from the meds or fatigue from the stress and pain of the day.”

“You’re in pain?” Nedrick asked quickly, glancing at him with concern. “I think it’s a little early for another pain pill. Maybe you’ll feel better once you can relax at the camp.”

“Yeah.” Brett nodded, happy for the out. “That sounds great.”

Nedrick glanced at him again with a narrow-eyed gaze that Brett didn’t know how to interpret. “Almost there,” he said, turning into their camp slot’s loop. “Huh.”

Brett almost said the same thing. He spotted hisEnvoyahead, but Tabatha’sFordwas nowhere in sight. Neither was Preall’s SUV, which should’ve been parked by the next campsite.

“I wonder where they—oh.” Brett gaped for a second before snapping his mouth shut. “What the hell?”

As Nedrick parked where Tabatha’s car had been, Brett took in their campsite. Clothing was strewn around the area, and the campfire smoldered from some article that had been tossed too close. His single-person tent had been tossed on its side, and the corner of the one that Karissa had been using had caved in.

“Could it have been a bear?” Brett mused as he eased from theJeep, keeping his arm tucked close. “But we didn’t leave the cooler here.”

Brett had made a point of locking it in hisEnvoyeach time it wasn’t in use.

Nedrick inhaled deeply, his nostrils flaring. Shaking his head, he narrowed his eyes. “No, not a bear.”

“How do you know?” Brett asked as he fell into step beside Nedrick.

“Uh, no empty food wrappers anywhere,” Nedrick pointed out. Frowning, he added, “And didn’t you keep everything in your car with the cooler?”

“Oh, yeah.” Brett nodded. “Right.”

Just then, Brett spotted Tabatha and Tyler coming from round their tent. They both carried an armful of rumpled clothes. While Tyler sported a stormy expression, Tabatha appeared worried.

“Hey, guys,” Brett greeted, raising his good hand. Looking around in confusion, he asked, “What happened?”

“Karissa happened,” Tyler snarled, curling his lip. “Bitch went crazy after Preall received the text from Ned about you going to his place for a shower.”

“Don’t call her that, honey,” Tabatha scolded softly with a sigh.

Tyler frowned, dumping the clothes on a camp chair that already had a stack on it. “Well, what do you want me to call her?” he grumbled. “A jealous homophobic psycho?”

Seeing Tabatha’s brows furrow and her cheeks darken, Brett lifted his right hand in placation. “Hey, whoa. Whoa. Let’s not say anything any of us will regret.” He winced and thrust his hand through his nearly dry hair. “Besides, it’s probably my fault anyway. I didn’t mean to lead her on by asking her to come. I mean, we’d only been on two dates. We weren’t ever really a couple, but I guess it’s good I found out early about, uh... some of her less desirable tendencies.”

Shaking her head, looking sad, Tabatha admitted, “I had absolutely no idea she had such strong opinions about homosexuals.” After putting her armful of clothes onto another chair, she began sorting and folding the items. “I mean, she never said anything one way or the other.” Tabatha paused, folding a pair of Tyler’s shorts. Cocking her head, she mused, “Although, now that I think about it, she always had some other plans any time I asked her to meet up with Charlie and Matt.”

“Who are they?” Nedrick asked curiously before crossing to a chair that was on its side. He picked it up and carried it to Brett. “Have a seat, handsome. Rest.”

Grateful, Brett settled in the comfortable camp chair while he listened to Tabatha share, “Charlie and Matt are going into their senior year at our college, same as us. They’ve been a couple since high school. Really nice guys.” Her smile turned wistful. “So sweet to see together. They just got engaged and plan to marry after they graduate.”

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