Page 57 of Aftermath

"You can bring Jules her iced tea." Austin squeezed Cam's ass, kissed him chastely, and returned to the kitchen. "And I suppose my parents will be here with Riley any minute," he called over his shoulder.

Cam muttered a few curses and followed him to the kitchen, where he knew Austin was about to call Jade. Maybe not the most opportune moment, but it gave Austin a reason to cut the call short if needed.

"Wish me luck," Austin drawled.

Cam snickered, grabbed a tray, and loaded it up with the pitcher of iced tea from the fridge, a couple beers, and a glass, then headed to the patio where Bourbon was jumping in and out of the pool. He could swim just fine, but he didn’t like it. He did, however, love to cool off. So, he'd jump in a couple times, then go lie down in the shade with his bowl of water and whatever dog bone Cam had given him.

"You nervous?" Landon asked, nodding in thanks for the beer.

Cam shrugged and focused on the iced tea, never wanting to admit weaknesses.

"She'll adore you," Jules said confidently. "Austin's parents will, too."

"You've never even met them," Cam pointed out and slid a glass of iced tea toward her. He knew, with his luck, he'd end up killing Nacho.

Not wanting to hear more reassurances, Cam popped the cap on his beer and went back inside. He could hear Austin on the phone.

"No, Jade, I'm not trying to be funny," he was saying, and Cam caught his eye-roll just as he reentered the kitchen. "I wanted to call and tell you before Riley had the chance." There was a pause while Jade did the talking, and Cam raised an eyebrow, silently asking how it was going. Austin threw him a look of frustration in return, but there was a pinch of amusement there, too. "She thinks I'm kidding," he said, holding the phone away. "Now she's berating me for my poor sense of humor."

Cam snorted and hopped up to sit on the kitchen counter. "Tell her I'm willing to send evidence." That was a joke. He tugged Austin to him and dropped a sensual kiss on his neck. Now that Austin was working again, he was always clean-shaven, and he smelled of an aftershave that made Cam's mouth water.

"Yes, I'm listening to you." Austin was speaking to Jade, but his focus was on Cam's mouth. And then Cam's hand on Austin's cock. "Uh-huh. Yeah, keep going—what?" Cam stifled a laugh. "No, no—I just…fuck. Listen, I told you what I wanted to tell you. Cam and I aren't just friends, and he's meeting Riley today. My parents are coming over, too." Jade said something, to which Austin grinned. "Believe what you want, Jade—"

Frustrated, Cam grabbed the phone out of instinct and blurted out the first words that came to mind. "The sooner you believe him, the sooner I can get him off the phone and suck his—"

"Cam!" Austin snatched the phone away, looking stunned, furious,andlike he was ready to laugh his ass off—all at once. "Jesus Christ." He blew out a breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Jade?" He placed the phone by his ear, then sighed. "She hung up."

Cam tried to hide the fact he felt bad—hell, worse than that. He felt like shit.

"That was so fucking juvenile," Austin said, though not angrily or anything. That confused Cam, and when he chanced a glance at Austin's face, he saw mirth in his eyes.Oh, thank fuck. "Next time we're alone together…" He grabbed Cam's jaw. "You will make it up to me. Understand?"

Hell yeah, Cam understood. "Yes, sir." He saluted Austin.

Austin smirked like the sexy motherfucker he was, but the spell was broken when the doorbell rang.

Cam paled as he could hear Riley outside. Fuckin' kitchen window was open.

"Hey, none of that." Austin's eyes softened, and he kissed the spot between Cam's brows. "It'll be fine. Come on."

Griffin and Maggie Huntley were definitely Austin's parents. Griffin was basically an older version, but with much lighter features and more gray in his hair. Tall, solid, and with a polite smile on his face. Maggie was short, looked kind, had darker hair, and the same hazel eyes that Austin had.

When Cam saw the logo on the chest pocket of Griffin's short-sleeved shirt, he exchanged a quick look of wry amusement with Austin, who could read his mind at that point. If it weren’t for the sweats with Griffin's construction business's logo on them that Austin had worn the day he was kidnapped, their lives would probably look a lot different now.

"Hi, Dad!" Riley bounced forward with Nacho in her arms and hugged Austin's middle.

"Hey, baby girl." Austin kissed the top of her head while Cam just watched.

Riley was…she was fucking cute. The brief time he'd seen her at the hospital right after they'd been saved, he hadn't really thought about it. And she looked more like Austin than Cam had originally thought. Her eyes were a little greener than brown, and her long hair was wavier, but it was Austin's coloring. There was a lot of Jade in her, too, and even some Maggie.

She dressed like a tomboy in denim shorts, All Stars sneakers, and a well-worn T-shirt that looked too big for her lanky frame, but Cam had seen plenty of photos of her. He knew she liked all things girl, too.

"I want you to meet Cam." Austin smiled at his girl and ushered her forward.

They'd agreed that Austin would take Riley aside later today and tell her everything, so for now, it was just Cam. No explanation. No title. Which he had to admit he preferred for the official meeting. Cam already felt nervous as it was. No need to add more pressure.

"Hello. I'm Riley Huntley," Riley said shyly, keeping close to Austin. "Daddy's shown me pictures of Bourbon. And this is Nacho." She pointed to the rat-sized dog in her arms.

Cam smiled nervously and barely resisted fidgeting. "It's good to meet you, Riley." He cleared his throat and looked toward the patio. "Bourbon's probably in the backyard if you wanna meet him. Uh, there's a pool, too—you know, if you wanna swim or whatever."

---