The Vincent Boys Collection Read online

  His arm wrapped around my shoulders, and he pulled me up against his side. That small offer of comfort caused my eyes to fill with tears. I buried my head into the curve of his arm and tried to muffle the sobs I couldn’t control.

  Sawyer didn’t try to offer me any encouragement or pointless words. Instead he held me tighter and dropped small kisses on my hair, temple, and forehead as I cried in his arms. I’d never really cried on anyone before. Opening myself up to sharing my emotions was new for me. The part of me that was shocked by my father’s behavior was pushed aside as I soaked in all the comfort I could get. It would be fleeting, but while I had it, I would take it.

  After several minutes, I managed to control my tears. Reaching up, I wiped my face. Thankfully, Dad had called me before I had a chance to put on makeup. I’d have been humiliated if I’d smeared mascara all over Sawyer’s white polo shirt.

  “You want to talk about it?”

  Sharing with Sawyer how my dad had a pregnant twenty-three-year-old fiancée wasn’t something I’d ever do. It was too much for me to take in. I didn’t want to see pity in his eyes when he looked at me. I preferred the lust or attraction. If he pitied me, I wouldn’t be able to deal with it.

  “No,” I replied, sitting back up and checking to see how wet I’d gotten his shirt.

  “I’ll dry,” he said with a smile. I could still see the concern in his eyes as he searched my face. Part of me wanted him to know everything about me, except that a bigger part knew he’d never look at me the same if he was aware how pathetic my life really was.

  “Thank you.”

  Sawyer leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on each corner of my mouth before covering my mouth with his. He didn’t try to get me to open up for him. Instead he kept it gentle and sweet. “Mmm—I’ve been thinking about those sweet lips all morning,” he whispered against my mouth.

  Melting into him was easy and unavoidable. I couldn’t seem to get enough of Sawyer. He pulled back way before I wanted him to, and he ran his hand through my hair before wrapping several curls around his fingers. “Why don’t you go finish getting ready? I’m anxious to get you all to myself for the day.”

  My legs suddenly were in complete working order again. I stood up and smiled down at him. “Give me ten minutes.”

  Sawyer stood up and started to follow me inside when he stopped. “Um, yeah, uh, I think I’ll just wait in the truck if that’s okay.”

  Ashton wasn’t inside. She’d left with Beau an hour ago, but I knew that wasn’t why he didn’t want to come inside. There had to be a lot of memories in this house that he wasn’t ready to revisit right now.

  “Okay, I won’t be long,” I assured him.

  SAWYER

  Pulling onto the dirt road that led out to the field seemed like a bad decision. I’d just spent the day with Lana, all alone. We’d bought her a sleeping bag, backpack, and a few other supplies for our camping trip. Then, instead of a movie, she’d talked me into playing eighteen holes of putt-putt golf. It had sounded like a stupid idea, but listening to Lana’s laughter and seeing her strut around when she’d gotten a hole-in-one had been more entertaining than any movie.

  “I haven’t been to one of these since . . . ” She trailed off, biting her bottom lip.

  At the last field party Lana had gone to, she’d covered for Beau and Ashton. When I realized that Lana had known Beau and Ash were messing around behind my back and hadn’t told me, I’d been upset. I’d always thought she was on my team. It wasn’t her fault; I had moved on enough now to see that clearly. Reaching across the seat, I grabbed her hand.

  “The last time was when Beau and Ash were messing around behind my back. Although you covered for them that night, it wasn’t your fault. No worries, okay?”

  She let her bottom lip pop free of her teeth; it appeared red and swollen. Well, damn, that was just too tempting. I let go of her hand, slid my hand between her thighs, and pulled her over to me.

  “That’s better. You were too far away,” I whispered before I bent my head so that I could pull her bottom lip into my mouth and gently suck on it. The surprised little noise she made had me pulling her closer. I let my hand slip farther between her bare legs and squeeze the soft skin of her thigh in my hand.

  Lana pressed her chest against mine and made a pleading noise in her throat. Picking her leg up, I draped it over my knee and slid my hand up a little higher inside her thigh. Her breathing hitched, and I realized my heart was racing the closer I got to the edge of her underwear.

  “No, don’t,” Lana said breathlessly as she gave me a gentle push breaking the kiss. She quickly slid her leg off my knee and closed her legs. I’d been really close to doing something I hadn’t done but once in my life, when I’d been in seventh grade and had been a little confused as to why Nicole wanted me to touch her underwear.

  “I’m sorry,” I said, sitting back in my seat and focusing on the trees in front of me instead of checking to see if she was mad at me—or worse, terrified. I needed to get ahold of my pounding heart first. I’d been so close, and she’d been so warm.

  “Don’t be sorry. I just . . . I’ve never done anything like that before, and I got a little nervous. I’m not sure I’m ready for that.”

  Her small hand covered mine, and my tightened fist released under her touch.

  “Me either,” I replied, finally turning to meet her eyes.

  Her eyes widened in surprise. “You either—what?”

  I let out a chuckle and flipped my hand over so that our palms were touching. Then I threaded my fingers through hers. “I’ve never done anything like that before. Unless you count in seventh grade when Nicole locked us in Kayla’s closet during a game of spin the bottle and forced me to touch her panties or she’d tell the whole school I was too scared to kiss her.”

  A small bubble of laughter escaped Lana’s mouth, and she slapped her free hand over it to keep from laughing out loud. I smiled and squeezed her hand. It was a funny story.

  “Let me tell you. What we almost did blew that very strange and disturbing memory out of the water.”

  This time the laughter was too loud to cover up with her hand, and I reached over and pulled it from her mouth. “Don’t. I like to hear you laugh. And that is one helluva funny story. So laughing is expected.”

  “I can’t believe Nicole threatened you,” she said, still laughing softly.

  “Really? Have you met Nicole? She was determined to lose her virginity before high school if at all possible. I think Beau may have helped her reach that goal in eighth grade.”

  “Oh, my.” Her laughter faded away and a serious thoughtful expression replaced it.

  “What’s going through that head of yours now?”

  A forced smile immediately appeared on her lips. “Nothing, sorry.” She glanced out at the bonfire in the distance between the pecan trees. “You ready to get out?”

  She was very closed off about a lot of things. The more she didn’t want to tell me, the more I wanted to know about her.

  Her phone began singing some sappy love song I’d heard before on the radio, and she reached into her purse and pulled it out. Instead of answering it, she quickly turned it off and slipped it back inside the pocket of her purse.

  “No one important?” I asked, wanting her to share something, anything, with me.

  She shook her head and reached for the door handle. “Nope. No one I can’t call back later.”

  I watched as she jumped down out of my truck before I got out on my side. Lana McDaniel held everything close. I wondered if I’d ever really know what she was thinking.

  * * *

  Sitting on the tailgate of Jake’s truck with Lana tucked between my legs, I was satisfied. Ash curled up in Beau’s lap wasn’t even on my radar. I’d managed to talk to everyone, Beau included. We discussed football, college, and our camping trip without any problems. It was nice. Lana was nice. No, Lana was more than nice. Having her in my arms made everything bearable.

 
“Heads up. Kyle and Nic just got here,” Ethan said, before taking another swig of his beer. Nicole hadn’t been around much since Beau and Ash had hooked up. She’d made a go for me a few times. Once, I’d even been tempted to take her out to my truck one night and just screw her. Get it over with. But I couldn’t do it. I didn’t want my first time to be with Nicole in the back of my truck at a field party. I’d waited this long—I could wait longer. Ash was supposed to have been my one and only. But that plan was over. I figured one day the right girl would come along, and when that happened, the place wouldn’t be important—just as long as it was with the one person I couldn’t live without.

  “She’s coming this way,” Kayla said smugly. The girl loved drama. With Nicole around, drama was bound to follow.

  “You wanna go, baby?” Beau asked Ashton, starting to shift so she could up.

  “No. I’m not scared of Nicole, Beau. What’s she going to do to me? Hmm?” Beau chuckled and leaned in to give Ashton a kiss on the nose. My chest ached only slightly at the sight of them, but nothing like the times in the past when I’d been unable to take a deep breath when he kissed her.

  “Well, look at the Vincent boys. Getting along. Both of you all snuggled up to girls, no one trying to beat up the other one. Looks like Sawyer has moved on, Ash,” Nicole drawled out as she winked at me and sauntered over to stop in front of Lana who stood in her way.

  “Since you’ve gotten over your Ashton depression, why don’t you and I go out one night and have some fun?”

  Lana tensed in my arms. A protective streak coursed through me, and I pulled her up against me tightly, placing my hands on her hips. “I’ll have to pass, Nic. I’ve already found someone to spend time with this summer.”

  Nicole smirked as she let her gaze travel up and down Lana as if she wasn’t impressed. “You can do much better.”

  “I disagree.”

  “You need someone with experience after wasting all those years with the preacher’s daughter.”

  I heard Ashton ordering Beau to calm down and ignore Nicole.

  “I’m not into overused merchandise. I’ve got standards, you know.”

  The surprised laugh from Lana had me smiling like an idiot. I loved making her laugh. She’d relaxed and leaned into me when I’d tightened my hold on her. Knowing I made her feel safe and unthreatened was a heady feeling.

  “Once the Vincent boys were the hottest thing around. You’ve not lived up to your potential. You’re both boring. One day you’ll crave that excitement you missed out on,” Nicole said with a snarl before flipping her dark brown hair over her shoulder and walking over to Kyle, who had stood silently while watching her make a play for me.

  “Come on, Kyle, I’ve had enough of this place.” She stalked past him, and Kyle threw me an apologetic look before following her.

  “Why does he put up with that?” Ashton asked as they walked away.

  “Because she’s an easy lay,” Jake replied.

  “Sometimes, easy ain’t even worth it,” Toby drawled.

  I couldn’t agree more. Nic came with a whole slew of problems. “Kyle will get sick of it eventually,” I replied.

  Lana wiggled against me until her sweet little ass was pressing against me. As good as it felt this could get embarrassing. I moved my hands to her hips and stilled her movements, then lowered my head to whisper in her ear, “You keep wiggling that tight bottom of yours against me and we’re going to have a problem.”

  Lana stiffened in my arms, then tilted her head to the side to look at me. “What do you mean?” she asked quietly.

  Grinning, I buried my head in her hair so no one could read my lips. Although I didn’t have a problem with them overhearing, I knew she would and I didn’t want to embarrass her. “You’re getting me a little too excited. I’d really like to go back to the truck and go back to what we were doing earlier. I’m trying to forget how warm and soft you were but I can’t. I’m a guy and you’re sexy as hell. My body is reacting to it.”

  “Oh,” she breathed.

  I took in one deep breath, inhaling the smell of her hair. It had a light innocent sweet smell that shouldn’t make me hard as a rock but it did. All I could think about was did she smell that good everywhere? I wanted to find out bad. Real bad.

  “We should stay here,” she whispered, and her voice hitched slightly as I pressed my unavoidable reaction to her body closer to the soft curve of her ass.

  “Probably, but that doesn’t make me stop thinking about it,” I replied in a low voice as my lips grazed the soft patch of skin behind her ear. She shivered in my arms and my arms immediately tightened against her. I tasted the skin that was currently fascinating me with a small swipe of my tongue. Yeah, it was sweet.

  “Fuck you two. Y’all are like two dogs in heat. We don’t wanna watch. How many times do I gotta tell you that?” Jake called out in an amused tone that brought us back down to earth. We were about to make out right here in front of everyone. I’d forgotten they were there. Lana’s smell had fogged up my brain making me very one track minded.

  The small giggle that came from Lana surprised me. Pulling back I gazed down at her and the twinkle of amusement in her eyes made my chest swell with pride. She wasn’t embarrassed after all. I really didn’t know her at all.

  Chapter 13

  LANA

  “If you’re going to sleep in Beau’s tent, then who is going to sleep with me?” I asked. “I don’t want to sleep in a tent all by myself. There are black bears in the Cheaha Mountains. I know this for a fact because I Googled it.”

  Ashton threw me a saucy smile over her shoulder. “Well, I’m sure you could share a tent with Sawyer. I have no doubt he’d rather share with you than Jake.”

  I flopped down on her bed and groaned in frustration. Sharing a tent with Sawyer would be difficult. We’d been on two dates since the field party, and not once had we done anything more than kiss. After I’d put the brakes on his hand slowly creeping up my thigh, he’d been hands-off on my body.

  “He hasn’t offered that, and I am not asking him. Can I get a lock for my tent?”

  Ashton laughed and threw another pair of shorts on her bed to pack. “Bears can’t unzip tents, Lana.”

  “Well, chainsaw psychos who wander the woods looking for young girls all alone to chop up into pieces can,” I replied.

  “There are no chainsaw psychos! I can’t believe you’ve never been camping. It’s safe, Lana. I promise.”

  “Easy for you to say. You’ll be snuggled up safely in the arms of Beau Vincent. I’m more than positive he could take on a black bear,” I muttered.

  Ashton pulled a large, red backpack out of her closet that was very similar to the royal blue one that Sawyer had helped me pick out. The excitement for our upcoming trip made me wish I could share in her joy. But every time I tried to get excited, visions of black bears, snakes, and chainsaws haunted my thoughts.

  “Stop frowning. You’ll be fine. I’ll get someone to share a tent with you. You won’t be left alone.”

  Reaching for the tiny little bikini Ashton had dropped on the bed, I picked it up and raised an eyebrow in surprise. “So, I’m guessing your mom hasn’t seen this one?”

  Ashton rolled her eyes and snatched it out of my hand before glancing back at the door to make sure it was still closed. “No, she hasn’t. I bought it for this trip.”

  “I just bet you did,” I teased.

  Ashton frowned. “Shh . . . Do you not remember all the begging I had to do to make this happen? The only saving graces we have are the facts that Sawyer is going to be there and they believe you and I are sharing a tent. And I might have left out the fact Beau will be there.”

  “Ashton! You did not! What if they talk to his mother?” I asked, horrified.

  “That ain’t gonna happen. My parents and Honey Vincent aren’t exactly chummy.”

  “Okay, if you say so,” I replied just as my phone alerted me that I had a new text message.

  Sawyer: W
hat’re you doing?

  Me: Watching Ash pack.

  Sawyer: Why aren’t you packing?

  Me: B/c I’m stressing over the black bears that are going to eat me in my sleep.

  Sawyer: HA! No black bears will eat you. They don’t do redheads. You’re safe.

  Me: Very funny. I happen to know that they aren’t very picky and that there are plenty of them in Cheaha.

  Sawyer: Naw, I’ve never seen one there.

  Me: Well, they’re there. Google it.

  Sawyer: I’ll keep you safe.

  Me: Maybe during the day, but at night, when I’m alone in my tent, they’ll come for me.

  Sawyer: Alone in your tent? Um, no. You’re in my tent.

  I lifted my head to see Ashton watching me as I texted back and forth with Sawyer.

  She was amused to say the least. “Well, what’s he saying?”

  “That I’m sharing his tent.”

  Ashton raised her eyebrows. “Told ya.”

  Me: Are you sure?

  Sawyer: Hell yeah, I’m sure. Why do you think I’m going on this camping trip?

  Me: Um . . . because you like to sleep on hard, rocky ground and get chased by bears?

  Sawyer: Funny. Go take your cute little ass to your room and get packing.

  Me: Yes, sir.

  “Oh, ye of little faith,” Ashton said in a singsong voice as I stood up and slipped my phone into the pocket of my shorts.

  “Yeah, yeah, you know everything,” I replied.

  “You going to go pack now?”

  “Yes, I guess I need to get on that. Do we really have to leave so early in the morning, though?”

  “Afraid so. It’s a five-hour drive then we need to hike up to our camping spot and put up our tents before the sun goes down.”

  * * *

  It was still dark outside when Sawyer drove up in the Suburban that belonged to his dad. It had room for eight. That way we could all drive up together.

  I’d packed as much clothing as I could fit in my backpack. Ashton had assured me there were showers on the grounds we could use. I was not about to get in snake-infested water to wash up.