Camp Jameson (23 page)

“Nothing will make you feel more
alive than bungee jumping off Jameson Bridge. I knew you’d like this.”

“You named the bridge after
yourself? Of course you did. But what if I’m afraid of heights?”

Avery laughed. “You’re here
aren’t you? Now, step in.”

I put my hands on Avery’s
shoulders to steady myself as he secured the harness around me. His time near
me was too short and all I wanted him to do was close the space between us and
kiss me. His hands, even though they were touching me through clothes were in
all the right places and I was just about to explode with desire. I guess this
was pretty exciting, being up here on a bridge that could snap at any moment
and sharing that moment with Avery. It was amazing.

When I thought he was all
through, he stepped closer and put his hands around the back of my neck. I
tried hard not to overreact by his warm hands on my skin. I was glad when he
lifted my father’s military tags from my neck and gathered them in his hand.

“We wouldn’t want to lose
these.” He stepped to the backpack, set them in, and zipped it up.

I was so blown away by the
gesture that I just stood in awe as I watched him secure his own harness as Pierce
double-checked his straps.

The mountainside glistened even
more with the glow of the setting sun as Avery helped me climb under the rope
to the ledge of the old bridge. I didn’t want to look down but I couldn’t help
myself. I just stared at the rushing water flowing over the rocks kicking up a
fine mist and the waterfall in the distance. The supreme foliage of the thick
forest covering the mountains that led down to the valley was stunning. We were
at least fifteen hundred feet in the air as he pulled me near and clipped his
harness to mine.

“You didn’t think I was going to
let you do this without me, did you?” I smiled up at him. “I want to be the one
to catch you when you fall,” he said in a low voice. Those words did more to me
than I wanted to admit.

“Put your arms around my chest.”
I was nervous and excited.

“Ready?” I nodded.

“On my count of three.” He let
his fingers trail under my chin and tilted my face to look at him. “Don’t you
dare look away. Keep your eyes on the ground and take it all in. Fly with me,
Aria.” He studied my face as if he was trying to memorize me then wrapped his
arms around my waist. It was the most intimate gesture I could have ever hoped
for. Avery looked at Pierce and nodded then looked back to me.

“One, two, three.”

I could feel Avery lean over the
ledge and I let myself fall with him.

The rush was exhilarating. The
wind pushed my cheeks back away from my mouth and I could feel them rippling in
the wind. I screamed in delight and louder than I ever have before. I felt
Avery’s chest rumble with laughter.

I knew I was secured to Avery,
so I let my hands fall out to the side and leaned my head back. I was flying.

“That a girl,” Avery breathed in
my ear and wrapped his arms around me tighter.

I took it all in. I took in the
smell of Avery’s cologne as the tears streamed down my cheeks from the air
rushing past my face. The mixture of the forest made of pine and oak, nature
was all around us. The river gushed below us as the summer heat drifted by in
waves off the mountain. The sun had a warm glow in the distance and the river
below us was fast approaching. I was plummeting at a fast rate and I didn’t
once think of how dangerous this really could be or if the bridge would hold
when our bands reached full tension. I was in Avery’s arms, and I felt safe.

We dropped down within feet from
the water. I stretched out my hands farther and let the water brush my
fingertips. I laughed aloud as the adrenaline coursed through me. The cords
recoiled and pulled us up about six feet, and then we dropped downward again.
The ropes swayed us back and forth like a pendulum on a grandfather clock. I
looked up at Avery as he wiped the tears from my eyes. My eyes met his and I
could see wonder and exhilaration in his.

“What a rush,” he said closing
his eyes. His dark brown hair was tousled now and all I wanted to do was run my
hands through it.

“That was incredible,” I
shouted.

We both hung upside down just
taking in each other as the rope stopped swaying. His eyes sparkled in awe. All
the blood was rushing to my head. My heart thumped loudly in my ears. Adrenaline
pushed through my veins. He readjusted his body and angled it closer to mine.
His arms tightened around my waist. I could feel every inch of Avery. His hot
breath on my lips. I was caught up in the moment. I couldn’t take it anymore. I
leaned in and pressed my lips to his. I brushed my tongue over his lips and
Avery groaned then deepened the kiss.

I tightened my arms around him
and pulled him closer. I tilted my head back as he broke away and trailed
kisses down my neck. He sucked in a breath but then I felt him stiffen and pull
away. I could see the panic that shot through his eyes.

“I can’t,” he said. Anger spread
through me like a wildfire.

“What do you mean? You can’t
kiss me but you can fuck me then leave me? You’re just like Nate,” I seethed. I
could feel Pierce beginning to pull us back up. I took advantage of the time we
had. It was a long way back up.
I know that I was the one to kiss him but
had I really read his body language wrong?

“Avery, why do you pull away
every time we get close?”

“I can’t be with you, Aria. I’m
sorry if you thought that this was something more than the contest prize.”

“Bullshit. So you would have
done this with anyone? Even, say, Caitlyn?”

“It was just a prize. You won
the prize.”

“You know Avery, that’s the
thing. You’re not being honest with yourself. You remember what you said to me
the first day I arrived?” I didn’t wait for his answer. “You said don’t think,
just feel. You should really follow your own advice.”

The rope jarred and came to a
sudden halt. Pierce cursed. “It’s jammed guys. Give me a minute,” Pierce called
out. I heaved a sigh and tried to diffuse the situation.
What more could I
do.
I was being held in his arms and held against him by straps with no
place to go.

I looked at Avery. Here we were,
hanging upside down, and between the adrenaline and my frustration, I could
feel my brain falter.

“Don’t you think you’re being
too hard on yourself? You push people away in your life that are good for you
and you don’t even see it. And you say
I
think too much. Everyone has
been hurt one way or another in the past. You learn from your mistakes. That’s
life. You can’t run away from your past forever. I have heard the stories about
how badly you got hurt in the past, but that’s no reason to treat every woman
you’ve met after that like a piece of shit. Get over it already!”

Avery’s eyes widened then traced
back and forth from my eyes to my mouth as he took in my words. “You really
care about me don’t you?”

“Hah. Don’t you dare turn this
around on me, Jameson. This is about you. I’ve made a fool out of myself twice
now. It’s your turn.”

“I got it,” Pierce called out
over the edge of the bridge. The rope began to pull us back up again.

Avery studied me. “Just tell me
one thing. What do you see in me that has you so intrigued?” he asked in a
rough voice.

“Oh, no you don’t. No more. I’m
done opening my heart to you. All you do is rip it apart. I don’t want to be a
part of your stupid games anymore.”

“Fair enough.” He lowered his
voice. “Just so you know, I didn’t know I was playing a game. I’m just…”

“Sorry about that guys. Almost
there,” Pierce called to us. I didn’t really register what Pierce had said. I
was too busy seething.

“You’re just what Avery?
Scared?” My voice rose up an octave. “News flash, we’re all scared to show
people who we really are. It’s about who you want to take a chance on and who
you don’t!” My voice echoed off the ridge of the mountain but I didn’t care. He
looked so lost in that moment. I regretted my words instantly.
Once again, I
had no filter.

“Avery, give me your hand,”
Pierce said.

I didn’t realize we had stopped
at the underside of the bridge. The wind was starting to pick up drastically.
Avery and I looked to each other, letting my harsh words sink in.

He unbound his hands from around
my waist and stretched towards Pierce. The wind pushed us away from Pierce then
back towards him. His hand was just out of reach as Avery stretched further.

Finally, Avery’s hand clasped
Pierce’s and he pulled us up so that my hands could reach the rope rail. I pulled
myself to the edge and held onto the side on the decaying planks. Pierce had
two Coleman lanterns lit on high beside him. The sun had sunk down behind the
mountain as we were mostly bathed in darkness. I couldn’t help but feel how
close it reflected my sinking mood.

“Hold on tight. I’m going to
undo my clip. Don’t let go.”

I nodded as Avery undid his
clamp and climbed under the rope rail. He lifted me with ease over the ledge
and set me on my feet. We both could see his brother studying us. I’m sure Pierce
could sense the tension between us.

Avery ran his hand through his
hair and closed his eyes. He looked back at Pierce and I could see Avery’s
guard go up.

“That was awesome. I had never
done this at twilight before. It really is amazing. You should try it,” Avery
said to Pierce.

“No, I need to get back. Help me
pack up, would ya?” Pierce said shifting his gaze to me.

Avery dexterously untied my
ropes and harness. I wish I could have done it, but I had no clue how it was
hooked. I was at his mercy.

I stepped out of the harness,
pulled my hands away from his shoulders, and turned toward the blanket. I
reached into the backpack, retrieved my father’s military tags, grabbed my
sweatshirt, and threw them both on. I walked to the edge of the bridge and stared
down at the dark ridge below as I waited for Avery and Pierce to get the gear
packed.

I looked up when I heard the
sound of the gear thrown in the truck.

“See you later, Aria,” Pierce
called out.

I waved and looked to see Avery
packing up our half-eaten picnic food. He didn’t take as much care when packing
it away as he had unpacking it. He seemed frustrated and pissed.

I sighed, knowing that the next
thirty minutes back down the mountain were going to be the longest minutes of
my life. I’ll admit Avery was more stubborn than I was. I could only do what he
wanted. I had to keep my distance.

The silence between us was
deafening. The only thing shining in the darkness was the headlight of the four-wheeler
illuminating our way down the dirt trail heading back towards camp.

I didn’t hold on as tightly to
his abs as before and wished that I could touch him like I did on the way to
the bridge. It was the most excruciating awkward silence, broken only by the
sound of the engine and rubber tires grinding through the dried mud.

He stopped in front of my cabin
and I got to my feet and tried to find the right words. I had wanted to say so
many things in that moment but because my mouth had already said too much, only
regret hung in the air between us. I had planned to soothe things over, but
when we arrived, I saw that Caitlyn was sitting on the front porch of the cabin
next to mine watching our exchange.
God, she was exhausting.

“Avery, there’s something wrong
with my shower. Can you please come and take a look?” she said in a whiny voice
as she stood and leaned over her rail in the bright porch light, exposing her
double D’s.

“You can call maintenance for
that, Caitlyn. The number’s in your manual,” he said barely looking at her. He
mostly kept his eyes to his quad beneath him. His jaw was clenched and I
couldn’t help but feel angry with myself for shooting off at the mouth tonight.
I ruined a perfectly romantic evening all because I couldn’t keep my damn mouth
shut. All because I pushed him too far too fast. I was honest to a fault. And I
knew that most people didn’t want to hear the truth and Avery was no exception.

His eyes landed on me and he
nodded toward me like I was some stranger he was passing by on the street then
lowered his helmet and pulled away.

Caitlyn smirked, knowing she
interrupted us.
I really didn’t like that woman.

I clenched my fists and turned
on my heel toward my cabin. I had enough of the cold, distant Avery. I was done
chasing him. I was done opening my heart up to him and laying it out for him to
walk all over. I didn’t want to be with a man that didn’t want to be with me.
What
was the point?
It was definitely time to move on.

DAY SIXTEEN:

TUESDAY NIGHT

SIENNA’S CABIN

“
A
ria,
wait up,” Sienna called out. I pushed the backpack over my shoulder and turned
toward her. I smiled, feeling elated that I was able to completely relax and
let go in my toys class today.

“Hey, I was wondering if you and
Sara wanted to come over to my cabin tonight. We’ll drink some wine and hang
out.”

“What time?”

“I need to clean up here, then I
want to take a shower so, how about nine o’clock?”

“Sounds great,” I said. As I
turned to leave she put her hand on my forearm.

“Oh, and Aria. Way to let go
today. You really are breathtaking to watch while you pleasure yourself.”

I genuinely smiled back to her
as I filled with confidence. “Thanks,” I replied.

I left my hour and a half
Tantric Breathing/Sex Toys class at Kit Kat cabin and headed back to Jasmine.

I showered and slipped on my
jeans and a tight fitting t-shirt over my bra and panties and laced up my
running shoes. It was quarter til nine. The night had gotten cooler as the sun
set and I was hoping we could sit out by the fire. I reached for my Air Force
hoodie instead of my father’s military tags.

I had realized after talking
with Avery about my father’s death that it had been three years since he died
and something in me had changed. I loved my father more than anything in the
world but it wasn’t healthy to cling to the necklace anymore. I was a different
person now and there would always be a special place in my heart for him. I
smiled at the memory of him as I glanced at his tags resting properly on my
bedside table then I snapped off the light and exited my bedroom. I met Sara in
the living room. She was grinning at me and bouncing with joy.

“Girls night. I can’t wait. I am
so happy that you hit it off with everyone.”

“Me too. I really like everyone
here,” I said, putting on my hoodie.

Sara giggled. “I know. I can
tell.” She studied me. “You’re different.” She searched over my face again.
“What’s different about you?”

I shrugged. “I guess I’m just
finally letting go of everything. I had a great class today. I’m sure Sienna
will tell you all about it.” I still hadn’t told her what happened between
Avery and me.

She squealed in delight, picked
me up, and spun me around. “Yay! I’m so excited. The rest of the camp is going
to be a blast. I know it.”

I giggled. “Let’s go. I need
wine. And lot’s of it.”

I pulled the door shut to our
cabin and glanced up to the sound of a four-wheeler driving towards us. I
cringed, then relaxed some when I could see it was only Pierce. He whistled
through his teeth at us arm in arm.

“Now that’s what I’m talking
about. Girl on girl is what this camp is all about.” He whistled. “Where ya
headed, Kittens?”

“Sienna’s. Wanna come?” I asked.

“Always,” Pierce winked and
headed down the road toward the Cub section. Sara giggled and leaned into me.

“I
so
want to do him,”
she purred.

“So do him,” I replied.

Sara hummed. “I’m saving the
best for last,” she said, wrapping her arms tighter around my left arm.

Pierce’s statement made me
realize then that I hadn’t really enjoyed everything this camp had to offer
yet. It got me to start seriously considering having a threesome experience.
But other than Sara, was there a girl I wanted to be with?
Could I even go
through with it?

I pushed the thought from my
head and walked with Sara toward the instructor’s section of the camp. It was
only a short walk from ours. We reached Sienna’s cabin after a few minutes. The
night air was cool for midsummer, the sky was clear and the stars shown
brightly down on us like the rhinestones on Liberace’s cape. Sara knocked on
the door and we let ourselves in.

“Sienna, we’re here,” Sara
called out.

The décor was similar to our
cabin but it was bathed in earth tones.

“Okay, I’ll be just a minute.
Make yourselves at home. There’s wine already open for us. Help yourselves,”
she called out from her bedroom. I stopped cold and stared towards the corner
of the room. My eyes landed on Caitlyn sitting on a dark brown leather couch.

“What are you doing here?” I
quipped.

“I was invited,” Caitlyn
shrugged, looking bored as she sipped her wine and thumbed through the latest
GQ magazine.

“No, Caitlyn. You invited
yourself,” Sienna chuckled as she stepped into the room.

“What evs,” Caitlyn said as she
rolled her eyes as if she really didn’t pick up on Sienna’s hint that we didn’t
want her there. Yet, we didn’t want to start anything by getting rid of her.
Sometimes, it just isn’t worth it, but I haven’t forgotten about her turning
the lights on while I was peeing. I just didn’t have the right idea yet as to
what I should do to get her back. But I promised myself I’d think of something
and soon.

Sienna mouthed the words ‘I’m
sorry’ on her way to the kitchen to pour a glass of wine.

I casually strode around her
living room taking in all the photos. One was of Sienna and an older couple I
could only take as her parents. She looked just like her mother. It was taken
on a beach in front of a pier. I saw photos of her and Sean on the same beach.
He had her swept up in his arms and he was kissing her. I looked to the next
photo to see Sienna with Sean and Avery. On Avery’s arm was a tall brunette.
She was kissing him on the cheek and he had his head pulled back in laughter.
My heart dropped.

“That’s Emily. She’s the best,”
Sienna spoke those heart-wrenching words over my shoulder. I turned stiffly and
took the glass of wine she held out for me.
Was this a girlfriend?

Sienna eyed me curiously. “Emily
is his sister,” she added.

Oh. Okay, I’ll admit it. I
was a little jealous for like two seconds when I thought it was an
ex-girlfriend. Okay, maybe a lot jealous.
Then anger surged through me.
Avery
was a player. He made it clear he didn’t want me.

“Let’s sit out back. I started a
fire,” Sienna said. I nodded, afraid my voice would betray me, then followed
her and Sara outside. Caitlyn was already sitting in one of the chairs waiting
for us. I narrowed my eyes at her.
She was up to something. Why did she want
to hang out with us now? She hated me
.

We sat in the low chairs next to
the fire and I forced myself to block any and all thoughts of Avery for the
night.

“When did you start working
here?” I asked Sienna before I could stop myself.
Why did I just do that? I
didn’t want to talk about Avery,
I scolded myself.

Caitlyn just gruffed at my
question like talking about anyone but herself bored her to death.
Yes,
that’s how I can get my revenge on her. I can keep talking and bore her until
she dies…wait that came out wrong, that just implies that I’m boring...
damn…you screwed me again bunny fucker.

“I had known Avery a short while
before he started the camp. I had just graduated with my Bachelor’s in fashion
design and I was currently working on a new lingerie line when he had told me
his plans and asked if I wanted to help. I hadn’t met Sean yet. I was single so
I said, why the hell not. I’ve been working here since it opened. I love it. I
can’t imagine doing anything else.”

“You know Avery pretty well
then?” I asked. She studied me for a minute and I shifted nervously under her
stare.
Ugh, I hated when she did that.

I looked to Sara to see her eyes
on me. I winked trying to deflect their attention. Sara giggled and I relaxed
some. Caitlyn just rolled her eyes again like every question about Avery was
just so boring. Yet she wanted him, too.

“Yes, I would say so. He’s a
good guy. He’s always been there for me. I owe him a lot.”

I took a sip of my wine and
stared at the fire.

“Aria, I have to ask. The night
of the Leather and Lace theme party, it really looked like you were dancing
just for Avery. So were you?”

“Isn’t it obvious,” Caitlyn
sneered. I spurted forcibly into my glass and choked on the wine as I inhaled.
Sienna patted my back until my coughing fit slowed. She tenaciously waited for
my reply.

“No,” I said, answering Caitlyn,
then I looked to Sienna and backpedaled quickly. “I don’t know. I was doing
what you taught me to do.” I coughed again as my mind tried to rationalize my
behavior. “Find someone in the audience to focus on. The audience was in total
darkness. He was in the middle of the lighted table. It’s as simple as that.”

“Too bad. I was hoping for some
good gossip,” Sienna chirped. I laughed at her honesty. I sipped my wine,
hoping for a subject change. I was glad neither one could see through my lies.

“Speaking of which, you didn’t
say much about going bungee jumping with him,” Sienna said.

“Did you have fun? Did you guys
have sex out there?” Sara teased.

I chuckled both sarcastically
and horrified at the same time. “There’s nothing to tell. We just went bungee
jumping that’s all. Well…that bridge we jumped from sucked. It was very old and
swaying. I thought for sure it was going to fall. The bridge was scarier than
the jump itself. I will admit it was a little weird when he brought out the
picnic basket and wanted to have a picnic in the middle of the bridge. We could
have died just sitting there having wine and cheese.”

Sienna stopped with her glass in
the air and studied my face. “Seriously?”

“Yes, why?” I asked.

She lowered her glass to her lap
and sat silent for a moment.

“Because Aria, that’s his move
when he wants to fuck someone. He says it breaks down a girl’s barriers and
creates an emotional connection and that it makes for better sex. Did he make a
move on you? If he did, I’m going to kill him,” Sienna said glaring at me.

“What happened up there?” Sara
added.

I stiffened at their words,
trying to hide my true feelings from the two most perceptive people I knew. I
ignored Caitlyn glaring at me over the fire.

“It doesn’t matter. He didn’t
make a move on me,” I said heavily. Caitlyn snickered.

“He better not have,” Sienna
said.

I let her words sink in, knowing
that Sienna and Sara both were protective of me. I smiled softly, realizing
that I learned so much more about Avery in one afternoon than I had known. I
was plagued with insecure thoughts until I finally settled on the most
pressing.
Why did I have such feelings for him?
But then my twisted mind
shouted at me…
being strapped in a harness with Avery while bungee jumping
off a bridge – was nothing. He really didn’t want me.

I took a sip of wine and tried
to shut out my wicked thoughts. Then Sara did me a favor by changing the
subject.

“Sienna, tell me about Aria’s
class today. What happened? I want all the juicy details,” Sara said.

Again, I choked on my wine.
Why
did they keep making me the center of attention? Ugh. I didn’t want to talk
about me.

Caitlyn was rolling her eyes so
much that they looked like twin propellers on an airplane. I thought she was
going to take off for a second.

Sienna embellished her story of
how I finally let go. I had to admit the way she told it kinda turned me on.
Sara sat with her mouth open through most of it. Her eyebrows rose in surprise
as Sienna spoke of how Colt ravished me with Avery’s new product, a dual
rotating vibrator with a G-spot wand, and how I crumbled down around them and
mewed like a kitten when I was finished.

“You suck, you know that
Sienna,” I said, shifting in my seat, trying to hold back my nervousness.
But,
that thing was exquisite.

“I want one,” Sara gushed. Our
laughter, even Caitlyn’s, carried out into the backyard when I saw four figures
step out into the light of our fire. Caitlyn lit up with excitement when she
saw them. Then it hit me, Caitlyn was here because of whom we hung out with. I,
on the other hand, was relieved when it was just Sean, Colt, Pierce, and Ethan.
No Avery.

“I’ve got one inside. But you
only get it if I get to use it on you first,” Sienna said.

“That’s my girl,” Sean’s face
was lit up like a child at Christmas. We broke out in laughter again as I
watched Sean take a seat next to Sienna. Ethan sat down beside me. I smiled
crookedly at him.

“You wouldn’t be talking about
Aria, would you?” Colt asked.

“You just missed it,” I said. I
was glad the guys weren’t here to hear Sienna’s tall tale of my orgasms.

“Damn, you women go right to the
good stuff, don’t you?” Colt said.

“Yep,” I radiated. “How are you
doing after class today, Colt?”

“I’ve had a hard on for two
straight hours now. How do you think I’m doing? Speaking of which,” he said as
he pulled Sara to her feet and kissed her passionately on the lips, then pulled
her through the patio doorway into Sienna’s cabin. “We’ll be back in a bit,”
Colt said, grabbing Sara’s ass and growling. “Or maybe not,” he added. Sara giggled
and followed behind him.

I rolled my eyes, in a very
Caitlyn-like manner, and glanced at Pierce. He was standing with his arms
crossed, leaning against the redwood privacy fence grinning at me.

“What?” I chirped.

“I’m sorry, but I have to hear
this. Sienna, do tell.”

Pierce moved to an empty chair
and propped his feet up on a nearby stool.

Sean lifted Sienna and sat her
on his lap then looked to me.

“When are you going to share
that fine piece of ass, Aria?” Sean asked.

I raised my eyebrows at him and
downed the rest of my wine.

Sean’s, Ethan’s, and Pierce’s
heated looks all rested on me while Sienna replayed the story for them. I had
to admit, I felt sexier than ever before.