Page 11

11

CAMERON

Good riddance, Stratton Ranch.

I was packing my bags to leave for good, a part of me relieved, a part of me completely devastated. I hadn’t spoken to Levi since our argument behind the main cabin, the conversation successfully breaking me into pieces. I didn’t understand how he could so easily throw away everything we’d had like it was nothing, like I was nothing.

Like I never even mattered, at all.

Thankfully, I didn’t have that much to pack since I’d left the majority of my life back in L.A. I groaned inwardly when I thought about heading back to the city. I was going to be stepping into a press cycle, doing promo for the movie, riding off the goodwill of the leaked photos from the fundraiser. I wasn’t in the mood to be everyone’s favorite cowboy, no matter how much my manager tried to hype me up about it.

I just wanted to be with Levi.

I let the treacherous thought cross my mind as I finished zipping up my last suitcase. I was never going to be with Levi. I was never even going to talk to him again. And the sooner I accepted that, the easier things were going to be?—

Shit.

My phone is ringing.

I picked it up, half expecting it to be my manager. “Hey, I just finished packing. I should be heading back soon. I just need to bring everything to my car?—”

“Cameron! Oh, thank God!” Teddy’s voice sounded frantic. “I need your help! My bike crapped out on me on this trail. Can you come pick me up? I didn’t bring enough water for a walk back and I don’t want to pass out by trying it.”

“That’s really more of Levi’s department?—”

“I think his phone is off the hook or something!” Teddy replied. “And his cell doesn’t seem to be working.”

“Shit. What do you need me to do?”

“Here, I’ll send you the coordinates. Just put them into your GPS.”

“Got it. I’ll be right there.”

I impatiently waited on Teddy’s text. When I received it, I immediately went into action, rushing out to my parked car. Even as I drove to Teddy’s location, Levi was on my mind. I wondered why he wasn’t reachable, worried that he’d decided to close Big Sky Rescue. But why wasn’t his cell working either?

Was Levi okay?

I tried and failed to stop thinking about Levi. But by the time I reached Teddy’s location, I was completely frantic, my thoughts spiraling towards the worst-case scenario. Had Levi gone out on some hike and needed rescuing himself? How long had he been M.I.A.? How many supplies had he packed, when was the last time anyone had seen him?—

“Teddy?” I stepped out of my car, trying to quiet my thoughts. I looked around, noticing how quiet and calm everything seemed to be. “Teddy, where are you?”

There was no response.

I checked the coordinates he’d sent again, even re-entering them on my phone. Just then, a familiar truck pulled up a few feet away, Levi at the wheel. He had a serious look on his face, his brow creased in thought. When he spotted me, his expression shifted into confusion, but he didn’t leave the scene. Instead, he parked right next to me and got out of his car, too.

“Where’s Teddy?” he asked. “Have you already found him?”

“I think he sent us the wrong location,” I replied. “I called out for him but didn’t hear anything?—”

“Maybe he passed out from the pain.”

“From the pain?”

“Yeah. He said he ran over something with his bike, and it sent him flying. He was worried he broke an arm.”

“That’s not what he told me?” I held up my phone for emphasis. “Teddy told me that his bike crapped out on him, and he just needed a ride back to the ranch. And he told me that he couldn’t contact you?—”

“Teddy couldn’t contact me?” Levi scoffed. “But he always carries his satellite phone. Even if I wasn’t at the office, he has a direct line to me?—”

Levi sighed with a sudden realization. “Teddy.”

“What? What is it?”

“I bet Shane put him up to this.” Levi groaned. “That asshole really thinks he knows what’s best for me. I’ll need to talk to him about that when I get back.”

“I don’t understand. Are you saying Teddy faked an emergency call? And Shane put him up to it?” Puzzled, I went on. “Why would they even do something like that?”

“Because… I haven’t been myself lately.”

“You haven’t?”

Levi stared over at me. “No. I haven’t.”

There was a silence between us, our eyes locked on each other. Levi didn’t move an inch, didn’t say another word. I felt like I was breaking inside as he looked at me, everything in me falling to pieces all over again. “Levi?”

“Yeah?”

“I…” I took a cautious step towards him. “I’m sorry. I know you probably don’t care, and you don’t want to hear it. But I am sorry. From the bottom of my?—”

“I’m sorry, too.”

“What?”

“You weren’t honest with me, but I wasn’t honest with you, either,” he continued. “But maybe that’s because I wasn’t honest with myself.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that you scared me, Cam. I don’t know. I’ve never felt the way I felt around you. Not about anyone. I’ve never… missed anyone the way I’ve missed you. I’ve never… wanted to be kept. Or to keep. It’s different with you.”

“It’s different with you, too, Levi,” I admitted. “Or at least I thought it was. Sometimes, I can jump the gun about how I feel about people. But I… I thought we were on the same wavelength. It was pretty special.”

“Does it have to be all past tense?” Levi asked, his tone quiet. “Is that what you want, Cam? To leave us in the past?”

“I want what you want, Levi. Whatever that is.” My voice trembled as I spoke. “Whatever you want to make of us.”

“I just want—” Levi started but just then, his phone rang out from his pocket. He hastily answered it, bringing it up to his ear without checking the screen. “This is Levi—Wait. Teddy? Where are you?”

I watched Levi, trying to gauge his emotions as he spoke. His expression went from concerned, to aggravated, to relieved, to wholly annoyed. A few minutes later he hung up the phone without saying anything on his end.

“What’s going on? Where’s Teddy?”

“We need to head back to the ranch.”

* * *

“Don’t be mad at me. No one gets to be mad at me.”

Teddy motioned for us to step inside his cabin, as he spoke. “Seriously. We’re all going to have a laugh about this later, anyway.”

“You called in a fake emergency, Teddy,” Levi replied. “That’s not exactly a laughing matter.”

“But I called it in for a good reason! Which has to count for something.”

“A good reason?”

“So, it occurred to me that I might be… the source of strain in your… relationship?” Teddy guessed as he looked between us. “I was the one who texted Levi about your true identity being revealed in that article. But here’s the thing. I assumed that Levi already knew who you were! I thought you two were keeping it a secret from the rest of us.”

“I can see how you might think that,” I chimed in. “Levi and I were spending a lot of time together.”

“And… I was also the one who took the photo of you, Cameron,” Teddy continued. “The one that ended up in the article? I wasn’t the one who posted it or tagged you in it. But still. If it weren’t for my excellent photography skills, we wouldn’t be in such a mess.”

“And what does any of this have to do with you calling in a fake emergency, Teddy?”

“I decided to do us all a favor.”

“A favor?” Levi quirked an eyebrow. “What kind of favor?”

“Well, I wanted you two to make up, so I gave you an excuse to be in the same place at the same time with minimal distraction. And…” Teddy pulled out his phone. “I was also tracking you in real time. Not like with any kind of gadgets or anything. I mean, I did put a small tracker on the back of your truck, but nothing more hi-tech than that. Nothing you can’t get rid of?—”

“Get to the point, Teddy.”

“Right. So, I was tracking you in real time so that I could post about it online as a satisfied customer. I wanted to show everyone how fast you respond to emergencies. Thankfully, you responded in your usual time since it was a live video. And ever since I posted it a few minutes ago….”

Teddy held out his phone so we could see his screen. “It’s already at a few thousand views. And I expect it to keep climbing.”

“So, your favor was giving me a test and hoping that I passed?”

“My favor was a bit of viral marketing, my friend.” Teddy beamed. “If people keep watching and sharing this video, who knows how many potential clients you’ll be able to reach. I know you love a good cold call, but there are other ways to sell yourself these days. And Big Sky Rescue deserves all the eyeballs it can get.”

“That’s… actually a good idea, Teddy. Thanks.” Levi relented. “Even though I hate the whole way you went about it.”

“The ends justify the means, and all that.” Teddy waved away Levi’s concern. “And? How about you two? Is it fixed?”

Levi and I looked at each other, and in that moment it felt like we were speaking a language of no words, understanding each other without a single sound.

Teddy laughed lightly in response. “Right. I’ll take that as a yes, then.”

* * *

“Do you think Teddy’s scheme is going to work out?”

I was sitting on Levi’s couch, sipping on a glass of wine. Levi’s cabin was about what I expected, just as stylish as he seemed to be. There were thoughtful accents all around, colors that went well together, pieces of art adorning his walls. He was the perfect, soulful cowboy I’d imagined him to be, the rogue constellation lover who looked up at the stars at night.

“I have no idea.” Levi laughed before he sank down next to me. “It’d be nice if it does. If it doesn’t, that’s fine, too. I’m not giving up on Big Sky anytime soon.”

“I’m happy to hear that.” I smiled over at him. “I think it’s really incredible, how much you’re willing to do to make your dreams come true.”

“Same thing you had to do, right? With your acting career?”

“Something like that, yeah.” I shifted closer to him on the couch, our hands touching. “So, how do you think this is going to go? Do you want to try getting to know each other all over again?—”

My words were cut off by Levi’s mouth on mine. He broke our kiss just long enough to say, “God, I missed you, baby.”

And that was that. I was lost inside our kiss, in the very best way, exploring his mouth with my tongue. He explored my mouth right back, our tongues rolling against each other. I felt his hands on my waist, pulling me into his lap. My legs were on either side of him as our kiss continued, my fingers running through his dark hair. He moaned at the feel of it, the vibrations reverberating in my own mouth.

“Should we—” I was out of breath, excitement building too quickly in my chest. “Do we need to talk about?—”

“I don’t care.”

“What?”

“I don’t care about what happened in the past with us, Cam. The past is the past. All I care about is our future together. All I care about is making this work with you.”

“That’s all I care about too, Levi,” I murmured. “All I care about is being with you.”

“Then, be with me.” Levi smiled up at me before he pulled me closer, pressing his lips against mine all over again. I melted into him, our bodies perfectly aligned, my hands resting on his shoulders. As I sat in his lap, Levi’s hips thrust up towards mine, effectively grinding against me as I stayed in place. I whimpered at the feel of it, Levi’s cock getting harder underneath my ass.

“Do you have a condom?” I asked, between desperate whines.

“In my bedroom. Come with me?—”

“No. I want you to bring it back here,” I replied. “I… I want you to take me, right here.”

“Making demands already and we’ve only officially been together a few hours.” Levi smirked.

“I think we both know we’ve been together a lot longer than that, Levi.” My skin flushed red. “Or was that a totally crazy thing to say?”

“Not totally crazy, at all.” Levi softly kissed me on the cheek. “You’re right. In a way, we’ve been together a lot longer than that. We’ve wanted each other.”

Levi gently pulled me off his lap before he walked away from the couch. When he came back, he set a condom down on the table in front of his couch, along with a small bottle of lube. He then put me right back into place on his lap before he pressed kisses on the side of my neck.

“Mine.” His voice was low as he spoke. “All mine.”

“All yours, Levi.” I slipped my hands underneath his shirt, encouraging it to go up over his head. Levi grinned against my neck, letting out a small laugh.

“You are so impatient, baby.”

“I’ve waited a long time for this. I deserve to be impatient.”

“There’s value in taking our time, you know,” Levi whispered before he tugged at the bottom of my shirt, pulling it away from my skin. When I was shirtless, he leaned forward, bending just enough to take one of my nipples between his lips. He licked at the sensitive bud, and I gasped at the sensation, a pleasurable chill running down my spine.

He then moved over to my other nipple, repeating the same motion, and I watched him in awe. A few seconds later he slid a hand between us, his palm running the length of my cock through my pants. I whimpered as I got harder at his touch, every part of me coming to life for Levi. He started to grind against me again, and I could hardly stand it, my body already way too close to the edge.

“Take everything off,” Levi casually commanded. “Then, get on your hands and knees for me on the couch.”

He shifted away from me, giving me enough room to do as I was told. I obeyed his commands, pulling off what was left of my clothes, letting my pants and boxers fall to the floor. I got into position for him, my hands and knees pressing into the couch cushions, anticipation flowing through my veins.

“What are you going to do—Levi! Fuck!” I moaned at the unexpected feel of his mouth against my hole. He ran his tongue in circles around my entrance, teasing me perfectly, as I crumbled underneath his touch. I pushed my hips back against him, trying to get more of his tongue on me, trying to feel him even deeper. Levi took me up on what I was offering, his fingers gripping my thighs, tight, as he licked me faster and harder.

I shivered, my cock leaking precome against the couch cushions. It was embarrassing how easily Levi turned me on, how quickly he’d learned how to press all of my buttons. But just as I was ready to go over the edge for him, Levi’s mouth moved away from me. I opened my own mouth in protest, but soon felt lube dribbling down my entrance, Levi carefully rubbing it in and around my tight hole.

Then, he pressed a finger inside me. I bit my lip as he slid his finger in and out of me, stretching me out. Another finger joined the first, his moves cautious, even more lube being applied as he opened me up for him. I relaxed against his hand, his fingers moving inside me easier and easier, my body prepared to take all of his cock.

“Levi…” I groaned. “I… I want you… please…”

“Just making sure you’re ready for me, baby,” he cooed. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You won’t hurt me. Please,” I begged. “I need to feel you inside me.”

Levi playfully kissed my thigh before he slipped his fingers out of me. I heard him pull off the rest of his clothes then as he settled in place behind me again. There was the sound of a condom wrapper being opened, the condom being rolled down Levi’s shaft…

Suddenly, he was pressing inside me, his tip stretching me even further than his fingers. I let out a deep moan at the feel of his cock, my hole not used to feeling so full.

“That’s it, baby. You can take it…” Levi murmured. “Take all of my cock, baby…”

Levi’s movements were slow and measured as he slid the rest of his shaft deep inside my entrance. When his whole cock was buried deep, he paused, letting me get a feel for the size of him. I appreciated the pause as my body adjusted, my fingers gripping against the couch in pure pleasure. Another minute or two and he began to move, cautiously pumping the length of him in and out of me, his hands holding onto my hips.

“Levi… Levi…” It was over for me, and I knew it. I was putty in this man’s hands from here on out. So much of me already felt like it belonged to him, and now he had my body, too, already possessing my heart and my soul?—

My heart and my soul?

Fuck.

The timing for this couldn’t have been worse.

“I love you,” I said it low, half hoping he wouldn’t hear it. “I love you, Levi. I love you.”

“Cam—”

“You don’t have to say it back.” My words came out staggered, Levi’s hips still moving against mine. “I just… I just felt it…”

“I love you, too.” Levi didn’t hesitate, a hint of a smile in his tone. “I love you so much, baby.”

Levi picked up his pace, his hips thrusting his cock into me at a steady rhythm. I was overwhelmed by it all, the perfect way he fit inside me, the fact that he so casually said that he loved me too. A few more thrusts and I was coming for him, making his couch a mess, my cock spurting come directly onto the cushions. Levi didn’t last much longer behind me, his hips going still a few seconds later, his come spilling inside me.

When he was finished, he pulled out, rolling off the condom and throwing it away. When he came back to the couch, he pulled me right back into his lap, this time our naked bodies splayed against each other.

“Good?” Levi asked, before he pressed a kiss against my forehead.

“Amazing,” I replied, burying my face in the crook of his neck. “God, Levi. How are we ever going to get anything done?”

“We’ll figure it out.” Levi grinned. “Sleep’s not really my thing, anyway. Who needs it? We can sleep when we’re irrelevant.”

“Did you just… quote something I said in an interview?”

“Sure did.”

“You’ve been watching my interviews?”

“What can I say? I’m a pretty big fan.” Levi grinned again before his mouth found mine, his touch sending sparks straight through my chest, and all over my body.