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Jarred Walker is far from my normal type, but as he turns around to talk to the other campers, and I get another glimpse of those ass-hugging slacks, I can admit that he’s pushing all my buttons.
But I also can’t forget that I don’t want to be here, and there’s no way Mr. Holy-Man himself would appreciate me checking him out. I like to mess around, but I’m not a pervert.
“Noah, Bryce, Patrick, and Joshua, you’ll be staying here,” Jarred says, that adorably wide smile still on his face. Fuck, how can someone be so filled with energy at five in the fucking morning?
“Looks like we’re bunkmates,” the red-haired guy tells me, grinning as he walks over to the first set of bunk beds by the door. “Do you want to be the top or bottom?”
I snort at the crude joke I make inside my head as Jarred walks out with the rest of the counselors to show them where they’re staying. I dump my duffel bag on the ground beside the bed. “I’ll bottom any day.”
I should have known better than to expect some sort of laugh from him. I guess I’ve been away from Catholic kids for a while and must have forgotten that the Holy Spirit doesn’t have a sense of humor.
He doesn’t even blink as he extends his hand out warmly. “That’s fine with me. I’m Patrick, by the way. Noah, right?”
“Yup,” I say, popping the ‘p’ as I plop down on the bed.
“Where are you from?”
“Just outside of Asheville, but I go to UNC.”
“Oh, awesome! I go to Belmont Abbey!”
Great. Belmont Abbey is the only Catholic university in North Carolina. Just my luck that I get roomed with a bunch of guys not even remotely similar to me. Not that I was really expecting any better.
“Hey, Patrick? He doesn’t give a fuck,” Bryce—I think—says, slapping the back of Patrick’s head.
Joshua grabs his crotch crudely, sneering at Patrick. “Why don’t you just go ahead and suck his dick if you’re such fast friends?”
Okay. I don’t like these guys. Just because I was feeling iffy about Patrick, doesn’t mean I was going to be a grade-A dick to him. Bryce and Joshua stand in front of me—perfectly pressed khakis in place—and I can already tell this is going to be a long summer. I know guys like them. They think that just because they have daddy’s money, they can do whatever the fuck they want.
They’re going to learn real quick that I don’t fuck with that.
I square up to Bryce, puffing my chest out as I approach him. “Do that again and see what happens.”
Bryce’s brows shoot up to his hairline as he looks between me and a nervous Patrick. It seems like he didn’t expect me to do anything about the fact that he practically hit another counselor. He curls his lips in a cruel smirk as he backs up with both his hands in the air. “Fine, I’ll leave you two pussies to it.”
I roll my eyes at his halfhearted attempt at an insult. The word rolls right off my back. I know better than to get flustered and hurt by a jackass like him. But when I look at Patrick, I do feel bad. His cheeks are all flushed and his eyes dart nervously behind his glasses as he watches Bryce and Joshua walk out of the cabin.
“Hey,” I say, resting my hand on his small shoulder. “Don’t listen to that shit. They’re just trying to rile you up. If you let them, they win.”
He blushes as he nods. “I know. Thank you for stepping in the way you did.”
“No problem. Has it always been like that?”
“At least for the past three summers,” he says with a sad shrug, looking down like he’s far too interested in his shoes. “We used to be friends when we went here together as kids.”
I frown and squeeze his shoulder. “That sucks, man. Just don’t let it get to you.”
“I won’t,” he says, but I have a feeling it hits him deeper than he’s letting on. “We should really go meet them outside for the tour. Mr. Walker doesn’t like us being late.”
“You meanJarred?” Because there’s no way in hell I’m calling him Mr. Walker. “He seems like a stick in the mud.”
“No, he’s like super cool,” Patrick says, waving his hands widely in the air. “He’s the best.”
“Okay then.” I roll my eyes, not quite ready to base my opinion of Jarred on my uber-religious bunkmate’s assessment. I stand up, tossing my beanie and ruffling my hair as I head to the door. “Let’s go then.”
When we get outside, Jarred and the rest of the counselors are all waiting for us, and I don’t miss the dirty looks Bryce and Joshua send my way. They can go fuck off. I’ve witnessed firsthand what bullying can do to someone, and I’m not about to let them push Patrick around regardless of the fact that he’s old enough to take care of himself.
“Are we ready for the tour?” Jarred asks us with nothing but politeness in his voice.
