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Tom sighs. “Regardless of what my idiot brother thinks, Conrad had nothing to do with me going to prison.”
“I know.” Tom arches a brow in question, so I continue. “Conrad told me. So did Ellie. He has no idea what actually happened, but he was adamant that neither him or jasper ever–and I believe him.”
Tom blows out a breath. “It’s true. He didn’t. It was his… it was Bill Foster.”
“What?” I squeak out, sitting up and staring dumbfounded at Tom. “Why? How do you know?”
He shakes his head. “I don’t want to get into it. There’s a lot that people don’t know, and this isn’t the place to air it out. Look, just be careful. Secrets have a way of catching up to you. I think your best bet would be to come clean to your brother. The choice is yours–but your secret’s safe with me.” He stands and offers me his hand. “Come on, let’s go see what the others are doing. There’s a band I want to catch playing on stage three in half an hour.”
I wrap him up in a tight hug. “Thanks, Tom.”
He hugs me back, kissing the top of my head. “Like I said, it’s good to see you happy again. If the reason is Conrad, then who am I to judge?”
THIRTY-ONE
CONRAD
I NEED TO get away from Ivy before I wind up with a bad case of blue balls–or a broken nose. Neither appealed to me. Outside of the stolen moments we shared earlier, I’ve hardly seen her. Which is why I find myself with Dave and Kody in the mosh pit of the Romping Rhinos. I’ve been busying myself by seeing some of the lesser known bands.
There’s still two hours until Forever Summer plays on the main stage. We agreed to meet back at the campsite half an hour beforehand to go together. Thanks to my serious lack of water throughout the day, the pounding of the music is starting to give me a headache.
I let Dave know that I’m headed back to the campsite to get some rest. He waves me off while Kody is busy doing something I hope he doesn’t think is a dance move. He’s holding onto one ankle, hopping around and waving his free hand in the air. The sight makes me laugh as I push through the crowd.
I pass Tom, Harley, and Brady a little farther back, and I’m grateful to have some time to myself since the girls are off seeing some female indie group on another stage.
As I wander back to our campsite, I try to play out some scenarios on what would happen if Ivy and I came clean–but none of them end well. Either I wind up with my ass kicked, or Ivy decides I’m not worth it
I let out an embarrassing screech and jump a foot in the air when something grabs my arm. I spit out a curse, clutching the invisible pearls as I realize it was only Ivy–reading a book in the fading sunlight. “Christ, Princess,” I pant. “You scared the shit out of me.”
Ivy loses it, dropping her book to the ground and laughing so hard she almost falls out of her chair. With a smile, I catch her before she can and set her on her feet in front of me.
“Think that’s funny?” I growl, throwing a quick glance around. When I’m sure we’re completely alone, I pull her into my body swoop down to crush her lips with mine. She graces me with soft moans as our tongues greet each other, letting me eat up every little sound. “You want to know why I was so distracted?” I murmur against her lips.
“Y-yes,” she rasps, trying to catch her breath.
I lick into her mouth once more before dipping down to trail a kiss along her jaw, drawing a path with my lips up to her ear. “I was thinking about all the dirty things I would do to you if I get the chance.” It’s not a total lie–Iwasthinking about her. She whimpers, the sound making my cock harden against her thigh. “Where’s everyone else?” I mouth along her collarbone, practically feeling her resolve waver by the second.
“W-watching The Gemstones,” she manages to whisper, her body practically vibrating in my arms. “Their set has about another half an hour.”
“Plenty of time.” I smirk and the little squeak that leaves her when I lift her into my arms makes my mouth widen into a full smile. Her legs tighten around my waist. Her hands come up to tangle in my hair, knocking my hat to the ground. The kiss is all tongue and teeth and I carry her over to my tent.
I fumble for the zipper, refusing to take my lips off hers. The opening flies open, and I stumble into the tent. I gently lay her down on my rolled-out mattress before zipping the door shut once again, blocking out the rest of the world.
It’s hot and stuffy, and I reach behind me to pull my shirt off before settling next to her. I cup her cheek and run my thumb over her lips. “You’re so beautiful.”
“You’re not too bad yourself,” she says, smirking up at me through her lashes. Her fingers run over my pecs, sending a shiver through my body.
My lips tease a path along her shoulder before I settle in the crook of her neck. “Can I ask you something, Princess?”
“Hmm?”
I shift back so I can look into her eyes. I swallow down the fear of her possibly rejecting me. “What would it take for you to agree to be mine?”
A smile tugs on the corner of her lips as her fingers slide down my stomach, playing with the waistband of my shorts. “Pretty sure you already have me right where you want me.”
I still her hand before she can slip behind the fabric, brushing my lips over hers. “That’s not what I mean, Ivy.”
I love the way her eyes darken when I use her name. She lets out a slow breath. “Whatdoyou mean, Conrad?”
