...We trudged slowly over the loose gravel path toward the cabin, the music fading into the background until all I could hear was the crunch of my shoes on the ground and my heart beating in my ears. When we got to the door, I tried to make a quick getaway.

“Well, thanks, Wilson. See you around.”

“Not so fast, Patrick.”

He spun me around and had me up against the front door in a second, the full weight of him keeping me from getting away.

“What are you doing?”

“This.”

He lowered his mouth to mine and planted a soft kiss on me, teasing my lips with the tip of his tongue. As much as I wanted to push him away, I couldn’t. I’d never done anything so impulsive in my life. The buzz I was getting wasn’t from the beer. It was from Wilson. I wished I could bottle the feeling and take it with me everywhere, for I feared it would be gone once the sun came up. I put my hands to his waist and tried to make him kiss me for real, but he eased back, keeping me from what I needed.

“See, Patrick. I knew you wanted me.”

His words burned, and I struggled once again to get free. But it was no use. I met his eyes and the insult I wanted to hurl at him died in my throat. When he kissed me again, I lost all ability to think. All I could do was let him do it; let his tongue dance along with mine. His pelvis ground against me, and I could feel the swell of his erection behind his zipper. When we pulled apart, I could barely breathe.

“Maybe we should go inside, Patrick.”

“Yeah, sure.”

My hand trembled as I turned the doorknob and walked inside. Stella came scurrying over to us, desperate for a bit of attention. I knelt down and rubbed her belly, happy to have something else to focus on besides the man standing behind me and what he wanted to do. When I saw his booted feet next to me, I swallowed hard, trying to keep the fear at bay. He crouched beside me, but I kept my eyes on Stella.

“She seems to like you, Patrick.”

“I guess. I thought it might be hard on her being here with me instead of Scott and Gavin, but she seems to be adjusting well. She wakes me up early, but that’s actually a good thing because then I can get a jump start on my work and—”

Wilson turned my face to him and kissed me again, the end of my sentence long forgotten. He pulled me up to my feet and wrapped his strong arms around me.

“You talk too much.”

His lips crushed mine to keep me from making a retort. I couldn’t believe what was happening, and if Stella hadn’t picked that moment to try to get between us, I might have lost all ability to see reason.

“Wilson, I think you should go.”

He laughed and reached down, covering my erection with his palm. “I don’t think you want me to leave. I think you’re scared of what you really want.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah. Because what you want is to be naked with me. Right now. But you’re trying to convince yourself otherwise because that’s what you do.”

“You don’t know me.”

“You’re right. I don’t, but it seemed like a safe assumption. Besides, doesn’t the fact we don’t know each other well make this even more fun? I mean, that’s what the bonfire is for. Finding someone you barely know to hook up with.”

Gavin and Scott had left this piece of information out of their tour. He started pulling me toward the bedroom, and Stella retreated to the couch. Wilson pushed the door shut with his foot and shoved me onto the mattress, still strewn with discarded clothes Leon had taken out of the drawer. When I reached out to push them aside, Wilson pinned my hands flat to the bed. I struggled against him, but I was no match for his strength.

“There’s that flustered look again, Patrick. It really is adorable.”

“Fuck you.”