Page 21 of Lust & Lollipops

Not when I eventually managed to fall asleep despite the discomfort of being pressed against bare-chested strangers. They’d put their wings away, but still.

Cam didn’t even show up again in the morning when I slipped out of bed while the rest of the guys were still sleeping.

Though I wanted to track him down or go back to our part of the beach, I just sat down next to the fire for warmth. The fae guys had definitely kept me from shivering, but that didn’t ease the physical and mental discomfort of spending the night in the arms of men I didn’t know or want.

As I sat there, my mind went back to the night before.

To the way I’d sat on Cameron’s lap.

The way he hugged me.

His plan to win the game.

I bit my lip.

Could he really do it? He seemed to think he could, even if I didn’t help him. And I’d seen the way the other guys talked to him. All of them liked him.

If anyone was creating alliances in the game, they’d want to work with him. I’d made him into everyone’s first choice when I yelled at him the day before. He was the one man on the island that no one thought was a threat to win the game.

No one except Julian.

And whoever else was at the top of Cam’s hit list.

But did that mean I wanted to help him?

I thought back to the way I’d felt in his arms the night before.

Warm.

Safe.

It was much better than the discomfort I’d had when pinned between Kyle and Julian.

Which made the choice pretty simple.

I was going with Cam’s plan.

That didn’t mean I had to mate with him. Working with him could mean having some sway over who left and who stayed, which could be to my advantage.

Maybe there was a guy I’d like more than Cameron. I could use the situation to make it work with him, instead.

The more I thought about it, the more upbeat I felt.

I wasn’t as helpless as I’d thought.

I didn’t get much solitude by the fire before a guy came up and sat down beside me. He was one of the quieter ones, and his name was Reid. His wings looked delicate, which meant he was one of the fae with mental magic.

Assuming Cam had told me the truth about that.

He didn’t speak up when he took a seat, so I didn’t either. He looked almost as tired as I did.

“Can I ask you something?” I murmured to him, after a few minutes of comfortable silence.

“Sure.” Reid’s words were as quiet as mine. Maybe quieter.

“Why do all of you have different wings?” I gestured toward the shelter and all the guys sleeping there. The majority of them had gone back to their human forms the evening before, so there weren’t a lot of wings on display for once.

I wanted him to confirm what Cam had said, but I hadn’t wanted to come right out and ask.

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