Page 38 of You Are Cordially Invited

Cam

“Thosedidnotcomefrom the vents.” I pointed an accusing finger at the stream of bubbles surfacing between Tom MacDonald and me. “I saw you lift a cheek, you arsehole.”

“Nature’s a bitch,” Tom answered with a smirk. “Better out than in, right? Not good for the body to hold back.”

A rumble of laughter circled the enormous sunken hot tub.

Michael shoved his palm into the pool, sending an arc of water heading toward the All Blacks’ lock. “Damn, Mac, I think something died inside you. Call by the ER and I’ll have a colonoscopy with your name on it.”

“Fuck off.” Mac’s pale freckled cheeks lit up.

“You think that’s bad?” Reuben’s eyes danced. “Our All Blacks’ lockers are next to each other. You wanna add some pregame jitters to those unfortunate bodily issues Mac seems to have, and it’s lucky I can make the field on time without oxygen support.”

“Shut up.” Mac threw a balled-up towel Reuben’s way. He ducked and it hit Jake in the face before falling into the water.

Mark grabbed the sodden thing, squeezed it out, and three-pointed it into the hamper.

“What the hell didIdo?” Jake reached behind for another towel.

“You’re too damn pretty.” Mark roughed up Jake’s hair. “I liked you better when you were straight.”

Jake laughed and flipped him off. “You just can’t handle the competition, old man.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Keep dreaming. Where’s Trent, by the way?”

Jake’s face fell. “He’s, um, not in the picture anymore.”

Mark glanced to me and I gave a small shake of my head, telling him to drop it. When I’d finally caught up with my cousin after the bachelor party, it was only to discover that Jake’s long-term boyfriend had broken up with him and headed off to the States with zero explanation. Jake was devastated.

“Then he didn’t deserve you. You’ll find a better one,” Mark told him.

Jake looked less than convinced and my heart squeezed for him. He’d been very much in love. To be honest, I’d thought they both were. I just didn’t get it.

“Maybe,” Jake answered. “But I think I’ll swear off guys for a bit. You’re all way too fucking complicated. None of you can talk worth a damn. It’s women for me all the way from here on in.”

“See how long that lasts. You’ll miss dick,” Mark shot back.

“Yeah, yeah. Well, unlike you lot, I have options.”

A small-framed man in his twenties with a towel wrapped around his waist popped his head into the room and interrupted the laughter. He took one look at us and froze. “Um, is this a private group?”

We’d tried to do just that, but the day spa didn’t offer that possibility for the hot tub. However, they did assure us that phones weren’t allowed in the public areas, just the private function rooms, plus we had to wear swim trunks, so we figured, what the hell? We were just a bunch of guys having some fun, and if someone joined us, we’d keep it fit for public consumption or retire to our private lounge that we’d booked with our own supply of catered nibbles.

Not that it had been an issue since up until then we’d had the pool to ourselves. Although it could hold about a dozen guys, all those who’d ventured into the room so far had taken one look at the eight of us sprawled across its seats and rapidly changed their plans. Or maybe it was the eyeliner I wore, who knew? Either way, I counted it as a win.

“Yes,” Michael and Mathew answered at the same time.

“Ignore them,” I told the slender man. “Feel free to hop in.”

He hesitated, giving me a lingering look with a familiar question in his eyes that I might once have considered. No longer. I kept a straight face, and his gaze swept the rest of the group, eyes widening as he obviously recognised a couple of the impressive muscled bodies on display, and I saw the cogs turning in his brain. His gaze lingered on huge, hairy Mac, which brought a smile to my face. And when he’d put the pieces together, he glanced back at me with curiosity and a fair amount of trepidation.

It warmed my heart.

“Um, I think I’ll come back later,” he said. “Good luck tomorrow.” He nodded at Reuben, then gazed longingly at Mac once again before exiting fast.

We watched his pert little arse shimmy out of the room before breaking into laughter.

“You could’ve been in there.” I dropped my voice and elbowed Mac in the ribs as he reached for his water bottle. Mac had come out as bi to Reuben and me and a few of our friends the year before, but nothing official to the All Blacks or his other teammates.

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