Page 56 of Full Tilt
His brow lifts, wary but open. “Sure.”
“That teammate from the pub—Briggs?” I hesitate, then commit. “What he said… have you talked to him?”
Camden stills. The shift is subtle—shoulders tightening, mouth pressing into a thin line—but I feel it.
“I tried,” he says eventually. “He brushed it off. Joked about being drunk. Said I must’ve misheard.”
“But you didn’t.”
“No.” His voice is quiet. “I didn’t. And I’ve known him a while. He’s never been… I don’t know. Never given off anything. But lately… he’s been off. Guarded.”
He leans forwards, elbows on his knees, brow furrowed. “I’m worried about him. I don’t know if it’s a sexuality thing or something else entirely, but he’s closing himself off. And if it is about that….” He shakes his head. “I hate that we still live in a world where it has to be this hard.”
I nod slowly. “Yeah. I get that.”
Camden looks over at me, and I offer a small smile.
“I came out in high school,” I tell him. “Didn’t have much of a choice. Got caught kissing my then-boyfriend behind the gym.”
His mouth twitches in surprise.
“My folks were… cool about it. Loud, chaotic, weirdly supportive. My mom said something about knowing since I started designing Halloween costumes for all my siblings.”
That earns a soft chuckle.
“And there’s definitely something in the water back home. One of the twins is bi, the other’s gay, and then there’s Cosmo—out and proud, obviously.”
Camden barks out a laugh. “Jesus. Your family sounds like a sitcom.”
“You have no idea.” I grin. “We could power our own Pride float.”
He shakes his head, still smiling. “My parents aren’t like that. I mean… they’re good people. Supportive. But they’re quiet. From the West Midlands. Reserved.”
“They took it okay?”
He nods. “Better than I expected. I think… I think they knew before I did. Even with all the rugby, the size, the noise—my mum especially. She didn’t say anything at the time, just made tea and asked if I wanted to talk. She’s still like that. Quiet but solid.”
I smile at that. “Sounds like you get your grumpy serenity from her.”
He snorts, but I see the fondness in his eyes.
Camden’s still smiling when he leans back, arm now slung over the back of the couch, his fingers absently brushing my shoulder. The gesture feels easy—comfortable—and I lean into it without overthinking.
He glances at me, then says, “My brother Joel’s getting married in July.”
“Oh yeah?” I recall him mentioning a wedding. That he’s opening up to me sends a flutter of fondness in my gut.
“Yeah. July 1. He’s younger—only by two years, but he acts like it’s ten. He’s been with Yasmin for three years now.”
I catch the fondness in his tone. “You like her?”
“Love her. She’s bossy as hell, but she keeps him grounded. Makes him happy. That’s enough for me.”
I nod, sipping my beer. “Family wedding. That’ll be full-on.”
“Oh yeah.” He chuckles. “Whole family will be there. I’m heading back a couple of days before—see my folks, help out, survive the chaos.”
“Will you be home for the week?”
