Mason rolled his eyes. “Parker’s an insecure bitch.”

“She’s my friend, Mason!” Kate surged to her feet. Her jeans slipped low over her hip bones and the thin white tank top she wore inched high. Her rib cage showed through the top; her black bra did as well. She flipped a loose braid over her shoulder and gripped her beer tight.

His hand tightened on me as he cursed at her. “You’re an insecure bitch too.”

Her eyes flashed in anger, and her fingers tightened around her drink.

“Hey, whoa.” One of the guys surged forward and swept a hand around her waist. He lifted her as if she were a flower and walked away with her. When he took her inside the barn, one of the other guys chuckled. “Man, Kate’s so high strung.”

Another guffawed, “They’re better when Natalie’s around.”

The one who had been called Strauss sat forward. “Yeah, where are Natalie and Jasmine?”

Then Ethan rambled to the group. His jeans were baggy and nearly falling off, but he hitched them up with one hand. The other gripped a beer and he sat with a grunt. His shirt hung around his neck and his biceps flexed from the night’s chill. His eyes were glazed with booze and a snarl loitered over his face.

One of the guys chuckled. He asked in a low baritone, “You lose against Tara?”

Ethan grimaced. “Nah. Fucking pu**y.”

The guys mirrored each other with similar knowing smirks, but Ethan glanced around. His eyes narrowed when he saw me, but he asked Mason, “I heard Nate finally got here. Where is he?”

Mason jerked towards the woods. Strauss grunted, “Parker.”

“Ah.” Ethan nodded and finished the rest of his beer.

A small grin grew on Mason’s face as Ethan continued to finish the rest of his beer. He asked then, “We set up for tomorrow night?”

“Fuck yeah.” Ethan’s snarl was illuminated by the bonfire’s light. It flashed over his face and sent chills down my back. “Roussou won’t know what hit ‘em.”

The guys cheered to that.

Mason nodded and held me tighter against him. I sensed he’d heard whatever he needed to hear and was now done with the group. I was right when he lifted me in the air. I gasped on a laugh and wound my legs around his waist. His hands held me up by my ass. They flexed into my cheeks as he grunted when he came in full contact against me.

When he turned and started to leave, Ethan yelled out, “A couple of those daisy farts are here.”

Mason pivoted around and hollered back, “Don’t touch ‘em.”

I heard a growl behind us.

“That’s an order, Fischer.” Mason was stern.

The growl grew, but I felt Mason starting to laugh against my chest and grinned into his neck. “Where are we going?”

“Where do you think?” His voice dropped to a knowing promise and my legs tightened in response. He groaned again but clasped me tighter against him. I felt him harden and kissed the side of his neck.

“Sam!”

He cursed under his breath, and I closed my eyes.

“Heya, Sam!”

I pressed my forehead against him for a moment and panted. I needed to get control of myself.

“Seriously?”

I heard his question and nodded.

He groaned as he swung me down but pulled my back tight against him. He started to grind against me, but it was slow. It was slow enough so that others wouldn’t notice, at first.

Becky had a silly grin on her face as she hurried over. She was panting with a beer in hand. “Hey!” She bent over and gasped for breath. “I saw you all the way across the clearing. Where’d you go? Hiya, Mason.”

He looked away.

She continued to pant. “Mark and Adam saw Logan grab some girl. He took off in the woods.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “We all know what they’re doing.” Then her smile slipped a bit. “Adam got all pissed. I think he’s hitting on some girls around here.”

I frowned at her. “Where’s Mark?”

“Hitting on them with Adam.”

“They left you alone?” My tone cooled.

She waved her hand. “Oh no. That’s okay. I mean, I get it. I’d do it too, you know, if I was a guy and… Yeah. I’m okay. Where are you guys going?”

Mason tipped his head back. A quiet groan escaped his lips as they pressed tight.

I elbowed him in the gut. “We were coming to look for you.”

“You were?” Her eyes lit up.

“Yeah.” I started to pull away from Mason, whose hand lingered on my waist. His thumb slipped inside of my jeans and rubbed up and down. I glanced over my shoulder and his jaw tightened. He saw the apology and hauled me back for a moment. His mouth was hot against my ear. “Tonight.”

I nodded, my throat was thick.

His finger dipped low for a moment.

My eyes went wide at the touch, but I cleared my throat. “I’ll see you later.”

He flashed me a look before he turned towards the bonfires again. I shivered from the promise in it. He had plans and my legs were a bit wobbly in anticipation.

And then Becky plopped down on a log behind us. She sipped her beer. “Man, this is great. This is what high school is supposed to be about.”

“Uh, yeah.” I took in the sight before us. Drunk girls teetered on their feet. Most of them were half dressed and surrounded by guys. Most of the guys were half-undressed as well.

“Sam?”