Eagle River (5 page)

“I’ll be right back,” Lauren called back over her shoulder. “Ben, what’s going on? Quit pulling me. Let go of my arm.”

“I’m really sorry, but what’s with Kjersten?”

“What do you mean?”

“She’s with Cam Fawst.”

“No way! That girl is unbelievably lucky. Where are they?” Lauren led the way back through the maze of sweating bodies into the basement. She moved to the periphery of the dancers until she, too, saw the tall couple. Ben moved up beside her.

“That is some good news,” Lauren commented to him. “I knew she would have an awesome time if we finally got her out. She’s been moping around for months, ever since she broke up with her high school boyfriend. Then, a couple of weeks ago, I finally convinced her to go to an ‘Around the World.’ But this is unreal. The Coyotes’ quarterback. Too cool.”

“No kidding,” Ben responded wryly. “Lauren, is she sober enough to know what she’s doing?”

“I hope so. I want her to tell me all about it. Cam Fawst is hot.”

“Would you get her for me? Please, Lauren. If this is what she wants, I’ll leave it alone. I know that she and Galen broke up a few months ago but I just want to be sure that she knows what she’s doing.”

“Come on,” Lauren placed her hand on her hip. “Leave her alone. She looks like she’s having a great time. I wouldn’t mind being in her place. She’s just letting her hair down. She’s been repressed for too long.”

“Please, Lauren.”

“It’s just because you’re friends with her high school boyfriend, right.” She slanted him a glance. “You do know that he dumped her? He’s the one who decided that they were done.”

“I know. I get it,” Ben commented, holding his hands up. “Kjersten’s been my friend since we were kids, too. I just want to make sure that she is okay.”

“All right. All right. I’ll get her.”

Ben watched as Lauren made her way over to the dancing couple. She tapped on Kjersten’s shoulder, and then tugged her arm.  Immediately, he saw the irritation flare on Cam’s face at the interruption, but Lauren persevered. In a moment, she was moving back towards him and she had Kjersten by the arm. As far Cam, he stepped away from the dance area and leaned up against a wall, watching them with narrowed eyes. Ben stepped a little further back into the crowd.
I don’t need Cam kicking my ass tonight.

Lauren peered in his direction and finally located him. When he motioned for her to follow him, she nodded. Ben stopped over near the stairwell that led out of the sweaty basement. Lauren followed him, towing Kristen in her wake. Kjersten sort of swayed up against the stairwell wall, and Lauren winked at Ben and jogged back up the stairs.

“Hi Ben,” Kjersten smiled all lazy eyed and beer goggled.

“Kjersten, I know it’s none of my business, but you know what you’re doing? How drunk are you?”

She was still moving in time to the music and not focusing on Ben’s face. He grasped her hand. She giggled. Finally, she fully opened her eyes and took in his face, the stern, disapproving set of his features. Then, she stiffened and pulled her arm free of his grip. “Ben, I don’t want to talk to you right now.”

“Are you sure about this? About Cam? You know he’s kind of an asshole and a total player.”

“Ben, this is none of your business, never has been.” Her words were slightly slurred. “I don’t have to answer to you or to anybody else. As for Galen Odgers, he decided that things were done between us a long time ago. He doesn’t care what’s going on with me. He made that clear enough. Just let it go, Ben. It’s over with Galen and me. I know you are his friend, but you’re my friend, too.”

“Whoa. Slow down.” Ben held up his hands in protest. “You’re are a big girl, Kjersten, but I am your friend and I’m worried about you. It’s just that I’ve never seen you this drunk before.”
And all over a guy who wasn’t Galen.

“I’m not drunk. I’m buzzed.” Kjersten smiled and collapsed back into her position back up against the wall. “I’ll just stand right here and close my eyes, then maybe everything will stop spinning around.”

“Let me take you home. You’re wasted. You’ll be glad tomorrow if you call it a night now.”

“Oh, don’t be such a geek,” she waved a finger vaguely in Ben’s face. “I just want to rest for a minute.” Her voice tapered off.

“Kjersten,” an unfortunately familiar male voice interrupted them. “You ready to go?”

Ben spun around to find himself face to face with Cam.

“You got a problem with that?” Cam demanded of Ben, clearly not recognizing him.

“Kjersten, do you want me to take you home?” Ben offered one more time.

“The lady is going home with me tonight.” Cam put his hand on Ben’s chest and pushed him up against the wall by Kjersten. “Don’t fuck with me,” he spit the words right into Ben’s face while he easily held him there.

“I’m not messing with you, Cam. Kjersten’s a friend of mine.”

“Yeah, well tonight she’s going to be my friend.”

“No, I mean. I know her from home, from Eagle River. I know you, too.”

Cam’s grip loosened slightly, studied Ben’s face, then released him totally. Ben sunk back against the wall. “You’re the Happe kid. I remember you. You used to do stats at all of the football games, right?”

Ben nodded.

Cam smiled and swung a muscular arm around his shoulders. “I thought you looked familiar, just couldn’t quite place you. You used to be shorter. Had glasses, right?”

Ben nodded again.

“That goat beard thing you got growing on your chin threw me off a little, too. So, how’s Milwaukee treating you?”

“I like it all right.” Ben was throw off balance by Cam’s sudden change in mood and focus. “Kjersten, we’ve been friends forever and she’s drunk. She doesn’t know what she’s doing.”

“That’s the true beauty of fresh meat.” Cam pulled a languorous Kjersten up against him. He kissed her. She draped her arms around his neck and hungrily kissed him back. Cam smiled sardonically at Ben. “Seems to know that she’s doing to me. You want to come home with me, sweetheart?” he purred into her neck.

Kjersten nodded groggily and smiled.

“See you around, Happe.”

“But I don’t think,” Ben grabbed Cam’s arm.

“Off the threads, Happe. What the heck do you think you’re doing? I’ve cut you some slack, but I don’t have much patience. Do you understand me?”

Ben looked over Cam. He observed the thickness of the of the bare forearms, the size of the hands, the breadth of the shoulders, the way the cloth of the short sleeves stretched across Cam’s biceps. Then, he stepped back. “I understand.” So, he turned and walked the other way.
I’m a coward, a chicken shit coward. But there’s nothing else that I can do anyway. Cam would just kick my ass and Galen’s not here to back me up, the way he was in high school.

Lauren waylaid him as he made his way out to the car. “Where’s Kjersten?”

“With Cam.” Ben tried to brush by her.

“But I thought that you said that was a bad thing. Or is it a good thing, now? I don’t get what’s going on.”

“Neither do I.”

Ben shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He hated this feeling of cowardice that left a bile taste in the back of his throat. It really wasn’t any of his business, after all. It was Kjersten’s and Galen’s. He couldn’t fix anything anyway, so there was no point in beating himself up. Shaking his head and frustrated, he walked off into the night.

Chapter Four

Make up Sex

~ Kjersten ~

The trip to Eagle River that weekend of the county fair was Cam’s and Kjersten’s first real trip together as a couple and it had been going well, at least Kjersten had thought so, until they’d seen Galen.
That is, since Galen had shown Cam up.

Right after the whole scene at football toss, she sensed something was up with Cam. He didn’t say anything on the way back to the Camaro. Cam loved the car and had parked at the very end of the corn field parking lot, far away from any other vehicles that could ding or nick it. And, when they got there, he hadn’t opened the car door for her. She got in. Then, he sat still staring forward, gripping the steering wheel.

“What’s wrong?” she asked. “Cam, what’s bothering you? Please. Talk to me.”

He didn’t say a word.

“Cam? Talk to me.”

His jaw clenched, but still he didn’t say a thing.

She reached out to touch his hand.

He pulled his away. “You shouldn’t have embarrassed me like that. I saw the way you were looking at him.”

“What?” she sputtered. “You’re crazy!”

Cam turned to glare at her. “I know what you were thinking. Were you remembering how his cock felt?”

Kjersten went still, her jaw dropped open in astonishment.

“You still think he’s hot for you. But there’s no way he’d take you back now. Game over, as far as he’s concerned.”

Deliberately, she turned away from him. “Unlock the car door now.” She fumbled with the handle. “This conversation is so over.”

“You can be such a bitch... But you were hot for me that first night, remember? You were all over me and you loved it when I fucked the hell out of you. You were dripping for me and you screamed when you came.” He reached down and cupped her crotch. 

Kjersten pinched her legs together, resisting his touch.

“Don’t you ever embarrass me like that again,” he repeated.

“Galen’s a friend.” To her chagrin, her voice quivered on the last word.

“A friend you used to fuck. You think I’m stupid. You still want to fuck him, don’t you?”

She shook her head. “No. You’re being a jerk right now, Cam. A total asshole.”

Cam leaned closer to her. “You want to know what I think? I think he still wants to fuck you, too. He still wants you, and you want to fuck him, too...That turns me on.”

“What?” Kjersten looked at him incredulously. “Are you serious?”

Cam grinned a mean, little smile that didn’t reach his eyes, which were dark, hot and hungry. “Totally. Nothing’s better than a good angry fuck. If you’re so hot tonight, why don’t you suck my dick.” He cupped the back of her head with his hand and gently drew her closer. “You suck it, and then kiss me, so I can taste my cock in your mouth.” He reached out and gently caressed the silken skin behind her ear. “Kjersten, I want to fuck you right now and when I’m fucking you, I want you to look at me. See me. So you can’t pretend you’re fucking Odgers. You can hate fuck me if you want. I don’t care... Aren’t you horny?”

“You do know you’re crazy, don’t you?” Kjersten commented. But her heart was beating faster with his every word. Her nipples tightened and her sex was hot and heavy with lust. “This is totally messed up.”

“Don’t you want to fuck me now?” He leaned closer to her still, moving his hands up and down her body, arousing her.

“But people can see in the car.”

“Nah, the windows are tinted too dark. It’s too bad. But I’d like to have someone watch us fuck. I’d like Odgers to watch us fuck. Wouldn’t that be hot?” Then, he was kissing her, thrusting his tongue into her mouth, and Kjersten’s eyes shut. His gripped her breast firmly and then roughly manipulated her nipple through her bra. She groaned and covered his hand with her own. He reached down between her legs to cup and then grip her cunt. In spite of her anger, or maybe because of it, she thrust her crotch into his grip, a move which seemed to send electric currents shooting up through her. She pushed his shirt aside and bit into the thick chord of his trapezius. That made him even wilder. He reached up and shoved her bra up, exposing the white mounds of her breasts. With the other hand, he unsnapped his pants, pulled his engorged penis out and then pressed her head down towards his crotch. “Suck it.”

She licked the swollen head and tasted the pearl of semen beading it. Then, she gripped the base of his cock with her hand, tongued his cock up and down, and began to stroke and suck him simultaneously.

He thrust against her, into her mouth, gently but firmly holding her head to his cock. “I can’t take it. I want to fuck you. I have to fuck you.”

Nearly growling, he pressed her back into the car seat. He reached away from her and flipped the seat back so it was reclined. Near crazed with hunger, he waited for a moment while she unsnapped her pants jerked them down her hips and off her legs. He reached for his back pocket, pulled out a condom and pressed it into her hand. As turned on as he was, Kjersten tore it open with her teeth and sheathed his cock. He pressed her back into the seat and moved over her, shoving his jeans further down. Now, he jerked her legs up around his neck, and then thrust into her. She screamed and nearly came up off the car seat. But he held her shoulders pinned down. His eyes were closed and he thrust into her slowly, ever so slowly.

“Touch yourself,” he demanded. “Your tits and your clit. Make yourself come for me.”

The savagery of it, the way he was thrusting into her, the heat and weight of him set her on fire. It was sex, pure and brutal. He was so large hammering into her, she was nearly coming apart. But when he pressed her fingers to her clitoris, it was all over. She touched her clitoris, moving it in small circles that had her nearly crying from pleasure. “Harder!” she demanded. “Grab my tits.”

Pulling back and out, he ignored her moan of protest. “I want to fuck you from behind.” He flipped her over to her stomach, pulled her body up so she was draped over the back of the seat, hips up and thrust hard into her.

She nearly came then and there, and for a second, her vision darkened. Sensations overwhelmed her, the near claustrophobia of the tight car and the upholstery against her bare knees, then the smell, heat, size of him, stretching her, pounding into her. She came hard and fast, screaming her triumph as he came nearly at the same time. Thrusting, he gripped her hips, pressing ever deeper into her.

“Fuck,” he muttered collapsing on her.

“Wow,” she muttered from her position over the back of the seat.

But then, he didn’t say anything else. After a moment, he pulled out of her, slid the condom off, opened the car door and dropped it outside, then fell back into his own seat. There, he fiddled with his jeans, pulling them up. Without saying a word, he snapped his pants and then, putting the key in the ignition, he started the engine.

Kjersten slid down into the seat, tilting it up straight, then struggled to pull her jeans back on in the moving car. “What’s wrong?” She asked, not sure what to make of Cam’s behavior.

“Nothing,” he muttered. Finally, he glanced over at her. “Were you so turned on because you were thinking about him? Is Odger’s cock bigger than mine?”

“Way to kill the moment,” Kjersten finally replied, swallowing the lump that had risen in her throat and the tears that threatened. “I thought... No, never mind.”

Then, there was nothing more to be said, just the ride home to her parents’ house which passed in an awkward silence.

They parted with few words between them.

* * * *

Early the next morning, Cam eased his Camaro up the Solheim’s long, narrow driveway. It was palely bright, a cool sort of morning that he associated with the football camps that he’d attended during the summers of high school. He didn’t mind early mornings. In truth, he’d always liked the gentle hesitancy of the day before it turned darker yellow and heated up. He liked the feeling that he was getting the jump on people, getting things done. Now, he was ready to pick up Kjersten and get out of Eagle River.

He came to a stop in a clearing before a lodge-like A frame house that was dominated by a glassed front. The landscaping was done in a discreet way to complement the woodsy feel of the home. Cam had been inside the Solheim residence for the first time for dinner the night before. He, Cam Fawst, whose father had ditched him and whose mother had slutted her way around Eagle River throughout his childhood, was dating the richest man in town’s daughter and having dinner at their house. Cam had expected that it would feel like he was getting somewhere in his life.

Unfortunately, the whole evening, even before the fair fiasco, had been a disappointment. The house hadn’t even been as he’d expected it to be. He had imagined it would be bigger, showier, and more extravagant. The place was nice, but also comfortable and lived in. The Solheims, themselves, had been rather like their home, pleasant, but distant and restrained. Cam had felt out of place with no idea of what to talk about. That is until Kjersten’s little brother, Soren, had asked him about football and the Coyotes. He was very comfortable talking about those two subjects.

Cam had been relieved when the evening was over. He hadn’t liked reliving that feeling of not fitting in. Now, he waited in the car, not wanting to go to the door
.
Impatiently, he revved the engine.
Kjersten said she’d be ready.
After a moment, the carved wooden door with the leaded glass etchings swung open. The end of a duffel bag was the first object to appear followed by a long, shapely, denim clad leg. Kjersten reached back and pulled the door closed behind her. She walked quickly over to the car.

“Throw the bag in back,” Cam ordered through his half opened window. The hatch popped open with a hiss and a click. Silently, she hurled the duffel bag into the trunk and firmly pressed it closed. She opened the passenger side door and climbed in.

“Let’s get out of here.”

“I still don’t understand why we have to leave so early,” Kjersten commented.

“Why? You hoping to see Odgers again?” he demanded suspiciously.

“No. Why can’t you let that go? You’re the one with the hang up here. Not me. Fine. Let’s just get out of here. I’m so done with you right now.” The aftermath of their sexual interlude hung heavy between them. “You were the one who brought up that angry sex thing. I just went along with it. So, I totally don’t understand why you got so pissed off.  If you can’t handle it, don’t bring it up. I’m so done with you right now.”

For the briefest moment, a look of sheer panic flashed over Cam’s handsome features.
I don’t want to be alone. Not again.
Then, the mask came up again and the smooth charmer attempted to regain control of the situation. “Don’t look at me like that, baby. We had a fight.” He reached out and took her hand. “You mean so much to me. I get jealous. Sure, it turned me on, but it also made me crazy. We have a good thing going here, you know that, don’t you? You’re my dream girl. I just couldn’t handle it that you were panting after that Odgers kid.”

She gripped the car door handle. “I wasn’t panting after him. I was at the fair with you, but if you’re going to start obsessing about that again, I’ll find another ride back to Madison.”

“Kjersten, don’t be like this. Just stay in the car. I didn’t mean it. You know that.” Cam’s voice grew soft and vulnerable. “Kristy, you know I care about you. Knowing you were with that guy... I freaked out because you mean so much to me.”

She hesitated.

Cam could see her lip trembling and pressed his advantage. “You know I need you, baby. We need each other.”

He watched as she swallowed hard. He could see the tears building up in her eyes. Cam reached over then and drew her to him. He held her close and stoked her long hair tenderly. “You know we have something special here. I just don’t want to lose you.”

Kjersten began to sob and buried her face against his shoulder.

“Come on, babe. We’re okay. You know how it is, the two of us against the world. Come on now. Get it together. We should get out of here before your family wakes up.” Sensing that tide was now going his way, he disengaged himself from Kjersten.

Slowly, she reached to engage her seat belt.

Cam revved the engine and then smoothly slipped into gear. “Let’s put this behind us. I’m glad to be getting an early start this morning. Two days in this town is more than enough... I just gotta make one stop over at the diner.”

“I don’t want to stop anywhere right now, Cam. Let’s just get going.”

“You just wait in the car. I promised Sal I’d drop by the bar today, and drop off an autographed Coyotes’ football, but I don’t want to wait around until the afternoon either. So, I thought I’d drop the football off with Gene at the diner.”

“That’s nice of you,” she said and nodded, in agreement.

“Sal and Gene were good to me growing up.”

Moments later, they pulled up in front of Green Eggs N’ Ham, Gene’s diner, which sat directly across the street from the Court’n House, Sal’s Bar. The arrangement suited the two business owners well as they were best friends.

“I’ll be just a minute.” Leaving the car idling in front of the diner, he made his way up to the door. He swung the glass door wide, accompanied by the timpani of sled bells that announced his arrival. Cam found them annoyingly loud and cheerful for so early in the morning. Inside, the diner was still with that Sunday morning, small town peacefulness just before the morning after church rush. The pleasant aroma of dark, rich coffee hung in the air. There was also a tantalizing hint of bacon sizzling on the grill.