1
Joe tapped his fingers on the steering wheel of his truck. He stared at the last red light on the road separating himself from his bed, which hopefully contained his naked wife. He must be getting old—hell, he’d passed forty a couple years back—because the thought of falling asleep with Morgan snuggled in his arms was even more appealing than the thought of keeping her awake half the night.
He’d originally planned to get home before dinner, but drummed up every excuse he could think of to keep from leaving his uncle Tom and his cousin, Eli, and the place they’d built for themselves at Hot Rides in Middletown, a couple states over. Guilt ate at Joe. It wasn’t like he didn’t want to see his immediate family either. Morgan, their kids, and the rest of the crew. He’d missed each and every one of them.
Torn, he felt like no matter what he did lately, he was screwed.
Blinking hard at reality until his negative thoughts dissipated, Joe peered ahead to the apartment he’d shared with Morgan for the past thirteen years. It was perched above her bakery, Sweet Treats, which she’d made from scratch. Annoyed with himself for not arriving before his kids’ bedtime, he studied the window of the room Nathan and Klea shared. Dark. Actually, there weren’t any lights on. Not even the flickering glow of someone watching TV in his own bedroom.
It wasn’t that late yet.
What the hell?
Joe’s stomach cramped. What if something had happened to his family while he’d been away, acting like some confused teenager instead of doing his duty to protect them and provide for them like he should? He snatched his phone from the holder on the dash, where he’d been using it as a GPS, and speed-dialed Morgan.
Thankfully it wasn’t more than a moment before she answered.
“Hey, cupcake. Is everything okay?”
“Yep.” She sighed. “And it’ll be even better when you get back.”
“Thing about that, I’m pretty much here. Looking at the house now, but it doesn’t seem like anyone’s home. Where are you?”
“I’m up at Kayla and Dave’s place. I thought you were heading up to the lake to talk to Mike and the rest of the crew about something?” Morgan asked, the background din of his friends talking and laughing growing fainter, as if she’d stepped onto the porch for some privacy.
“Decided not to tonight. I left later than I planned and I’m beat.” He pinched the bridge of his nose, because it was so much more than the long drive or the manual labor he’d been putting in at his cousin’s place that was causing his bones to feel like they were going to sink through his skin.
“Oh.” Morgan didn’t say so, but he could hear the disappointment in her voice. “Kate and I sort of got an overnight sitter for the kids. We’ve been holding off on eating until you arrived. Well, most of us. You know Dave can’t resist a potluck for very long.”
“Ah, shit. I didn’t realize you had something planned.” Joe kept fucking up. Springing for a babysitter for Nathan, Klea, Abby, and Landry meant the crew had been hoping for more than a simple meal together.
Alone time. Adult time. Sexy time.
They intended to welcome him home properly.
The construction crew made up of him and his five best friends did more than work together. They played together, too. Had for more than twenty years now. What kind of bastard was he that he was thinking about betraying them?
“I know how much you love surprises. So…surprise.” No matter how off Joe was, or how weary, that coy flavor to Morgan’s sugary voice had him perking up.
Fuck it. There was only so much temptation a man could resist. Even if he knew it wasn’t the right thing to indulge in.
Joe checked his side and rearview mirrors to verify there was no one about but him before swinging his truck around in a U-turn. He accelerated toward the mountains and the place he belonged. He should have known better than to doubt it even for a moment. This was who he was and he couldn’t change it. Not even if he wanted to. “Okay. I’m on my way.”
“If you’re not up for it—“
“I am. I always am.” Whether Joe was trying to convince her or himself was debatable.
“There’s my guy.” Morgan laughed. He could picture her bright eyes as she did. “Hurry home, okay?”
Home. It wasn’t their house she was waiting at. It was one of their best friends’ places. But that didn’t mean shit, because when you were part of the crew, home was where they were. And they all knew it.
Which meant the possibilities Joe had been mulling over the entire trip back from Middletown were even more preposterous than he’d already considered them. Thank God he hadn’t rushed home and blurted them out without thinking about it some more.
No, tonight he was going to eat, laugh, fuck, and forget about dumb ideas that could only ruin the best things in his life.
2
Joe crept up the long, windy gravel road that snaked through the forest to the lodge at Bare Natural. The fact that his friends owned a booming naturist resort where guests could roam around the serene landscape in their birthday suits no longer even fazed him. A lot of things that might have once seemed impossible or outlandish to him now felt normal, because it was for them. It had been so long since he’d felt awkward about his sexuality or worried about censure that he’d grown comfortable.
If he left this bubble they’d created where they were safe and happy and prospering, he’d have to deal with shit he hadn’t struggled with in years. And so would his wife and kids. He really must have temporarily lost his mind to even consider it. But when he’d sat at Hot Rides, talking to his uncle Tom, Eli, and their friends, none of these roadblocks had seemed insurmountable.
Joe blinked, trying to navigate his way along the path in the dark. The beam of his headlights glinted off animal eyes in the underbrush, which blanketed the ground between soaring pine trees. Though he knew every acre of this lakeside refuge, he still felt like he was trespassing on sacred ground.
But maybe that was because he knew how close he’d come to deserting his crew. The same people who were about to welcome him back with very warm, very open arms…among other things.
He clenched his jaw as the truck rolled over a few potholes left from the harsh winter, making a mental note to offer to help Dave fill them sometime soon. With his bum leg, jobs like that weren’t always easy for him, but asking for help seemed even tougher.
That was how the crew worked, though. Each of them had their own strengths and weaknesses. Together they were unbreakable. United they could survive anything. On their own…not so much.
Joe would do well to remember that. Hell, without his partners he wouldn’t even have the family he adored so much. They’d been there to make his first date with Morgan so special that she’d seen he was serious about building a life with her. And when they’d struggled to conceive, the guys had lent…well…something other than their hands.
He owed them everything. And he planned to let them fuck this midlife crisis right out of him.
Joe rolled into the clearing around Kayla and Dave’s personal cabin, not far from the resort’s lodge. He shut off the truck and sat there for a few moments. The familiar golden glow streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows brightened the gloomy thoughts he’d mulled over for too many miles. Gray tendrils of smoke snaking into the air above the chimney made him sure the crew was safe and toasty warm inside, despite whatever they may or may not be wearing.