by McKinley May
And Sydney—the girl of my freaking dreams. My girl.
She's the one piece that's been absent for all these years. I've had my sport, I've had my boys, and I've had my "adopted parents", but she's that missing link. She completes the puzzle.
She makes everything whole.
And I still need to tell her just how much she means to me.
Suddenly, Diego throws his hands in the air.
"Dios mío, Coach. I thought this was supposed to be a happy speech, not a friggin' tear-jerker!"
Laughter rings throughout the stadium as Coach shakes his head in amusement.
"You're right, you're right," he concedes. "Let's end it here. Y'all go celebrate. You deserve it."
As everyone exchanges goodbyes and scatters about, the four seniors and our girlfriends remain put.
"Coach has me feeling some type of way from that spiel," Weston says with a headshake. "Shit."
"It was heartfelt," Lexie agrees.
"So sweet." Ellie wipes underneath her eyes. "I got a little teary there at the end."
Rayne claps her hands together twice. "Okay, what's the plan for the rest of the evening? It's time to celebrate you guys."
"Let's go out for dinner," Ellie suggests. "Just the eight of us."
Vaughn nods. "I'm starving."
"Me too." Weston rubs his stomach dramatically. "Anyone know of any good restaurants around here?"
"There's a seafood place about ten minutes away," Liam says as he thumbs his phone screen. "Looks quite nice, so break out your best trousers and dresses."
"Oh dang...I didn't bring anything fancy," Sydney admits with a grimace. "Everything I brought is beachy and casual."
"No sweat." Weston tips his head towards his girlfriend. "Barbie can lend you something. She brought her whole fucking closet along."
"Guilty as charged," Lex says with a laugh. "I have a bunch of things that would look gorgeous on you, Syd. Let's go!"
She grabs Sydney's hand, tugging her away from my side. Rayne follows behind, jogging to keep up with them. Ellie turns to join the girls, but not before leaving us with one final instruction.
"You boys shower and clean up. Meet us at our hotel in an hour!"
"Alright. Important, major, life-changing decision incoming. Prepare yourself accordingly." Lexie shoves three dresses against my chest and raises a brow. "Sky blue, navy blue, or robin's egg blue?"
We tilt our heads, staring at our reflection in the floor-length mirror when we hear Rayne's voice behind us.
"Hard choice, but I think she should go with the blue one."
Lexie whips her head around, a teasing glare on her face. "Not helpful, R!"
"Sorry." Rayne laughs as she pulls on a pair of flats. "But what's with the blue? Why so much?"
"I needed something to complement this." Lexie points to the cobalt stripes in her blonde hair, the color the same shade as the boys' jerseys. She smooths a hand over her matching blue midi-dress and smiles. "I'm a devoted fan and I don't like to clash."
She turns back to me, holding the navy dress a little higher. "Hmm. I don't know. They all look good. Where's Ellie? She'll know. El?" she shouts in the direction of the hotel bathroom. "Come here! Your expertise is needed."
Ellie pops her head out the door, a curling iron in one hand and a mascara wand in the other.
"Robin's egg," she says immediately. "It looks beautiful against her olive skin and dark hair."
Lex nods twice. "Agreed." She tosses the other options behind her back, one landing on top of Rayne's head, before draping the soft blue-green fabric over my shoulder. "You put this on and let us handle the rest."
Over the next thirty minutes, Lexie styles my hair in loose beach waves, Rayne fetches me a pair of pretty sandals, and Ellie shows off her makeup skills, painting my face with a gorgeous cat-eye and shimmery golden highlighter on my cheekbones and eyelids.
When I get a good look at myself in the mirror, I let out a shocked gasp.
"I look so...so..." I'm unable to find the words, but the girls quickly offer their opinions.
"Amazing!" Ellie says.
"Like a model." Rayne gives me a thumbs up.
"You look freaking hot!" Lexie gushes, a bright smile stretching her cheeks. "Cameron's going to lose his shit when he sees you, no doubt."
The thought sends a wave of goosebumps down my back.
Suddenly, a buzzing sound on the nightstand grabs our attention. Lexie snatches her phone, reading the incoming text.
"It's Weston. He says they're waiting for us in the lobby."
It vibrates again and her green eyes roll. "He says hurry up because they're so starving they're practically wasting away."
She's typing out a response when his photogenic face pops up on her phone screen.
"Hello? We're almost ready, babe. Like five minutes." She pauses for a moment while he responds, then emits a loud guffaw. "Cannibalism?! Weston, oh my God. You will survive five more minutes. You want us to look cute, don't you?"
After a few final touches, we head down to the lobby to meet the hungry boys. By some miracle, they haven't resorted to eating one another for satiety yet.
When Cameron spots me for the first time, he acts just as Lexie predicted.
He is totally floored at my uncharacteristic appearance.
His eyes are wide as they drag up and down my body, hand rubbing his jaw and an awestruck smile on his face.
"Holy fuck, Baby Blue." He motions for me to twirl for him and I eagerly oblige. "You weren't lying—you do clean up nice. Damn."
"Thanks." I laugh at the compliment. "You don't look so bad yourself."
He looks sexy as sin in a fitted gray button-down, sand-colored pants, and his dirty blonde hair still damp from a shower.
He grins, still unable to tear his gaze away from my curve-hugging dress. "Shit," he mumbles. "Forget dinner. Let's go back to my hotel room and—"
Vaughn loudly clears his throat behind us.
"My bad, V," Cam says before giving me a subtle wink and a whispered, "We'll talk about it later."
My brother grunts, rubs his temples, and walks off to avoid any more crude details.
Sorry, Vaughn!
"We're leaving!" Liam calls out, waving us towards the exit.
We head outside, following Ellie as she leads the way to the restaurant.
Dinner is fantastic.
The dreamy seaside setting, the impeccable food, the rum-heavy drinks.
It's exactly what we had in mind for a celebration meal.
For the majority of the evening, the girls and I are quiet, listening as the guys chat amongst each other. Hilarious conversation, boisterous laughter, and nostalgic memories float about the table as they reminisce on their last four years on the team. Golden candlelight illuminates their jovial expressions, the gentle crash of waves the soundtrack to the unforgettable night.
It's the perfect way for the boys to end their collegiate soccer careers.
Once we're stuffed from the mouthwatering meal, we all go our separate ways. Liam and Ellie are leaving for Disney in the morning, so they've got a long night of packing ahead of them. Weston and Lexie meet up at a trendy club with Weston's older bro, Rhett, who flew in to watch the championship. And Vaughn and Rayne find a glow in the dark mini-golf place to play a few rounds.
Cameron and I decide to explore the picturesque streets of the quaint beach town, admiring the mom-and-pop shops.
"I need to buy a souvenir," I tell him as we stroll hand-in-hand. "Something special to remember this trip by."
He nods. "Let's see what we can find."
We visit an art gallery, browse a few clothing stores, and walk through a tourist trap with a plethora of cheap keepsakes.
Nothing feels worthy. Nothing feels right.
I've almost given up, ready to call it a day and buy a pack of generic post cards or a tacky "I love FL" keychain when suddenly I see it.
A storefront across the street that has the ideal memento�
��one that I'll keep forever.
"There." I point at the establishment. "That's my souvenir."
Cam's brow crinkles as he reads the neon-lit business name. "Nah."
"Yes!" I insist. "It's what I want."
"I dunno, Syd." His words convey his skepticism. "You sure that's not just the mai tais talking?"
"What? No!" I shake my head repeatedly. "I had like, two sips of your drink."
He gives me a pointed look. "And two sips of Lexie's drink, and two sips of Rayne's drink, and—"
I grab his arm. "I promise it's not alcohol-influenced. Come on. We'll just check it out real quick."
Cameron grins as I stubbornly tug him along, forcing him to cross the street with me.
"You're a handful, you know that?"
"So I've been told." I laugh. "But don't worry. Odds are I'll chicken out at the last minute."
"You? Chicken out?" He shakes his head. "Not a fucking chance."
"Oww..."
A few hours later, I've got my painful and permanent souvenir.
It's a small tattoo of a soccer ball, Windhaven's signature W over the top of it. Simple, clean, and more than meaningful. It's perfect.
Although Cam wasn't too keen on the idea, he changed his mind once he saw the impressive design the talented artist sketched out. He liked it so much, he told the guy to give him the same one in the exact same spot I got mine done: the right shoulder blade.
With our new matching ink, we find a secluded stretch of beach to get some privacy. We're walking down the shore, shoes in hand and toes in sand, and my back is starting to sting a bit.
"Remember when you told me tattoos didn't hurt?" I say in accusation. "Well, this totally hurts!"
"I said they didn't hurt me," he corrects with a teasing grin. "Low-pain-tolerance wimps can't handle the needle."
"Ouch." I bend over, picking up a seashell and holding it next to my ear. "Operator? 9-1-1, please. I'd like to report a sick burn."
Cam laughs and snatches the shell-phone from my hand, lifting it to his own ear. "Hello? Yeah, she's gonna have to call you back."
He tosses the shell behind him and tugs me close.
"You know you're not a wimp. You're the last person on this planet I'd call weak, baby." He gently brushes a piece of hair from my face. "You're tough as hell—it's one of the reasons I like you so much."
"I'm glad to hear you like me," I say as I snuggle against his chest. "Maybe then I won't have to cover this tattoo some day."
"You never will."
I tilt my head up, my gaze latching onto his. "Never?"
"Never," he repeats adamantly. He studies me for a second, brows pulled together in deep thought. "I have to tell you something, and I can't believe it's taken me this damn long to say it. Shit, everybody else already knows except you. And you're the one person that truly needs to know."
"What is it?" I ask softly.
"That I'm crazy about you, Baby Blue. Batshit crazy for you, and I always will be." He graces me with that gorgeous smile that never fails to send shivers down my spine. "I love you, Sydney. So fucking much."
My heart swells with joy at those three little words.
A bubble of emotion bursts in my chest as I respond.
"I love you, too, Cameron."
The feelings we've both been harboring for so long...finally finally finally spoken out loud.
He dips his head down, lips meeting mine in a sweet kiss. My eyes flutter shut, my fingers bury in his thick hair, and I drown in his intoxicating touch.
As the tide washes over our bare feet, the salty air surrounding us, I know this is it for me.
Cameron is it for me.
He's the one I want to experience life with. The one I want by my side in every endeavor, in every struggle, in every single moment, good or bad.
And I can't wait to see what the future holds for us.
Thanks for Reading
Thank you so much for reading this novel!
:) :) :)
If you're addicted to The Treehouse Boys and want me to write more, I'd love if you'd let me know with a quick review on Amazon!
More by McKinley
The Treehouse Boys Series:
Vaughn Steel: Hard as Steel
Weston Paine: No Paine No Gain
Cameron Collins: Collins the Shots
About the Author
McKinley May is an outdoors enthusiast, has an unhealthy addiction to cheesecake, and absolutely loves to salsa dance (despite her two left feet). She spends her time writing, hiking, and watching way too many cooking shows.
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