OUTTAKE CHAPTER 12 (This was a chapter I decided to remove from the book, but thought was fun!)
GABE
Allie wants us to build sandcastles and I’m starting to feel like I’m at Summer Camp rather than on a paid for vacation to discuss my junk.
Even though I’d rather be doing anything else, Allie’s excited expression has me complying. With her sweet nose and expressive eyebrows, and a smile that could light up the pits of hell, I think this girl would be able to get me to do pretty much anything.
“So, I think I should split you into two teams,” she says as we all gather around the stack of buckets and spades Oliver retrieved from the house. We must be an odd sight. Ten huge men without kids gathered around beach toys in a rainbow of primary colors. If my workmates could see me now, I’d never live it down.
“Should we pick, or will you?” Stefan asks.
“Oliver, Clay, Russell, Jonas, and Theron on one team. The rest of the other team.”
I see what she’s done. Split us so that we’re not with someone we know. I guess that evens things out for Tom and Russell, who are the only ones here who don’t have a buddy.
“You get to decide what kind of castle you want to make and work as a team to construct it. You’ve got two hours.” Allie glances down at her slim white watch, noting the time and I want to tell her two hours is way too much time. We can knock a decent castle out in one, no problem.
I remember the sand creations I made with my mom on our holidays back in Greece. The sand there was similar to here, but the beaches were narrower and the Mediterranean Sea much calmer.
Stefan waves me over as everyone moves to congregate in their groups. “Anyone got any ideas?” he asks. I glance over at Allie, who’s pulled out her laptop again and is watching us and typing at the same time. In the other group, Oliver seems to have taken a leading role, and I wonder what Allie’s going to make of that. What is it about them that makes them assume a directing role? Is it their jobs, or the additional years they have on the rest of us? Maybe it’s just that they enjoy being in charge?
I’m more of an easy-going person. Happy to follow ideas and plans if I think they are good. Happy to offer my suggestions when things aren’t going so well.
“Traditional castle complex,” Tom says.
Jimmy grabs for a bucket and a spade as though he’s desperate to start. “Let’s just build and see what it turns into.”
Stefan’s expression tightens. “I think having a plan might work better because there are five of us and we won’t be able to anticipate what the others are working on.”
Carson frowns at the ground as though he’s hoping the blank patch of sand at his feet will offer him some inspiration. “We can use holes and hills to create different levels.”
That’s not a bad idea, but I have something in mind. I’m a builder, after all. “What about a mediaeval style castle with turrets and different levels, and then we could build a moat and surround it with a giant dragon resting on the ground?”
Stefan’s mouth twists into a grin, and he nods slowly. “I like that idea. I think it could work. And combined with Carson’s hills, it could look amazing.” He glances in the direction of the rival team, who’ve already moved a little down the beach and are on their knees digging. “Does anyone have any art or sculpture experience?”
Carson raises his hand. “I’ll take the dragon. I’ve already got something in mind similar to this.” He twists and there’s a mythical beast curled around one of his arms that’s a mixture of a dragon and a serpent.
“That’s Ladon, right? And those are the golden apples?”
Carson nods. “You know your myths and legends?”
“They’re drummed into us from childhood!”
Stefan clears his throat, glancing down the beach at the progress already being made. “Sounds good. And you, Gabe? Would you like to take on the construction of the main building?”
“That’s my day job,” I say, nodding.
“The rest of us will build the hills and moat. Maybe Gabe could draw out a rough outline of his vision?”
“I’m not sure I’d call it a vision,” I say. “But I’ll give it a go.”
I head to the treeline at the back of the beach, bend to grab a broken piece of wood and return to where the other four men are gathered to mark out the perimeter. Allie rises from where she’s sitting, resting her computer open on the towel, and jogs over to us. Momentarily, not a single man in our group has his eyes or mind on the competition. In fact, I reckon any man in my group would happily lose to the other team in exchange for a single kiss from Allie.
Theron’s convinced Allie’s phone was still recording when she went upstairs last night. He’s convinced she heard everything too. The part he’s not sure about is her reaction. She doesn’t seem to be annoyed. I guess that might be a good sign. I don’t want to offend her or make her feel objectified.
But if she hasn’t noticed the lingering eyes on her pretty face and banging body, she must be away with the fairies.
“Can you tell me what you’ve decided and how you came up with the idea?”
Stefan begins to outline our process and what we’re intending to construct. When Allie’s clear, she jogs over to the other team, and we all watch her ass jiggle around the tiny scrap of fabric that’s keeping her modest.
“Damn,” Carson mutters.
“Tell me about it,” I say.
“I swear if she asks me about my cock again, I’m going to cum in my shorts,” Jimmy groans. “Couldn’t they have sent a man to do these interviews? At least then, I could talk about sex without thinking about what it would be like to drive into all that slick, wet…”
“Jimmy.” Tom interrupts by resting his hand on Jimmy’s shoulder. “Just think of something else. Dig a fucking hole.”
“I could dig a hole with my cock right now.”
That’s enough to make us all rumble with low, desperate laughter. Jeez. I don’t think I’ve ever been as turned on by a girl, and certainly not one that all the men I’m surrounded by want too.
I think it’s sex fuelled frustration that drives us to create the most epic sandcastle I’ve ever seen. Carson’s dragon is a beast of epic proportions. The moat is wide and deep, and the castle turrets point tall and proud to the soft blue sky.
It’s a relief to have something to focus on that isn’t Allie’s sweet tits that are barely concealed by her top, or Allie’s thighs which look so soft and warm, or Allie’s nipples that I swear seem to point through whatever she’s wearing.
We win the competition based on the extra imagination we put into our construction. Theron isn’t happy, but the dude has a competitive streak that matches the size of his dick.
And after, when Jimmy asks what prize we’ve won, and Allie realizes she didn’t think that far ahead, she presses soft kisses onto each of our cheeks. It takes every ounce of strength and restraint that I possess not to grab her waist and press my lips against hers.
If she has listened to the audio, she knows about Theron’s proposal.
But how can we get her to admit it and agree before we all combust from the ridiculous sexual tension?
(c) Stephanie Brother 2023
