Naked Gardening Day Box Set

Chapter 2

Chapter 2“Have you decided?”

Cam jumped at the voice coming from behind. He looked over his shoulder and took in the black, paint-stained work pants hanging low on Grayson’s hips and a tight-fitting white T-shirt. He had white paint on his arm and some splatter on the back of his hand.

“Decided what?” Cam straighten his back, prepared to be growled at again.

“Which beds you want.”

He rolled his eyes. “Do we need to divide them? Can’t you be civilized about this?”

“I could if you weren’t destroying everything. I want to grow food, real food, but you keep pulling up my plants.” And the growling was on.

Cam gritted his teeth. He could see the allure of growing some vegetables, he could, but Grayson was talking vegetables everywhere. Cam wanted to be able to walk out into the garden after a long day at work and soak up the sweet scent of blooming plants, watch the colors, and hear the bees buzz around.

“Fine, we’ll divide them.”

Grayson nodded. “Good. Good. I’ve eh…I’ve already—” He narrowed his eyes as he looked out over the raised beds. “I’ve already planted garlic with the strawberries—”

“You’re saying you should have the strawberries?” Camden put his hands on his hips and glared at Grayson. He wanted strawberries too.

Grayson sighed. “No, take the strawberries, but don’t pull up the garlic.”

“If it’s my bed, I can do what I want to.”

Grayson’s jaw tensed. “Fine. Mark up the ones you want.” He swung around, his feet slammed against the ground with far more force than necessary, and Cam winced. He could’ve handled that better.

He took a step in the direction of Grayson’s house but stopped himself. It had been a long day, a long week, and he’d walked out into the garden to clear his mind, not to fight with Grayson.

Walking along the raised beds he wondered how they’d divide them fairly. They weren’t the same size and some had permanent trellises. He assumed Grayson had put them there. They’d been there before he’d moved in, but Grayson had helped Frances a lot, and putting in rebar grid trellises seemed like a Grayson thing to do. He didn’t mind much, he might have preferred something more decorative—like the arched ones in the garden center—but once the plants were climbing, you didn’t see much of the rough metal.

Camden walked on, noting where some of his favorite perennials grew. The problem was that Grayson had planted things around them. Radishes, or was it some kind of turnip or something? Cam couldn’t tell by looking at the leaves, and he wasn’t going to pull one up. Grayson had told him he was welcome to grab what he wanted from the garden as long as he planned to eat it—throwing plants away was not allowed.

He sighed.

Grayson had put a lot of work into the garden already this spring. The greenhouse was brimming with seedlings, and Camden didn’t know why, but it pissed him off. He’d turn every single garden bed into chaos, putting in plants willy-nilly.

When the sound of a window opening flew over the garden, Camden jumped. Looking at Grayson’s house, he smiled. The bathroom window. It was tempting to bend and pull a plant out of a bed simply to see if Grayson would come running without clothes again. Cam sighed. He shouldn’t picture Grayson naked. He should fix some food and get some rest.

* * * *

At eight o’clock the next morning, Grayson knocked on Camden’s door. When no one opened, he knocked again. When still nothing happened, he rang the doorbell. It took some time, but then Cam yanked the door open. He was dressed in black slacks and an unbuttoned shirt. His blond hair was a mess and he wasn’t wearing his glasses.

“Were you sleeping?” Grayson smiled as he tried not to notice how Cam looked much more accessible like this. His gaze slid down over his chest—pale, slim, and mostly hairless. He looked soft and sleep-warm, and Grayson wanted to pull him in for a hug—though, he doubted anyone ever hugged Camden Hensley. He kept people at arm’s length and slayed you with a word should you get too close.

“No.”

“Good, I didn’t mean to wake you.” He hadn’t. He’d figured he’d be up. Saturday or not, no one slept past eight, did they? “I wondered if you picked your beds.”

“My bed?” He ran a hand through his hair, and warmth spread in Grayson’s chest.

“I was gonna plant some seedlings, but I couldn’t see any markings, so I didn’t know which ones I’m allowed to touch.”

Tension bled back into Camden, and Grayson steeled himself for some stinging remark.

“Now?”

“Yeah, now. I’m gonna watch the game with Ryan later, so I wanted to get an early start and get some plants in before I head out.”

Cam stared at him. “Ryan?”

“Becker. Do you know him? He’s been around some.”

“You’re…meeting up with Ryan Becker?”

“Sure. You want to come?” He didn’t think Camden would appreciate hanging out with Ryan, but maybe he liked sports. He couldn’t see it, but then he was pretty sure Cam only ever allowed people to see what he wanted them to see.

“Eh…No.”

Grayson shrugged. “Thought so. The beds?”

Camden rubbed his forehead, and some of the sharpness melted away again. “You want me to decide now? Before I’ve had coffee?”

Suppressing a smile, Grayson nodded. He’d learned more about Cam in the last seconds than he had the entire year he’d lived here. “If you go get dressed, I’ll put on some coffee and meet you in the garden. Milk? Sugar?”

Camden sighed. “Milk, please.”

“Awesome. See you in a few.” He turned to walk toward his house.

Fifteen minutes later, Camden came walking through the garden. Grayson grabbed the thermal coffee carafe and poured a cup. He handed it to Cam and reached for the milk. “Say stop.”

He poured and when the coffee was a creamy light color, Camden stopped him.

“You showered.” Grayson didn’t make it a question since his hair was wet and the invisible armor back in place. The glasses, slacks, and shirt made him look like a lawyer. At least, he hadn’t put on a tie and suit jacket.

He sighed, mourning the loss of the softer-looking Cam.

“I don’t usually meet people without taking a shower first.”

“Oh, I’m people?” Grayson grinned and poured some coffee for himself.

Camden glared at him—always glaring.

“Any specific bed you want apart from the one with the strawberry plants?” Grayson wanted the border bed. It was longer than all the rest but slimmer, so there wasn’t more growing space, but it had the most sunlight and there were fixed trellises. He wanted those. He’d planted his tomatoes and tomatillos with that bed in mind. He’d let Camden pick one first, so he could claim it after without Cam making a fuss—hopefully.

Camden walked along the beds. “I want that.” He pointed at the largest bed where Grayson already had planted carrots and spring onions. It was right next to his house, and he gritted his teeth. In the middle, he’d installed a trellis and there several clematises climbed. He should have known Camden would want it, but it still stung.

“Fine. There are carrots.” He pointed at the greens. “And spring onion.” He gently caressed the thin scallions.

Camden was watching him but looked away as soon as Grayson looked at him.

“I want the edge one.” He walked toward the bed in question.

“But there are a lot of climbing flowers I thought we’d have there.”

Grayson looked at him. “You got the clematises, I’m claiming this.”

The steely glint in Camden’s eyes had Grayson holding his breath.

“Fine! But then I get the circular one in the middle.”

Grayson nodded. He’d made plans for it, but it was the smallest bed, so he’d manage without it.

“And I want—”

“No, you have three beds now, and I only have one.”

“Three?”

“Clematis, the round, and the strawberries.”

Camden opened his mouth, snapped it shut, and glared. “Fine. Pick one.”

Grayson looked around. “I’ll take the one with the pak choi.”

“The what?”

“The small cabbages.” Grayson walked over to the bed in question. “We need to mark them.”

“You won’t remember?” Cam crossed his arms over his chest, and Grayson gritted his teeth.

“I will, but I fear you’ll try to steal them from me if I don’t have proof of what we agreed upon.”

An outraged sound left Camden, and he gestured so fast some of his coffee sloshed over the edge of the cup. “You’re accusing me of stealing? You think you have anything I’d want?”

Grayson frowned at him. “I want us to mark the beds so there is no confusion.”

“Confusion.” He huffed. “You think you’re the first who’s accused me of stealing things?”

What the hell? Grayson stared at the flush climbing Camden’s cheeks; it wasn’t an embarrassed blush. Cam was furious, and Grayson had no idea why. “All I meant was we’ll write down which bed belongs to whom.”

“It would hardly help since you don’t know how to read.”

Grayson jerked as if he’d been slapped. He might not be educated like Cam and yeah, school had been a nightmare, but he wasn’t stupid. “I’ll put a stick in my beds. Even a retard like me can see a stick.” He stomped off toward the greenhouse where he had a bundle of garden sticks.

* * * *

Camden watched Grayson walk off and winced. Damn, he shouldn’t have said that. The flash of hurt or whatever in Grayson’s eyes had formed a knot in his gut. He sipped on the coffee. It tasted good, like coffee outdoors often does. The spring air wasn’t warm, but it wasn’t chilly either.

Looking around, he noted young plants in several of the beds. Grayson had already planted and sown a lot while Cam mostly walked around in the garden to soak up the peace. He had no idea what was a weed and what was something Grayson had planted. It didn’t matter. He might feel a bit guilty for ruining Grayson’s hard work, but if the bed was his, he got to do what he wanted with it. Carrots were nice, though. He glanced at the greens Grayson had pointed out and sighed.

Steps crunched on the gravel, but Grayson didn’t walk toward him. He went over the long, narrow bed framing the entire side of the garden and pushed a garden stick into the soil, then he stomped over to the bed with the weird cabbage and put a stick in that too.

“I’m taking the one with the turnips too.” Grayson moved stiffly as he stuck a stick into the bed closest to the one with the clematises. They were the two beds facing Grayson’s house, and Camden hid a flinch. He’d more or less be on Grayson’s doorstep when he worked on it.

“Okay. I want one of the ones closest to my house.” Because if Grayson claimed them, he’d be on Cam’s doorstep, and he disliked that almost as much as he disliked being on Grayson’s.

“Okay. I’m claiming this.” Grayson stuck a stick into the bed behind Camden. It was one of the bigger ones, and he could see some tiny plants peeking up through the soil. When had Grayson had time to do everything? He worked full time, same as Cam.

“I’ll take the other one next to my house.”

Grayson frowned at him but nodded. “Okay, I’ll have this one.”

It was another one of the big ones. Cam nodded. It was his turn to pick, so he couldn’t object too much, but he had the feeling Grayson was coming out the winner of this picking beds thing, and he hated not winning.

Looking around, Cam tried to determine which was the biggest bed available. It was another one close to Grayson’s house, though it was the short end facing it so it wouldn’t be too bad. “I’m claiming that.”

Grayson nodded, almost looking relieved which made Cam frown.

“I want the one over there.” He pointed to a bed next to the long, narrow one with the trellises, and Cam realized most of Grayson’s beds were facing south. He studied him for a few seconds. His skin had a healthy tan, his eyes a dark brown as was his hair, the beard was more black than brown. He had the whole tall, dark, and handsome thing down pat, though he didn’t think he’d appreciate Cam telling him.

“What?” Grayson frowned at him.

“Nothing, just thinking.”

“Uh-huh. More coffee?” Grayson raised his eyebrows in question.

“Yes, please.”

There was a ghost of a smile as Grayson strode over to where he’d left the coffee carafe on the bricks of the raised bed. Camden followed.

“What are your plans today?” Grayson poured coffee into Cam’s cup, not looking at him.

“Not much.” It had been a rough week. He’d advised that a four-year-old boy who’d been placed in foster care be moved back to his biological parents. They’d gone through the twelve-step program, had been sober for a long time, and they wanted their child back. He wasn’t the one making the final decision, but his opinion weighed heavily, and while he didn’t doubt for a second the parents loved their child, it still filled him with dread.

“What is it you do? Granny mentioned something about you being a social worker.”

“Yes. I work with families who have problems and help solve them.”

“Financial problems? I can see you as a banker or a lawyer or something.”

Cam frowned. “No…or yes, many have financial problems, and we offer support. We take them on family activities and things like that. For example, we have a Christmas dinner every year where Santa comes and every child gets a present and so on. Many of our families can’t afford Christmas food or presents. It’s hard, especially for the children who see their classmates drowning in presents. We lean heavily on public funding and donations, and we help families set up budgets when they need it, but we’re not financial planners.”

“That’s good.” Grayson looked out over the garden beds. “I want the one between the clematis bed and the edge bed.” He pointed at the bed closest to the corner of his house.

“It’s my turn to pick.” For a second, Cam considered claiming it simply because Grayson wanted it, but he was an adult. “I’ll take this one.” He patted the brick next to the coffee carafe.

* * * *

Grayson bit into a slice of pizza, his gaze locked on the TV.

“Oh, come on!” Ryan flopped back against the backrest when one of the players fell halfway across the field for no apparent reason.

“Have some more pizza. It’ll make you feel better.” Grayson nudged the pizza box closer to Ryan.

“Wanna go out for a beer after the game?”

Grayson shrugged. He wanted to go home. If it was still light out, he could get some plants in the soil. He had beans needing out of their pots.

“What have you been up to today?” Ryan glanced at him as he picked up a pizza slice.

“Not much. Argued with my neighbor over the garden again.”

Ryan winced. “You should buy his half of the property.”

“And do what with the house?”

Ryan grinned. “I can rent it from you. I wouldn’t touch the garden.”

Grayson snorted, though it would’ve been much easier if Ryan had been living next door. “I doubt he’d sell. He thinks I’m poor and stupid.”

Ryan waved a hand.

“No, he thinks I’m simple-minded. For real.” Grayson did his best not to let it affect him, but it still stung. Fancy educations weren’t everything, and he might not do well with written text, but he wasn’t stupid.

“f**k him.”

“I’d love to, but I doubt he’d be into it.”

Ryan snorted. “TMI, dude. Go be queer on someone else’s couch.”

Grayson grinned at him. “Yeah? You don’t want to snuggle?” He held his arms out as if expecting a hug.

Ryan shook his head and bit into the pizza. “Maybe some other day.” He chewed but his gaze never left Grayson. “Spare me the details, but when did you last get laid? Please tell me there’s been someone since that little shit.”

Grayson raised his eyebrows. “That little s**t?”

“You know who I mean. The snazzy one who wanted to redecorate your house before you moved in.”

With a chuckle, Grayson reached for his beer. “Tyler.”

“Yes, him! Annoying twit.”

Grayson shook his head. “He had other qualities.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt it. I could never see how you’d fit together, but I assumed he had something going for him I couldn’t see.”

Grayson winced. They hadn’t fit. Outside of the bedroom, they’d been a disaster, not agreeing on anything, and constantly arguing. It was an exhausting couple of months before they’d broken it off. “We didn’t agree on much.”

“But there have been others since then?”

Grayson winced again.

“There haven’t? Damn, it’s been over a year, hasn’t it?”

About a year, yeah. He sighed. He didn’t want a random hook-up; he didn’t have the energy to chase after someone or play all the games that came with dating. “I don’t have the energy.”

“To f**k?”

“To find someone.”

“Don’t you guys have Grindr? It shouldn’t be too hard to find someone.”

Grayson shook his head.

Ryan shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

For several minutes, they watched the game in silence, then Ryan turned to him. “So, the neighbor?”

“Cam.”

“Yeah, Cam. He’s queer?”

“No idea.”

Ryan widened his eyes. “Where’s your gaydar?”

Grayson rolled his eyes. “I’ve never gotten any vibes one way or the other. I’ve never seen anyone other than his sister visiting, but it doesn’t mean anything. He could go to their place, and it’s not like I’m home all the time guarding his house. Maybe he has a lover who comes at night and leaves before I do in the morning.”

“You could ask him.”

“Why?”

Ryan grinned. “Because you mention him quite often, so maybe you’re having a little crush.”

“I don’t have a crush.” An image of Camden opening the door with messy hair and an unbuttoned shirt flashed before his eyes.

“Who is he? Do we know him from school?”

Grayson did his best not to remember school. “Camden Hensley.”

“The shoplifter?”

“What?” Grayson laughed. “I find that hard to believe. He’s…what did you call Tyler? Snazzy. A suit and tie kind of man.”

Ryan scrunched his face. “Dude, why do you always go for the condescending type? What’s wrong with getting yourself a construction worker or something, a real person without all the pretense.”

Grayson shrugged. It wasn’t the clothes doing it, though who minded a man in a nice suit?