important for him to go on this trip. It was cold, damp, and he made far too much money to sleep in a tent, even a tent as nice as the one he’d set up.
“Why does Joseph get a trailer and we’re in tents?” Hudson asked as he grabbed another log and threw it on the fire.
“Because I’m old and if I get down on the ground I might not get back up again,” Joseph said with a laugh. “I did my tent days. Now it’s your turn.”
“I’ve done my tent days too. I got a job so I wouldn’t have to sleep in one again,” Hudson said.
“I like it. I feel like I’ve come home to my roots,” Finn said. “And besides, I slept in far worse places than this when I was overseas.”
“Yeah, I hear you there,” Noah said. “People might not realize the difference in soils, but let me tell you, there’s a difference. Some ground is nice and soft, and some is unyielding. I’ve had a backache for weeks after a bad night on the ground.”
“Me too,” Damien said. “Some of the places I slept while I served were less than pleasant. I’m afraid I’ve gotten spoiled over the years. I don’t think any of us, besides Joseph, is going to sleep well tonight.”
That got a laugh out of Brandon. “I’ll sleep like a kitten,” he said. “Just roll me over and pet my belly.” He leaned back in his chair as he fiddled with his fishing pole, tying a knot and getting the hook ready for his bait.
“You do realize that if you scratch a kitten’s belly, its claws come out and sink in, don’t you?” Hudson asked with a smirk.
“Nope, not with me. All animals love me,” Brandon insisted.
“I could spend all of my counseling time on you guys and retire a very wealthy man,” Crew said, looking at his own fishing pole as if it was a foreign object.
“You might want to hire yourself to analyze whatever the hell is going on with you,” Finn told him.
“I’m just fine, brother,” Crew said. But then he sighed. “Okay, I’m not fine, but I will be. Give me a little more time and I’ll share with you.”
Finn looked as if he wanted to argue, but after a moment he sighed. “Please don’t take much longer. We always come to each other when we have a problem. I think this camping night’s a good idea because I don’t like the distance between us right now.”
“I agree,” Brandon said. “We’ve all been hit with some pretty crappy stuff in the past few years. It should unite us stronger, not pull us apart.”
“Yes, Brandon, that’s the point of this boys-only night,” Joseph said. “We need our women in our lives, we need them to make us better men, to make us more empathetic, and kinder. We need our other halves to be well-rounded. But we also need each other, and the moment we think we don’t we truly lose something valuable.”
“Why do we have to discuss feelings and problems, though?” Hudson asked. “Why can’t we just be together and have fun?”
“Because life isn’t always fun. Sometimes it’s hard and we get knocked down. That’s why we have family, so we can help lift each other off of the ground when that happens,” Joseph said.
“How many times have you been knocked down?” Crew asked.
Joseph chuckled. “More often than I’m willing to admit, but that’s why I surround myself with people I love and admire. They always pick me back up again, and they never make me feel bad that I fell in the first place.”
“I’m ready to fish,” Hudson said. This conversation was going to a place he didn’t care for it to go. He walked down to the river. His brothers and uncle did the same, but they all stood several feet apart as they cast their lines in the water.
The first hour was slow, then Hudson’s rod went down and his line went screaming out, the wheel spinning as it shook.
“I have something,” he called excitedly as he set his hook, then started the dance of lifting his pole, reeling, letting the fish run and tire and lifting again . . . over and over and over.
“Damn, Hudson, that looks like a big one,” Noah said as he moved up next to him. “All I’ve caught is this tiny thing.” He held up a six-inch trout. “But I wasn’t throwing it back because I’m determined to have