Fire in the Woods

by Jennifer M. Eaton

  Yikes. Was I an accomplice to any of that? Was I on the wrong end of a one way ticket to traitorsville?

  It was August. I should be sitting by a pool somewhere, shopping, being lazy like everyone else. “This is so not how I expected to spend my last week of summer vacation.”

  David lowered his eyes. “You wanted to be with him, didn’t you?”

  “Him? Who him?”

  “Jared Linden, the boy you were thinking about when we first met.” He touched his cheek. “The boy with this face.”

  A giggle burst from my lips. “I don’t know him. He’s an actor. I’ve never even met him. I just think he’s cute.”

  “Cute?”

  “Yeah, like, attractive, you know?”

  His eyes twinkled. “So, you find me attractive?”

  “Maybe—when you’re not ripping off your fingers or freezing to death.”

  Or tearing apart cars with your bare hands, beating people up, or getting me chased down by the Army.

  Ugh, when did my life become fodder for a cheap science fiction novel? I could see the teenage girls flittering about it already: super-cute alien, stupider-than-thou heroine and a bigger than life story with no chance of a happy ending.

  My heart fluttered. No chance of a happy ending. Was that the kind of story I was in? Was all this running and hiding all going to lead right back to Dad and handcuffs?

  Probably, because one of us was so not super hero material. I was a mess. A stinking mess. David should have chosen someone else.

  I glanced up, expecting to see a condescending glare. Instead, his blue eyes melted me. Although I was the one trying to comfort him last night, the sensation of his body next to mine, the safety I felt, the security of having him so close…Dammit, no matter how hard I tried, I still longed for him, for everything about him. I still didn’t know if this childish attraction was a result of that mental mojo he did on me, or just Jared Linden’s face, or the sweet, quirky way he acted. At this point, I’m not unsure it really mattered.

  The sweet insecurity in David’s eyes drew me closer, closing the gap between us as I fought the desire to pull him back down to the forest’s dirt floor and cuddle into his arms.

  I set my fingers on his chest. He didn’t protest. One point for my team.

  Venturing even closer, I breathed in the essence of earth and mild musk. So normal. So human. So right.

  My shoulders tensed as my gaze sought his. Did he think I was pretty? Did the trace of my fingers make him tingle, like his touch did to me? My cheeks heated as David’s gaze dropped to my lips. I should have looked away, but I couldn’t. I didn’t want to. If he was thinking about my lips, I needed them right where they were.

  The trees and bushes faded into the distance, leaving nothing but us. I leaned toward him, opening the door to what I wanted. He didn’t step through, so I gave him the customary two seconds to turn away before I settled my mouth over his.

  Part of me died as the softness of his lips consumed me. I reached behind his neck, tangled my fingers through his hair, and drew him closer. My tongue burned delightfully as I glided over his lips, shooting a tickle through my core that settled into my toes—until I realized he didn’t kiss me back. A lump formed in my chest, and I moved away.

  David’s eyes opened like saucers. “Why’d you do that?”

  I backed against a tree, abashed. “I’m sorry, I thought you wanted me to.”

  “Why would I want that?”

  My gut shoved up into my chest, and I burst into tears. “I thought you liked me.”

  “I do. What’s wrong?”

  I covered my face with my hands. No matter how hard I wiped my eyes, the waterworks continued to flow. The emotion of several days swung in and hit me like a hammer, and I couldn’t stop its release.

  “Jess. I’m sorry. Geeze, I don’t even know what I did.”

  “I kissed you, and you, you…” I lost my words in a sob.

  “I don’t even know what a kiss is.” He clawed at the hair near his temples. “Jess, please, I have no idea what just happened.”

  I gulped down my sob and did my best to steady myself. “Didn’t you feel anything? Anything at all?”

  Frightened eyes drained to lost defeat. “Jess, please. I don’t understand. It was nice, I guess—the kiss thing. But it took me by surprise. I didn’t know what to say. I do like you.”

  I uncovered my face and wiped my cheek on my sleeve. “You do?”

  “Of course. Here…” He leaned down and plastered his lips against mine. It had all the passion and sincerity of kissing a cereal box.

  I couldn’t help but laugh.

  “I’m sorry.” He sat back on the ground and slumped his shoulders. “I’ve never done that before. I really didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.” He picked up a rock and chucked it at a tree. Hit it dead on. “I am screwing everything up!”

  I bit down on my smile. “You’re not screwing everything up.” The furrow of his brow told me I hadn’t convinced him.

  Color me stunned. He was serious. He’d actually never been kissed.

  The fabric of my Dad’s sweatshirt stretched over his hunched shoulders. My heart skipped a beat, remembering the taught, hard lines of his back, the lean lines in his stomach, and the cute little dimple in his cheek when he smiled. He was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. I shook my head.

  “I can’t believe you’ve never kissed a girl before. I mean—look at you.”

  He held out his arms and examined himself. “Is there something wrong with me?”

  I snorted a laugh. “No, your gorgeou…I mean, I think a lotta girls would be interested in you.”

  He tapped his chest. “Remember, this is Jared Linden. This isn’t what I really look like. Besides, girls don’t really care about your appearance where I come from.”

  I settled beside him. “No? Then what do they look for?”

  “Accomplishment. Someone they can brag about.” David pursed his lips. “I’m the one who downed his plane on a simple communications mission. I’m the complete and utter failure.”

  “I don’t think you’re a failure. I mean, you’re nice. You care, and you…I don’t know…you’re brave.”

  “Brave? When was I brave?”

  “Well, you saved me twice last night. You could have jumped out the window and left me in the hotel, and you could have left me in the car when you broke free. I’d probably be under hot lights being questioned by now.”

  “You’d probably have been better off. Instead, you’re out here, hungry and freezing to death.”

  I ran my fingers through his silky dark tresses and wondered if Jared Linden’s hair could possibly be as soft. I smiled to myself. His hair was as soft as I always imagined it would be, because David was everything I’d ever dreamed of. He was a dream. My dream. How could I be better off without him?

  “David, there is nowhere else I want to be. If I wasn’t here last night, you might actually have frozen to death.” I moved closer.

  “I owe you a lot, you know.” David shifted his shoulders shyly. “If you want, you can do that kiss thing again.”

  I smiled. “You don’t have to. I’m sorry I even tried it. I feel like an idiot.”

  “Actually I kind of liked it. It was…warm. Nice.”

  “You’re all about being warm, aren’t you?”

  “You’d be too if you spent most of your night shaking in a frozen dementia.” He smiled and rubbed his cheek gently against mine. “I liked it Jess. I just didn’t understand what you were doing. My people don’t…kiss.”

  I cleared my throat. “Okay. We can try it again.”

  He leaned down and mashed taunt lips against mine. I laughed, and pushed him away. If he were from this planet, I would have thought he was making fun of me.

  “Stop.”

  “What? Did I do it wrong again?”

  I bit my lip to keep from laughing, and held him back. “Tell you what.
Relax. Don’t be so stiff. Concentrate on the way it feels, and when I open my mouth, you open yours. Follow my lead.”

  “Umm, okay.”

  I licked my lips and eased closer. His lips brushed against mine, and I gently closed my mouth over his. David parted his lips, and I slid my tongue between them. The heat of his mouth enticed me, like drinking cocoa that had cooled to the perfect temperature—only sweeter. A gentle suction drew my tongue further from my mouth as his glided across mine. My body fell into a whirlwind of senses, spiraling beyond control and screaming for more. His hands moved behind my back, drawing me into his warm embrace.

  His touch drove me nuts. I wanted more. I needed to touch him. I shimmied my hands beneath his sweatshirt, and trailed my fingers down his spine, delighting in the twinge of his tight muscles under my touch.

  David broke our kiss and looked down, lips still slightly parted.

  Damn. Definitely not bad for a first try.

  I sipped in a slow breath, savoring his taste still on my lips. There was no way Jared Linden would kiss that good. David’s expression seemed uncertain, though.

  “Was that okay?” I asked.

  David nodded without raising his eyes. “It was nice. Really nice. It’s, well, we’re alone, and it didn’t seem right. You don’t really know me, and that felt kind of…intimate.”

  “That’s what a kiss is. It’s intimate.”

  Confusion crossed his features. “Why would you want to be intimate?”

  My heart sank. My stomach turned over and pinched from within.

  David’s eyes saddened. “I said something wrong again, didn’t I?”

  I swallowed down the pain building in my throat. “I like you David. Can’t you understand that?”

  “I like you too, but I don’t get you. I offered you first friendship, and you pushed me away, and then you start helping me, and now this? Why are you messing with my head?” He closed his eyes and held his forehead.

  I gave him a moment to calm down. “What do you mean, first friendship? When did I push you away?”

  “In your room. Sitting on your bed.” He dragged his fingers through his bangs. “You were pretty plain in your rejection.”

  Whoa. But wait. That hadn’t felt at all like a pass. At least at the time it didn’t. “David, I don’t get it. What are you talking about?”

  He held up his hands. “You took care of me, and I offered you first friendship, but you denied me.”

  My eyes narrowed. “You’re going to have to tell me what first friendship is, ’cause I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  David hunched. His gaze trailed to the tree trunks. “I held you and brushed my cheek against yours. It’s a sign of mutual…” He blinked. “It doesn’t matter. You pushed me away.”

  I stiffened, remembering the awkward chawing in my gut…and yes, I’d pushed him away. “But I also told you that you could put your arm around me, remember?”

  His gaze fell to the forest floor. “But you made quite certain that more was unacceptable.” He stood and ran his fingers along the bark of a tree. “And then you start taking care of me again—and then this.” He raised his hands in the air. “I have no idea what you want.”

  I jumped to my feet. “Okay, I think we are experiencing a little culture-shock here. I had no idea that you brushing your cheek up against mine meant anything. I thought maybe it was a pass, but…”

  “What’s a pass?”

  “A pass is when you are interested in someone, and you want them to know it.”

  David’s lashes fluttered. “Then maybe it was. I don’t know. You have me so confused I don’t even know what I’m doing anymore.” He forced his eyes shut, as if steadying himself. “In my world, a female taking care of a male is a show of interest.”

  I suppressed a giggle. “So you thought I was making a pass at you when I gave you blankets and food.”

  “Yes, and not just that. Everything else. You’ve been taking care of me since we met.”

  I struggled against a smile and eased back to the ground. “Okay, I get it. Go on.”

  He sat beside me on the forest floor. “It was proper for me to acknowledge what you’d done by offering first friendship—a brief touch, and a brush of the cheek.”

  I straightened. “Okay, so that’s where I screwed up, right?”

  “When you pushed me away, you denied first friendship, which meant our relationship should stop. I’ve been very confused ever since, because you were acting like…”

  I lifted up to my knees, and knelt in front of David. He tensed as I placed my hands on his chest. “I like you David, and I’m sorry.” I brushed my cheek against his.

  He smiled, and ran his fingers through my hair, sending a shiver of delight through my spine. His other arm slipped behind my waist.

  Soft lips pressed against mine. David’s mouth opened slightly. His tongue teased, forcing a moan from somewhere deep within as he slowly leaned me back into the grass. I reveled in the firmness of his body pressing against me, light but strong and oh, so perfect.

  His lips formed a smile when they left mine. “You are forgiven.”

  I struggled for breath beneath the riveting beat of my heart. My skin felt empty, lacking, as he drew away from me. I reached out to pull him back, but instead he grasped my hand and helped me to my feet.

  He looked into the trees, seemingly unaffected by the kiss that had stolen all sense of reason from my being. “We need to get moving.”

  Moving? Oh, yeah. Army after us. Spaceships to find. South to walk. Got it.

  I worked hard to keep from stumbling on knees made of jelly, before an embarrassing gurgle emanated from my stomach.

  David’s eyes widened. “Did your body just make a noise?”

  I laughed, easing away the last tremors from his kiss. “I guess I’m a little hungry.”

  “I wish we thought of grabbing the backpack before we ran.”

  “Food wasn’t quite the priority at the time.”

  David sighed. “Maybe we should start walking and see what we find?”

  “Okay.” I grabbed my phone. Still two messages. The battery flashed low. I clicked on the navigator. “Crap. David, you ran in the wrong direction. We are about 25 miles away.”

  “Sorry, you had the compass. I only wanted to get us as far away from your dad and his friends as I could.”

  Compass. Good idea.

  I pulled the plastic container out of my back pocket and opened it up. “Okay, according to the navigator, we need to go that way.” I pointed into the woods. “We need to keep the compass pointed in this direction, and we should stay on course.”

  “Will the compass run out of power if we leave it on?”

  I raised my eyebrow. “I’m pretty sure it’s powered by the planet, so I don’t think so.”

  I clicked local search on the navigator, and typed fruit. A smile crossed my face as the local listings appeared. “Perfect. And it’s on the way.”

  “What’s perfect?”

  “Come on. We’re getting breakfast.”

  17

  I broke through the rough brush. Conte’s Farm. Private property. The red-lettered sign blazed in warning as we approached the edge of the woods.

  An itching burn crawled from the base of my throat into my ribcage. My eyes settled on the farmhouse in the distance…the normal entrance. Something in the recesses of my mind cautioned me to keep away despite the angst building inside me.

  “What does the sign say?” David asked, his fingers trailing across the hand-painted lettering.

  “It says welcome.”

  I guess pulling the English language out of my head didn’t include the ability to read it. Lucky me.

  “Let’s wait a few minutes.” I scanned the field, watching a cloud of dust kick up on the far side of the farm. A tractor rolled out of sight behind some trees. “Okay, let’s go.”

  We wiggled through some deep brush
into a field of low-lying greenery cultivated in perfectly straight rows. Tall weeds grew between the rounded plantings, leaving me to believe this part of the farm had been abandoned for the season. I brushed aside the leaves, and found a huge, red strawberry. Jackpot. I plucked the ripe fruit and lifted it from the plant. Turning the berry over, worms and small, crawly black bugs scurried for safety.

  “Yuck.” I dropped the fruit and wiped my hands on my jeans.

  David's brow inched up. “I thought you liked to eat living things.”

  I wanted to punch the smirk off his face. Instead, I smiled. Maybe he could be taught sarcasm after all.

  “Not the buggy kind. I don’t like to share my food.” I shielded my eyes and scanned the field. “We need to find what’s in season.”

  We started walking in the direction the tractor-cloud had been. Lines of corn formed a wall between us and anything that might be edible. I stepped within the stalks and searched for ears, but they’d been stripped clean.

  Rows of sword-like green leaves swayed in the breeze as I passed. They relaxed me with their gentle motion, until I realized I was alone.

  “David?” The silence sent a stab of panic into my chest. Green stalks swallowed me on all sides, blotting out and consuming everything. Even the sun. “David!”

  A hand reached out of the greenery and David appeared. “You really can’t see through these things, can you? I was standing right there.”

  I hugged him, letting my panic subside in his warmth. “This corn is making me feel caged.”

  David ran his fingers up one of the stems. “I like it. It’s confining, safe.”

  “Confining is safe?”

  “I guess you have a different perspective when you’ve been inside a fixed space all your life.” He looked up. “The last time I felt this relaxed I was in your closet.”

  I rubbed my arms. “Well, I don’t like it.”

  David sucked in his bottom lip, then smiled. “Does this bother you?” He wrapped his arms around me, easing me to his chest.

  I couldn’t help but cuddle in to his embrace. “Now this I kind of like.”

  “But I’m confining you.”

  “But in this case I want to be confined.” Like, forever.