He sighed. “You know I’m only doing this because you agreed to what I had you do yesterday, right?”
“I know. I know.”
Grunting, he took a seat beside me on the bench and held out his hand. The spider jumped across, landing on his arm. He shrieked and recoiled back but managed to keep it together enough not to chuck it across the room. Every muscle in his body locked as the spider darted over him. I don’t really think he breathed.
“Okay, is that long enough?” he asked as it neared his chest.
“I don’t know. Do they scare you as bad?”
“It’s still pretty bad, but I have to admit I’m not as freaked out by it.”
“Then I guess our job is done!” I said.
Stacie got up and gently removed the spider from Luca’s shoulder. “That’s so cute.”
We both turned to her expecting her to be talking to the spider, but her eyes were locked on the two of us. “What?” I asked.
“That you guys would help each other get over your fears. Really proves y’all are a great couple who cares about each other.”
Neither of us said a word. Both of us should have been disputing what was said. We weren’t a couple. We were friends. And friends that had just met on top of that. But clearly, even though that was the case, we did care for each other.
Luca stood, not bothering to look at me. “You ready?”
I pushed up and turned to Stacie. “Thank you for everything. I don’t think he’ll ever forget the experience.”
The two of us shared a laugh while he remained quiet, looking down at his phone.
Stacie said something else, but I wasn’t listening. It was too hard to concentrate with his sudden onset of distant behavior. Had what she said bothered him that bad?
With a small wave, we left the reptile exhibit and walked to the parking lot. He waited by the passenger door with a vacant expression that was hard to read.
“You okay?” I asked, pretending to scowl. “It wasn’t that bad in there, was it?” I needed anything to lighten the mood.
His eyes snapped to mine, and he smirked. “It was horrible.” He threw the door open and motioned for me to get in.
I took a step back and touched my chest. “I’m hurt. I spent a lot of time setting that up. All of five minutes on the phone.”
He reached for me, which I avoided, rocking back on my heels. “Sounds like you put a ton of effort in it. That’s five minutes you’ll never get back.”
“I won’t. You saw how cheery she was. Absolutely the worst thing I’ve ever done.”
He took a step in my direction, grabbed me by the waist, and spun our bodies around until I was pressed against the side of the truck. His eyes were wary, reluctant.
My lips parted, staring up at him. Holy shit. I hadn’t expected this. One of his hands landed beside my head. Slowly he smiled, his dimple deepening. His body was perfectly at ease, while mine trembled.
“I promise you that won’t be the worst thing you’ve ever done by the end of this,” he said close to my ear, his voice husky.
Right before my knees buckled, he stepped away, leaving me breathless.
“Now, please get in. I gotta get home and wash this spider feeling off me.”
“Why do I get the feeling whatever you have in store is way worse than what I did to you?” I croaked.
His eyes glowed with excitement. “You’ll just have to wait and see.” I jumped in the truck and glanced back to him. “At least you get a break, though.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m leaving town for the week with Finn. We’re going rock climbing and camping. Gives me plenty of time to think of the next thing to torture you with.”
He slammed the door as I sunk back into the seat. Luca wasn’t even gone yet, and I already missed him.
12
Luca
I stuck my hands into the pockets of my shorts as Finn and I followed a crowd of people through the corridor to board our plane. Normally, I couldn’t wait to get away from work and everyone in Destin or a hundred-mile radius, but now there was a nagging pull in my gut telling me not to leave. I shook my head, disgusted with myself for feeling that way. The internal struggle was fierce. One side wanted to stay very far from Leigh, but the other, well, it just wanted more and more.
“Dude,” Finn said from beside me.
My eyes moved in his direction, grateful for a momentary distraction from my thoughts.
“You okay? Like it seriously looks like you’re concentrating on something hard.” He rambled on as I ducked low and entered the cabin of the plane.
I paused at a row of seats and double-checked my ticket. “This is us.” I shifted the backpack off my shoulders and crammed it into the overhead compartment.
“Hope we get a hot chick next to us.” He put his bag in beside mine. “Might get some digits for a booty call or something next time we go this way.”
I considered that for a moment. “A booty call all the way in Utah? Don’t you have enough of them in Destin?”
A smile softened his face. “You can never have enough of them. My goal is to have one in every state.”
I plopped down in the seat next to the window. “How have you not caught something? I’m surprised your dick hasn’t rotted off.”
He sat down next to me and squared his shoulders. “Not cool. Don’t ever joke like that.”
“I’m just saying. You screw a bunch of chicks, bro. Some of them you barely know.” I kept my tone light and friendly.
“Please, for the love of everything holy in my life, don’t let that be what’s going to sit next to me.”
I followed his gaze to an overweight man wearing a shirt that appeared to be two sizes too small for him. In his right hand was a bag of Cheetos. It appeared that he had already broken into the stash as his fingers were dusted in a bright orange.
Finn closed his eyes and his lips moved, but no words came out.
“I think I’m with you guys,” the man said, dropping his bag on Finn’s foot. “Sorry about that.”
Finn winced, nodded, but remained silent. The man sat down, making Finn move over in my direction.
I met his pleading eyes and couldn’t help but laugh.
“All I wanted was a big titty girl who would do something strange,” he whispered.
I shoved ear buds in. “Don’t think it’s happening for Utah.”
A lady came over the loudspeaker, spouting out information about our flight. I only half listened and then completely drowned her out when I cranked up my music. Soon the asphalt was moving below us as the plane began to pick up speed.
It was the worst flight that I had ever been on, hands down. I had no room due to Finn sitting half in my seat. By the time we arrived at our destination, my back ached from being positioned so awkwardly.
“I was beyond ready to get off this thing,” he said once the man left and was out of ear range. “Swear dude shit his pants at one point. You didn’t smell it?”
“Guess he wanted to share it with just you. I didn’t ever smell anything,” I said with a laugh.
We pulled our bags down and joined the line slowly moving off the flight.
“I probably sucked it all up. Trapped in my nose. Fecal matter particles that will make me go delusional this week. If I fall off that mountain and plummet to my death, let it be known that was the reason.”
I turned to see him scrubbing at his nose so hard it had turned red on the end. “Stop. I don’t think just because you breathed in a guy’s fart it’s stuck in your nose.”
“You just didn’t smell it,” he muttered still rubbing it.
We walked through the airport, grabbed our bags, and got the keys to our rental. It was a gorgeous day in Salt Lake City. And it would be even nicer once we were out of the city.
I tossed the keys in Finn’s direction as I loaded the bags in the back of the Jeep. “You’re driving. I’m better with the navigation part than you.”
He rolled his
eyes. “I only got us lost that one time.”
“Try at least ten,” I said sharply.
“Whatever.” He knew there was no need to argue because I was right.
My phone started to ring. I glanced down and put it back in my pocket.
“Leroy again?” Finn asked with a smirk.
I nodded.
“You need to answer the man. Stuff like that can’t go ignored, Luca.”
“I know. I know! I’m planning on handling it.”
I climbed in the passenger side and pulled up our location. Maple Canyon was supposed to have some of the best climbing in the state. It had been on my bucket list for quite a while.
I glanced over to Finn, who was flipping through the radio stations. Once he found one that met his approval he looked up. “Ready?”
“Yep.” Being out in the sun was already making things better. I was excited to get there. Climbing always did wonders for me. Cleared my mind. Relived my stress. I sat back, running my hands down my legs while gazing out at the beautiful scenery. This was the best thing for me. I needed this. Being in Destin made it too tempting to see her.
It only took us a little over two hours to get there. Finn pulled into the parking area that was filled cars. Groups wearing gear littered the grounds, some skirting off through the woods heading to their adventure. I clapped my hands together, eager to feel the rock beneath them. The plan was to climb most of the day, find a nice spot, and set up camp. We squeezed into a space on the end and hopped out.
“Nice parking job,” I said, surveying the tires on my side that were resting on the grass. I walked around to the back of the Jeep where Finn was already tugging at our gear.
“You try to do better next time,” he challenged. He slid his backpack over his shoulders. “I’m going to go get us paid. You think you can handle getting the equipment ready?” His lips pressed together as the corners of his eyes creased. “I wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself or anything.”
I hurled an empty water bottle in his direction, which he ducked easily. “I’m not the one who’s poisoned by fecal matter. Just remember that when you feel light-headed on that mountain.” My fingers wrapped around a bag and pulled it from the trunk.
His hands flew out to the sides. “Why you gotta bring that back up?” Without taking his eyes from mine, he took a few steps back. “Can’t believe that man did that.” He turned and left me alone to get our stuff sorted out.
Once he returned, we didn’t waste any time. Half the day was already gone, so it was essential we get started immediately.
We found a good spot and dropped our bags at the base. Finn whistled, looking up. “Pretty high.”
“That makes it a good one.” I put on my helmet and strapped it securely into place before getting into the harness.
“True. You leading the first pitch?” he asked.
I nodded, rubbing a small amount of chalk over my already-sweaty palms. I tied off. An overwhelming rush of adrenaline pumped through my veins as I stepped forward. Licking my lips, I looked up. From this view, the mountain seemed so much more daunting. I found my footing and hoisted myself up. As I climbed, I placed protection into the cracks and fissures in the rocks. At the top of the pitch, I stopped and built an anchor.
“Finn, off belay!” I called down.
“Alright. You’re off.”
I pulled up the slack in the rope and coiled it at my feet until it became tight.
“That’s me,” he said.
Once I tied his rope, I called down. “You’re on belay!”
He climbed up, taking his time, making sure to strategize where to put his hands and feet. Sweat rolled down the sides of my face as I glanced down at him. When he reached my stance, I tied him in to the anchor and took him off belay.
I flipped the rope so my end was on top. After I was moved to belay I continued up the side.
Despite being in a situation that should have required my concentration, I couldn’t help but to wonder what Leigh was doing. Was she out with Bri since she was back from her trip? Knowing her friend, there was a strong possibility she would make her go out with someone. She was like Finn in that aspect, always looking for the next hook-up. My heart beat wildly in my chest.
“Why are you so quiet? Usually I can’t get you to shut up while we climb,” Finn said.
My foot found a nook and tested it before I shifted up. He was right. Climbing always brought things to my mind that I normally wouldn’t think about. Random stuff. But not today. The only thing I could think about was something I couldn’t talk about. The last thing I wanted Finn to know was how much Leigh was on my mind. I would never hear the end of it.
Not to mention the fact that I’d really wanted to cancel the trip because of her. She was only going to be in Destin for a few weeks and me going away was time lost that I could be spending with her. I shook my head as I gripped the rock. My arm tensed as I pulled myself up.
What made her so special? Girls threw themselves at me all the time. Yeah, lots of them were fun. Beautiful, even. A guy could fall in love with any of them easily, but I had no desire for that. I got rid of them the second things seemed to be getting too much. I always told them up front that I wasn’t looking for anything serious. All of them had agreed to that. They’d said they wanted the same thing. But it never turned out that way. It always ended with me breaking it off and them crying, leaving my house.
“You just not going to answer me, huh?”
“I don’t know. I guess I’m just not into talking today. I know how much you enjoy my stupid-ass conversation out here.”
“Of course I do. How else would I learn so much useless stuff? Like the reason a cat cleans itself so much is to get our smell off it. That, my friend, is gold. You have no idea how many girls I’ve picked up with that bit of knowledge.”
I choked out a laugh before moving to the side, so I could get a better grip on my next spot. “I was wondering why the sudden surge in women. Glad I could help you out.” I adjusted my belt with a free hand. Funny, I could climb the side of a mountain, but the thing that terrified me the most wasn’t terrifying at all. She was cute as hell. Sweet. Perfect. “After we make this climb, do you want to stay the night and head back in the morning?”
He grunted from somewhere below me. “You mean to tell me you don’t want to stay the week? Okay, something is definitely up. This is your Zen. The shit you love to do.”
I stared at the rock in front of me and blinked. She was changing everything about me, and she didn’t even know it. I clenched my teeth, frustrated at that thought. “I have a lot of work to get done. It was really a bad time to take this trip, and I should’ve canceled it.”
“Mmm-hmm. Does a certain girl have anything to do with you wanting to get back? You’ve been spending a lot of time with that Leigh girl. Did her throwing up on you like mark you or something?”
My jaw locked. “No. I wasn’t even thinking about her. Like I told you, I just have a lot of work to get done.”
“Whatever you say,” he answered.
A little while later, we had reached the top and found a good place to camp after a short hike. I gathered up some wood and built a fire while Finn prepared the food to cook. We ate, chatting about some video games that he had been playing for the last few weeks.
The wood popped as the fire climbed higher over the pile. Orange flames danced against a picture-perfect backdrop of mountaintops rolling for as far as the eye could see. I twirled a piece of grass between my fingers. This was heaven. So why was I not at peace? I tossed the green blade into the embers.
“I’m going to bed. Guess that climb wore me out.”
Finn’s eyes went wide. “It’s barely nine.” When I didn’t answer, he shrugged. “So, we’re heading back in the morning, huh?”
I unzipped my tent. “Yeah. Whenever I get up.”
He groaned. “That’s going to be so early!”
After stepping inside, I kneeled and turned around. “Guess you
better try to get some sleep too, then.” I sealed the entrance, still able to hear his mumbles from the outside, and lay down.
I tossed and turned all night. The crickets seemed to be too loud. Normally, sounds of the night made for a peaceful rest.
But not tonight.
Tonight it was hell. And I knew the girl hundreds of miles away was the reason for it. I covered my eyes, massaging at the temples. Turn the thoughts off. Don’t think about her. It was simple. My arm dropped like a piece of lead. It wasn’t. I stared up at the top of my tent. The red fabric glowed under the full moon. Her face was all I could see. I glanced down at my watch. The sun would be up soon, in an hour, tops.
And it couldn’t get here fast enough.
13
Leigh
I rolled over to my side and tucked the pillow under my head. It was lumpy and too uncomfortable. It had been that way for two days. And for two days, I had tried my best to sleep as much as possible. Why had this place suddenly become so boring? I didn’t need to respond. I already knew the answer. The answer stood over six feet with drop-dead gorgeous eyes.
A long minute passed. I closed my lids, picturing the person I wanted to see. His smile had been branded to memory. I wasn’t complaining, although I should have been. The last thing I needed was to fall for someone who lived across the country from me. In a few weeks, I would be on a plane heading back to Arizona. At that point I would be out of sight and mind. He wouldn’t keep in contact. He wouldn’t want to see me. I would be just another face he’d known at one time.
I threw my arms over my head then tilted my chin up. It was a sad truth to face, but I had come to terms with it over the past few days. He probably hadn’t even thought of me once while he was away. My gut twisted, and I felt the need to cry. I wasn’t sure why. It was stupid. So stupid. My fist balled, and I punched the lumpy pillow. It didn’t make it any more comfortable. Not that I thought it would. I only needed to get the aggression out.
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