Operation Get Her Back

by Claire Kingsley

  I know Ashlyn is right—I need to be careful with Hunter. But he’s making it very, very hard.

  He finds compelling reasons for us to get together all the time. At first, he asks me out on proper dates. There’s almost a formality to it—he has a destination in mind, whether it’s dinner, or a movie, or even just an afternoon coffee. He calls or texts to ask, picks me up, and we go out. Of course, we often end up back at his place. The crazy thing is, I never feel like he expects it. If a date wound down and I asked him to take me home, I’m sure he would do it without complaint.

  But I never want him to.

  After a few weeks, I notice a change. Instead of always asking me to go out with him somewhere, he starts inviting me over to his house, just to hang out. Sometimes he surprises me by stopping by with coffee. On a Friday afternoon, he comes over with a box of fresh vegetables from his mom’s garden and makes us dinner. We spend time together casually, whenever we’re both free.

  I realize this has crossed the line from maybe I’ll go on a date with you to I am definitely dating you.

  But that’s fine. We can date casually. There’s nothing wrong with seeing someone you like, especially when there’s so much chemistry. And our chemistry is off the charts. It always was. I’ve been completely honest with Hunter about how I feel and what I want. I’m okay with dating … but this is not serious. I can back out anytime.

  Gabe looks pretty skeptical when I tell him I’m seeing Hunter. Despite the fact that I assure him it’s just a casual thing, he tells me multiple times that I should be careful. I also face seeing my mother, and let her know Hunter is back in town. She’s much more of a grudge holder than Gabe, especially since my father left her. She wastes no time telling me what a terrible idea it is to see him again, regardless of whether or not it’s serious. I keep my mouth shut tight while she gets it out of her system. I understand her concerns, and I tell her I’m not in a place in my life where I want a long-term relationship anyway, so she has nothing to worry about.

  Of course, being with Hunter feels as easy and natural as breathing, and the more time we spend together, the more I wonder if I’m kidding myself about not being serious about him. But I squash that thought whenever it pops into my head. We have fun together, the sex is unbelievable, and that’s enough for now.

  On a Friday afternoon, I get a text from Hunter. I haven’t been able to see him in a couple days, and my heart does a little leap when I see his name on my phone.

  Hey Ems, mind if I stop by?

  I smile and text back. Not at all. See you in a few.

  In less than ten minutes, there’s a knock at my door. Hunter pulls me in for a kiss as soon as I answer. His lips are soft against mine and I relax into him.

  “Hi,” he says. “It’s so good to see you.”

  I smile and kiss him again. “Come in.”

  He follows me inside, and we both head over to the couch to sit down.

  “So what’s up?”

  “Something came up this weekend, kind of last minute, but I was wondering if you might want to come,” he says.

  “Come, where?” I ask.

  “Camping,” he says. “My brothers are going and they’ve been bugging me to come with them. I wasn’t going to, but then I thought it might be fun for us to go. You know, together. Nicole and Clover will be there, so the testosterone shouldn’t be totally unbearable.”

  “I haven’t been camping in years,” I say.

  “Really?” he says, drawing his eyebrows together. “You used to love camping. That’s why I thought I’d invite you.”

  “I know,” I say. “It was my favorite, but…”

  Hunter nods. I don’t even need to say why.

  He takes a deep breath and I can tell there’s something else. “So, Ems, I haven’t really talked to my family about us yet. It’s not that I don’t want to; I do. I felt like I needed to keep this protective bubble around us, and if I started telling people that you and I were seeing each other again, I might jinx it.”

  “Oh, that’s okay,” I say. “We’re not so serious that I’d expect you to tell your family.”

  His expression darkens and he glances away for a moment. “Right, yeah. Of course not. So, I guess my point is, if camping with my brothers is too much for you, I understand. But I also thought it could be fun. I’d like to go, but I don’t really want to without you.”

  I pause. Camping does sound like fun, and I certainly don’t hate the idea of camping with Hunter. We used to go camping and hiking together all the time.

  “You know what? I’d love to.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Definitely,” I say. “I miss camping. Where are we going?”

  “There’s a campground up north on the peninsula that we go to a lot.”

  “I literally have no camping gear,” I say. “I doubt Gabe does either. He’s not really the camping type.”

  “That’s okay, I have everything,” he says. “Just pack some clothes. I’ll take care of the rest.”

  “When are we leaving?”

  He shrugs. “Whenever you can. Everyone else left this morning, so they’ll be there by the time we get there. If you have to work, I can come back and pick you up later.”

  “No, I can be done for the day,” I say.

  “Okay, great.”

  I pack a bag, trying to remember what I’ll need for camping. Then I send Gabe a quick text, letting him know I’ll be gone for the weekend.

  We hop in Hunter’s truck, and after a stop at his place to get his camping gear, we head north. It’s about a two-hour drive to the campground. We listen to music and chat, and it goes by quickly. Hunter’s brothers already have the campsite set up when we arrive. It’s secluded among tall fir trees, and they have a fire going. Two tents are set up and there’s room for another on the far side.

  Ryan raises a beer in greeting as Hunter pulls up. Nicole and Clover are sitting in camping chairs around the fire, and Cody is standing nearby.

  I get out of the car and Clover jumps out of her seat, squealing.

  “Emma! Holy shit, you brought Emma! Hunter, you didn’t tell us!”

  I remember Clover from the first time I saw Hunter. She has curly blond hair and she’s dressed in a pair of jean shorts and a t-shirt. She walks toward me with a huge smile on her face.

  “Hi!” she says. “We met before, but it was a little weird because I was kind of stalking you. I’m Clover.”

  I notice Ryan give Cody a confused look, but Cody just shrugs.

  “Hi,” I say. “I’m glad you did that, I guess?”

  She purses her lips and looks at Hunter. “Told you.”

  I wave at Ryan and Cody. “Hi, guys.”

  I walk over to the fire and Ryan hands me a beer. “Hey, Emma. Been a long time.” He looks over at Hunter with one eyebrow raised. “It’s cool you guys could make it.”

  “Thanks.”

  “You can hang out here,” Hunter says. “I’ll unload our stuff.”

  Nicole unfolds another camping chair and sets it next to her while Hunter walks back to his truck. I remember Nicole from high school, but we didn’t know each other very well. She has dark blond hair that hangs just past her collarbone, and she’s wearing a red hoodie and shorts.

  “Hey,” Nicole says as I take a seat next to her. “Sorry if we’re all looking at you weird. Hunter has literally not said a word about you.” She gasps and puts a hand to her mouth. “Oh god, that sounded so bad. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. I just mean we didn’t know you were coming.”

  “Yeah,” Clover says as she sits down. “And you’re like, the famous Emma, so this is kind of a big deal.”

  “I don’t know about famous,” I say.

  “You’re definitely Jacobsen family famous,” Clover says. “You’re the love of Hunter’s life.”

  “Clover!” Nicole says.

  “What?” Clover asks. “Like she doesn’t know that already?”

  Nicole turns back to me. “I
’m sorry, Clover is, um…”

  “It’s okay, I get it,” I say. “Hunter and I have a lot of history together.”

  “It’s really sweet though,” Nicole says. “I didn’t realize you guys reconnected.”

  “Are you engaged yet?” Clover asks.

  My mouth drops open.

  Nicole smacks her on the arm. “Clover!”

  “I’m sorry,” Clover says. “I haven’t eaten all day and Ryan keeps handing me beers.”

  I laugh. “No, Hunter and I … we’re not really that serious or anything.” I look up and realize Hunter is watching me. He adjusts his grip on the tent and walks past.

  Cody comes up behind Clover and kisses the top of her head while he grabs the beer from her chair’s drink holder. “I think you’ve had enough for now, sunshine.”

  “Do you think he needs help with that?” I ask, gesturing toward Hunter.

  Nicole shrugs. “Ryan can help if he does.”

  “See?” Ryan says. He pokes a stick into the fire. “This is married life, Cody. She gets to volunteer me for everything.”

  “Oh, stop,” Nicole says, smiling at him. “You love being married to me.”

  “Hell yeah, I love being married to you,” Ryan says. He crouches in front of her and grabs the back of her neck, bringing her in for a kiss.

  I realize I’m staring at them and I look away, taking a sip of my beer.

  “Fuck, Ryan, you have a tent over there,” Hunter calls out. “Go use it.”

  Ryan stands up and gives Hunter the finger. Nicole bites her bottom lip, and her cheeks flush, but it looks pretty on her.

  Hunter comes over to stand next to me and brushes his hands together. “I’m sorry, Ems. They’re like that all the time. Hanging out with these four is like being at a fucking high school make-out party.”

  I laugh, particularly because while Hunter was talking, Clover stood up and started kissing Cody.

  Hunter notices and rolls his eyes. “See?” He grabs a beer out of the cooler and pulls up a chair next to me.

  “I guess I can see why you wanted to bring me along,” I say. “You’ve been feeling left out.”

  “Yeah, a little bit. Mostly I just didn’t want to be away from you.” He smiles and holds up his beer. “To reconnecting.”

  I smile back and clink my bottle against his.

  We hang out around the fire for a while, chatting. It’s pleasantly warm with a light breeze blowing through the branches. Sitting around the fire was always my favorite part of camping. Time seems to slow down, without all the distractions of the world. Nicole and Clover are sweet and friendly. Hunter jokes around with his brothers. Any awkwardness I felt when we first arrived melts away as the afternoon goes on.

  “So, what do you guys think? We have some daylight left. Anyone up for a short hike?” Cody asks. “Or should we save it for tomorrow?”

  “Yeah, that sounds fun,” Nicole says, and Ryan nods.

  I glance at Hunter.

  “You know what guys, I think I’ll pass,” Hunter says. “I don’t think I’m up for it. Maybe tomorrow.”

  “You okay?” Ryan asks.

  “Yeah, it’s no big deal,” Hunter says. “Busted leg aches today, but I’m fine.”

  “Keep the fire going, then,” Cody says. “We won’t be long.”

  The others head out, leaving me and Hunter by the fire. We sit quietly, staring into the flames.

  After a while, I break the silence. “Can I ask you a question?”

  “Sure.”

  “How did you get injured?”

  He takes a deep breath, his eyes still on the fire. “I was overseas. I can’t really tell you much about what I was doing. We were driving, and the vehicle in front of me hit an IED. I tried to swerve and miss it, but there wasn’t anything I could do.”

  My stomach twists. “Oh god, Hunter. Are you serious?”

  “Yeah,” he says. “I don’t remember much else, honestly. Except the noise. There was so much noise, and heat. I really thought I was going to die. After that, I have no idea what happened. I was out. I woke up in a hospital.”

  I stare at him. I can’t imagine all the things he must have been through, the things he’s seen. I put my hand on his arm. “I’m so sorry.”

  He puts a hand over mine. “It’s okay. I lived. Some of them didn’t.”

  “Is it hard?” I ask. “Coming home and being here again. You were gone a long time, and I sort of forget you were living such a different life.”

  “It was really hard at first,” he says. “But it gets easier as time goes on. I had a lot of nightmares and stuff for a while. That wasn’t fun. Ryan actually convinced me to talk to a therapist, so I did for about six months, and she really helped. I still get amped up sometimes and feel my control slipping, but I’m getting better. I know what to do now when I feel like I’m going to panic. I can usually cope with it.”

  “That’s awful,” I say. “I wish you didn’t have to go through all that.”

  “There’s a lot I wish I didn’t have to see. Or do. But I did good things, too. More good than bad.” His phone rings and he pulls it out of his pocket. His brow furrows. “I’m sorry, Ems, I need to take this.”

  He gets up and walks over by his truck. His limp is usually barely noticeable, but I can see him leaning heavily on his other leg.

  His back is to me, and I can’t help but wonder who he’s talking to. Most of the time, he seems like an open book. But once in a while, I get the feeling there’s something he’s hiding. Or maybe I’m just looking for something to be wrong. For all I know, it’s something about work. There’s no reason I should be worried because he wants to take a quick phone call in private.

  Is there?

  I sigh and pick up a stick to poke at the fire.

  He comes back after a few minutes, and I hope he’ll tell me who it was. I don’t want to ask—that feels too invasive—but it isn’t the first time he’s stepped away to take a call when we’ve been together.

  “Sorry,” he says.

  “No problem.”

  I hate the little sliver of doubt that pricks my mind. I want to trust him, but it isn’t that simple. There’s a cloud hanging over the two of us, and I’m not sure we can ever get out from under it.

  18

  Hunter

  There’s nothing quite like waking up next to Emma. I’m incapable of sleeping late anymore, but I love to wake up early and enjoy the feel of her sleeping quietly beside me. She doesn’t stay over nearly as often as I’d like. Of course, I’d ask her to move in with me if I thought it would go over well, so nothing less than always is enough.

  I hold her body close. She was cold when we went to bed, so we zipped our sleeping bags together and she curled up against me. The feel of her ass on my cock was irresistible. After nibbling on her neck the way she likes, I pulled her panties down and slipped inside her. I made love to her slowly for a while, cradling her against me. She was nervous about being loud, but I’m pretty sure my brothers weren’t paying any attention to our tent. She was sexy as hell, coming with her hand clamped over her mouth, her eyes rolling back in her head.

  The thought of it gets me hard again.

  She wakes up just as I start to hear movement in the campsite. Someone is building a fire and low voices carry through our tent wall. Getting dressed is a little awkward. My tent is small, with a low ceiling, but we make it work. We come out and enjoy coffee and scrambled eggs, cooked over the fire.

  I finish off the last of my coffee and take a quick lap around the campsite, testing my leg. It hurt like hell yesterday, probably from the drive. But it loosened up overnight and today it’s back to normal.

  “What do you think, Ems?” I ask. “Should we go for a hike?”

  “Only if you promise not to get us lost this time,” she says.

  Ryan laughs and opens his mouth like he’s going to give me shit, but I cut him off.

  “Shut your face, Ryan.”

  “Hey, man, I didn’
t say a word,” he says. “I just hope they taught you how to follow a map.”

  I laugh and shake my head. “Okay, photo boy.”

  He shrugs and points to Nicole. “I have a hot wife. Your taunts are meaningless.”

  “You guys want to join us?” I ask.

  “Actually, Nic and I are going to run into town and get marshmallows and chocolate,” Ryan says. “She wants s’mores tonight.”

  I glance over at Cody’s tent. He and Clover haven’t shown their faces yet, and there’s no way I’m knocking on their tent door to see if they want to come hiking.

  “Guess it’s just you and me,” I tell Emma.

  I grab water and a few snacks and toss them into a backpack, then Emma and I head for the trail. There are several trailheads right in the campground, and after consulting a big map, we pick one and head out. There’s a waterfall at the end, and if I remember correctly, we’ll be able to climb down some rocks and get behind it.

  “Do you remember that trail we hiked just outside of town?” she asks as we walk. “That summer before senior year?”

  “With the blackberries?” I ask. “Unfortunately, yes, I do.”

  Emma laughs. “You just had to try to reach those berries at the top. You got so scratched up.”

  “You have a wonderful memory for our hiking disasters.”

  “It seems like there were a lot of them,” she says.

  “I guess we’ll just have to start making new memories,” I say. “Better ones.”

  Emma doesn’t answer and we keep walking up the trail. We come to a steeper climb, and I have to slow down or I risk aggravating my knee. It feels good to move and get my blood pumping. Ever since I had to lie around for weeks in a hospital bed, I get anxious when I have to spend too much time sitting.

  The sounds of the forest surround us, but we don’t see any sign of other people. Tall fir trees tower over our heads, filtering the sunlight, and thick green underbrush spreads out alongside the trail. The roar of a waterfall grows in the distance.

  We come to a spot where the trail levels off, then dips down again. The noise of water gets louder, and we round a corner, past a rock face jutting up on one side. Water cascades down a cliff, rushing toward the ground in a spray of white.