by Anna Edwards
I pulled myself onto the dock. “Ruin it? I was enjoying myself.”
I could tell she wanted to laugh, but she stifled it. “I’m being serious. Everyone’s having fun and I like you, but I hardly know you. Besides, after the awards ceremony on Sunday we’ll be going our separate ways. It’s not fair on either of us.”
I didn’t care that what she was saying was right; I just had to convince her it didn’t matter.
I held my hands up. “Okay, okay. You win, but don’t run away from me. You’ll give me a kissing complex.”
I grinned to lighten the mood, and she chuckled. “For what it’s worth, you’re not a half-bad kisser.”
I feigned hurt. “Ouch, hit me where it hurts why don’t you. My hand happens to know I’m excellent at kissing.”
She snickered. “Your hand?”
“Sure. Don’t tell me you’ve never practiced on your hand before. It’s a rite of passage for any awkward teen.”
“You, awkward?”
If she only knew; I hadn’t always been so confident. “If it wasn’t for the guys, I would have been teased mercilessly, worse than I was anyway.”
She pulled on her shirt and shorts, and I tried not to ogle her body, but I had to face away until I was sure she was finished.
“I don’t believe it. You were a jock.”
“A jock that fell—” I stopped; I was about to disclose too much. “A few times.”
“They teased you because you fell a few times?”
She raised a brow in disbelief and I had to agree with her; it was crap. I picked up my t-shirt and threw it over my shoulder. “I guess so. Do you want to go for a walk?”
“Sure, I just need to put my sneakers on.”
I slid my feet into my flip-flops and waited for her to put on her converse before heading toward a trail.
I’d been itching to ask her where she was from but a voice in the back of my head said I’d spoil everything. I wanted to keep doing whatever we were doing. Having fun without consequences was easy. And maybe a part of me still believed that fate had something in the cards for us.
Why would I want to tempt fate and find out she lived nowhere near me? It would burst the ever-expanding bubble a few days too early.
“Can I ask you something?”
I swallowed and ran my hand through my damp hair. “Sure.”
“Where do you keep going?”
“What do you mean?”
“You keep disappearing throughout the day, and your friends are always secretive about it when we ask—spider!”
“What?”
She was flailing her hands in the air and pointing between hand flaps at a branch in front of our path. “Spider! Get it!”
It couldn’t have been more than 2cm long but she was acting as if a tarantula was dangling in her face.
I gently moved the branch out the way for her to pass it and she shook her head, her eyes wide. “Nuh-uh, I’m not going past it.”
“Don’t worry, it’s tiny.”
A serious look crossed her face. “So is a grenade.”
I couldn’t help the laugh bubbling out of my mouth; I was happy for this little distraction in her questioning.
“You can’t compare a harmless spider to a grenade.”
“I just did. Please get rid of it.”
I scooped the spider off the branch, and she cringed. “Hey, little guy, I won’t hurt you, I’m just going to put you over here away from the big bad lady.”
I caught it as it crawled up my arm and placed it on another branch to my left. “Happy now?”
Her expression was still scrunched as she slipped past the first branch. “I don’t know how you could touch that.”
I tickled her arm. “Like this.”
She squealed and jumped away from me. “Don’t touch me with spider hands!”
“Spider hands? What do you think it did?”
She was backing away as I moved toward her with my hands reached out in front of me.
“You could have spider pee all over you.” She was smiling now though, so I knew she was just kidding around, the fear of the spider now completely gone from her features.
I realized I’d never felt free with a girl before. I was always guarded, and I was still trying to be with Felicity. I didn’t know how, but something told me that if I told her about my condition, she wouldn’t care. She was the kind of different I longed for in a woman.
I sprung for her and her damp hair swung to the side as she tried to dodge me. The loose strands that had fallen from her braid hit me in the eye and I lost my balance, dragging her down to the ground with me.
I broke the fall with my arm, hoping she wasn’t hurt. “Are you all right?”
She was laughing hysterically, her body vibrating against my bare chest. It was at that moment I realized she was draped over me, and I stilled. She’d noticed my change in demeanor and her laughter petered out as she looked up from my chest.
Her normally muted green eyes seemed brighter somehow, and I couldn’t get the feeling of her off my lips. I needed to taste her again.
“Stay still,” I whispered, trying to sound serious.
She stilled and her eyes widened. “Please don’t say there’s a spider on me, I’d rather not know.”
I smirked and caressed the small freckle she had on her left cheek with my thumb. “You’re adorably breathtaking, you know that?”
She tried to shy away from me but I moved my hand to tip her head to face me again.
“I didn’t want to come on this trip,” she admitted sheepishly. “But I’m glad I did.”
The same intense attraction from before flowed through me, and I’d gladly take her rejection again if she wanted to keep denying this.
“I’m sorry,” I blurted.
“For what?”
“This.”
I slid her body up mine and pressed my lips against hers in a fevered rush. She stiffened and for a second, I thought she would pull away until I felt the telltale softening of her curves as they melted against me.
She’d told me earlier she didn’t want to ruin our time here, but how could something that felt like this ruin anything? If we had to part ways at the end, we’d always have the delicious memories.
Chapter Seven
Felicity
I couldn’t stop thinking about our intense make-out session when I was getting ready that night for the party. I didn’t want to analyze it too much, but past relationships had burned me and I wasn’t sure I was ready for a fling, so to speak, even a three day one.
I wasn’t sure I could shut my emotions off like that, especially since I knew I was already completely and entirely in lust with Jack. He was impressive to look at, but his personality shone brighter than any looks ever could. He was entertaining, charming, witty, and seemed like he had no fear in the world. But I wanted to know what he was hiding from me, and I knew there was something. I think it was this that made me stop our kiss earlier after only a few minutes.
I studied the mirror when Von called my name. I had to admit; I looked pretty. I’d caught the sun so my cheeks had a nice glow to them and my eyes looked brighter, freer. Gone was the tiny amount of sadness that was normally held in them.
“Coming,” I called and opened the door.
Lennie whistled. “Someone’s dressed to impress.”
I flicked my wavy hair over my shoulder and strutted past her, striking a pose. “I think I’ll do.”
We all giggled out the door and made our way to the party tent that was set up by the dining hall. I’d decided that tonight was the night I would let my hair down and have some real fun. After four years of being controlled, I think I deserved it.
Dom and Luke were on the dance floor when we arrived and Dani, Lennie, and Gem joined them as Von and I made our way over to the bar to get us all drinks.
“He’s over there,” Von shouted in my ear over the pumping music.
I thought I was being discreet as I scanned the room f
or Jack; clearly not.
I shot her a raw smile, and she grinned back at me. “It’s great to see you so happy, Fliss.” Someone put our shots in front of us and we each took one. “And if it has everything to do with the beautiful but mysterious man walking toward us now, then cheers to him.”
I nearly choked on my shot and grabbed a napkin to mop up my mess. I’d wanted to get a few shots down me before I saw him again, but I could feel his presence behind me.
“I thought I was getting the first drinks,” he noted.
I turned and gave him what I thought would be a sexy smile. “You can get the next ones.”
He leaned against the bar beside me, a slight slowness to his movements. Was he wasted already?
That didn’t seem like him.
He ordered a huge round for his friends and mine, and Von and I helped carry the trays over to a table Nat and Brock were relaxing around.
“Hey, guys,” I said, and each guy gave me a small wave.
It was hard to hear over the music so we all stuck to using hand signals if we needed to talk to someone that wasn’t next to us. The others joined us after we laughed at Dom spinning Dani around on the dance floor.
The shots were flowing, and the music had been turned down slightly as one-by-one people left, including Dani and Dom who said they were going for a “walk.” We all knew where they were going, but no one said anything.
I was having a great time with my new and old friends, but I couldn’t ignore the way Jack had kept falling asleep for the last hour.
I caught Nat’s attention since he seemed to be the only one of our group who wasn’t wasted, and hooked my thumb in Jack’s direction. “Does he need to go to bed?”
Brock stopped laughing when he heard me and elbowed Luke who seemed to turn serious as they all stared at each other, a silent question on their faces.
“Erm, yeah. Brock, you wanna help me?”
Jack took this moment to wake up and look around at everyone gawking at him. “What?”
Nat took hold of his arm and leaned in to whisper something in his ear. Jack’s face fell like he was angry, but he sighed and held onto Nat’s shoulder as Brock walked over to them and took Jack’s other arm.
“Luke, you okay to walk the girls back to their cabin?”
Luke saluted his friends and finished the last of his beer. “You guys ready?”
Jack must have thought they were out of eyesight because I watched as he shoved Brock and Nat off, not looking remotely wasted anymore, and disappeared around the corner. How odd.
“How wasted was Jack,” Lennie commented and then hiccoughed.
“Jack doesn’t drink,” Luke said and stuck his arm out for Lennie to grab onto. “M’lady.”
She giggled and took hold of his arm, I hung back with Von. “He was wasted, right?”
“So wasted,” Von replied, and then frowned. “Except, I don’t think I saw him with an alcoholic drink.”
Come to think of it, neither had I. When we were talking, he either had his hand on my knee or he was swigging out of a bottle of water. But that made little sense.
Maybe the bottle was filled with vodka? Or maybe I needed to find out what was really going on.
Chapter Eight
Jack
The lake was still and apart from the birds and bugs in the surrounding forest, the whole camp was silent. It was a nice change from the hustle and bustle of the city.
I skipped a stone; the water rippling before the stone disappeared. I couldn’t stop thinking about how much of a fool I’d looked last night. Apparently I was in and out of consciousness and Nat had tried to keep Felicity’s attention off me, but it wasn’t enough. She’d noticed and thought I was wasted, which wouldn’t hurt to go along with, but I didn’t want to lie to her. And I didn’t want to look like an idiot that couldn’t handle his liquor, especially when I didn’t drink more than a beer or two often.
I sighed and threw another stone in anger. I liked this girl, maybe a little too much for the fling I wanted this to be.
But what if.
The words kept echoing in my head and I was trying to come up with reasons why not to tell her about my condition now. I’d made it such a big deal to myself though, so how could I convince her that it wasn’t. I still lived a relatively normal life, I just needed a few more naps than everyone else.
The morning breakfast bell rang, and I took one last look at the lake before walking to the dining hall, none the wiser on how I would tackle all the questions that were bound to come my way.
Nat was sitting at a table on his own when I got there, so I grabbed food and sat with him.
“Hey.”
“Hey, how you feeling?” I replied.
“Fine, I didn’t drink half as much as those idiot friends of ours.”
“Yeah, and I’m sure I’m counted as one of those idiots in Felicity’s eyes.”
Nat’s hand stopped halfway to his mouth. “She seemed nothing but concerned.” He put his fork down and wiped his mouth on a napkin. “How long have we known each other for, Jack?”
“Forever,” I commented.
“Fucking forever. And not once have you ever let your condition get in the way of anything you’ve set your mind to. But this girl comes along and you want to hide a part of yourself that makes you who you are? Fuck that, you should be proud at where you are in life because of your condition, and if anyone can’t deal with that, then fuck those people. Because you, Jack Milner, are one of the best guys I know. You were there for me at one of the lowest points in my life, you introduced me to Kim.” He slammed his fist on the table, attracting the attention of people around us. “Man, without you I wouldn’t have Beth and Ellie.”
His voice cracked, and I hung my head.
“You don’t need any more people in your life that won’t accept you for you, so if you like this girl, and I mean really like her like I think you do, then stop dancing around the elephant in the room and have a real conversation with her.”
“That semester in psychology really stuck with you, huh?”
He chuckled and jabbed me in the shoulder as he stood with his tray. “Shut up and take my advice for once. I don’t dish out the good shit that often. Oh, and she’s in cabin four, Romeo.”
He strolled away with a wink and I faced the food on my tray, no longer hungry. What he’d said was right. I’d never let it stop me achieving the things I wanted in life, and I wanted Felicity. But I craved her in the most innocent form.
I craved her company, her talks about nothing and everything at once, her kind nature. But most of all, I craved just being around her. Everywhere I went this week had been because of her. Everything I had done was with her in mind.
I couldn’t stand keeping a secret from her any longer and having her think I was just another drunken idiot.
I dumped my tray on the way out the dining hall and marched over to cabin four. I took a deep breath and before I could talk myself out of it, knocked on the door.
“One pain-filled moment,” a groggy voice called.
There was footsteps and Lennie opened the door. “Fliss, I’m guessing he’s not here to see me.”
She let the door go and I caught it before it shut. She flopped onto her bed and a door opening at the back of the cabin caught my attention. Felicity stepped out, still fastening her hair on the top of her head.
She gave me a bright smile. “Morning, sleepyhead.”
I winced. “Yeah, about that—”
“Will you two take this outside, some of us are dying slow deaths in here,” someone grumbled.
“All right, grumpy, I’m going.” I stepped to the side to let her out. “Von doesn’t do hangovers well. Speaking of a hangover, how are you feeling this morning?”
I shielded my eyes from the sun so I could see her properly. “I’m feeling fine.”
“Wow, you were pretty wasted. I thought you’d be dying with the best of them.”
“I wasn’t drunk.”
She raised a brow. “You were falling asleep.”
My cheeks heated, and I turned my head toward the dining hall. My cabin was on the other side of it and I wanted a little more privacy for what I was about to tell her. “Will you come somewhere with me?”
“If this is where you tell me you really are a serial killer, I’d rather not.”
I chuckled and stuck out my hand for her to take. “Come on, be a risk-taker for once.”
She paused, then smiled, and took my hand. “Why not?”
FELICITY
The minute I realized he was leading me to a cabin, my heart pounded like the beat of a drum. He wouldn’t, would he?
Because it honestly looked like he was taking me to a cabin. And if that meant what I assumed it meant, then this would not go down the way he’d hoped.
He popped his head around the cabin door. “Get out, I need the cabin.”
I heard a grunt and shuffling footsteps before Dom appeared, hair sticking up everywhere. “Awesome night.”
Luke followed, but he wasn’t as chirpy as Dom had been, he looked green and grumbled about having to zipline on an empty beer stomach as they strode away.
Jack motioned for me to go inside and I shook my head. “I can’t do this.”
His brow furrowed before understanding shone in his eyes. “I promise this isn’t what you think. I have something to tell you, it’ll explain my strange behavior over the last few days.”
He opened the door wider, and I moved past him, trusting that he hadn’t planned this to get me into bed. I wasn’t that girl. Not now, not ever.
He motioned toward the bed silently when we were inside and I sat down, watching as he shuffled on the spot. He was nervous; this was the first time I’d seen him as anything but confident.
“Not going to sit down with me?”
He gave a slight laugh as he leaned against the wall. “Better not.”
I was about to reply when his eyes fluttered shut, and he jerked himself off the wall.
I stood up and went over to him. “Are you okay?”