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His words have the effect of warm lips dragging down my body. My insides clench tight and I feel as if I’m swaying on my feet.
“Taylor, you hungry?” Tanner asks suddenly, a few feet behind us.
It seems dinner is ready.
Ethan smirks then, stepping back to release me. It’s a miracle I remain standing.
“She’s starved.”Chapter 26TaylorIt’s late and I can’t sleep. Isla and Camille are both nestled nicely on the bunk beds. I took the floor again even though they both offered to swap with me. It just seemed easier this way, especially now when I sit up and push the thin sheet off my legs. I know I won’t be able to sleep any time soon. My body is buzzing with nervous energy. I feel like I chugged four Red Bulls and then chased them with three espresso shots.
I glance down at my oversized t-shirt and consider grabbing pants, but I don’t want to wake either of them up by rustling through my drawer. Also, I wouldn’t mind feeling the cool night air on my bare legs. Maybe it’s just what I need.
I slip on the pair of Isla’s sandals she lent me all day and am careful to close the door behind me gently enough that it doesn’t make a sound.
With a small lantern in tow, I set off down the path. The forest is awake with me, owls and crickets and cicadas reminding me I’m not alone as I head toward the camp.
I have no destination in mind.
I just had to do something.
I couldn’t lie on that floor for another second, replaying Ethan’s words in my mind, dissecting every part. I talked myself in circles: maybe he was drunk, maybe he was still playing a vicious game, maybe he wanted to teach me a lesson…or maybe he was telling the truth.
I pass the row of tents and wonder if he’s inside one of them. I could go over and see, but I’d be mortified if I stumbled upon one of the couples instead. So, I follow the trail down to the lake and freeze when I spot a low fire burning through the trees.
Everyone went to bed a while ago. I’m not sure who was in charge of dousing the campfire, but I worry they might have forgotten until I continue down the path and spot Ethan sitting on a blanket, alone, with the lake at his back.
He’s lost in thought, his arms wrapped around his knees and a beer seemingly forgotten in his hands.
I walk until I’m on the other side of the fire and when he looks up, I realize he must have spotted me a while back because he doesn’t look surprised. His possessive gaze eats me up from head to toe as if he’s saying, Those legs belong to me, so why are you standing all the way over there?
“Couldn’t sleep?” I ask gently, unsure of what we are now. Friends? Enemies? Should I back away slowly or step around this fire?
“I was waiting,” he says, and the words aren’t teasing or seductive. They’re heartfelt and earnest. “For you,” he continues, shaking his head and finishing off his beer before setting it down on the grass beside the blanket.
My stomach flips as I tip my head to the side and smile.
“We were together all day, you know.”
His attention is on the fire now. When he speaks again, he sounds as if he’s speaking straight from the heart. “No. You were off in your own world.”
“And you were with Camille.”
There. The jealousy has been given a voice, and it feels good to let him know—so good, in fact, I continue, “You smiled at her so much today.”
“Smiled?”
I wrap my arms around my waist self-consciously. “Yes. You enjoyed yourself, something that doesn’t happen very often when you’re in my company.”
He grins, then a soft chuckle escapes him. “If you think I haven’t enjoyed the last few weeks, you’re wrong.” His gaze flicks back to my shirt. “Dead wrong.”
The fire crackles between us, but it’s dying down. Soon, it’ll be nothing but embers.
I frown down at my loose t-shirt, wishing I’d planned my outfit a little better, but when I glance up from beneath my lashes, Ethan doesn’t seem to give a damn about what I’m wearing.
His eyes are stormy black and his jaw is locked tight.
“Did you mean what you said earlier?” I ask, finally picking up where he left off, wanting answers once and for all.
He frowns at the fire. “If you’re just hoping I’ll repeat it again for your amusement, I won’t.”
“I was hoping you’d repeat it again for my pleasure,” I reply, a wicked little smile on my lips.
Tension sparks between us as our gazes catch. We stare so long, my heart hammers in my chest and my stomach clenches tight. I look away first, back down at the ground.
