Ethan smiled softly and walked up to her. He leaned into the truck and pulled the long black bag containing the tent out and handed it to her before reaching back in and grabbing a folded tarp.
“Okay. Now what?” she asked.
“Now we set it up. Have you ever done it before?”
“Considering I didn’t know what it looked like, I’d say no.”
He chuckled and walked over to the edge of the campground. “This area is nice and flat, so we’ll set up here. Can you help me with the tarp?”
She set the tent down and walked over to him, grabbing one end of the tarp as they unfolded it together and set it down on the ground.
“Let’s get this tent put together,” he said.
She picked it back up and carried it to him, where he emptied the contents onto the tarp. Then he showed her how to put the poles together and slide them through the tent. Once it was up, they stood back.
“So, what do you think so far?” he asked.
“I think this is a lot of work.”
He laughed. “It is, but it’s worth it.”
She tilted her head. “Is it though?”
“I thought you wanted to go camping?”
“I do. But I guess I never really thought about the level of work involved.”
“And we aren’t done yet.” Ethan moved back toward the bed of the truck to grab more items. He looked over his shoulder and tipped his head. “Come on, newbie. I’ll make a pro out of you yet.”
They moved around the site, setting up the table, handwashing station, cooking station, and a shade tent. When they finally finished, they sat down in the chairs around the fire that hadn’t been lit yet. The sun was still high in the sky, and Ethan tugged at his shirt that was sticking to him with sweat.
“Hey, Lily. Want to go swimming?”
Lily steppedinto the tent with her bag and pulled out her swimsuit. Ethan had told her there was a pond nearby they would swim in, so to come prepared. The tent was already stifling hot with all the screens closed for privacy, so she tried to change quickly.
“Damn it,” she muttered as she tipped over on the sleeping bag, trying to get her shorts off.
“You okay in there?” Amusement laced Ethan’s voice, and she could see his outline from outside the tent.
“Yep. Never better.”
She got her swimsuit bottoms on before working off her top, which was much easier while seated. Once she tied on her red bikini, she looked down at herself. It was a little revealing, but she hadn’t planned on going camping. No way had she thought she’d be going camping with the resort’s sexy guide… alone.
She pulled a dress on over her swimsuit, slipped her sandals on, and stepped out of the tent to find Ethan already wearing his swim trunks.
“Where did you change?”
He winked. “I took my chances and stripped real quick behind my truck.”
Her face flamed. If she had come out at that exact moment, she would have seen all of him… and she wouldn’t have minded. His teal swim trunks were the perfect color against his tan skin, and she eagerly awaited to see him bare chested when he took off his T-shirt.
She cleared her throat and looked away when she realized she was staring. “I need to get sunscreen on or I’ll burn before we even get into the water.”
She walked over to the wooden picnic table that had seen better days and set her sunscreen down on top of it while she pulled her sundress off. She squirted the lotion into her hand and worked it down over her legs and arms. It wasn’t until she turned around to ask Ethan to do her back when she caught him staring.
But instead of looking away, he only smiled and stepped closer to her. “Need some help with that?”
She looked up at him, their chests nearly touching.
