He peeks at me with one eye open and grins. “Dork.”
“But I’m a hot and sexy dork, right?”
Jett swipes back my bangs. “Yes, but also a clumsy one.” His smile drops as he stares into my eyes. His gloved fingers brush against my cheek. “You’re beautiful.”
My heart races for a different reason. He said that the other day, too. I’ve been called hot, sexy, or look like I should be a model, but never beautiful. Somehow, it just sounds important or meaningful when it comes from Jett. “Why, Mr. Cordier, I do declare you might like me, sir.”
He smiles again, and I need him to do that more often. “I think I might.”
“And I like you, too. A lot.”
We move on, following the river until we finally arrive at Blue Pool.
Jett looks down at the water from where we stand on a rock ledge. “I thought they called it blue figuratively. That’s the bluest pool of water I’ve ever seen.”
“The underground part of the McKenzie River feeds it. Belknap Crater erupted about 1600 years ago, burying part of the river in lava. The river continues underground, but it filters through the lava rock. The water is about 37°F all year. Fucking cold as hell. It’s so cold that not even microorganisms live in it, which makes it incredibly clear. You can see every single rock at the bottom. Wanna dive in?”
“I take it back. You’re not a dork. You’re nuts.”
I chuckle. “Yeah, I did it once, while in undergrad, but during the summer. You only jump in and jump right back out. It’s exhilarating, but not something I wanna do again.”
“Yeah, I’m never doing that, even in the summer.”
“I’ll get you to do it.” I wink, pulling out my phone. “Picture time.” Jett stands close to me as I hold up my phone and take a few selfies of us. “Sit on the rock ledge. I’m going to go down a bit and take some shots of you over the water.”
Jett removes his pack and sits down, dangling his legs off the rock, swaying them back and forth. I hike down to the water’s edge and take a few shots of him. “Lookin’ sexy, babe,” I yell, my voice echoing around us.
Once I make it back up to him, it’s my turn to pose as he takes several pictures of me.
“You’re ridiculous,” he laughs, when I pose like a pinup model, one finger on my lip, one leg kicked out behind me.
“I’ll keep being ridiculous if it makes you laugh and smile.”
“Deal.”
After our hike, we make a detour to a vineyard for an early dinner and wine tasting. The land is filled with dormant grape vines, but there’s plenty of wine.
We sit on lounge chairs under a large covered porch outside, but it’s warm with the fire pit and space heaters. I hold Jett’s hand and rest my head on his shoulder as we look out at the beautiful vista, drenched from the rain. It pounds on the roof, and the fire pops. I’m grateful the place doesn’t blast music. Taking in the natural sounds is perfect.
“This is nice,” I say.
Jett kisses the top of my head, then rests his cheek on me. “It is. It’s been a long time since I’ve dated, but the few we’ve been on have been some of the best. No stress. No rushing to get somewhere. We just find things to do that are chill and easygoing, a lot like you, I suppose.”
“Oh, I can get stressed out. I try to be calm and relaxed, but there were days, especially back in school. Like I said before, trying to maintain my grades while being the best that I could be at running wasn’t always easy. Getting my doctorate wasn’t easy either.”
“Striving to be the best never is. Greatness doesn’t come without cost. Cost to oneself, mostly.”
If I think he’s going to tell me more, I’m mistaken. Instead, he asks, “What about your personal life? Ever had a long-term relationship?”
“Eh, most of the time I just liked fooling around. I wasn’t serious about dating or relationships for a long time. One day I’d be responsible enough, so I wanted just to live life, you know? I think Rose was the longest relationship I had, but it wasn’t even six months before we went in different directions. She’s still a good friend of mine.”
His body stiffens against me. “Do you… Would you want to get back with her?”
“Rose? Nah. She’s great, don’t get me wrong, but she’s in another relationship. He’s better for her anyway.”
Jett visibly relaxes. “Ah. And what about now?”
“What about it?”
