“And you’re avoiding the true issue at hand,” I called after him with a smirk.
“You wish.” With that, he shut the door.
I could picture the smile on his face as I got into the shower. I still had time before my first activity started today, and I was going to give myself a thorough pampering.
All week long, I’d been making my favorite jasmine and honey bodywash last, but it was ready to give up the ghost as only a tiny droplet squeezed out. I reached without thought for Jack’s oak and bergamot orange bodywash and squirted a large dollop onto my loofah.
His curved smile, nerdy bird hat, and binoculars popped into my mind. Man, I loved that smile. Ugh. What was wrong with me? Maybe I justlikedhis smile. Just like I liked the close-shaved beard he always wore and how it rubbed against my face when we kissed. I liked how his touch was confident and how the tone he took with me when he was all dominant and dirty talking made my legs weak. I liked that he was competitive and passionate—that he now cleaned our cabin every night before bed.
I liked him.
Only, as I lathered myself up, there was no point in denying that I really loved the smell of oak and bergamot.
TWENTY-FOUR
Jack
I’d learneda few things about myself from living with Natalie Breckenridge.
One.I loved that she was a formidable opponent.As exhibited by our current standings in Camp Wars and in every argument we’d ever had. It both made me want to put up resistance and bow down to her will at the same time. It was confusing. And a little hot.
Two.It was getting harder and harder to stay away from her.That meant I wanted to stick around the cabin when she was home. And I wanted to check in with her throughout the day. I even went so far as to suggest we combine our two activities one day, because painting on a motorboat made perfect sense. I’d played that off as a joke, but was I joking? Kind of.
Three.I didn’t like to see her upset. This included her being angry, sad, or unfulfilled. And that was the vibe she gave off lately, as if something were missing for her. And just as was my role in this camp as Mr. Fix-it, I wanted to figure out exactly how to rectify that.
It had been a week since our craft cabin hookup, and things were good. Nat and I maneuvered around the cabin easily—especially after I’d stopped storing all my work shit in the living room and took extra time to keep my space clean.
Another unexpected benefit was how the tidy environment did wonders for my mental health. I’d made a project list of things I could do to improve my own space, not just the ones I’d been working on for the camp. I realized just how long I’d been putting off improving my own living situation and chastised myself for doing so. I didn’t need to work myself to the bone on the camp every day. I could do that and work myself to the bone on my own place sometimes.
I still needed to finish Nat’s cabin first before I even thought about retiling my bathroom or changing out the shitty sink in my kitchen.
Thankfully, the cabin was coming along. She’d helped me with parts that didn’t require a contractor and occasionally hung out with me while I worked, asking questions and handing me tools I couldn’t reach. It was nice.
I’d told myself she was spending time with me only because she wanted her space back sooner, so I didn’t make anything of it.
But as much as I tried to tell myself there was nothing there, the one thing I couldn’t write off was my frequent need to keep up with her social media account. She’d been making basic posts, but there hadn’t been much heart behind them, and considering I knew where she was, I could tell they had been planned so she could post them when she wasn’t traveling as much. I started to question if she’d been uninspired lately, and the residual guilt from the way I’d treated her made me realize it was probably partially my fault. But things had been good between us since I’d apologized, and her posts remained the same, so maybe I had nothing to do with it.
Either way, I was resolved to get to the bottom of it.
“We’re going out tomorrow, Breckenridge. Pack an overnight bag.” I flopped onto my shitty couch.
She stopped scrolling on her phone and turned to me, her face deadpan. “I can’t say I didn’t know this was coming. This is when you kill me, right?”
“Why would I want you to pack if I wanted to kill you?”
She gave me a look that said,come on. “To make it look like it was an accident.”
I tapped my chin, looking to the ceiling as if I were pondering this. “I guess you’re going to have to trust me.” I didn’t give her a chance to retort as I left the room. “Noon tomorrow, Nat. Be ready.”
All wasquiet around us as we climbed single file up the rustic ladder to the fire lookout tower where I’d secured our lodging. Our positioning meant that I knew Nat was staring at my ass, making me grin as I climbed each rung. I tried not to let that minor distraction trip me up, reminding myself to stay balanced to avoid falling back under the weight of my heavy hiking backpack.
We’d hiked a mile in on a trail that didn’t allow cars. Good thing Nat was outdoorsy. She’d perked up when I’d told her to bring her hiking shoes today instead of her pink tennis shoes. I could tell she was curious, but she didn’t pester me to ruin the surprise, which I’d appreciated.
I was excited to show Nat this place. She’d been all over the place, but after scouring her socials, I was fairly confident she’d never been to a fire watch.
The location was remote and a little primitive. The brush was overgrown with weeds and fallen tree branches. Nat and I cleared the path as we went. We stood at the base of the fire watch. It was a medium height at close to forty feet up in the air, with a single ladder. This particular watch was being transitioned into a rental, but that also meant it hadn’t been serviced or maintained recently. So I went first and made sure everything was safe and not already occupied by wildlife.
We opened the door and put down our packs and Nat’s gasp of excitement set my heart racing. She took my hand and dragged me to the windows overlooking the valley that stretched out below us for miles, her face practically glued to the view. Her reaction pulled a smile from my lips. The confirmation thatI knew her made me want to puff out my chest. I had imagined her enjoying the panoramic view that only a place like this could offer, but it was a massive relief to see the happiness written on her face. She went to the view and pointed out Mount Hood and Mount Jefferson off in the distance.
