Page 77 of Will to Run

A laugh barks out of me again, and I don’t tell her that usually there’s quite a bit more, but I just unloaded on her for the first time thirty minutes ago. Wait until she feels a first release.

“Thank you, Jaxon. That was… that was everything.”

Wrapping her tightly in my arms, I kiss the top of her head, while I silently thank whoever brought this woman to me. Leading her out of the shower, I wrap her in a towel before taking her back to bed. We planned on watching a movie, but the only thing I want to watch is her as she chases heaven over and over again.

37

DELLA

After the night with the glow paints, something shifted between us. I’m confident we both feel it, but neither of us has been brave enough to be forthcoming about our hopes for the next steps. I still haven’t officially committed to the art show, and I can’t seem to find the courage to talk to him. I know that I can operate independently… I should operate independently, but I want him to want me here. Ideally, I’d love to stay in the long-term rental another month, but part of me feels like if he wants that, he would offer.

But really, it comes down to me being too nervous to ask if he wants me to stay. Because if he doesn’t, I’ll be crushed.

By the time we are a week and a half into high season, I already feel him relaxing more. The socials person, Lanie Locklin, arrived, and she fit in here with surprising ease. She’s like me, a bit of an interloper, and we bonded immediately.

Thursday night, a week after our painting encounter, Jax and I are lying together after another marathon sex session. This alone would be impossible to leave. I wish he would just bring it up.

“I was thinking,” he says, stroking the skin on my bare back. I’m tucked into his arm, and my leg is flung over him, even though we’re both still a little sweaty. “Would you be okay getting up super early tomorrow if I took you somewhere special?”

I sit up, excited at the prospect. “Where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise. You’ll be back by noon.”

“I would have to call off work.”

“You blow the boss daily, I’m pretty sure he’ll approve the request,” he laughs.

I join him in laughter. “Yeah, I’m game. Do I need to wear anything specific?”

“No, nothing crazy. Layer up like you would for a barn morning.”

“Done,” I say. “I can’t wait, Jax!” My body molds back into his, and he kisses my head.

“I can’t wait either, baby,” he replies in an exhausted voice. I know I have less than five minutes before he falls asleep, but I don’t push conversation. Though his foot is off the gas, I know he’s still burning the candle at both ends.

When alarm rings out at 3:30 a.m., I about hit the ceiling. I expect our call time to be quite a bit later than that, but he bounds out of bed ready to tackle the day.

“Rise and shine, Tatroe, we gotta hit the road!” he is practically bouncing on his toes.

Dragging myself out of bed, I get dressed in my layers and expect to eat a quick breakfast and get coffee, but I am wrong. As soon as I start to mill in the kitchen, he tells me that there’s food and caffeine in the car. Clearly the man has a plan; where could we be headed?!

Jumping in his truck, it’s clear that wherever we’re going means a lot to him, so I let myself fall into his excitement. Our car ride is full of carpool karaoke, laughter, talking, and happiness. It’s so easy to just exist with this man.

An hour in, he slows and turns off onto a gravel road, but I missed any signage to give me a clue to our destination.

“Look, Jax. I know I’ve taken a large step back from my crime shows and podcasts, but I gotta tell you, this doesn’t look good.”

He laughs and nods. “Completely forgot about that, Della. I might have to turn this car around.”

“Where are we for real?” I ask as he pulls into a spot right at 4:30 a.m. and throws it into park.

“Schwabachers Landing,” he says.

I have a moment to think about whether I’ve ever heard that before, and I haven’t.

He pulls a backpack out of the backseat and hustles out, coming around to help me down. Taking my hand, he leads me down a path that looks like a nature trail. I suspect that we are heading somewhere to watch a sunrise, because I don’t know what else it could be, but I don’t say anything; just blindly follow.

It’s a quiet walk as we take in the forest waking up. Our vision is limited, but we hear running water, chirping birds, and rustling. Even with the sounds, there is a serenity as we move along the tree-lined path.