AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’m wounded,” he said mirthfully, hand to his chest. “Look. Most things and people are a pain in my ass. They exhaust me. It doesn’t mean I don’t love them, I just…I love this too. Cravethis. The…”
When his words wandered off, looking up the mountainside, I supplied, “Freedom?”
“Yeah. That too. I guess it’s the peace of it.”
“Mistyvale certainly doesn’t lack in that.”
“No,” he said on a huff. “We certainly don’t.” The terrain shifted then, the climb requiring more focus on my part and helpful assists on his. Companionable silence settled between us again, only the heavy sound of exerted breathing mingling with the song of the forest. There was nothing that quiet in Florida. Our beaches were busy. Our springs were busy. Peace was a commodity rarely granted unless you could brave the creatures of the Everglades, and then it came with a side of deep paranoia. Florida would always—always—be home for me, and I loved growing up there, but if the critters weren’t after you, the bacteria and parasites were.
Jameson led me through the woods, following a gentle trail of prior feet, pausing occasionally to make sure I was okay, or offering a water break. When we finally reached the summit, breath ragged from exertion, he turned and nodded.
“Nicely done. Just a few more feet.” When he stopped, I nearly collided with him, my legs trembling under my weight after the hours of work. Jerking my gaze from my feet to the horizon, the oxygen rushed from my lungs as I took in the view. The signature emerald Mistyvale mountains funneled together to a crystal blue lake in what had to be a volcanic crater. Beyond them, we could just make out one channel slicing between green islands. Hot damn, this place was breathtakingly beautiful. Just like the rugged man looking so at ease as he swung his pack off his shoulder. “Home sweet home,” he said under his breath.
Jameson
To Noel’s credit,it took most people at least a full summer of consistent hiking to conquer the trail I’d just drug her up with no remorse. It was delightful that she did it without a single complaint, that overly optimistic attitude of hers coming in handy. We could have camped anywhere along the trail, but she just kept cruising, her eyes full of that wonder that did things to my gut. Whenever I’d glance at her, she smiled softly as she panted for air. Like every tree, moss-covered rock, and stream were fascinating. Maybe after all those years stuck between endless cities, itwasfascinating.
Tarp in place, tent laid out, I was sliding the poles into place when she quietly excused herself. Oddly at home for someone who hadn’t actually grown up camping in these mountains. After the last few hours of endless trekking, I assumed she just needed to find a good tree to hide behind, and continued to set up camp. Unpacking my Bluetooth speaker, I started Rhyett and my ‘Good ol’ Days’ playlist, nodding to the rhythm of the Rolling Stones’ “Beast Of Burden” as I slid the pieces together like one gigantic puzzle. The wind picked up a bit more than I liked, whistling through the pine branches as I whispered the lyrics to myself.
Before we started hiking, I’d made sure Noel practiced pulling her bear spray off the hook, but that didn’t ease my nerves at her wandering off on her own. When the fuck did I become a nervous man?Christ. Shaking my head, I kept my hands busy, quickly hammering stakes into the earth and popping our temporary shelter up with practiced motions. This tent and I had beenthroughit together. Years of sanctuary found beneath the sound of rain on the tarp. Adventures and sunsets, and near run-ins with bears I was lucky to scrape out of.
The sleeping bags were still clipped to Noel’s bag, so I’d just straightened to look for her when I heard her yelp crack through the woods. I didn’t think. Didn’t hesitate. Just checked that my firearm was safe in the holster and fucking bolted as fast as my feet could carry me in the direction she’d headed.
“Noel!?” I bellowed. “Noel?!” My feet slowed as I heard…laughter?
“Over here,” she called back, her voice a twist between misery and amusement. What the fuck was going on? Heart still in my throat, I froze as I rounded an enormous spruce tree and found her wide eyes set over a grimace. Eyes frantically scraping over her for injuries, I hesitated, wincing as I took in her soaked clothing and scraped palms.
“You’re drenched.”
“Uh…yeah.”
“Not in the way I like my women to be.”
She wrinkled her little nose, then burst out laughing, unable to feign disapproval.Yeah. I might be in love with this girl.
Jesus H. Christ, where the hell did that come from?
Hands stiffly held off of her body, she shook them off. Splatters of water landed back on the bank by the steady creek I assumed she failed to cross successfully. Her pants and sweatshirt were both soaked through, and to my immense trepidation, so were the sleeping bags.Welp. Things just got interesting.
She seemed to have the same realization, grimacing. “Oh god, I’m so sorry.” I was shaking my head, trying to bite back my mirth at the sight of her mud-splattered clothing, when she kept going. “I didn’t mean to, I just slipped, but the bags—”
“Will dry, Skittles. Take a breath.”
Still shaking the water out of her sleeves, she made her way towards me, big brown eyes heavy with shame. “I swear it was an accident.I’m so sorry. Here you thought of everything, and I went and—”
The moment she was within arms’ reach, I snagged her around the back of the neck, bringing her face to mine and shutting her up with a kiss that quickly sent blood racing straight to my dick. Her icy hands slipping beneath my shirt acted like an accelerant on the inferno of my feral fucking need for her. But first… “It was an accident. We’ll figure it out.”
“I swear I’m so—”
Crushing her lips with mine, I shook my head. Jesus, she was being so damn hard on herself. “So help me, if you don’t stop apologizing for being fucking human, I might lose it. Did you intentionally dunk our supplies?” When she blinked up at me, shaking her head, I added, “Then you did nothing wrong, baby.”
Eyes softening, she smiled gently, a relieved little breath escaping from her.
“What?” I questioned, sensing something unsaid.
“I like it when you call me that.”
By the time we reached camp, she was shivering, her teeth chattering together. Still, she beamed at the view and then ogled the tent, disbelief in her voice as she demanded, “In the time it took me to piddle and fall in a puddle, you set up camp?!”
