“I promise, I’m okay. I’d rather not get into it here. Can we talk about it another time?” he begs, and although I don’t want to drop the topic, I know I have to.
“Okay,” I say but make a note to ask him about it at a later date. I change the subject and we fall into our usual comfortable banter until we’re both too tired to talk.
When I wake up sometime later, we’re lying together on a picnic blanket in front of the now dwindled fire. At some point I must have become hot because I’ve stripped off my jeans. Could be because someone has placed a blanket over us.Cory. At least, I hope it was Cory because anyone else would be creepy.
I try to lift Logan’s arm off my chest without waking him, but he’s deadweight. When I try a second time, I accidentally elbow him in the chin.
“Shit.” He yells loud enough to wake the camp, and I grimace. “What are you doing?” he mumbles.
“Sorry,” I whisper. “I need to pee, and we should get into the tent.”
He nods and stands up, pulling me to my feet. “Want me to come with you? It’s dark and scary out there.” He tries to whisper, but he’s still half-asleep, so it actually sounds like he’s trying to get someone’s attention across a room.
“No, thanks. I don’t need anyone watching me go. I’m a big girl now.” I smile. He ducks into the tent as I head off into the dark.
This is the one thing I hate about camping—no toilets. I can go without showers and mirrors and kitchens, but having no toilet sucks. I walk deeper and deeper into the trees so that it’s harder for anyone to stumble upon me, and the experience is uneventful, just the way I like it to be.
Chapter Eight
Dylan
Summer’shere.Theoneperson I’ve been trying to forget is sitting right outside my tent, laughing. I’m genuinely shocked to see her here. I really shouldn’t be, but I am. Why the hell hadn’t Nate mentioned she was coming? Probably didn’t think it mattered. It shouldn’t matter, yet it does. I’d become even better at pushing her out of my mind of late. Things with Gemma were going well. It wasn’t love yet, but that didn’t mean we wouldn’t get there. Things were moving forward, and I was happy.Was? Why am I thinking in past tense? I am happy. And yet… Nope, I’m happy.
Do I think maybe it was easier when Summer was out of sight, out of mind? Sure. But until she’d pulled away today, I was having a fun time reminiscing with her.Well, making shit up anyway.
Why did she pull back? Did she think I wouldn’t notice? That question has been driving me mad. I know Gemma was a little quiet. I’m not an idiot, but every time I looked her way, she was smiling. But was that the reason? Or was it because of Logan? Could that be it?
So many things run through my mind at once, but the biggest question is who the fuck is Logan? Yes, we pretended to know each other, but I honestly have no clue. She actually squealed like a schoolgirl at a boy band concert when she saw him. It wasn’t fun to watch.Shit! The real question I should ask is why do I care?
Gemma isn’t at all subtle with what she desires, and I know I played along when she pulled me in here, but my mind isn’t in it. The second we got into the tent her hands began to wander, but because I’m an asshole, I pretended I was too tired and then proceeded to “pass out” asleep, hoping she’d give up.
Luckily, it worked, because I’m not that guy. I can’t sleep with one person and think of another. And unfortunately, I am thinking of another. I need to keep a little distance from Gemma until I sort through my thoughts.
God, I wish Nate had mentioned Summer was coming. Maybe I wouldn’t have come if I’d known.
Or maybe I would have.
We’ll never know.
In the silence, I can hear movement and sounds from outside. Nate and Cory seem to have gone to bed, while Summer and Logan are still up. Without Nate and Cory, they’re quieter, but I can still hear talking. Talking I can handle. I’m not sure how I’d feel about more happening between them, and I’m also not sure why I feel that way, but I can’t seem to stop it.
Were Summer and Logan more than friends? It’d been impossible to miss their flirting, and I’d definitely seen him kissing her neck.Stop thinking about it.
When the whispers finally taper to an end and silence takes over, I check the time. Two a.m. Time to switch off. Now. And…go. Why can’t I switch off?Are they sleeping now? Is silence a good thing? Can I seriously lie here and pretend that I’m sure they’ve fallen asleep, and they are not, in fact, two people who hold a world record in silent lovemaking?
Clearly, I’m going crazy, but it’s too late to rein in my thoughts. I strain my ears and try to listen for any foreign sounds, any hint that they are more than just friends.Get a grip, you pervert.
I look over at the wonderful girl beside me. Gemma really is gorgeous; maybe I should wake her. Hearing her scream my name into the silence could be exactly what I need.
Nope, not happening. I am not that much of an asshole.Even though I’m acting like one right now.I stare at the roof of the tent and try to remember the words to a kids’ nursery rhyme that I once loved. Why? I have no freaking idea, but it can’t hurt, right?
I must have finally fallen asleep because a loud noise startles me awake. I’m disoriented at first, and my eyes bounce around to get my bearings. I’d been dreaming about Dad. Something I do a lot. This one wasn’t anything specific, but fuck, it felt real. A pain grips my chest, like a fist is squeezing my heart, as the guilt of his death plagues me once again. The size of the tent suddenly becomes too small, and I need air. I need to walk off my thoughts before the darkness takes over.
Stepping out of the tent, I immediately notice a flaw in my plan; I can’t see shit. Shaking off the tension, I pull a sweatshirt over my head and move toward the trees. No matter how blind I am, I need to do this.
I’m on my way down to the lake when I hear a rustling behind me. My eyes adjust to the darkness, and I turn in time to see Summer walking toward me. She’s unaware of my presence, allowing me the advantage of watching her. My eyes rake from her shoes to her face. She’s wearing boots that hit the middle of her shin, and her long legs are bare.Bare! Shit!
Oblivious to my existence, she moves closer in nothing but a tank top, cotton panties and a knee-length cardigan that falls loosely off one shoulder.Fuck!