Page 42 of Reckless

“Mornin’.” His voice is like gravel. One eye squinting open to look at me. “What time is it?”

“Almost time for the sunrise. Do you want coffee?”

Jude moves up onto one elbow and runs a hand through his hair. He glances down at himself and it’s obvious he sees what I’m seeing.

“Coffee sounds good,” he yawns, sitting up and tugging the sheet a little higher. I doubt it’s because he is self-conscious, he’s doing it because he doesn’t want to embarrass me.

I leave the lights off and turn back to the coffee maker. I shut my eyes when I hear the sounds of him moving around in the sheets and then dressing. He walks up close behind me, the heat of his body makes my back straighten, and he leans in closer to my ear.

“Do I have time to shower?”

“Uh, yeah. If you’re quick.” I look over my shoulder and smirk. Getting my wits about me. My innuendo is clear.

Jude gives me a boyish grin, then disappears into the bedroom. He doesn’t shut the door. Is it an invitation? Shaking my head, I snap on the lights so I can see what I’m doing, and finish the coffee, pouring it into two thermos cups.

While I wait for him to finish, not imagining what is going on there at all, I slip into my boots and pull on my hat. When I pull open the RV door, the horizon is still dark. We’re parked on ‘the wall’ overlooking the Badlands. It’s still difficult to see the full-scale beauty of the place yet, but it will be awesome.

I grab a headlamp torch and, after setting it on over my hat, I pick up the two fold-out chairs and blankets and head out of the RV. There are people moving about further up the wall, but everyone gets on with their own thing.

There are tents, but they’re all quiet. Fortunately, it’s not too windy right now, so they’ve had a decent night. I love nature and travelling in the RV, but I’ve never been big on sleeping in tents. That’s a step too far for me.

Jude appears after I’ve set up the chairs with a blanket each thrown over. He walks over and I hand him a thermos. He uncaps it as he walks further to the edge of the wall. It’s not technically a wall, that is just what it's called. We’re on flat land and there is a drop off where the ground ends.

I almost call out to him in case he hasn’t seen the ledge in the dark, but Jude stops before he can fall over the edge. It isn’t a long drop, but it would hurt if he fell.

I watch him sip his coffee and look out over the massive Badlands view. The horizon is lightening. I’d love to know what he is thinking right now.

He looks back and indicates for me to join him. I head over and he squints at the lamp. I shut it off and pull it over my hat.

“You’re so prepared,” he grins, then looks back at the view. “This is amazing. I can’t believe everything I’ve seen over the last few days. It’s like I’ve walked into a different universe.”

“Wait till the sun comes up.”

We head back to the chairs. All along the wall, people set up to watch the sunrise. It’s peaceful, with a few murmurings of others chatting, reaching our little area of the wall. I’m comfortable with us not talking, just having him beside me. We need to address the kiss rather than skirting or flirting around it.

“Wow,” Jude breaks me from my thoughts as the first rays of sunlight rise through the Badlands, lighting up the peaks and dips of the mountainous valley.

“Fuck,” he whispers as we watch the sun get higher. “This is out of this world. It’s like we’re on another planet.” He’s still talking in a low voice, as if he doesn’t want to break the magic of the place.

I find myself watching him instead of the sun. I’ve seen it before and it's no mean feat keeping my eyes away from the view. But Jude draws me like no other man ever has.

He catches me looking, but there is no smirk or wink. It’s like he is drinking me in, memorizing everything about me. I don’t wilt under the gaze. I stare back.

I’m in trouble here.

Our look is interrupted when someone whoops into the valley as loud as they can. Jude laughs as other people groan and some cheer along.

People move about once the sun is up. I offer to make breakfast rolls, then suggest we take a hike into the valley, which he’s enthusiastic about. He tells me to take a shower while he cooks breakfast. I don’t turn down that offer.

A couple of hours later, we’ve reached a fairly level area of the valley and stop to take a water break. Jude perches up on a higher rock while I settle closer to the ground. I ditched my jacket a while ago because it is so hot. Jude is carrying the backpack with all the supplies and sets it at his feet as he looks around.

“You used to do this kind of thing a lot? As a kid?” he asks.

“Yeah, my parents are wanderers, I guess.”

“I thought you said they were both doctors?”

“They are. Mom is a GP and dad is a research scientist. They had me and my sister when they were older. Dad is mostly retired now, and mom only has a three-day clinic. But they’ve always had the ethos that family comes first. Throughout the summer break from school, they wanted us to travel, rather than sitting around eating junk food and watching rubbish on TV,” I laugh a little.

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