Page 3 of Text You Up

I reached out for the phone and my hand brushed against hers. “You have a boyfriend, Fionna? What do you do out here besides work?”

“No boyfriend and not much to do except hike.” She made a gesture to the door. “Which one of those city girls is trying to be your girlfriend?”

I grinned and held her gaze. I really liked this woman. She was observant. And honest. “Well, depends what day and night it is. Yesterday, I could have sworn it was Maddie, but Kelly had one too many and was flirting with me none stop. I thought she was into Rob, so I was shocked. How could you tell they were city girls?”

Fionna shrugged. “They’re both wearing three-inch-high heels in the middle of the Rocky Mountains. While camping. Only people who would do that are city people.”

“Very observant. Why don’t you have a boyfriend?”

“No one is interested in me, I guess.”

“I am.”

“But you don’t live here.”

“I’m here now.”

Fionna smiled. “This is true…. but.”

“Why are you looking for an excuse? Just say, yes Dagger, you’re here and I’m getting off work, I would love to hang out with you tonight?”

“I don’t feel comfortable going back to your site with your friends. Would you wanna come to my apartment?”

Hell, yes, I did. With a body and face like Fionna’s I would be foolish to turn that invite down…but fuck. It was my night to cook, and we all agreed on keeping our word. “Shit. I can’t. I’m the cook tonight and we have strict rules at camp that we can’t bail. Here. Put your number in my phone. I’ll text you after dinner. If luck is with me tonight, you’ll be available.”

I handed her my phone even though she looked like she might argue. She took it and entered her number in. “I hope it works out. But in case it doesn’t, I’ll still be waiting for that picture you promised.”

Laughter escaped from my throat. “You don’t think I’ll do it, do you?”

“Not sure. You seem cocky enough. You might.”

“So now you think I’m cocky?”

“I think you’re great looking and obviously other women think so too, and I think you know it. It’s ok to be cocky for a good reason.”

I smiled. I liked this girl. “Well, I better get back. But how ‘bout you hug me first? Think that would be okay, Fionna?”

She hesitated. “I don’t generally date clients.”

“Is that what we’re doing? Dating?” A little quick but I could be talked into it.

“No. Not what I meant. I meant that I don’t usually interact with guests beyond check in and check out.”

“But for me you would make an exception.” I grinned, waving my phone in front of her face. “Under the condition that I send you a picture.”

Three

Fionna

I was a bundle of nerves for the rest of the evening. Would Dagger really text me like he said he would? Would he really want to leave his friends and hang out with me when it was easier to stay at his campsite and forget meeting me ever happened? He’d be gone in the morning.

I should have taken him up on his offer to go back to his campsite. But that would have been weird.

My phone’s ringtone, Bad Habits, blazed in the quiet of my apartment, practically giving me a heart attack. My purse landed with a thunk on my dining room table, and I retrieved my phone from my back pocket.

Dagger: I plan to be done here in forty minutes. Also, I snuck into the RV and took this for you. Enjoy…. At least until you get to see the real thing.

I waited for the picture to come through. What was with this slow ass 5G? Where was the damn picture? My heartbeat was bordering on an anxiety attack when my phone gave a slight vibration.

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