Page 11 of Married in Misty Mountain

“No, not a snake bite,” Shenna groans, holding her hand to her chest and wincing in pain. “The stupid stakes got all bent, and I hammered my thumb!”

Shenna kicks at the stakes on the ground, which have been bent all to shit. But I don’t pay them any mind. Instead, I take her hand. “Let me see.”

“No!”

“Shenna.” In my attempt to not raise my voice, it goes low and commanding, almost parental sounding, and I regret that. Shenna’s eyes flash, and her cheeks turn pink as I wrangle her hand away from her chest. “Let me look at it.”

She gives me a petulant glare, but I do my best to ignore it.

“You smashed that thumb up pretty good.”

“It’s fine,” she says through gritted teeth.

“You gotta cut the attitude and accept the fact that you don’t know what you’re doing out here.”

She places her free hand on her hip. “Well, you’re the one who demanded that I help you. I tried to tell Jack that I have no business camping, but he seemed to think I’d be fine.”

“You will be fine.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because you’re with me and I’m very trustworthy.”

“People who are trustworthy don’t announce they are trustworthy,” she snarks.

It’s getting tough to hide how much she amuses me. “Don’t be a wise ass.”

I continue to hold her hand in mine, gently caressing the back of it, and stare deeply into her blue contact lenses. She glances away and clears her throat.

The couple, Lisa and Dave, can be heard emerging from the woods. Shenna snatches her hand from mine and takes a step back.

“Your tent stakes are ruined. You can’t sleep in that tent. You’ll have to share mine.”

She looks outraged as the color pink darkens her cheeks, ears, and neck. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, get your sleeping bag and pillow, and I’ll make room for you in my tent.”

Instead of listening to me, she heads to the campfire and sits beside Lisa.

“Do you think it would be okay if your husband shared a tent with Hurley and you and I shared the other tent? I seem to have something wrong with my sleeping arrangements.”

I already know the answer.

The way Lisa and Dave are snuggling closely together by the fire, I know there’s no way they are going to separate. Not on a mini pre-honeymoon.

“That’s not exactly what we had in mind,” Dave says.

“No,” Lisa says flatly.

Shenna gets up and starts to unpack her backpack.

“What are you doing?” I ask her.

When she shoots me a look, her energy crackles around her like an electrical storm. She really can’t stand the idea of sharing a tent with me.

“Getting my bedroll out. I’ll sleep by the fire.”

“No way.”

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