Page 54 of The Falcon and the Foe

I took a step closer. So that I could talk to him better.

“Taking a swim?”

“Yeah, I wanted to clear my head. I like coming down here. The water’s peaceful.”

“I didn’t take you for a skinny dipper.”

“You should jump in. It’s nice.”

“That’s okay,” I shot out quickly. I didn’t want to make things more awkward, but only one of us seemed awkward.

“The water’s really refreshing.”

“It seems cold.”

“You get used to it.”

Why did he want to swim naked with me? Perhaps I was the only one reading sexy vibes into the whole situation. Lots of men who went camping probably swam naked together, and it meant nothing.

I didn’t have the mental fortitude to be one of those guys. Not when I could make out the crack of his luscious pale ass in the water.

“I should make sure the kids are okay.” I jabbed my thumb behind me. “They might be trying to start another campfire. Kids do the, uh, darndest things.”

“They’ll be sleeping for a little bit.” He dipped his head back and then smoothed down his hair, chipping away at my resolve. Was he baiting me?

If I got in that water, as tempting as it was, my self-control would evaporate.

“So how’d you sleep?” Russ asked, a scoundrel grin lighting up his face.

Was he finding sadistic pleasure in my discomfort?

I immediately wanted to crawl under one of the several rocks surrounding me. “Fine. Considering the circumstances.” I really didn’t want to ask this next question, but my ingrained conversational courtesy won out. “You?”

“Good. Until I woke up in the middle of the night to you, uh...getting a little handsy.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Russ arched an eyebrow that called bullshit.

I squeezed my eyes shut, silently cursing my subconscious. “I’m sorry about last night. I am...really sorry.”

Russ’s laugh was an olive branch for my nerves.

“I don’t know what the hell happened...I was sleeping! Apparently, sleep-groping is a thing. If I had access to the internet, I’d look it up.”

Russ waved it off. He seemed surprisingly chill. Perhaps it was the wilderness that mellowed him out.

“I heard you snoring as you did it. That’s what I assumed.”

“Sorry. I really, really wish I hadn’t done that.” I sighed internally at my quasi-lie, but it was the best way to avoid more awkwardness.

A flicker of a frown crossed his face for a split second, or maybe I was imagining things. “Don’t worry about it. Two men in tight quarters. Something like that was bound to happen.”

He was giving me an out, and I didn’t want to tempt fate. But a part of me was bummed he seemed so neutral about the incident. Did he enjoy it as much as I did in my dreams?

“So we’re good?” I asked.

“Yeah. Let’s forget it happened. We can laugh about it.”

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