Page 103 of Nerdplay
“Because I don’t want this night to end.”
Her directness sucks the oxygen from my lungs. Hell yes, I want to be in her bed, but sleep is the last thing on my mind.
“Are you sure?”
“We’re both consenting adults. I don’t see why not.” She wades over to the kayak. “But first I’d better put on my clothes. The last thing I need is to give the campers a free show.”
“It’s worth the price of admission,” I tell her.
* * *
Cricket showers first. I spend those five minutes pacing the cabin floor and reconsidering whether this is a good idea. I registered for camp under false pretenses. I snooped through her belongings to find evidence to use against her.
Nothing has to happen, I tell myself. We already proved that two people can share the same bed without having it turn sexual.
Of course, that was before the naked kissing.
She emerges from the bathroom in shorts and a T-shirt and with her wet hair wrapped in a towel. “Your turn. Hopefully I didn’t use all the hot water.”
I kind of hope she did. A cold shower will snap me out of this.
I enter the bathroom and immediately spot two frilly baskets filled with tiny bottles and other paraphernalia that weren’t here before. “Where did all this stuff come from?”
Cricket pokes her head in. “Oh, those are from Angela. She wants me to have more of a self-care routine.”
I point to the fluffy white slippers on the floor. “Does that involve owning your own spa?”
“You know Angela. Go big or go home.” She motions to the mouthwash. “You might want to gargle that too. No clue what lurks in the lake water.”
“Good point.”
After I shower, I decide to have a little fun with Angela’s products. I apply a green face mask that smells like cucumbers, teeth whitener, and slip on the fluffy white robe and slippers. The piece de resistance is the satin pink eye mask I wear like a headband. Anything to hear the sound of her bawdy laughter again.
Cricket is seated cross-legged on the bed when I emerge, and I’m rewarded with a sound so raw and throaty, it lingers in the air like a punchline to a dirty joke. “I’m glad to see someone taking advantage of my gifts.”
“I’ll be honest. I’m not a fan of the chemical taste of the teeth whitener.”
“There’s no rule that says you have to use every product all at once.”
I nod. “You know what? In the right light my teeth look white enough.” I spin back to the bathroom where I peel off the strips and rinse my mouth.
Cricket’s smile remains firmly intact when I reenter the room. “If the partners at your law firm could see you now.”
“Maybe they can.” I glance around the cabin. “Is this a setup to blackmail me?”
“That’s what the recording of ‘Let It Go’ is for. You have only yourself to blame for this.”
“Fair enough. I accept full responsibility.” I settle beside her on the bed and snap down my eye mask.
“Why are you smiling?” she asks. “Picturing the smooth, wrinkle-free skin you’ll be enjoying after that mask washes off?”
“I’m having fun, which if you recall, is something you’ve encouraged me to do from the start.”
“If I’d realized your idea of fun was a cucumber mask and fluffy slippers, I could’ve hooked you up days ago.”
“Admit it. You had fun tonight too.” She doesn’t respond. “It’s suddenly very quiet in here.” I dare to lift the eye mask and find her observing me with a tense expression. “What?”
“You don’t seem like a guy in the mood for sex.”
