Page 84 of Never Quiet

“You’re leaving first thing in the morning…”

“On purpose. I don’t want it to be weird.” She hugged him tight and murmured at his ear, “I love you. Be safe in Washington and sweep that woman off her feet the way only you possibly could. Text me when you can.”

Tightening his arms, he said, “I miss you already. I love you.”

Then she walked out, crossed the yard to the big barn, and swung the storage door wide open. Strapping her gear to her ATV, she took the trail just beyond their cut fields that meandered through the woods and wound up to the top of the ridge. A forty-foot wall of rock marked the division between her dad’s land and their neighbor on the other side.

It was her favorite place as she got older.

Climbing off at the top, she quickly set up her pop-up tent, spread out her mat and sleeping bag, and dropped her gear on the far side. She set things up with shaking hands and then unzipped the panels at the top so she could see the stars.

Gathering wood, she lit a fire as night descended. She knew it was visible from the house. With all the men and women protecting her, being subtle didn’t matter.

Sitting cross-legged on a rock that jutted over the forest below, she stared at her little town a couple of miles away, sparkling against the coming night. It was a beautiful place to live and most of the people were great. It would be a long time before she returned and it could never truly be her home again.

Half an hour later, she heard an ATV in the distance. Smiling to herself, she stayed where she was.

Waiting for him.

She hadn’t gone out of her way to be seductive. Jeans, a t-shirt, and trail runners were the exterior and some pretty lingerie underneath. Her hair was loosely braided down her back but she didn’t wear makeup or perfume. Other than shaving her legs and brushing her teeth, she ignored the rest.

It was important that this time, her first time, be as the woman she was on the inside. The tomboy, the science nerd, the girl who’d been in love with Erick Harding for years.

The ATV pulled into the small clearing at the top of the ridge and shut off. She looked over her shoulder as Erick got off and walked over to her.

“Amanda.”

“Erick.” She patted the space on the rock beside her and he lowered with a smile. “You bring some gear?”

“A sleeping bag and some snacks. I wasn’t…sure you wanted company so I’ll crash by the fire if you let me stay.”

Without looking at him, she smiled. “No need to sleep outside. That kind of defeats the purpose, doesn’t it?”

He went still and quiet.

Turning her body, she stared into his eyes and said, “The first time I met you, I wondered how anyone could have eyes like yours in real life. On the water, they’re so blue. Here, they’re a brilliant green. I used to wish I had at least one artistic bone in my body so I could draw them.” She laughed. “I had to settle for photos because even my stick figures look like they’ve been in a ten-car pileup.”

He laughed but it was stilted, nervous.

“You were in the midst of puberty when we met. Tall and skinny, all knees and elbows, your voice cracking all the time.” She shrugged. “I didn’t notice any of that. I was just fascinated to talk to someone like me.”

His voice was low. “I’d never met anyone with my brain or interests either.” The corner of his mouth lifted. “Especially not a girl.”

It made her laugh. “I like being smart. Beating all the boys at science fairs was kind of my thing.” She grinned. “Glad you weren’t competing because that could have gotten awkward.”

“I’d have taken my ass-kicking like a gentleman.”

“Uh, no. You’d have wrecked my stats.”

She pulled her legs up and wrapped her arms around them. Resting her cheek on her knee, she took a minute to just look at him. Erick’s hair was dark but there were lighter strands, bleached by the sun and saltwater. The lashes surrounding his unusual eyes were stupidly long.

The shape of his face might have been too angular on another person but it fit him just right – high cheekbones, strong brow, broad mouth. He’d always been lean and strong from the work he did on the water with his siblings.

As he gained a bit more muscle mass and height, the shape of his body under his clothes became the source of many daydreams.

She’d loved him from the start.

She loved him still.

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