I help up my camera at his request and started snapping photos as Chase changed his pose with each click of the camera. He knew how long to hold a pose, just enough so I could capture the photo. He went from his hand being on his hip, to sitting on a rock off to the side and looking off into the distance. From there it started to become more ridiculous with him lying on the rock with his arm outstretched to him turning over on his stomach with his feet bent, touching his butt.
“I think I got enough.” I lowered the camera, bringing up the finder and scrolling through the photos I had taken, laughing at a few when Chase broke character and was smiling so wide I could see all his teeth.
“Let me see!” He jumped from the rock and ran over to me, his chest brushing against my shoulder as he looked over me and down at the camera. Chase had only ever touched me with his hand and now his chest was all up on me. I held my breath in case he could tell how much I was freaking out. I let out a small breath as he pulled back and then looked out into the clearing again and walked over to it.
It wasn’t until he left my side that I realized I had been smelling him the whole time we had been walking. I leaned my head down to smell my shoulder where Chase had been and the smell of fresh linen and cinnamon filled my nose. I had thought it was the fresh air of the day, but I had been completely wrong. Now I wanted to bottle it up and take it home.
“Want to finish to the top?” I started putting my camera away, knowing this would be one of the main spots we would work during our shoots.
“Yeah.” I watched as Chase stood where he was just a few more minutes before turning around toward me. “Remind me to reimburse you for the ticket to get in today.”
“No worries, I have a pass.” I waved off the offer.
“You do?”
“I’ve had a pass since I moved back to Atlanta from college.”
I led the way this time as we continued up the mountain. It was getting to the steeper incline, so I knew we were only about thirty minutes from the top.
“Do you come often?”
“Every weekend I’m up here climbing this mountain.”
“Wait.”
I turned around to where Chase had stopped at the bottom of a boulder.
“You come up here by yourself?”
“Yeah.” I gave him a look like he was being crazy. Of course I came up here alone. I liked the peace and quiet. It also gave me time to think by myself and just let my mind reset after a long week at work.
“That stops today.” He made his way up to where I stood and stopped in front of me. His chest was so close, I thought it might touch me like it had before. I wanted it to touch me. I caught a whiff of Chase’s scent as he leaned in closer to me. “I don’t like the thought of you coming out here alone.”
“What do you suggest?” My question was barely a whisper as I let out a jagged breath. My chest rose up and down, Chase’s eyes looking down at where we were almost touching and then to my eyes.
“I’ll come with you.”
“Every weekend?”
“You bet. It’ll be you and me from now on.” His hand reached out, taking my chin between his fingers and lifting it up further and holding me to where I couldn’t look away. “Got it?”
“Mhm,” I mumbled and nodded. He released me and took a step away, walking up the mountain to the clearing just below two metal railings that were built to help climbers reach one of the steepest points of the mountain. I looked down at my trembling hands at the interaction we’d just had and latched them onto the bag that was hooked over my back and followed Chase.
He didn’t say anything else to me as we soon reached the top of the mountain and I didn’t offer up any more words either. I was a smiling fool, though, and I was grateful Chase wasn’t looking at me. I reached into my bag as I walked over to the far side of the mountain, taking out my camera and snapping a few photos.
“This is probably my favorite view,” I said to myself, knowing the truth of it. It’s why I loved climbing it, not just to get away, but because of the view. Tourists mostly took the tram up to the top, but there was something about climbing all the way up and putting in the hard work to get to this view that just fueled my soul.
“I couldn’t agree more.”
I felt him come up next to me before I saw him and when I turned to look at him, he wasn’t staring out at the forest and mountain view that had just come in my line of sight.
No.
Instead, he was staring straight at me, his eyes raking over my body and then stopping at my eyes. Holding me there in the moment.
A moment I never wanted to end.
Chase
