Marston took a breath and settled himself.
“Thanks,” he said, meaning it. “I’m not used to compliments.” He especially wasn’t used to compliments from young men who’d probably had a harder time of it than Marston ever did, even with his own shitty background.
“Well, maybe get used to it,” said Kell, flip and brash and young and sweet, all at once, taking Marston’s breath away.
“Okay.” Marston ducked his head, feeling his face grow hot. He was older than Kell but, in that moment, far less experienced, a new feeling, fresh and soft, a rose petal to the skin.
They played backgammon for a time, had a second round of hot cocoa, courtesy of Royce, and Marston smiled more than he could remember, using muscles he didn’t know he had. When things shut down around ten o’clock or so, Marston was rattling on the inside with sugar and chocolate, and the buoyed up feeling, probably very much misplaced, that even if he couldn’t take his growing feelings for Kell any further than a truly good friendship, it might be well worth it, even for that.
Chapter22
Kell
In spite of the misty rain the night before, the day dawned hot, the smell of sun-warmed canvas filling Kell’s lungs as he hopped out of bed, bare feet curling on the cool wooden floor. A breeze came through the tent flap that Wayne had left open, the fly screen half-zipped shut. Beyond, the woods were silent, except for the faint bird call and the rasp of tree trunks expanding in the heat.
Kell hustled to get ready, then went to the mess tent for breakfast, head on a swivel, looking for Marston.
Surely what he had felt between them the night before wasn’t a fluke or his imagination. Surely he could bring another smile to Marston’s face, and enjoy the spark in his eyes, and the sudden shyness, so adorable on such a strong, powerful guy. Surely good things would come from this.
The line for the buffet was forming, so Kell got into it, not wanting to draw attention to how he felt by waiting on the sidelines until Marston showed up. He ignored Duane bumping into him, kept his eyes focused on the warming tray full of crispy bacon, salty in the warm air, when, yes, there was a tap to his shoulder, a shuffle of bodies to make room for whoever had just shown up.
Kell raised his gaze, taking in the sight of Marston, who, with his slightly damp hair, curling dark gold around his ears, must have gotten up early to shave and shower. Bits of his snap-button shirt stuck to his damp skin, as though he’d not taken enough time to dry off properly. In a hurry for breakfast, or so he could be with Kell?
Not having enough gumption to ask outright, because maybe he was imagining this whole thing, Kell ducked his head to hide his smile, inched forward when the line moved, and made room for Marston at his side.
“I could eat a bear this morning,” said Marston, leaning close to murmur into Kell’s ear. “Look, they’ve got buckwheat pancakes.”
Together, they got their breakfasts and sat across from each other. Though others sat around them and they weren’t completely alone, Marston had a smile or two for Kell and a quiet comment about setting ground flags where the signs would eventually go.
“It’ll involve a bit of hiking in the heat,” said Marston. “But maybe we can go swimming in the lake after.”
“Swimming?” asked Gordy. “I’d love to go swimming. When? After dinner? Or before, so we don’t get a cramp and drown.”
Marston scowled at his plate as though wishing he’d not made the suggestion out loud, and Kell knew exactly how he felt. For a long, heart-soaring second, Kell had visions of the two of them diving into blue water and coming up gasping for air at the same time, the way they did in movies.
That soon evaporated as the chatter rose about everybody going swimming when work was done for the day.
“It’s going to be hot today,” Royce said.
“There’s an old dock at the far end of the lake,” Gabe added.
And while Marston could agree with them, now, instead of a romantic interlude for two, it was going to be a circus.
In response to this, Marston gave Kell a slight shake of his head as if to say,Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out.
Kell couldn’t wait to call Bede and tell him about it, about the flutter in his belly, and the soaring joy that gave him hope.
It’d felt so long since things had seemed normal, it was almost like being back in high school and having a crush on his fellow track-and-field teammate, with the world opening up with so much possibility it almost made him giddy.
He was giddy now as he finished his breakfast, bussed his tray, and went to the edge of the platform to bend and make sure his boots were tied firmly.
“You’re going to need your hat and sunscreen today,” said Marston, coming up beside him. “I’ll grab some waters and snacks, maybe even an insulated canteen, and meet you at the pavilion. We’ll go over the map and plot our course.”
“Okay.” Kell straightened up, wiping his suddenly damp palms on his thighs.
Marston was tall, and the sunlight caught the curve of his eyes, making the blue and gold colors sparkle. His hair was drying, a wisp stuck to his cheek. Kell reached up and touched it free, a mere stroke that seemed to make Marston shiver all over.
Marston half turned his head away as if he wasn’t sure whether or not he wanted to tell Kell to stop. With a stroke of his thumb to his bottom lip, Marston nodded, almost to himself, and stepped off the wooden platform of the mess tent.
