Blades of grass whisper between us. The water gurgles in the background, but all I can hear is the in and out of his breath. Of mine. Not quite in sync, but not entirely offbeat either.
Our eyes meet.
“What would happen? I’d be here with you, Cat.” A boyish smile washes over Connor’s masculine face.
My insides glow like I’m made of sunshine as we remain here a while longer, in the middle of nowhere and gazing at the clouds shifting across the blue sky. At least for this moment, I relax. My heart slows. Everything feels just right.
On our wayto the next checkpoint, our conversation flows easily, as though the rapids opened a floodgate.
“Favorite ice cream?” he asks.
“Chocolate. You?”
“Mint chip.”
“Favorite song?”
“Anything classic rock. Your turn.”
“Swan Lake. The orchestral version.”
The list goes on.
“We’re so different,” I say when we still don’t find something we share in common: books to movies, country to city, and mountains to the ocean.
“We’re practically the opposite.”
“Football and ballet, for instance.”
“What if we never find something that we both agree on?” he asks with a laugh.
We stop for water and he lets me take a sip first.
“I think we’ve mistakenly thought we’re at war with ourselves, life, and each other.” I shift my weight as though considering something. “My instinct is to fight you. But I wonder if we might make this easier if we lay down arms and consider ourselves allies.” I hold his gaze. “It’s a good, reasonable option while we’re alone out here.”
“Haven’t we already done that? You’re my fiancée.” The corners of Connor’s lips lift.
“I mean officially. A peace treaty of sorts. I want to see you succeed and pass this class and not lose your spot on the team.”
“Oh, right. That’s what we’re doing.” His gaze drops.
“That came out wrong, but I want to be sure that this is real and not a result of us relying on each other in the wilderness. Yes, I’m your coach. Though this wasn’t what I was expecting.”
“What were you expecting?” he asks.
“Press events, fancy dinners, and meetings where you were acting like a baboon and I had to reinforce positive behavior.”
Amusement lights up his eyes. “I think of myself more as a gorilla.”
“I thought you were a wolf.”
“Same thing.”
“Actually, Connor, you’re a man.”
On cue, he steps closer.
“A big, burly, handsome, capable man,” I add.
