The boys return home with their men, so it’s just me, Honey, and Harper on the ride home. Plus, the Christmas tree tied to the roof of my car. A year ago, it would’ve sent me into a nosedive of a conniption, but now, not so much. Mostly because Harper had smiled, a real, true smile, just at the very idea of buying a real tree. I can’t deny him a single thing that brings him that amount of happiness.
It takes both of us to get the tree into the house. Harper helpfully disappears into his garage to find a tree stand and an old string of lights. I kiss him softly in thanks when he returns with both items in his hand. We wrangle the tree into the stand, then messily wrap the lights around the fluffy branches. Harper stands back to inspect, a thoughtful hand on his chin, head tilting this way and that.
“It looks perfect,” Harper says sweetly, face lit up by the multicolored lights.
Throwing my arm over his shoulder, I bring him tight against me. Placing my mouth to his ear, I whisper, “Wanna explore that breeding kink you have?”
Harper’s groan is so loud that I think I’ll hear it for days.
Campingsounded fun in my brain. Now? I am not so sure. Renting an RV also sounded like a great idea until I had to drive it. Honestly, it’s like driving a goddamn tank. The brakes squeak loudly when I slide into park in Harper’s circular driveway.
Harper steps out onto his front porch in a daze, hand shading his eyes to see the RV in the bright light of dawn. Wearing jeans and one of my faded hoodies I left at his house, I consider just ushering him back inside to fuck him in his own bed all weekend. But I have plans, and I want to see this through, so I will push on.
“What the fuck is this?” Harper says loudly, eyes scarily wide.
I hold my arms out with what I hope is an excited face. “We’re going camping!”
Harper scowls. “Not safe.”
“It is! We’re only going to be thirty minutes away from a hospital! And my phone has an amazing signal; it would work in a remote jungle. Beau and Colby are on alert all weekend, so if I call, they’ll come running to help us. I swear, Harper, it’s safe.”
Harper’s fingers twitch restlessly at his side; his eyes glazed over as he stares blankly at the RV. Slowly, a small smile flickers at the edges of his lips.
“I’m not sure sleeping in that counts as camping, Jack.”
Oh. Oh, that’s nice. Stay chill, Jackson. I gesture towards the back of the RV with a grin. “I also have a tent for when you’re feeling frisky.”
Harper sighs dramatically, although I can tell he’s excited by the gleam in his emerald eyes. He disappears into the house only to return with two bags slung over his shoulders. I hurry up the stairs to take the bags from him, not wanting him to overdo himself so early on in the trip.
Harper doesn’t follow me into the RV, though; instead, he stands just outside, shuffling foot to foot as if he’s unsure.
“Punk?”
“Okay, so.” Harper pauses and takes a deep breath. “I did something for you for Christmas, but it’s a little out of my comfort zone, so just…”
He huffs and gives up on speaking, instead deciding to grab my hand and tug me around to the back of the house. Hanging against the side of the house is a basketball hoop and my heart once again does this funny little dip and dive in my chest. Harper steps away for a moment only to return with a basketball cupped between his palms.
“I thought maybe sometimes you can come over, and we can play together,” Harper says softly, almost as if embarrassed. “I’m so naturally good at it, but maybe you can teach me a few things? We can… we can make it a weekly thing, maybe?”
I grab Harper around the neck and tug him to me to kiss all the air from his lungs. He drops the ball between us with a grunt, instead tangling his fingers at the nape of my neck. We kiss and kiss andkissuntil it feels like maybe we could become one person if we wished. When I pull away, my lips tingle with the memory of his mouth against mine.
“Harper… I…”
Harper shakes his head roughly. “Just say thank you.”
“Thank you,” I say roughly, throat thick and tight with want.
Harper nods and stalks back toward the RV. I stand still for a moment, watching every bit of my future disappear. And I bite back a smile when Harper turns around with wide eyes and points toward the RV in clear demand for us to get going.
Honey makes herself at home on the sofa that lines the right side of the RV. I start it up and close the doors, grinning like a besotted fool when Harper takes the seat beside me up front. Always the little things with Harper. The park I’m taking us to is only an hour north of Clay Springs. Plus, I went a little wild and reservedallthe spots available for this weekend to guarantee us total privacy.
The RV rumbles down the small one-way road that enters into the park. A tired-looking forest ranger stands at the guard house with an exhausted smile on his face.
“I assume you’re Jackson Harris?” the guard calls out.
I give him a salute. “Yes, sir. Will you be up here all night?”
The guard shakes his head. “Nope, at night, I stay in the ranger lodging. But you’ve reserved the entire park, which we’ve never seen before, by the way, so no one will come bothering you. I’ll drop the gates behind you so no one can get in.”
