“Okay like this?” he murmurs.
I smile to myself, eyes wide open in the darkness.
“Yeah,” I say, barely more than a breath.
I’m aware of every inch of him, truly not sure how I’ll make it through this situation without taking it further—
But we just stay like this, together, and it’s perfectly enough.
I count a thousand raindrops before I finally fall asleep.
For once, none of my dreams live up to reality.
DAY FIVE
Mackenzie Lake to Swallowtail Pass to Thimbleberry Grove
The view from Swallowtail Pass is magnificent: each turn of the switchback takes you higher into the heavens—be sure to stop at the scenic overlook once you get to the top. In addition to Helen Theresa Peak in the southwest, the overlook gives a stunning glimpse of the Three Daughters off to the east. Hikers of all levels should take precautions on these narrow trails, as they are rockier and steeper than the terrain covered previously along the Mackenzie Lake Loop.
—Henry Herrington,Backpacking the Sierras: A Beginner’s Handbook(Fourth Edition)
17THORN
We wake up face-to-face, Sadie’s knee hiked over my hip—and my hand holding her leg there, right on top of the place where her silk shorts end and her soft skin begins. She must have turned over sometime in the middle of the night while we were asleep.
I can’t believe I slept at all. Today is going to be hell.
Her eyes flutter open.
“Hey,” she says sleepily.
I swallow. “Hey.”
Her eyes grow wide when she realizes how tangled we are—but she doesn’t move, not even a little.
I grin, tightening my grip on her thigh. “Worried I needed a little extra warmth last night?”
“Must’ve been,” she says.
Her voice is raspy with sleep, too, and—sweetmiserable goodness—the things it’s doing to me are impossible to ignore.
Probably for both of us.
Her gaze flickers down to my lips, then back up again. Instinctively,I do the same, which is a mistake, because now all I can think about is what it would feel like to kiss her.
My job, I remind myself.The rules.
Danica would understand why I slept in here, given the circumstances; the rules are black and white, but she’s usually fine with shades of gray if they make sense. She’d give me hell if I’d slept out in that thunderstorm while this tent was an option.
That said, now that I’m here, the boundaries aren’t merely blurred—they’re obliterated. I’m tangled up with a beautiful girl, and it’s been years since I’ve felt anything close to a spark with someone like I do with Sadie.
Maybe Danica would understand this, too. What if I were to push Sadie away for the sake of abiding by the rules only for Danica to tell me I should have gone with my gut? It’s not like I’m a chronic rule-bender. This isn’t the norm for me, not by a long shot.
Sadie’s arm is draped over me, just like her leg. Until now, it’s been loose, relaxed—but I feel her hand curl around the back of my head, her fingers raking up through my hair, a signal that she’d maybe be okay with getting even closer.
It’s still raining outside. I have no idea how early it is…but instinct tells me we have a little time before the others are up.
I make the first move, leaning in, a clear invitation—
