I’m tempted to take it all back: forget the stars, and the sky, and everyone who might possibly care.
It’ll be a miracle if I last an hour without giving in.
Maybe that wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe I’m overthinking all of this, maybe it would actually begoodfor me—it’s been so long since I’ve had a connection of any sort out here, let alone one likethis, that I forgot what it felt like for my cracked heart to be anything but still as stone.
Sadie makes me feelalive.
“Give me ten minutes,” she says, her breath hot on my skin. “I’ll meet you there.”
22SADIE
I stumble in near-darkness, a pair of hot cocoas in hand, until I find Thorn and our sleeping bags.
Even though there’s plenty of room to spread out, we’re all still relatively close together, six or eight feet between the various clusters of friend groups. Thorn’s at the far end, integrated enough that it won’t be too obvious that the two of us are attempting to carve out some alone time.
He takes one of the cups as I sit down beside him.
“You weren’t kidding about the view,” I say.
He grins. “Just wait till the fire’s all the way out. It’ll blow your mind.”
I don’t know how it can get any better than this, honestly: the sky is bursting with light, pinpricks of white splashed all over the dark, velvety canvas. The twin cliffs cut into the horizon, their white rock faces dim in the shadow of night. We’re not terribly close to the waterfall, or the creek that carves into the basin just below it, but its soundtrack is a constant crashing that makes this place feel alive, magical.
I sip my hot cocoa, taking in two gooey marshmallows in the process.
“So,” I say a moment later. “When was the first time you discovered this place?”
Thorn squints, like he’s trying to see far back into the past.
“First time Irememberwas when I was around eight years old,” he says. “Hiked the Mackenzie Lake Loop with my dad one time, probably came back here every couple of months after that. He always tells people I’ve been hiking since I was a baby, though—he and my mom used to come on weekend trips, and they’d take turns wearing me in one of those little carriers.”
“Does your mom still hike?”
“Hell if I know,” he says, then takes a long pull on his hot cocoa.
“Did she break his heart?” I ask, tentatively stepping through what Ithinkis an open door. “Or was it the other way around?”
He gives a little half laugh. “Dad couldn’t break a heart if he tried.” As quickly as his mood darkened at the mention of his mom, it shifts lighter now—the smallest hint of a smile plays at his lips. “Hedidtry to break a heart one time, actually. This woman he dated while I was in college, his first relationship after the divorce, it just wasn’t working out. She still came for Thanksgiving that year because she didn’t want Dad to have to prepare a feast for Matteo and me all on his own.”
“Your dad sounds like a nice guy,” I say.
“Yeah,” he says. “He really is.”
I hug my knees tight to my chest. At first, the hot cocoa was like a little furnace, warming me from the inside—it was nice while it lasted. Now that it’s gone, the chill in the air is hard to ignore.
“Cold?” Thorn asks, taking immediate notice of the goosebumps all over my arms and legs.
He pulls a thin flannel blanket from his pack and wraps it around my shoulders, tucking me in close to him in the process. The blanket helps, but the heat radiating from his body is even better. I breathe in the smell of him, outdoorsy with a hint of spice.
“Want to know a secret?” he says quietly, his lips brushing against my temple. “There’s a little cave behind the waterfall that isn’t part of the tour, just big enough where you can sit and watch the sunrise. The light looks incredible from behind the water…I can show you tomorrow, if you want?”
The idea of going on my own little private excursion with Thorn is too tempting to resist.
“Yeah?” I reply. “Won’t the others feel like they missed out, though?”
“Not if they don’t know what they’re missing.” He pulls back just enough, and I turn so we’re face-to-face. “And besides, it’s not like it’s off-limits—it’s just not advertised. They can go on their own if they want.”
I hear his words, but they hardly register. We’re so close right now, all it would take is the slightest tilt of my head—or his—for us to kiss.
