I kick off my shoes and climb in after him. The air mattress shifts beneath my weight as I try to get into the sleeping bag.
“The fact that you’re worried about making me uncomfortable makes me feel completely safe with you.” I pull the sleeping bag up to my chin, and Miles sighs and rolls around until he’s under the cover with me.
Reaching for the zipper on the doorway, I pull it closed, sealing us into the tiny tent.
I yelp when I feel his arm around my waist, pulling me toward him.
“What are you doing?” I demand, forgetting to whisper. Hopefully, I don’t wake up the sleeping baby a couple of tents away.
Miles is hovering directly above me and still moving. “I’m trying to sleep by the door.”
We’re a tangle of limbs and a flurry of, “Ouch,” as we switch places.
“Why do you have to be by the door?” I ask as we finally untangle, and I flop back against his pillow.
“This way, I can scare the bears away.” He chuckles.
“I think you’re having way too much fun teasing me.” I sigh and relax into the mattress…and my body rolls to the middle of the bed, bumping against Miles.
Every time I move, I end up rolling right back into him, my face smashing into his shoulder.
“I’m sorry,” I mumble and try to scoot away.
“At this point, you might as well not try to fight it,” he whispers quietly.
“Does it bother you, having someone pressed up next to you?”
“You don’t bother me.”
And so, we lie there in silence, arms pressed against each other. The heat radiating from him helps to warm the entire tent.
Sleep is an elusive beast while I listen to my heart pound.
“Tell me a secret,” I whisper.
Miles sighs and reaches his outside arm up to tuck his hand behind his head. “I’d like to get out of Kappa Holdings and work more full-time with my dad and his business.”
I lean on an elbow. “Really?”
“Yeah, kind of embarrassing to be a quitter.”
“There are seasons of life that come and go. Maybe your Kappa Holdings season is coming to a close.”
He turns and looks at me. “I haven’t said anything to Kingston.”
“Are you worried he’ll be mad?” I really don’t know my sister’s boyfriend very well.
“I don’t want to leave him in a tough spot. Believe it or not, I actually do some work there.” He laughs dryly. “And he’d need someone willing to buy in and take ownership. I can’t just leave him hanging.”
“If you had a solution, would you feel like you could leave?” I ask.
“In a heartbeat.” He sighs. “Dang, it feels good to say it. You’re the first person I’ve talked about this with.”
Something warm flows through my chest, like I’ve been entrusted with the secret of a lifetime, and I need to handle it with care. “Well, I’m honored. And I have your solution.”
“I suck it up and keep showing up to work?”
I giggle. “No.”
