Page 5
“That’s good to know. That’ll stack my chances when I ask you out.”
I turn back to the helmets, finish up disinfecting that last one, and set it on the shelf to give her time to process my words.
I shouldn’t be doing this. Lainey’s a decade or more younger than me, and I’ve just spent most of the summer away from home, camping in the forest. My home’s a cabin in the woods, far enough from the town to be totally secluded, and I didn’t build it with a partner in mind.
But I want to know more about her. I was already obsessed with her voice and made sure to call in more often than strictly necessary when I knew she’d be working. Now that I’ve met her in person, there’s no going back.
I just don’t want to freak her out by demanding too much, too fast.
“I’m free tomorrow,” she says, examining her nails.
They’re painted a sparkly shade of purple, matching her top, and suddenly I want to know what they’d feel like digging into my back.
Did she just—?
“Tomorrow?” My brain struggles to catch up while painting dirty pictures of us tangled in my sheets. “You mean for a hike?”
The moment the words leave my mouth, I realize that’s not what she meant.
She jerks her gaze back to me. “What? No, I’ve never gone on a hike before. Not like the one those people had booked.”
“Really?” I wanted to backtrack and ask her out for dinner, but now I’m intrigued. “Would you like to? It’s not a difficult hike. Two out of five carabiners at best.”
It’s how we rate the hikes in the tourist brochures, something she’s familiar with because of her work.
She casts her gaze around the small storage space. “I don’t have any equipment.”
“If you have a good pair of hiking boots, we can figure out everything else.”
I thought I wanted to spend the next few days at home, relaxing, but the thought of spending a day or two with Lainey is too good to pass up.
I’ve never offered to take a woman hiking on our first date. Honestly, it’s hard to remember when I last had a proper first date. It was definitely before I first heard Lainey’s voice on the phone.
Lainey studies me, lips pursed, then blurts, “You’re not married, are you? Or in a relationship?”
I almost laugh. “No, sweetheart. There’s no one else. I’d like nothing more than to take you somewhere beautiful. Show off my mad wilderness skills to impress you.”
Her shoulders drop a notch, and a smile lights up her face. “Now I’ll expect at least some shirtless wood chopping if not bear wrestling.”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
Chapter
Three
Lainey
Bowen texts me when he’s five minutes from my rental apartment, so I tug on my hiking boots, lace them up tight, and pick up my small duffel bag with everything I had from the list he sent me last night.
I’ll grab the rest at the center before I pick you up. I have a backpack you can borrow.
I’ll have to repack my things before we start hiking, but it shouldn’t take long. It’s a two-day hike with camping on the mountain, but we’ll be traveling light since we’ll be carrying everything on our backs.
To say I’m worried about this part of the plan is an understatement. We’ll need tents, sleeping bags, all our food for two days, and equipment. I’m not sure what that’ll entail, but I’m guessing it won’t be light. The most I’ve ever carried on my back is my school bag, and I don’t think that’s enough of a training to be ready for the mountains.
I lock up and hurry down the stairs, wanting to be there when he arrives, but he’s already parked at the curb, leaning against his truck, his arms crossed.
He seems less tired than yesterday, freshly showered if his damp hair is any indication, and dressed in clean hiking pants, a blue-checkered flannel shirt, and a gray t-shirt underneath.
