Burnt (8 page)

He waited patiently, wishing he was closer and could hear what they had to say. He moved up a bit to be in earshot of the two, while still hanging back in the shadows so they wouldn’t discover his presence.

“Look at this, Kevin,” Tara said as she kneeled down in front of a thick growth of flowers and caressed the petals between her hands.

Her shirt hung low and he could see the curves of her breasts in the V-neck she wore.

He groaned, staring at her from a distance.

“I wonder what kind of plant that is,” Kevin said, kneeling down next to her. His hand went to the petals, brushing up against her arm.

From his hidden perch, he noticed the couple’s interaction. He could have screamed at them for being so carefree.

They stood up and headed back down the walkway. “Oh...look,” Tara said, pointing.

His eyes strained to see went to where she was pointing. It was a large tent behind a growth of trees. They moved further down the path and as he started walking, he felt himself being thrown forward. He was tripping over a tree root in the ground. “Ouch!” he cried, falling to the ground. He looked up to see Tara wrapped in Kevin’s arms and both of them looking behind them. He was lucky the large tree ahead hid him from their sight. He did not want to be discovered.

––––––––

“W
hat was that?” Tara whispered, falling into Kevin’s arms and glancing behind her. She heard something loud, and then the rustling of leaves. She swore it was a person’s voice, but there was no one around.

“I’m sure it was just an owl...or the wind,” Kevin tried to reassure her.

“I don’t know. It sounded so close,” she said, still feeling the pounding in her chest from her quickened heartbeat.

“You watch too many horror movies,” he said, laughing. “It’s just in your imagination.”

Tara nodded, glancing at him. She’d forgotten she was still in his arms. It was a safe haven. She felt protected. Her eyes went to his lips, but just briefly.

“I...I’m sure you’re right,” she said, stammering.

He let go of her slowly. “Come on, let’s continue on the trail,” he said, smiling. He turned around and nearly ran into two men.

“Ahhhh...” she cried, backing away from them and hitting against Kevin’s body.

The two men looked at one another and Tara had a brief vision of her and Kevin being murdered in the forest. She definitely had been watching too many movies. The first man turned to them.

“Hi there. We didn’t mean to scare you,” he said, chuckling.

She breathed a sigh of relief. She was glad they spoke English– by their tanned skin, she wasn’t sure if they might have been tourists. She looked at Kevin, careful to proceed.

“Hello. Sorry, I didn’t mean to scream,” she replied softly.

The other man nodded. “No worries.”

The first man looked at them and spoke up again.

“What my brother means is...we come in peace.” He shook his head, chuckling. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t help it.”

Tara snickered, looking at Kevin. She was slightly relieved. There wasn’t any reason to believe these men were anything but innocent campers, just like they were.

“My name is Bruce and my brother here is Brian. We’re scouts, and often give tours and help people navigate the trails in the state park.” He paused, looking at the two. “We heard you from around the trail, so we weren’t sure if you needed help. Everything alright?”

“We thought we heard something coming from over there,” Kevin answered, pointing to a more heavily wooded area. “I thought it must have been the wind.”

“Or an owl,” Tara added with a laugh.

“Hey...it could have been,” Kevin said defensively.

The two brothers smiled.

“Are you staying in camp?” Brian asked.

They both nodded.

“Just heading back,” Kevin replied.

The twins looked at each other and nodded, seeming to read each other’s minds.

“Well, we’ve set up camp around this next bend. If you’d like, stop by and have something to drink, or grab a bite if you’re hungry. We live near Columbia River, on the Chinook reservation about 25 miles away. We’ll be here camping here all weekend.”

Tara looked through the trees behind them and her eyes fell on the expansive tent. “Are you that tent over there?” she asked.

“Yep, we sure are,” Bruce replied.

“What do you think, Kevin?” she asked.

“Sure. I drank all my water before we did the rappelling. We can have a drink before we head back to camp,” he answered, then looked at the brothers. “Thanks for offering.”

The four of them headed toward the tent. Tara relaxed. She found the scout brothers familiar and friendly. They reminded her of some friends they had made while at college in Alaska. Bruce lifted the tent opening and they all followed him inside. It was a large tent, probably large enough to hold ten people comfortably.

“Have a seat,” Brian offered, pointing them to two folding canvas chairs.

They sat down as Bruce pulled two bottles of water from a cooler.

“I feel like we’ve known them forever. Is that strange?” Kevin whispered to Tara.

She shook her head. She felt the same.

***

K
evin was mesmerized by their stories. He could have sat there and listened to them for hours. He noticed Tara also appeared captivated. He wondered, but didn’t want to ask why the two were single. Yet, the answer was offered up to them.

“We just never found that one special person,” Brian said, shrugging. “Or rather, two special people. Over the years we got over it.” He took a drink of water. “So, we have been talking all night. What’s your story? Engaged? Married? Dating?” he asked, sitting and watching them attentively.

He turned to Tara. She was beet red. She was undoubtedly uncomfortable with the question of their relationship status. The truth was, every time they kissed, Kevin felt more emotionally involved. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that in her eyes, they were probably just friends. He decided to let her off easily.

“We’re not a couple,” he replied, seeing the shock on Bruce and Brian’s faces. “Just really good friends,” he concluded.

“Could have fooled us,” Brian said, laughing and taking a drink.

Kevin wasn’t fazed. It was another person assuming something was going on between them and he just wished Tara would see it, too.

“Sorry to disappoint you,” he said, chuckling. He looked at Tara and she was still red in the face.

“Okay gents. We’ve taken up too much of your time,” Kevin said, standing up from the chair and gesturing to Tara, who followed. “Thank you for the drink.”

They shook hands with one another.

“Anytime,” Bruce replied. “If you are ever up this way over the weekend, stop by and see us.”

“We will,” Tara said, finally regaining her voice.

The two stepped out of the tent and waved goodbye to the brothers. They started their trek back to the campground, walking in silence for some time. Kevin wondered what she was thinking about, but hesitated to ask. She didn’t seem ready or open to the idea of being more than friends. He decided he’d hold off on raising any questions during this trip. When their camp came into view, Kevin was relieved to have made it back after their rappelling adventure. It was almost dark and he looked forward to starting a campfire so they could warm up and have dinner. It was one day he did not want to end.

“Want to sit by the fire to warm up when it’s ready?” he asked, hoping she would want to be around him for longer.

“I’d like that,” she said, smiling. “I’m really not tired. You’re warming up some of the chicken you made earlier, right?”

“Yes,” he answered, and started toward the set of double-sealed containers they used to store food and other leftovers at camp.

“Good. I’m starved,” she replied. “And I can use some of the time to quiz you on those index cards you prepared. This is supposed to be a study weekend, remember? No more fun and games for you, Kev.”

He was reeling with enthusiasm. They headed over to the fire pit, where he put some logs in the middle and added some kindling. He lit the kindling with matches and waited for the flame to catch. It didn’t take long to have a small fire going. He placed the small grilling rack over one side of the growing fire, and placed the leftover chicken on it. As he stood up, he noticed Tara looking at him. She had the warmest smile on her face. He walked over and sat in the chair next to her as she turned back toward the fire.

“We could tell ghost stories after we’re done studying,” he offered.

“Yeah, I don’t think so,” she replied, laughing.

“Come on, it’ll be like old times.” He looked over at her.

She held up her hand. “As I recall, I’d have nightmares for weeks after your stories.”

“That was the idea, wasn’t it?” he called out as he went over to turn the pieces of chicken on the grill. “Besides, you’d cuddle with me more after those stories. I’d say it was a win-win.”

“Oh,
that’s
why you loved scaring me outta my wits,” she answered, pulling two plates and cutlery from their set of dishes.

“And it was worth every cuddle,” he teased. “Pass me the plates.”

She handed over the plates one at a time so he could load them up with their dinner. She was enjoying the time alone with him, and had forgotten about any worries she had before. The truth was, she didn’t want to be anywhere else.

After they ate, he took their plates over to the water bowl to clean them up.

“I’ve got an idea,” Tara called out to him. He looked back at her as she got up from the chair and went into her tent. He heard sounds like she was rummaging through her things. When she emerged, she held a bag of marshmallows and a couple of campfire forks. She walked back over to the fire, placing the marshmallows on the forks and holding them over the fire.

“I don’t have any graham crackers or chocolate, but we could still roast some of these.” She smiled. “Now it’s really like old times.”

He stacked the cleaned dishes and walked over to her side. She was right. This was how he remembered their camping trips.

“This is the life,” he said to her softly, taking the roasted marshmallow on the fork she passed to him. Everything was going better than he had expected. It was a great start to their weekend.

***

T
ara stood up from the chair. The fire was slowly dying down.

“We should get some rest. We’ve gone over each of these cards twice already. We can do some more on the hike tomorrow.”

“Yeah...” he slowly replied. It was just slightly above a whisper. He stood up, turning to her.

“Well, goodnight,” she said, turning away and moving quickly to her tent. As hard as it was for her to pull away from the great evening they shared, it would be easier than complicating things further.

“Goodnight Tara,” she heard him mumble behind her. As she unzipped her tent opening, she heard him again.

“Tara...wait!”

She turned around, wondering what Kevin wanted. He was heading her way.

“I’m sorry, Tara,” he started, “but I can’t go to sleep without doing something first.” He placed his hand around her waist, pulling her to him. Their lips met and his tongue invaded her mouth. A soft moan escaped from her lips. She could feel his arousal pressed against the zipper of his shorts. She wanted him...she needed him.

He parted from her lips, resting his forehead against hers. “Tara. I love you and I have loved you for so long. I have just been too stupid...or too scared...to admit it.”

Her mind raced.  It seemed like it was so out of the blue, but she had subconsciously been expecting the words for so long.

“Kevin...” she started.

He rested a finger against her lips. “You don’t have to say anything. I know this probably isn’t what you want.”

Tara was nervous. He confessed his love for her, and it made things even more real. She didn’t know how to start. As close as they had been as best friends, until a couple months ago she never would have dreamed of uttering the words she was going to say.

“I want to be with you tonight,” she whispered, feeling her body react to the words. “Make love to me, Kevin.”

She watched him as his jaw dropped. She meant every word, but there was still a subtle fear of being rejected. They realized their mutual worry was unfounded. They were of the same mind. Kevin wrapped his hand around her neck and brought her lips to his. They stood there, eagerly exploring each other. They were about to demolish a boundary they had kept erected between them. It was the boundary that allowed them to remain just friends.

She was eager, yet wanted to savor every moment. They hungrily kissed each other, letting the last of the fire warm them. Kevin slowly pulled away, and took her hand, leading her in the direction of his tent. She walked beside him for a few steps, then stopped and pulled his t-shirt up over his head. They reconnected in their kiss as she dropped the t-shirt to the ground and wrapped her arms around his waist. It was some time before they reached his tent. She felt Kevin break away so he could unzip the flap. The moment it was opened, he grabbed her hand and pulled her in after him.

She laughed as she crashed down on top of him as he fell on the air mattress. They kissed again, slowly igniting their flame in the small tent. She kicked her shoes off as he lifted himself out from under her long enough to zip the tent closed and turn on the camping lantern.

“Come back here,” Tara whispered, pulling him back down to lie beside her.

He slid his hand under her shirt and peeled it off, sliding it above her head. As he did, his eyes fell on her breasts. She leaned back, her head lying against his pillow. She watched him as he lowered himself again to lie beside her. His hands traced her bra and slid behind to her back, where he fumbled for the clasp of her bra. She was breathless in anticipation. Her breath hitched as she felt the clasp release.

“You’re so beautiful, Tara,” Kevin whispered as he stared at the curves of her body. His mouth drifted to her breasts, taking in a nipple and gently swirling his tongue around the peak. Tara moaned with pleasure and desire, gripping his shoulders as he ravished one nipple after the other. She felt her arousal building, and wanted to be completely connected to him. She groaned with deep longing for more as her body writhed under him.