Keegan
We’ve hiked for about an hour, following a beautiful river that snakes through the cliffs. We’re surrounded by oak, pine, and maple trees.
It’s cooler today than it’s been in a while but sweat is still soaking the front of my T-shirt and running under the straps of my backpack.
Blue finally stops, and we lean against a boulder and pull out our water bottles.
“Those are the only native Caddo maple trees left,” he says, pointing to a stand near the river.
“The Plains Indians used this canyon as a winter camp,” he goes on. “Then the settlers going west used it as a stop on the California Road to get fresh water and fix their covered wagons. You can still see the wagon ruts along the trail.”
He takes a swig of water as I idly search the ground for signs of the long-ago settlers.
“I used to come camping here when I was in Scouts, so I know the place pretty well.”
“You were a Boy Scout?”
“Yep.”
He sticks his water bottle in the outside pocket of his backpack and shrugs.
“I made it all the way to Eagle Scout. Pretty sure it was the only thing I ever did that my old man approved of.”
I stand there, awkwardly staring into the trees as I gulp water.
Blue’s words send a ripple of worry through me. Between the two of us, we sure have a crapload of baggage to carry around. But I think he has it worse than me.
I’ll probably never get over the loss of my mom. And I have issues with my power-tripping grandmother.
But at least I always knew my parents loved me unconditionally.
It’s obviously different for Blue.
And then there’s the whole war thing that I can’t even begin to figure out. He’s obviously traumatized, and he won’t even talk to me about it.
So how can we make this work? Whatever this is.
Do I want to fall in love with Blue? Have I done that already? Or is it just a childish crush on my part? Is it purely lust for him?
I’m so focused on my seesawing emotions that it takes me a moment to realize Blue is staring intently at me. He’s got that same searching look that gave me goosebumps that first night, when he climbed the tree and we kissed on the roof.
I smile tentatively, feeling my insides melt at the way his eyes are lit up by the late-morning sun. But then, a shadow moves across his face, and it gives me a chill.
Do I do that to him? Is it his complicated past?
You always overthink things. Just be in the moment. Just enjoy right now.
Lifting my face toward the sky, I breathe in the pure air, determined to ignore the shivery sense of foreboding that keeps trying to surface.
I want to be happy. I want to forget about everything except this day with Blue.
I think about how it felt earlier, rappelling down the cliff.
“I can’t believe I went down that cliff three times by myself!” I burst out, sounding like a boastful little girl. “I’m feeling awfully badass right now.”
Blue throws his head back and laughs, then pulls me closer as a goofy grin spreads over my face.
“You are badass, Keegan. I was so fucking proud, watching you bounce down that rope.”
I tilt my smiling face up, and his lips find mine. We stand there for several moments before he finally pulls back.
“Not much further,” he says, threading his arms through his bulging backpack. “We need to get there so we have plenty of time to get you back for your meeting.”
Several of the ROTC guys had grinned and elbowed each other when Blue pulled a blanket, firewood and matches out of the trunk of his car and stuffed all of it into his large backpack.
He wouldn’t let me carry anything in my smaller pack except snacks and a couple of water bottles.
Henderson had leaned on Blue’s car, arms crossed, eyeing us with a smirk.
“Wow, sir,” he said. “Looks like you’ve got quite a romantic interlude planned.”
“Get your ass away from my car, Henderson,” Blue snapped, glaring at him. “And keep your thoughts to yourself.”
When we said goodbye to the group a few minutes later, Henderson had been bold—or crazy—enough to kiss my hand.
“Great meeting you, beautiful,” he said. “If Daniels doesn’t treat you right, you can always give me a call.”
The murderous look he got from Blue wiped the grin off his face.
Blue had turned without another word and stalked down the trail so fast I had to run to catch up.
He didn’t speak again for several minutes, at least not to me. But I could hear him mumbling about what awaited Henderson when he got back to campus.
I couldn’t help chuckling. Blue being jealous over me was kind of cute.
“You’re not really going to make Henderson scrub toilets, are you?” I ask now as he helps me over a couple of boulders that have fallen into the trail.
Blue face darkens. “That smartass will be lucky if that’s all that happens to him,” he says as I stifle a smile.
By the time he extends his hand to help me cross the river on several slippery, moss-covered rocks, I’m even more hot and sweaty.
Blue pulls me safely to the other side and tells me to watch my head as we duck under a bluff.
He’s smiling now; he’s finally forgotten about Henderson.
There’s barely enough room in front of us to scramble single file around a curve.
Once I’ve made my way carefully around the rocks, I come to a stop and gasp at what I see.
The river tumbles down the bluff right in front of me and cascades into a dark pool below that’s surrounded by more mossy rocks.
And just beyond the rocks, a ring of purplish green maple trees encircles the pool.
The trees are reflected in the water, and the sun lights up the whole scene as if it has all been deliberately arranged.
It’s like stepping into a vibrantly colored oil painting.
“Oh, Blue!” I gasp. “This is so beautiful.”
A smile of pure pleasure creases his face and warms his eyes. “I knew you’d like it.”
He takes my hand, and we make our way down one side of the bluff until we are standing next to the waterfall, looking down into the pool.
A cool mist settles on my face and arms.
Blue slips his backpack off. “Come on, there’s something else I want to show you.”
Carrying the backpack in one hand, he presses his back against the rocks and inches his way behind the waterfall, with me following.
A few feet in, the rocks curve away, and we find ourselves standing in a cave that’s about ten feet deep and maybe seven or eight feet wide.
“Blue,” I say, setting my backpack on the ground and squinting into the sun lighting up the water. “This is amazing!”
He smiles and nods as he empties his backpack and spreads out the blanket. Then he quickly builds a fire.
“Wow, you thought of everything,” I say, pulling off my shoes and socks and extending my feet into the ice-cold waterfall.
After a moment, Blue does the same.
“That feels so good,” I murmur.
We stay there, toes wriggling in the water and our heads warmed by the crackling fire, for several minutes.
Then I sit up, tucking my wet feet under me. I've come to a decision.
Blue shifts toward me, his eyes searching my face. They run over my body, the longing in them obvious. It makes my skin tingle; it’s like his spiky black eyelashes are brushing me all over.
I lean forward and take his face in my hands. Then I kiss him. It’s a long, deep, satisfying kiss.
“Blue,” I whisper. “I don’t want to wait anymore.”
His mouth falls open. “Keegan—"
I put a finger on his lips to silence him and push his shoulders back as I straddle him.
Then I pull my shirt over my head and quickly unlatch my bra, throwing it aside.
Blue moans.
“God, Keegan,” he starts, “I—”
I lean forward and kiss him again. “I’m tired of waiting,” I say, still whispering. “But I’ll stop if you want me to.”
His gaze brushes my breasts, hanging inches from his face. Then his eyes bore into mine again.
“Do you want me to stop?”
Blue closes his eyes briefly and shakes his head.
“Fuck, no,” he growls. “I do not want you to stop.”
ns 15.158.61.6da2
