“Well that was adorable.” Monica snaps me out of my daydream. I glare at her out of the corner of my eye, still facing the windows overlooking the sidewalk, wishing I’d get another glimpse of the man that has already stolen my car and my dog, and is on his way to stealing my heart.
Monica leans against the countertop next to me. “Girl, you’re down bad.”
I don’t say a word because she’s right. I have no quippy comeback. I have been down bad for him for two years, even if I didn’t want to admit it.
CHAPTER 33
SUTTON
Despite takingthe day off to spend with Kelsey, I still ended up spending my morning and early afternoon in the kitchen. At least it was my apartment’s kitchen and it was by choice. I also had Felix and Oscar with me which was fun, although they were less than helpful.
Now I’m waiting at the trailhead, which has become one of my favorite places to spend time ever since my first night in town, when Kelsey walked with me along the creek. While it’s beautiful, the trails that lead into the mountains, out of town, were the perfect paths to unwind after the stressful nights at Gloria’s, especially in those early days.
Last week, when we came out here together, she hiked faster than me, and I don’t think it’s solely because she knows these trails like the back of her hand. I think she loves clearing her mind by letting the trail guide us to the right level of physical exertion and natural beauty to take the edge off after a stressful day.
When I see Kelsey walking down the path to the trailhead, I’m very aware of a different kind of natural beauty. Her long black hair is pulled into a ponytail and she’s wearing a strappy, baby blue sports bra. I've noticed that she’s beenwearing more colors lately. She always looks stunning, but I love the way color pops against her creamy skin. What really has my heart working overtime right now is her shorts. She’s in a pair of black high rise spandex shorts that leave her thighs on display and I can only imagine what the view from behind is like. I know my heart is doing its job because my cock starts to swell in my shorts, which is not what I need right now.
“Hey there,” she says when she reaches me at the trail sign. I strain to look away from her legs and when I do, she flashes me a mischievous grin that tells me she knows exactly what she’s doing to me.
I step to her and drop my hands to her waist, hooking my fingertips into the top of her shorts. I give her a quick kiss and whisper into her ear. “Truce.”
She squints back at me. “Truce?”
“Mmhmm,” I nod slowly. “If we’re going to see who can find shorter shorts, I feel like we won’t be allowed in public anymore.”
She laughs and shakes her head. “Alright, dork.”
I give the wide waistband of her shorts one playful tug before letting them snap back. She lets out a little gasp and I smirk back. “So you’re ready for a hike?”
“Yep.” Her eyes linger on the large backpack slung over my shoulder. “I’d ask if you are, but it looks like you might be overprepared for ashorthike.”
“Supplies for later. You can never be too prepared.” I pat the bag and sling the backpack cooler over my other shoulder. “Now come on. Let’s get going. I don’t want to get stuck out in the dark and run into Agnes later.”
I turn and start to walk down the tree-lined dirt path along the creek, gesturing over my shoulder for her to follow.
She catches up to me and starts to walk at my side. “Wait. You actually met Agnes?”
I keep a steady pace down the trail. “I wouldn’t say met somuch as I would say stumbled upon. I’m not sure the moose I saw was specifically Agnes, but you weren’t kidding, they are huge. Those antlers? Holy shit. Yeah, I got the hell out of there.”
She laughs so hard I almost worry something is wrong with her. I look her over just to confirm she’s fine, but end up letting my eyes linger on her bare legs. Something about those short shorts with her hiking boots and calf length socks is definitely doing it for me right now. She turns and smiles at me, flicking her ponytail over her shoulder, which makes her bangs flop around. My mind goes right to picturing her looking up at me with her lips wrapped around my cock while I fist her ponytail. Yep. This is going to be a long hike.
“What’s so funny?”
“You didn’t see Agnes if you saw antlers. That was a bull moose. Seriously, between Oscar and now this, I’m wondering if you know anything about animals and biology.”
“Funny.” I snort a laugh. “At least I know how to tell if the brakes on my car are shot.” I flick my eyebrows at her.
Her lips part in a mock gasp, still walking alongside me. “What? I’m just a girl. They didn’t teach that in school like they did with basic biology.”
“Notjusta girl—a very pretty one,” I correct her. “Just like I’m a pretty boy. So I guess we have being pretty in common at least. Maybe together we make one functioning adult.”
“That’s wishful thinking.” She smiles warmly back at me and we continue walking along the creek away from the trailhead. On my solo hikes, I quickly pieced together that the main trail feeds a multitude of others—venturing off into the mountains above us. I feel like I’ve checked out enough to already have some favorites, but after our last hike, I learned there are so many I’ve yet to explore.
Unlike last time, I can see that she must be tired today. Instead of bounding ahead of me because she can hardly contain her love for this place, she’s staying right beside me and I can tell there’s just a little bit of energy missing from her step.
“So what’d you get up to while I was gone besides keeping Oscar company? Was dinner with your parents good?”
“Yeah, it was great.” She keeps hiking along the trail, looking ahead for any hazards. “And I did work a couple shifts at Gloria’s and picked up some extra hours with Monica.”