Page 38 of Love is an Open Book
The room branches off into three passageways, but one is blocked by a pile of boulders. I pick one of the remaining paths at random but immediately regret my choice. The path narrows as I ascend, the ceiling height dropping. I take deep breaths and focus on searching for clues.
“Gavin!” Mia’s voice, panicky.
“Found something?” I call out, happy to have an excuse to abandon the narrow path.
“My headlamp went out. I can’t see a thing.”
“Coming.” But when I rush out of the tunnel, bent low to avoid whacking my head on the roof, I collide with her. She must’ve been moving fast, and the force of impact sends me stumbling back, my foot slipping on the uneven floor. I land on my ass with a hard thud. Mia crashes down on top of me and my back hits the floor. My helmet connects with the ground with a loud crack, and I let out a startled yelp.
“Oh shit, Gavin!” She struggles up onto her knees, straddling me. Her thighs settle on either side of my hips and she tips forward, eyes wide with concern. “Your head.”
My head’s not the part of my anatomy I’m concerned about. With deft movements, she unbuckles my chin strap, apparently unaware that she’s sitting on my lap. “Are you okay?”
I mumble something that doesn’t satisfy her, because she picks up the helmet and holds it with the light aimed directly into my face. That pulls my attention from the spot where our bodies are connected, and I hold up my arm to shield my eyes. “What are you doing?”
“Checking for a concussion.”
“How?”
“Looking at your pupils.” She tries to pull my arm down, but I squeeze my eyes shut, concentrating on anything but the warmth of her weight on me.
“I was wearing a helmet.”
“Just let me check.” Knowing better than to argue with Mia on a mission, I let my arm fall. She must’ve expected more resistance because she comes down with it, pinning my wrist above my head. The helmet clatters to the ground and the light goes off.
I can’t see anything, but Mia’s breath comes light and quick against my face, stirring the air near my lips. Close. So close.Her fingers are still locked around my wrist, hips notched against mine. Unable to stay still any longer, I take a reflexive inhale, catching the light floral scent of her perfume.
I’m surprised by how delicate she feels against me. Mia never shies away from a challenge. She’s self-assured and gives as good as she gets when we joke around. I guess that’s why I’m startled by the softness of her, even as she’s pinning me in place, locked between her legs. It takes all my self-control not to move, even though I should stand up and get back to the challenge. Laugh this off and never think of it again.
But I’m ensnared by years of pent-up yearning, barely breathing for fear of breaking the spell, held captive by the woman who’s had my heart since the day we met. Captured, and loving every forbidden second.
Mia hasn’t moved, either, but her fingers are trembling, cool and fine-boned around the tender skin of my wrist. “I got scared.” Her words are barely audible above my pounding heart. “The game master probably saw me run like a coward.”
“He can’t see us now.” Can’t hear us, either. They said the cameras are just for monitoring our progress in case we need assistance. With the lights out, we’re on our own. My free hand comes to her hip, anchoring her. Just for comfort, I tell myself. “Still scared?”
“Not anymore.” She dips her head and says low, against my ear, “Never when I’m with you.” The promise in her words tugs at the cord of my resolve. My fingers tighten on her thigh reflexively, and she lets out a little gasp against my ear.
The walkie-talkie at my hip crackles to life and Mia jerks upward. She fumbles by my waist for the radio, but I grab it first out of desperation. If her hands wander much more down there, we’re going to have a situation.
She must realize this because she scrambles to her feet and I scoot backward against the wall, flicking the button with a shakythumb. “All good here.” Damn, I sound breathless. “Just lost the light for a second.”
“Gotcha. Let me help you out.” Suddenly the cave brightens with lights inset into the brown rock walls. Without the eerie effect of the headlamps bouncing off the walls, it’s kind of cozy in here. Or at least not awful. It’s also embarrassingly obvious everything is man-made. Papier-mâché stalagmites and a camouflaged speaker that must be piping in the dripping sounds.
Mia, however, looks like she survived a real-life cave-in. One strap of her sleeveless top is hanging off her shoulder, and her helmet is askew.
“You two set to continue?”
She vigorously shakes her head, dislodging the helmet even more. I click the button. “Uh, no,” I answer, for both our sakes. “We’re gonna cut out early.”
“You don’t want to finish?” Based on our recent predicament, it’s impossible not to read into those words.
“No, I think we’re good, not, um—” I dart my eyes toward Mia “—not finishing.”
She lets out a tiny huff of laughter and I feel a sudden burst of affection for her, stronger than ever. These little moments of connection mean everything. The kind of moments that would happen a lot less with hours of distance between us.
The game master is explaining how to get to the exit, but now that I know we aren’t stuck here, all I want is to stay here with Mia. Confess that I’m a goner for her.
But she’s beckoning me down the passageway I skipped, which opens up into a room with an underground lake made of blue resin. There’s a door inset in the wall and she pushes it open, smiling at me as cool air wafts in.
