Page 20 of Love Off the Rocks
“Oh my god, Mags. Holy shit. Oh, shit.” He waves his hand in front of his face. Then runs his fingers across his eyes to get the tears that have formed.
“What’s so funny?” I hiss.
He sobers after another moment of glee. “I didn’t have a problem getting it up. We didn’t even get to that point.”
“Well, then what happened?”
“I had the shits. Clogged up her toilet, and it overflowed. I had to call out a plumber to fix it.” He laughs some more. “Suddenly that doesn’t seem so bad considering what you had me doing.”
I perch my feet on the cement surround of the fire ring and lean back in my chair, taking a long draw on my almost warm beer. “Oh, that. Yep, that totally happened to Dev. More than once even.”
I look over at Sam and hold his gaze for a second before we both dissolve into laughter.
And for just a moment, I remember what it’s like to live and feel happy. Much like how I was five years ago before Dev tore my life apart. Before I shut myself off from the world, I denied myself any new connections or friendships and avoided most social interactions.
And, of course, made sure not to do any dating.
9
Dev
Today is a full day of team building exercises, and the day I put my plan into place. Much like I worried she would, Mags has avoided me every possible second. And since we go home tomorrow, this is my only chance.
While most of our other activities have centered around groups of five or six, today we are pairing off. Nancy is making it appear as though she’s drawing names at random, but she is making sure to partner Mags and me. Because I asked her to.
She’s also going to make it appear as though we randomly select an all-day activity even though I chose the day hike for me and Mags in advance. Again, because I asked her to.
So, whether she likes it or not, Mags and I are spending the day together and she’s going to hear me out about why I accepted the job and didn’t go with her five years ago.
10
Dev
Thinking she would listen to me just because she’s a captive audience was stupid. Futile. She no more wants to listen to me now than she did that first night in the bathroom. Any time I try to bring up anything that has something to do with us, she interrupts with something about the hike. Case in point.
“The map says we need to go another five hundred yards west.” Mags points to her left and heads in that direction when I ask her to give me five minutes to talk.
“I don’t think that’s west,” I tell her.
“Well, you aren’t the map, and you don’t have this.” She holds up the compass, which she has refused to relinquish the entire time we’ve been hiking so far. Our activity is a mini-survival hike/scavenger hunt, simulating what thrill-seekers on a reality show might encounter, but shrunk to a day with no real danger, and no audience or cameras.
I follow behind her, trying not to stare at the sway of her ass. She’s wearing leggings that are so sheer I can practically see the outline of her thong. Black leggings, a white tank top, bright pink converse, and a baby-blue hoodie tied around her waist. Not exactly hiking gear, but fine for what should be an easy day of roaming the mountainside. Her fashion choices haven’t changed much in the last five years. Then again, neither have mine.
“Do you see it yet?” she asks, referring to the giant Douglas Fir we are supposed to find. Rumored to be over three hundred feet tall with a trunk girth of over thirty-eight feet. Once we take a picture in front of it, we can move on to the next item: finding black bear scat. Which is similar in shape to human feces, only much larger.
“Nope. But it shouldn’t be too hard to miss, right?” I swing my backpack around and pull a bottled water from it, taking a long swig as we go. I packed a light blanket, some snacks, and a few bottled waters. Romanticizing the idea of a hike and a picnic? Also stupid of me.
“Well, if we don’t find it soon, we’re never going to get through everything on the list. Then we lose. And I hate to lose,” Mags grumbles.
I already know this about her, the competitive streak. But this isn’t a win-or-lose activity and I remind her of such.
“Of course it is. Everything is win or lose, Dev, you know that. God, where is it? It should be right here.” She stomps her foot.
I grab her arm and twist her around to face me. “This isn’t a competition. It’s just an activity meant for us to work together on. As much as I enjoy watching your ass, I think we should collaborate a bit more instead of me just following you.”
“Shut up about my ass. You get zero say about my ass. Or anything else attached to me, for that matter. You lost that right when you abandoned me.”
“I wasn’t saying—never mind. Look, can I just see the map for a minute?”
