Page 43 of Into the Mountains
“Yes.”
“Really?” he asks, surprised.
“Of course.”
“I just…I didn’t expect you to be willing to help me.”
“It’s the least I can do after almost killing you today.” Besides, I truly do love Ethan and helping with his birthday party would be a nice break from our project together. Maybe it would be good for us to collaborate on a different type of project and give us a break from the clinic plans. One thing could lead to another and creative doors could open up. If we can work together and plan a nine year old’s birthday party, surely we can get along well enough to get the clinic plans fleshed out.
“Alright, deal,” he says, patting my hand.
“Have you ever tried the audiobook?”
“What?”
“You know, audiobooks?” His brow furrows. “You really don’t know what audiobooks are?”
“No,” he admits, red creeping into his cheeks like he’s embarrassed.
“Basically, a narrator reads the book to you.”
“Like Siri?”
“No, it’s an actual person. They record the book and you can check them out through a library app or you can subscribe to a service and buy one book per month, whichever one works for you. But you can listen to the book while you’re doing other things around the house. Chores, errands, crafts, whatever you want. I usually listen while I do dishes or if I have long drives. Or I’ll listen to them while I crochet.”
He looks like he was just brought from the dark age and discovered some brand new technology he never thought could have existed. “I’m genuinely shocked I didn’t know about this.”
“Clearly, you’re way too sheltered,” I jest.
“So, what kind of audiobooks do you listen to? Can I see the app you use?” Oh, hell no. This conversation isn’t supposed to turn on me and what books I listen to. He does not need to seemy listening library. The titles wouldn’t give away the content, but on the off-chance he does look one up and listen to one…the horror. Nope. As if my hand is a guard and my phone is the prisoner, it hovers over my pocket like it’s going to escape at any moment.
“Uhhh, different kinds.”
“Like what?”
“Just books, Elias.”
“What kind of books?” He raises one eyebrow and he’s actually really cute when he’s oblivious.
“Ones that wouldn’t interest you.”
“With the way you are guarding your phone right now, I’m definitely interested.” He makes a grab for my phone, but I firmly plant one of my feet against his chest and shove. I gasp as a splash comes from the shallow water and droplets attack my skin. I shoved him a little too hard and now he’s sprawled into the water, drenched.
“You’d think for a big time jock, you would have been able to keep your balance better.”
Exaggerating his movements, he wipes the water from his eyes and pushes back his hair. It falls to the side and flops slightly over his eye. I imagine my fingers humming through it and wonder what it would feel like.
“Oh, you’re going to get yours, Charlie.”
There’s a gleam in his eye that tells me trouble is brewing. Immediately, I get up and shred the light blue sweater I finished crocheting last week and protect my book and phone by placing them inside of it, tossing them all off to the side. I’m standing behind the chair with little protection in only my black leggings and matching bra. The gleam in his eyes turns into something different. Something like…longing? My brain can’t make the connection and believe that the reason behind the look is because his gaze is on my body. I used to be terrifiedto show it off because it wasn’t like other girls. It wasn’t free of blemishes or spots. There are freckles everywhere and I was always nervous my partners would hate them. One of them did. Sasha. She loved my hair, but didn’t like anything that came with it. She didn’t expect the freckles on my arms to continue to the rest of my body and when she discovered that, she decided to leave even though we were both half naked.
The guy after her, Brent, asked if I’d dye my hair on the first date because he wasn’t into redheads, but told me he loved the shape of my body. He was a guy that loved curves and I had them, so surely I was his girl.
I wasn’t. The dating app was deleted off of my phone soon after and I never went back to it. After those disastrous dates, I decided to focus on my work and my friendships and thank god I did, because it brought me to Blue Grove. My home. To this moment.
I can see the moment Elias’s thoughts change direction again. It’s the slightest movement, but the corner of his lip twitches and he takes a step toward me. I take one to the side, slowly making my way around the chair, keeping it between us. We’re circling each other, waiting for the other to make their move before bolting.
He’s now where I was moments before—behind the chair—his smile spreading as I now realize I did exactly what he wanted me to. My back is now to the water and there’s nowhere to run.
