Page 142 of Lost in the Dark

Then he eyed the situation: me, clearly mostly naked, and my underthings, now dry.

“Do I want to know?” he asked, swiveling his head between me and Jo.

Jo gave him a grin. “Maybe after dinner?” he asked.

Reeve heaved a sigh, and then came to kiss him, before walking over to drop off my luggage at my side. I felt guiltier every step he neared, especially with him looking at me like he was—worried, not turned on.

But he didn’t say anything, and it was nothing to tie the blanket beneath my arms and go looking into my newly returned bag for underwear that wasn’t smoke-flavored.

“You can use the tent,” Josiah said, catching my panicked look around. I nodded, and then took the whole bag inside, along with the stuff I’d been driving in.

Things I had packed: miniskirts, high heels, my makeup bag.

Things I had not packed: anything vaguely sensible.

To be fair to my former self, I’d been sweeping the contents of my closet into my bag supermarket-sweepstakes style, all of me intent on leaving. But if I put on much of what I had on, I’d feel weird—people didn’t wear bodycon dresses camping, I was sure.

Then again...

I pulled out my favorite dress and my favorite heels.

I’d heard them whispering to each other while I was in the tent, and whatever Josiah was cooking now smelled good, but when I came out, all conversation stopped.

I’d pulled on a stretchy taupe dress that was short in both directions, and red heels. I’d trusted my hair to do something pretty air drying, and as best I could tell it’d tousled into waves. I’d only put the barest amount of makeup on, hoping firelight would do the rest.

Three weeks ago I would’ve said this dress was too short, and too tight, and I would’ve been embarrassed to go out in it, but a lot had happened since then—and if I didn’t get to wear it now, when would I?

“Lizzy,” Josiah said, after a sharp intake of breath.

“Lamb,” Reeve said, in a much more considered fashion.

Both of them had plates, and had been eating—and there was still plenty of food on the camp stove’s sideboard.

But I was hungry for something else.

I twisted my head a little and bent one knee, trying to seem coquettish. “I didn’t really pack for the occasion.”

Reeve snorted, and handed Jo his plate to hold, as he stood up and came over. “No, I think you did just fine.” Even in my ridiculous heels the man was still taller than me. “Jo told me all about what you two did today—and I know he told you how we were.”

I swallowed and lightly nodded. “Yeah,” I breathed.

“All right, then. What’s mine is his—and what’s his is mine,” he said, his eyes trailing all over me, making me as hot as the fire was. “Jo, get her something to kneel on.”

Josiah did as he was told, returning with the same blanket I’d been snuggled up in, folded into a dense brick. Reeve took it from him, and put it down on the ground in front of me. “I know I don’t get to touch you,” he explained, “but I want you looking up at me when I stroke my dick.”

I nodded again, licked my lips, and carefully made my way onto my knees beside the fire. Reeve grabbed at himself through his jeans—he was already hard, and his dickwasmassive. I could tell it was thick, and even beneath the denim, and it stretched out almost to the point of his hip.

He undid his belt buckle, then reached for his buttons and zipper, with his thick fingers and his strong hands, and then he pulled himself out to show me. His cock was a deep, angry red, and hard as hard could be, with a strange divot at the tip, like someone had taken hold of his head once and pressed it, with a thumb. He spit in his hand, same as Jo had, and then surveyed me.

“You’re a fucking beauty,” he said, starting stroking.

“I tried to tell her,” Jo said, from his seat behind the fire. “I don’t think she believed me.”

“She will,” Reeve promised—on my behalf! Like I wasn’t even there!—and some part of me flushed and got angry at that, while some other part got hotter at the thought of it, before it all came crashing down.

I didn’t have a future to learn things in, no matter what Reeve had implied.

The only thing I had was now.