Page 58 of Ready or Knot
I nod, still not trusting myself to say anything remotely positive.
By the time we reach the spot Jude mentioned, even my shoulders are burning, my hand still held tightly in Carter’s, his body so near to mine that I can feel his heat. Logan and Jude already have their packs off, expertly unpacking everything without forming a giant collective pile between them. While they start setting up the tent, Carter helps me out of my own pack, massaging my shoulders and kissing the spot under my ear.
I can’t contain my grateful moan at the loss of weight, and all three of them laugh.
“I’ll be back,” I say, and Carter releases me. I give myself a mental high when I manage to not blush this time while I grab the needed supply bag from the side pocket of my pack.
The third time is, in fact, not the charm thanks to my aching legs, and I curse as I wipe off my hands and then douse them in hand sanitizer. I’m nearly back to the campsite when my foot catches on a root, and I’m tired enough that I don’t manage to catch myself before stumbling, dropping down the small embankment with a gasped curse.
There’s a rush of movement above me as I crash into a tree before finally hitting the bottom of the small hill, the hit knocking the wind from me on a hard wheeze. Logan’s above me before I can manage to take another deep breath, his face grim as he touches each of my arms and then legs. Jude’s next to him a minute later, shaking his arm for a moment, and I see Carter standing at the edge of the embankment I just decided to explore against my will.
“Anything hurt, Red?” Logan asks, offering a hand. My own shakes as I take his, and his fingers tighten.
“Just my pride,” I mutter, and his lips lift in a small smile, though he’s quick to hide it. My body protests as I sit up, and I groan, closing my eyes and tilting my head back. There’s shuffling around me, and then a new set of hands is picking stuff out of my braids, carefully avoiding the pins that keep them out of my face and off my neck.
“You got her?” Logan asks, and Carter murmurs an agreement, his hands moving to brush off my back and arms. When I manage to open my eyes again, Jude and Logan are gone, and I see their backs as they head back to the campsite to keep prepping everything for the night. Carter tucks his finger under my chin and guides my mouth to his, pressing a soft kiss against my lips.
“You’re doing a really good job, Faedra,” he murmurs before backing away and helping me stand. When I scoff, he doubles down. “You are. Most people do a single night to start. The first day is the hardest. Let’s get you some dinner and you can relax for the rest of the night, alright?”
His voice is low and soothing, washing over me so thoroughly that I open my eyes and take a deep breath, smiling as I lean into him. He kisses me again, lacing our fingers together, and then helps me up the embankment. To my extreme embarrassment, it’s only about five feet. My back feels like it was double that. I rest my head against Carter’s arm once we’re back on the main ground, humming a bit as we get back to the campsite.
Pausing, I frown, and Carter squeezes my hand. Instead of one large tent, there’s two smaller ones, arranged across from each other, two of the single burner backpacking stoves set up between them along with the camping chairs. Blowing out a breath, I grab my camera from my pack and then drop into one of the chairs, flipping through the photos while I try to decide how to ask who I’m sleeping with.
Crap, that sounds dirty.
I glance over at Jude where he pauses a moderate distance from the edge of camp, knotting a rope before dropping it on the ground and pulling out his water bottle. The sun hits his face as he takes a drink, his eyes closing, and I turn my camera to the last preset I used, hoping it doesn’t underexpose the photos.
“Alright, Red,” Logan says, taking the seat next to me. “Do you want tacos or Alfredo pasta tonight?” He holds up two opaque reusable bags filled with different ingredients that I’ve been carrying in my pack.
“Pasta,” I say, taking the right bag, and he smiles as he puts the other one back into my pack. A moment later, he carries the entire thing over to Jude and sets it against their own packs.
Carter sits across from me, messing with the burners until they light, setting a pair of bowls on them filled with water. Once it’s boiling, he reaches for the bag, and I’m happy enough to give it to him, my stomach twisting into knots from both hunger and nerves.
“What’s bothering you?” Carter’s voice is a whisper, ghosting between us but going no farther, and I bite my lip. He mixes the food together, not needing a recipe, and then looks up at me, his brows pinched and his lips unsmiling.
Guess it’s best to just say it.
“I expected one tent,” I explain, blushing before I even get to the awkward question. “How are we deciding who I sleep with?” I stumble over the words, and my face grows hotter, the blush tracking down my neck. I adjust one of the pins in my hair to help distract me. “That sounds just as dirty as it did in my head.”
He smirks, and oh my God the bolt of heat that rushes through me is hot and fast. Maybe I’m not tired? I adjust in my seat, and my thighs scream at me.
Never mind.
“We figured we’d draw straws if you didn’t have any strong preference,” he explains, not put off by the question at all. He raises an eyebrow. “Were you feeling like you needed one of us particularly close?”
Damn it all, my blush gets even more intense, and I close my eyes and mess with the small studs I replaced my earrings with before leaving this morning.
“About three miles ago I was pretty set on convincing you to knot me tonight,” I admit on a sigh. His laugh is loud and immediate, and it has me smiling despite my embarrassment.
He’s still chuckling when he says, “I imagine right now that isn’t the most pressing thing on your mind.”
I pout as I open my eyes, and he laughs again.
“Want to play a card game?” Logan asks as he and Jude join us around the stove, a deck of cards in his hand.
Rubbing my face, I turn to Logan. “The same as the one before graduation? That one was fun and easy to follow.”
The men agree, and I go back to flipping through photos, deleting some of the most obvious duplicates to help clear up some of the memory.