Instead of getting pissed off, Zoey laughed. “As if. Anyway, I did try a couple more dates, but they were much the same as the first, and I told him that I didn’t think we were compatible. He was pissed I was dumping him before he’d gotten into my pants, so he left me stranded at Lena Beach. I admit that I was disappointed things didn’t work out between us…but more because I’d had high hopes he would be more like you. Every time I saw you at school, you were considerate of the people around you.”
“Me and my brother are nothing alike,” Bubba told her, hating how terrible Malcom had treated her in high school.
“I know.”
Bubba had no idea if she realized she was running her palm down his thigh, as if to soothe him, but he couldn’t deny it felt good and kept him calmer than he might be otherwise. Listening to her basically tell him that she’d gone out with Malcom because she’d had a crush on him was tough.
Hearing that Malcom had treated her like shit was downright infuriating.
“I thought twins were supposed to be really close and a lot alike,” Zoey said after a moment.
Bubba shrugged. She couldn’t see him, but she could probably feel him against her back. “Mal and I have never liked the same things. When my dad put us in the same outfits when we were little, one of us would always change. Mal was the more impetuous of the two of us, rushing headlong into situations before thinking about them. I was always more cautious. And let’s just say there’s a reason girls didn’t hate my guts when we broke up.”
“It was a letdown,” Zoey admitted. “I don’t think I went on another date for the rest of the year.”
“How come you aren’t married by now?” Bubba asked. “I mean…you aren’t, are you?”
She shook her head against his chest, and he could smell the light scent of her shampoo. Even after their day trudging through the forest, she still smelled good.
“I’m not married. Hell, I haven’t even really dated much in the last few years.”
“I don’t understand that,” Bubba admitted. “You’re beautiful. Considerate. Smart. What the hell’s wrong with the male citizens of Juneau?”
She huffed out a breath. “Thanks. I guess I just want…more. And this might sound stupid, but I didn’t want to marry the first man who asked just because he might be the only man to ask. I want to be with someone who can’t imagine not being with me. A man who can’t wait to get home at the end of the day because he knows I’ll be waiting for him. Someone who will treat me with respect and encourage me to go after my dreams, instead of insisting that I find some crappy job so he can buy all the weed and alcohol he wants.”
Bubba tensed under her. “Did someone actually do that?” he asked.
“Yeah. But don’t worry, I broke things off with him two-point-three seconds after he suggested it. I know I’m a romantic, I can’t help it. I want a partner in life. Not someone who I have to take care of, and not someone who thinks I need to be taken care of. I’m a grown-ass woman who has managed to keep a roof over my head and food in my belly for all of my adult life. I might not be a millionaire, and I might not have a dream job, but I think I’m doing okay.”
“You are,” Bubba told her. “And you shouldn’t settle. I think that’s a huge issue in our hometown. People think if they don’t accept the first person who comes along, there won’t ever be anyone else. Excuse the cheesy cliché, but there are lots of fish in the sea, and you shouldn’t settle for the first one that jumps into your net.”
“Yeah,” Zoey agreed.
They were silent for a while, until Bubba asked, “So if I had asked you out, would you have said yes?”
“In a heartbeat,” Zoey said immediately.
“I wanted to,” Bubba admitted. “But after you went out with Malcom, I thought it might be weird. I didn’t want people to think you were going out with me because of him. Childish, I know.”
Zoey nodded, but didn’t comment.
“I think I also didn’t ask you out because I knew I was leaving right after graduation. Deep down, I knew if we started dating, it was going to be that much harder to leave.” Bubba felt Zoey flinch slightly against him, but she didn’t say anything and didn’t turn around. “And even though it’s years later, I know I was right. It would’ve hurt both of us when I left, and I didn’t want to do that to you.”
“I’m glad you didn’t ask me out,” Zoey said after a minute or two.
Bubba blinked in surprise. That wasn’t what he’d thought she would say after hearing his confession. “You are?”
She nodded. “Yeah. It would’ve killed me to say goodbye to you if we’d gotten close, knowing you weren’t ever coming back. And look at you. What you’ve done is amazing. You’ve saved countless lives, you’re serving your country, and you’re doing what you love. Staying in Juneau would’ve suffocated you. You’re a good man, Mark, and I’m proud of you. I know I told you already, but it bears repeating. Your dad talked about you all the time.”
Her words felt good. He hadn’t talked to his pop much, and hearing that his old man had been proud of him went a long way toward lessening the guilt in his heart for not being there when he passed.
“Thank you,” he whispered.
Zoey squeezed his thigh where her hand was resting. “You’re welcome.”
Bubba could feel how tense Zoey still was against him. He wanted her to relax. To lean on him. “Relax, Zo. I’m not going to bite, and I’m not going to think you leaning against me means you want to strip off all my clothes and have your wicked way with me.”
She chuckled. “But what if that’s what it does mean?”
Her words struck him hard, but he forced himself to stay calm.
“Then I’d say when we get to civilization, I’m more than happy to let you do whatever you want to me.”
She chuckled uneasily. “I was kidding,” she said quickly.
“I wasn’t,” he said softly.
To her credit, she didn’t leap out of his embrace and berate him for coming on to her. “I don’t understand how, in romance books, when the couple is fleeing bad guys in a jungle, they always stop to have sex. I mean, it’s only been one day, less than that really, and I feel disgusting and dirty. Not to mention, I’m freezing. The last thing I want to do is take off my clothes to get freaky.”
Bubba practically choked. Then he laughed. “Well, that’s not my genre, but I’m guessing it’s the romanticism of it all.”
“No offense, but this isn’t romantic,” Zoey countered.
“What? We’ve got a nice fire, beautiful scenery, and great conversation. What’s not romantic about this?”
“Um…it’s cold, we have no idea where we are or if anyone knows we’re missing, someone obviously wants us dead, and we might be out here for weeks.”
“All of that is true, but you have to look on the bright side, Zo.”
“There’s a bright side?” she asked.
“There’s always a bright side,” Bubba told her. “It doesn’t look like anyone is out here with us, trying to kill us; it’s not winter, and while it’s chilly, there’s no snow on the ground and it’s above freezing; I’ve got a compass so we can’t get lost; and we aren’t going to starve because I can hunt and cook any small animals dumb enough to walk into my snare. And we’re not alone. We’ve got each other.”