And if all she wanted from him was some fun and sex, and then she ended up moving on, then . . .
Then what?
Then he’d deal with it.
“Hey, you know what?” she asked.
He turned to look at her. “What?”
“You’re right about having this quiet time.”
He smiled. “Nice, right?”
“Yes. Though don’t you get into your head too much?”
“Not really. I don’t think too hard about things I can’t do anything about.” Which was a good reminder to himself that he couldn’t change how Erin felt. That was going to be up to her. So he needed to relax and join Erin in the “have some fun” camp, and let whatever was going to happen between them just happen.
“Good advice.”
He looked over at her. “Wanna talk about what you’re thinking about?”
“It wasn’t Owen, if that’s what you were wondering.”
“I wasn’t, but if you want to talk about him you can.”
She inhaled, let it out and got up to check her line, then came back. “I feel like I need to talk to him. At the same time I don’t ever want to talk to him again. What could he say to me that would make a difference? He left me. Without talking to me about why he didn’t want to get married. It’s unforgivable.”
“Maybe you need to talk to him so you can hear what he has to say, if only to close that chapter of your life and move forward.”
“Hmm. Maybe. But I’m not ready yet.”
“Only you know when you will be. Don’t let anyone else push you into doing something you’re not ready for.”
“Thanks for that. I feel like I should woman up and just go talk to him and get it over with.”
“Why? Is there some timeline?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess it’s this axe hanging over me. I know it’s there, following me around.”
“I get that. Something left unfinished.”
“Yes. I just don’t feel like finishing it just yet. Which is so unlike me, because checking things off my to-do list is what I live for.”
He laughed. “I can see that. But this is a big-ticket item, so maybe you just want to carry it over for a while until you’re more emotionally prepared to deal with it. Big project and all, you know? Just think of it as something that needs more planning.”
She laid her head on his shoulder. “Thank you. I needed that.”
“You’re welcome.”
She lifted her head. “And now I need to pee again.”
He hooked his thumb over his left shoulder. “Walk about fifty feet down the road and you’ll find restrooms.”
“Really. I was sure you were going to tell me there was a roll of toilet paper in the back seat of the truck and I’d need to squat in the trees.”
“I do have toilet paper in the truck and you can head to the woods if you’re feeling rustic.”
She snorted out a laugh. “No, thank you. I’ll be right back.”
She disappeared and he checked both lines, hanging on to her pole in case she got a bite.
Content that everything was okay, he leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes.
THE WALK TO the restroom and back felt good, so Erin decided to extend it, checking out the lake area. Now that the sun was up and she had her bearings, she could enjoy the view.
Even though it wasn’t officially summer yet, the heat was already here. She was glad she’d opted for shorts and a tank top. Too bad they didn’t have a boat to enjoy the beauty of the water. The silvery sheen across the lake looked inviting as hell, and the farther she walked, the more she perspired. And the more cars she ran into, causing her to have to skirt to the side of the road.
Deciding she should probably get off the main road before she ended up pushed off by a trailer, she made her way back to the secret spot that Jason had carved out, and walked down the steep hill. Jason was leaning back in the chair, not moving.
Was he asleep? As she approached, he still hadn’t made any movement, and she noticed he was one with the chair, his breathing deep and even, his ball cap covering half his face.
It must be nice to be able to settle in like that. She checked the fishing poles and didn’t see any activity, but wanted to be sure they hadn’t lost the lures, so she pulled the poles out of the water. The lures were secure, so she reset them into the lake. She grabbed another water and took a few deep swallows, helping to cool down her heated body temperature, then moved her chair into a shady spot. She checked her phone and saw a group text from Brenna indicating she had a date tonight and had no idea what to wear.
Erin sent a text back. Where are you going?
Brenna replied right away. Dinner and movies. Where are you, btw?
Erin sent a reply. Fishing.
Honor texted back with several laughing emojis and fish, and a With Jason, I presume?
No, I decided to take up fishing because we had so much fun when we were kids.
Sure we did, was Brenna’s response.
Erin sent another text. Oh, and wear capris and a sleeveless shirt. Or a sundress. Whatever makes you comfortable. And those cute red sandals.
Honor sent another reply: I love those red sandals.
Brenna texted back: Thanks. And I want to hear about the fishing.
Honor replied as well with: Same!
Erin shook her head and sent a reply text: I want to hear about Brenna’s date!
Now that she was done with the conversation thread, she tucked her phone into the pocket of her shorts and looked over at Jason. He hadn’t shaved this morning and some scruffy beard stubble covered his jaw. With his sunglasses on, the man looked sexy as hell. Not that he didn’t always look hot, because he did, even when he was clean shaven. He’d worn board shorts and a sleeveless shirt, giving her the opportunity to admire the chiseled muscle of his biceps, the awesome power of his forearms, and his amazingly talented hands and fingers.
She sucked in a breath remembering how it felt to have his hands roaming over her body, the feel of his fingers sliding over her skin, inside of her, making her come over and over again.
Oh, dear God she should not be having those thoughts when they were out here, unable to do anything about her sudden burst of utter horniness.
“You’re staring.”
She jumped. “You’re awake.”
“Yeah. And you’re ogling.”
“I was not. Okay, I was. And I was having dirty thoughts.”
He dragged his sunglasses down. “Yeah?”
“Yes. Which is unfortunate because we can’t do anything about it.”
“Why not?”
She opened her arms. “We’re out here in the open. We don’t have any privacy.”
He got up and stretched. “Be right back.”
He disappeared into the thickness of the woods. Erin shrugged and went back to watching the water, wishing she was out in it instead of sweating on the bank. When Jason returned, she looked up at him.
He dug into his backpack and used some hand sanitizer, then grabbed his water and took several swallows.
“Hot out here,” he said.
“I know. I took a walk earlier and I was wishing we had a boat so we could be out on the lake.”
“Yeah? Did you bring your swimsuit?”