Chapter 27
Chapter Twenty-Seven
MELLIE
Ronin ducks into the tent to prepare our bedding. I wipe my hands on my sweatpants, trying not to overthink what’s about to happen. It’s just sleeping. Right?
He pops his head out and gestures for me to come inside. “All good,” he says, holding out a hand.
This feels incredibly intimate. I take his hand and let him lead me inside the tent.
Ronin has a couple of thick blankets laid out across the ground and two sleeping bags with pillows side by side over the top.
I let go of his hand and collapse down onto the closest one, then kick my shoes into the corner of the tent.
As Ronin gets into his sleeping bag, I rummage through my backpack and pull out a thick pair of socks to roll them over the ones I’m already wearing.
My feet are bound to be freezing sleeping on the cold ground.
I tuck my legs into my sleeping bag and lay down, turning my head to Ronin who’s staring at the roof of the tent.
His glasses and beanie are off, placed to the side of his bedding.
My hands ache to run my fingers through his hair splayed out across his pillow.
I grip the blanket tightly to distract myself.
“Well, goodnight,” I say quietly.
Ronin turns his head toward me, his eyes gleaming in the low light. He reaches over to dim the lantern that sits above him, lowering it until the tent is pitched into darkness. “Goodnight, Mel.”
We lay there in silence, my heart pounding so loudly, I can feel my pulse in my ears. I am literally never going to be able to fall asleep like this. Closing my eyes, I burrow deeper into my blankets and try to relax only to eventually start shivering from the coldness seeping in from the ground.
Sensing Ronin turn to me in the darkness, I open my eyes, looking at him.
“Are you okay?” he asks. “You’re shaking.”
“Yeah,” I say, my teeth chattering slightly. “I’m just cold. I didn’t expect it to be this cold.”
Ronin searches my face for a long moment, as if he’s watching something play out in his head. Just as it starts to feel awkward, he suddenly pulls his sleeping bag down his body and rises to his knees.
“Here, sit up,” he instructs. I sit, and he lays his sleeping bag down on the ground over the blankets that are already there. He reaches toward my sleeping bag and pauses. “Is it okay if I unzip yours? We should share, for body warmth.”
I nod, a shiver going through me that doesn’t have anything to do with the cold. Ronin helps me out of the sleeping bag and I lay back down. He settles in next to me and drapes the unzipped bedding over both of us.
“You should turn to your side,” he whispers. “That way I can lay behind you. If that’s okay?”
“Yeah, sure,” I murmur, turning to lay on my left side. Ronin shifts, moving his body to spoon behind mine and wrapping his right arm over me. His hand splays across my stomach, and my muscles tighten in response.
“This okay?” His voice is right in my ear, his breath tickling my neck.
“Mm, it’s great,” I mumble. My cheeks heat. Fuck, my entire body is now on fire.
His hand pulls me closer to him, and my muscles slowly start to relax as the heat from his chest seeps into my back, warming me. We lay still for a few moments, neither of us moving or speaking.
His heartbeat races at my back, and I know that I am not the only one of us being affected by our closeness. Ronin’s arm weighs down on my side as he starts to relax, letting it settle against me. I don’t know what to do with my hands, so I hold them close to my chest.
I let myself snuggle back into the warmth and comfort of his body. His breath catches for an instant as my ass pushes against him, and I immediately pull myself off, embarrassed.
“Sorry,” I say, a small laugh choking out of me.
“It’s okay,” Ronin replies, and a huff of breath in my hair tells me he’s chuckling, too.
His hand tightens against my stomach again, and he pulls me back closer to him. “I don’t mind,” he whispers into my neck, his warm breath causing goosebumps to break out across my chilled skin.
I’m not sure how to respond, so I let silence fall between us for a few moments. Ronin breaks it again with, “So, come here often?”
I laugh, my body shaking against his with delicious friction. “You’re such a dork,” I whisper.
“Always,” he agrees, and I can hear the smile in his voice.
His fingers move underneath the blankets, rubbing gently against my sweatshirt. He twirls them around, running slow, lazy circles against me.
“Are you warming up yet?” Ronin asks quietly, his tone much more subdued now.
“Yes,” I reply, closing my eyes and relaxing further into him, trying to ignore the way my body is heating up for other reasons.
His hips press against me, the motion so slight, if I wasn’t hyper-focused on his every movement, I may have missed it. My throat goes dry, and there is an immediate response in my body as a low throbbing begins between my legs.
Ronin’s hand stills and comes to rest against my stomach. He settles behind me, his hips flush with my backside and his legs notching into mine.
My heart rate slows, and I allow myself a moment to enjoy the feeling of being wrapped up in Ronin’s arms. Visions of us flash behind my eyelids, picturing us sprawled across white bed sheets, limbs tangled together.
I see myself waking up next to him, light rays of the early morning sun stretching across the room, reaching for us.
The sudden yearning for this future that fills me is so overpowering, so encompassing, my breath catches and I squeeze my eyes even tighter, willing myself not to do something stupid—like start crying.
Something about being close to Ronin seems to unlock this desire for a future I thought long lost. A future that he had offered me, and I had turned down. Now it seems within reach once more.
I find that I want it, desperately.
With these thoughts to keep me company, I finally drift to sleep, Ronin’s arms holding me tight against his chest, and I’ve never felt safer in my life.
The ground next to me is cold in Ronin’s absence as I wake up, stretching out my arms and legs and groaning as my joints pop. I sift through the bag at my side and pull out a beanie to tug on over my unruly bed hair.
As I leave the tent, I squint in the bright daylight, scanning our campsite to see who’s awake. Evan, Cat, and Ronin sit around a small fire, cooking breakfast. The smoky aroma of bacon and sausage assaults my senses, and I’m suddenly famished.
“Good morning,” I greet them as I take a seat. “Smells amazing out here.”
I pull a bottle of orange juice from the cooler. Ronin hands me a plate and I dig in, my stomach thanking me for the greasy food. He meets my eyes as he fills his own plate, shooting me a small smile that makes my insides complete mush.
After everyone has had their fill of breakfast and freshens up for the day, Evan sets us on a course to hike to the nearby waterfall.
Sapphire Falls is one of many waterfalls and hiking destinations in the state.
Evan and I grew up taking hiking and camping trips with our parents, and he has fallen in love with the hobby as an adult.
He was so excited to plan this group trip, and I’m thankful for it even though he picked a horribly cold time to come out here.
I find myself walking next to Bree as we make our way down the trails, passing other campsites and hikers along the way.
“What was that little stunt you pulled yesterday?” I hiss, my focus on Ronin’s back just ahead of us. I elbow her in the side and she yelps.
“I think what you mean to say is ‘thank you, Bree,’” she replies, smirking at me.
I roll my eyes. “You are a child,” I tease. “A meddling child.”
“So,” she starts, giving me a sly grin. “How did you sleep?”
My cheeks heat as I remember being wrapped together with Ronin, his strong arms holding me flush against his body. “I slept just fine, thank you. Once Ronin warmed me up, at least.”
It’s my turn to smirk at her, and she does a little happy dance as we fall behind the group. “I knew it!” she cheers quietly, giving me a playful shove.
“Relax, nothing happened except some spooning,” I tell her, laughing. “It was really fucking cold last night, so we were conserving body heat. It was the responsible thing to do.” I smile demurely and she giggles.
“I cannot wait for the moment you two wake up and figure out you’re obsessed with each other.” Bree shakes her head. “You were taking too long. You needed a little push, so I gave you a push. RIP to your tent. Sorry about that.”
We laugh, linking arms, and I feel lighter than I have in months.
Since Thanksgiving, honestly. I’ve been so worried dating Bree had caused irreversible damage to our friendship, and I lost not one but two people I love because of decisions I made.
But for the first time since our breakup and my return home, things feel like they’re finally back to normal between us.
I hug her arm tighter to my side, shooting her a grin she returns immediately. We jog to catch up to the others ahead of us.
Ronin shoots me a wink as we fall in behind him and Evan, and I duck my head, suddenly feeling shy. My emotions are seriously all over the place today. One minute I’m laying in bed, turned on, and the next minute I’m an awkward, shy kid again.
The loud, crashing sound of water flowing greets our ears as we near the bottom of the falls.
“Oh, wow,” I whisper, coming to a stop at the railing. I feel someone at my side and glance over to see Ronin, his face tilted up toward the waterfall.
“I haven’t been here in years,” I say, eyes drinking in the magnificent sight before us. “But it still manages to take my breath away anytime we visit.”