Chapter 10
CHAPTER 10
C haz held his small flashlight out and searched the area for the small stream he had passed earlier. He had been sure it would be an easy find. The water made burbling noises. The day had gone from decent to hell in a handbasket real quick; he wasn’t sure how to recover from the stress. Ezra was counting on him to lead them back to civilization.
Chaz didn’t know how to get there. He’d been so certain they’d be at Georgian Bay by now. And yet it remained out of reach. They were fucked if Chaz couldn’t take them to a big-ass body of water. He cheered when he discovered the creek. He wasn’t hopeless. Quickly, he filled both of his water bottles. In the morning, he’d do the same with Ezra’s. They were going to need the hydration.
A distant howl had Chaz shooting straight up, tense and alert. Coyotes. They’d be hunting for food or curious about their smell. Chaz didn’t want Ezra to be alone and start worrying in case he heard the barking. Ezra had a tendency to overthink and panic at the drop of a hat. Although, he had listened to Chaz while they were hiking and hadn't argued about any of Chaz’s choices.
Chaz didn’t regret kissing him. The act was spontaneous, but gave Chaz energy to keep going. For one short moment, the brushing of their lips took his mind off the current situation. Chaz remembered Ezra’s soft lips as well as his gasp of surprise. He wondered what other sounds he could pull from Ezra and how he could kiss him again.
“Chaz?”
“I’m right here. Don’t worry.” Those hundred metres might have been close in normal scenarios, now it seemed Ezra was in another county. Chaz jogged the rest of the way to their impromptu site and smiled when he noticed Ezra had listened about his feet. Ezra’s bare toes wiggled as Ezra gazed at him. Chaz glanced at the fire pit and was pleased to discover a small tower of twigs and branches waiting for a light. “Ahh, thanks for getting that ready.”
“Did you find the stream?” Ezra asked while Chaz sat and took off his own footwear. Chaz stretched his feet in relief as he passed Ezra a water bottle.
“Yep. Both of my bottles are filled. I can do yours tomorrow,” Chaz said. “How’re you feeling?”
Ezra bobbled his head as he thought. “Good, I guess? A little hungry, but that’s okay.”
Chaz smirked as he pulled his backpack closer. He rummaged around, locating a small container filled with nuts and dried fruit. He didn’t mention the coyotes, and neither did Ezra, so hopefully Ezra hadn’t discerned what the howling was. “Trail mix should give us some energy. Do you have any blisters or odd pains? Anything out of the ordinary?”
“You’re awfully comfortable with this situation. Does this happen a lot?” Ezra eyed him suspiciously. Chaz shrugged. It wasn’t his first rodeo, hiking at night with minimal supplies. “Chaz?”
“I’m good. I’m confident we will find a road or the bay tomorrow. And then we can get the authorities involved,” Chaz said around a mouth full of nuts.
“I believe in you.” Ezra leaned back on his elbows and gazed up at the sky. Chaz ached to trace the lines of Ezra’s neck with his mouth and see Ezra’s reaction. Maybe if things were normal, like at his cottage, he’d attempt to tease Ezra. Now was definitely not the time, despite what his body was telling him.
“Have you ever gone camping?” Chaz could distract himself from ravishing Ezra by asking questions.
“When I was a kid, yeah. We went canoeing on the Grand River. We also attempted to canoe the length of it but too many dams. We were determined though.” The smile on Ezra’s lips was warm, and Chaz wished he could see his expression in a better light. It was probably soft and sweet as Ezra reminisced.
“That sounds like fun. I’ve portaged up north near Algonquin but not much else. I despise carrying around my own transportation.” Chaz bumped shoulders with Ezra, hoping it would calm his urges. The brush of shoulders had to sate him until Chaz was sure Ezra was ready. God, this desire to see what Ezra tasted like, what he sounded like, was out of his norm, and it left Chaz bewildered.
“Yeah, carrying around a canoe does suck a bit. Gosh, I haven’t thought about this in years. I kinda miss going out on the water.” Ezra shivered, jostling Chaz a tiny bit. They hadn’t done anything with the wood Ezra had prepared.
“I’m gonna start the fire. You’re starting to get goosebumps. I might have a sweater in my pack.” Chaz dug into his pockets for a lighter while pulling his backpack closer. “Use this to get a flame going.”
“I have your sweater from last night in my pack. I planned on giving it back. So you don’t need to worry about me,” Ezra mumbled. His head was turned away from Chaz. His shy behaviour set off something in Chaz, and his cheeks warmed. Somehow, in the last five minutes, they went from adults to preteen boys nursing their first crushes. Joy.
“That’s great. Good. I’m not sure what the nighttime temperatures will be, but we won’t be comfortable,” Chaz rambled. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath while giving himself a pep talk. Earlier, he had a decent conversation with Ezra, and they both chatted like normal adults. Why couldn’t he do it now? Nothing had changed. Except Chaz opened the door to possibilities when he gave Ezra a throwaway kiss. “I’ll start the fire, and we can nibble on some more snacks while figuring out our game plan.”
“Works for me. Do you need anything?” Ezra’s voice had gone squeaky with a tiny bit of a stutter. Chaz exhaled, as he wasn’t the only one going through an emotional crisis.
“No? Not right now. Do you still have a pile of extra sticks close? We’ll want to keep this bad boy going for as long as possible.” Chaz leaned over the small tower to block the wind as he placed a lit twig on the bottom. The fire started and grew quickly. Soon there was enough light Chaz could see Ezra.
Ezra had a thousand-yard stare, his eyes trained on the darkness. Despite his upbeat commentary, something else seemed to have preoccupied his mind, which worried Chaz. Ezra had been keeping their spirits up. What happened?
“Ez? You good?”
“What? Yes, of course. Just a long day? With a tonne of scary moments.” Ezra pulled his long legs up to his chest and rested his chin on his knees. He was so curled in that more worries piled onto Chaz.
“Right? Though we can plow our way back to reality. Cause we’re pals and buddies. We know what we’re doing, and we have mad skills. Also, we’re part of SPAM. This type of shit happens all the time.” Maybe not this sort of situation, but others like it.
“Really? Dead bodies and getting lost in the woods?” Ezra cocked his head. The disbelief in his voice made Chaz smile.
“Yep. Quite a few missions go sideways like this. And SPAM mostly wins. Maybe not how you expect, but we do.”
“I have never read a mission report like that before. And I’ve read them all.” Ezra flung his arms out in emphasis. Finally, the dramatics.
“Those are the sanitized versions. Completely different animals.” Chaz nodded. “In order to get money from the governments, we must present ourselves as neat and tidy heroes. They don’t have to know all the minutiae.”
“You fudge the reports?” Ezra asked, scandalized. His voice had gone high and squeaky in shock. Chaz couldn’t help needling his elbow into Ezra’s side.
“Only in the cases where money matters. Like this one. There’s no way in hell we’re putting anything in there until the mission is solved. We can’t let anyone know fuckups happen,” Chaz said with a straight face. “If we do, the funding disappears, and April’s final form comes out. We all die.”
“What? Really?” Ezra gasped. He was deep into the story that Chaz had weaved. He hadn’t noticed Chaz was putting him on.
“No. Jeez, Ezra.” Chaz leaned back on his elbows and stared up at the sky. Wispy clouds blocked the stars. “Tomorrow, we’ll find the path home. I can promise you that.”
“I believe you.” Ezra was silent for a moment before he spoke. “So… you never told me what’s in your bag.”
“Stuff.”
“What kind?” Ezra pushed. He reached for Chaz’s backpack and began pulling on the zippers. “It feels like a normal pack.”
Chaz hated talking about his bags. It was a quirk where any bag he carried was filled with everything required to make a trip easier, like snacks, a small stove, and warm clothes. However, the bag never held what he needed to make the adventure shorter, like a compass that worked.
“I packed the essentials, and it might have some extra space we can’t see.” Chaz snatched the pack away and set it on his other side.
Ezra narrowed his eyes before huffing. He threw another branch on the fire and hissed as the sparks went everywhere. “Fine. So… that kiss.”
Ahh, there it was. The challenge. The topic that had been circling his thoughts all evening.
“Lovely, wasn’t it?”
“It was,” Ezra agreed. “But I–I was wondering if there was a reason?”
“You looked adorable, so I took a chance. Worked perfectly.” Chaz grinned. Teasing Ezra was fast becoming one of his favourite pastimes. Kissing Ezra was a treat and a way to see if the chemistry between them burned out with physical touch.
“So, it was a lark?”
“What? No. No, absolutely not. Well, not really. Yes, I did it to make you angry, but I was curious to see what you tasted like.” Chaz fumbled once more as he tried to poke fun at Ezra, but also boost his ego. “I’d do it again if we weren’t lost.”
“Can we try?” Ezra asked over top of Chaz’s words. His eagerness astounded Chaz, leaving him to find reasons why they shouldn’t kiss.
“Well, sure we could. But doesn’t it feel awkward? We should wait until the moment’s right.” Chaz shifted around as he grasped at any straw. This location, being away from civilization unwillingly, did not give him any romantic vibes.
“When will that be? We should be spontaneous, strike while the iron’s hot. Attack without notice!” Ezra rolled from his spot until he landed on Chaz’s lap. His long limbs sprawled out while he rested his forearms on Chaz’s torso. As he gazed deep into Chaz’s eyes, Chaz melted at the emotions tangled together in Ezra’s searching look. Worry, anxiety, fear, and a smidgen of hope. That guided Chaz as he looped his arms around Ezra’s narrow waist and pulled him closer. Chaz smiled at Ezra and was gifted with a beautiful smile in return.
“You do realize you’re opening Pandora’s box, right?”
“What do you mean?” Ezra mumbled. His lips glistened from being licked. Whether it was from nerves or excitement, Chaz didn’t care.
“Once we start, there’s no going back. You can’t say it wasn’t in the cards. We are the cards.” Chaz slid a hand against Ezra’s throat and grinned as Ezra swallowed. Good, they were in the same boat.
“I get it. I agree. I mean. Please, just kiss me.” Ezra lowered his mouth close to Chaz, allowing Chaz to feel his warm breath against his lips.
The desire to take Ezra was so strong that Chaz dived right in. The taste of cranberries and mint caused Chaz’s brain to explode as he kissed Ezra. Everything was right and perfect. Ezra allowed Chaz to lead as they embraced.
Chaz trailed his hand down Ezra’s back to his waistband, where he tickled the soft skin at the base of his spine. Ezra squealed against his mouth, but the combination of Ezra’s lips against his own and the downy skin against his hands stole Chaz’s reasoning. They should have been on a bed at his cottage, but fate screwed around, and Chaz had to play with Ezra under the twinkling stars. Chaz licked the soft lower lip and paused, seeking permission. When Ezra opened his mouth, Chaz waited. Ezra had to give him some other sign he was okay with their journey. When Ezra glared at Chaz, he used that as permission to slide his tongue alongside Ezra’s. The sensation was explosive, sending Chaz on a spiralling cascade of lust and desire. Fucking hell. How was Ezra still single? The man was dynamite.
They rolled to their sides, their legs entwining as they kissed. Chaz’s mind was filled with the taste and feel of Ezra. The weight of his body and the heat emitting from his skin drove Chaz wild. Nothing from the day entered Chaz’s mind as he sucked on Ezra’s mouth.
A nearby rustling in the bushes distracted Chaz briefly before he dove back into the temptation of Ezra. Random noises were to be expected in the woods. Raccoons and squirrels made the forest their home. Chaz closed his eyes and slid his hands into Ezra’s pants, stroking the cleft of his ass, and he grinned when Ezra jumped.
Another rustle. Even closer this time. Chaz stared hard at the treetops as he attempted to even out his breathing. Ezra remained still in his arms. Chaz met Ezra’s gaze and arched an eyebrow. Ezra shook his head. He didn’t know what was making the loud noise.
Something howled, and it was nearer than Chaz liked. He batted at Ezra until he was able to stand. Ezra snuggled up to his back as he stepped away from the fire. Another rustle.
“What was that?” Ezra’s warm breath tickled the overheated skin on Chaz’s neck. It only reminded him of what the damned animal had interrupted.
“Not sure. Likely coyotes.”
“Really? Are we going to get hurt?” Ezra pressed tighter against Chaz, which he hadn’t expected was possible.
“Not if we stay vigilant. We should relocate to the outcropping so we can protect our backs.”
They changed locations quickly and settled against the mossy damp stone. It wasn’t as comfortable as the log, but their rears were protected. Chaz snapped the lid on the containers, regretting bringing them out. Bears had sensitive noses and could smell food from a long way away. They were probably watching and waiting for their opportunity. But Chaz didn’t dare mention that to Ezra.
“The fire should protect us, as long as we keep it going.”