Chapter 42
The lake had always felt like theirs even before everything.
Before deployments. Before grief. This place had been theirs.
And somehow, despite everything life had taken from them, the lake still looked exactly the same.
The water stretched wide beneath a bright Tennessee sky, sunlight dancing across the surface in soft ripples while warm wind moved lazily through the trees surrounding the shoreline.
Somewhere farther off, birds skimmed low across the water, and the familiar dock swayed gently in the distance like time had simply. .. paused here.
Chase stood beside the truck, sunglasses pushed up on his head, looking around with the kind of cautious confusion that had followed him around more often lately.
Then slowly, his brows pulled together.
"No way."
Aria tried very hard to look innocent while unloading the cooler.
"What?"
He looked around again.
The empty shoreline, the closed off boat ramp, and the picnic area with nobody there.
No loud families. No fishermen. No kids screaming while jumping off the dock.
Nothing, it was completely empty.
"Aria." His voice narrowed suspiciously. "What did you do?"
The corner of her mouth twitched.
"I may have..."
She paused dramatically.
"...called in a favor."
His eyes narrowed further.
"With who?"
"Parker."
Immediately, Chase groaned.
"Oh, God."
She laughed. "What?"
"That man should not have county connections."
"He knows people." she explained while giggling.
"He absolutely knows too many people."
Another slow glance around.
"You booked the whole lake?"
"Technically," she corrected, smiling a little too proudly, "I booked this section of the lake for a private weekend event."
His jaw dropped slightly. "A weekend?"
"Well..." She winced. " it's only two days."
"Aria." he said with a fake exasperated tone but he was smiling now.
Trying not to and failing.
"You did all this?"
She shrugged one shoulder, suddenly feeling shy about it.
"I thought maybe..."
Her voice softened.
"We could have something good."
No crowds and no one staring would mean no awkwardness.
No worrying about scars or strangers whispering.
It was just them like they used to be.
Something shifted in Chase's expression after a moment.
Like he finally understood what she had really done here.
This wasn't just kayaking.
She had removed every reason for him to feel uncomfortable.
Every excuse to hide.
His throat worked once.
And before she could say anything else he stepped closer.
Close enough that his hand brushed lightly against her hip.
"You did all this because of me?"
"No," she said softly, then smiled. "I did this for us."
For a second, he just looked at her.
Really looked at her.
Wind moving through her hair.
Blue eyes squinting against sunlight.
Lake behind her.
And something about the moment felt painfully familiar.
A memory of her younger in this same spot smiling up at him as she stood on top of his feet and stretched up trying to steal a kiss from him while he playfully refused her.
"You know..."
His hand slid lightly against the small of her back.
"You keep doin' sweet things like this..." His mouth twitched slightly. "I'm gonna start thinkin' you like me."
Her laugh came easier now. "Oh my God."
"What?"
"You're impossible."
"No," he said, leaning just a little closer. "Pretty sure I'm charming."
"You are not charming your a pain in the butt."
"Sweetheart," he said with mock offense, "I showed you my scars, I deserve at least a little lovin."
That got a real laugh out of her, the kind he hadn't heard enough lately.
Then his eyes shifted toward the kayaks strapped to the truck.
"You remember what happened last time we kayaked?"
Aria paused.
"...No?"
He pointed at her. "You flipped us."
She gasped. "That is not what happened!"
"That is exactly what happened."
"You leaned too far over and blamed me!"
"You panicked over a little fish that jumped in!"
"It touched me!"
He looked horrified. "It was tiny!"
"It was gross!"
Chase laughed, his head tipping back slightly, as he laughed loudly at her horror.
By the time the kayaks were unloaded, Aria had already kicked off her sandals and rolled her shorts up slightly, busy pretending she wasn't watching Chase out of the corner of her eye.
Which was hard.
Really hard.
Because apparently seeing him shirtless had rewired something in her brain.
Because despite his scars he was still devastatingly attractive.
Especially now.
Standing barefoot in the sunlight wearing his black swim trunks and dark faded t shirt.
The same shirt he had stubbornly refused to take off yet, sunglasses hanging loosely from the collar, muscles flexing absentmindedly while he adjusted one of the kayaks like he wasn't physically built to distract a woman with all that strength.
Unfair, it was completely unfair.
"You gonna keep starin' at me," Chase asked casually without looking up, "or help?"
Aria nearly choked. "I wasn't staring."
"Mhm." That smug little half smile appeared. "The views around me must be real interestin' then."
God, she hated when he was confident. Mostly because she liked it a little too much.
"You're unbearable."
"You still booked me a private lake weekend."
He looked over finally, that slow, lazy, far too sexy grin of his spreading across his face
"Feels like somebody likes me."
Heat climbed immediately into her face.
"Move the kayak, pretty boy."
That caught him completely off guard.
His brows lifted. "Pretty boy?"
She immediately regretted it.
Immediately.
Because now he was smiling like a jackass.
"Oh, sweetheart," he said, adjusting the kayak onto his shoulder dramatically. "We flirtin' now?"
"No."
"Cause that sounded a little flirty."
She glared at him irritated now that she was damn near blushed over his words and the way he easily moved the kayak.
"I'm revoking your flirting privileges."
"You gave me flirting privileges?" He quipped, with a fake shocked expression.
"Oh my God." she muttered, throwing her hands up in dramatic fake aggravation before turning on her heel and stomping toward the water like she was deeply offended.
His laugh behind her as he followed her to the dock.
By the time everything was unloaded, the sun sat higher overhead, warm against their skin while soft wind moved across the water.
The lake stretched wide and quiet around them as they dangled their feet in the water below.
Aria leaned back on her hands, letting the warmth of the sun settle into her skin while Chase sat beside her, close enough that his shoulder brushed hers every now and then when one of them shifted. Comfortable. Familiar. The kind of closeness that used to happen without either of them noticing.
For a while, neither of them said much.
They didn't really need to.
Chase nudged her lightly with his shoulder.
"You know," he said, glancing out over the water, "for somebody who claims she didn't flirt with me back there..."
Aria groaned immediately. "Oh my God, we're still on this?"
"You called me pretty."
His grin returned.
"Well you said I was a pretty boy," he corrected dramatically. "Honestly, that felt a little disrespectful."
She rolled her eyes so hard it almost hurt. "You are exhausting."
"And yet," he said, stretching his legs out farther along the dock, "you booked me a private romantic weekend."
Her face warmed instantly. "It is not a romantic weekend."
"No?"
"No." He glanced around slowly.
Private lake.
Picnic basket.
Kayaks.
No people.
Then back at her.
"Sweetheart," he said gently, amusement all over his face, "you practically kidnapped me for emotional healing."
Against her will, a laugh escaped.
Chase looked over at her then, at the way the sunlight was catching the blue of her eyes.
Wind moving through dark hair.
At the way she was trying and failing to hide her smile at his antics.
Something about her sitting there all relaxed and happy hit him square in the chest.
"You're really pretty," he said quietly.
The words slipped out so casually she almost missed them.
Then her head snapped toward him.
"What?"
His expression shifted immediately.
Like maybe he hadn't meant to say that out loud.
Or maybe he hadn't even realized he had.
His expression shifted almost immediately, something awkward flickering across his face as if his brain had finally caught up with his mouth.
"You are," he said quieter this time, rubbing a hand against the back of his neck, suddenly looking far less smooth than she expected. "I just..."
He stopped.
Groaned softly.
Like his words had officially betrayed him.
One shoulder lifted in an awkward shrug.
"...I mean, you..."
Another pause.
Then he huffed out a breath, tossing her a half smile, half grimace like he had already accepted he was about to embarrass himself.
"Look," he said, voice quieter now, more honest somehow. "I think you're absolutely stunning."
His eyes dropped to her for a second.
"The kind of stunning that takes my breath away if I'm bein' honest."
She bumped her shoulder lightly against his, letting her head fall back in exaggerated exasperation before looking at him again.
"You're kinda bad at flirting," she muttered softly, cheeks warming despite herself.
A grin tugged at the corner of his mouth immediately.
"Thought you said we weren't flirtin'."
He bumped her shoulder back lightly.
"Besides," he added, voice quieter again, "I was just statin' facts."
She rolled her eyes.
"Oh, so now you're smooth?"
"No," he said quickly. "Pretty sure I've never been smooth."
That got another laugh out of her.
The kind that slipped out before she could stop it.
And something about hearing it made Chase smile without even trying.
The wind shifted softly around them, carrying the smell of lake water, sunscreen, and summer flowers while sunlight danced across the surface below their feet.
For a little while, they just sat there enjoying the peace and quiet.
Then Chase leaned back on his hands beside her.
"You nervous?" he asked after a minute.
She frowned slightly. "About what?"
"The kayaking." He looked over at her with mock seriousness.
"Given your history of attempted murder."
Her mouth dropped open immediately. "I did not try to murder you!"
"You flipped the kayak."
"You leaned too far!" she said, as she playfully slapped at his arm.
"There was no reason to panic."
She gave him a disgusted look as she rolled her eyes. "There was a fish!"
He looked genuinely offended. "Sweetheart."
"It touched me!"
"It was living in its house and we were the invaders!"
"It had dead eyes Chase!"
That did it, Chase laughed hard enough he had to lean forward slightly, one hand dragging down his face. "You are unbelievable."
"You almost drowned!" she cried out in humorous outrage.
"I was standing."
She pointed at him accusingly. "You still could've died."
"I was in three feet of water." He reached over and playfully tickled her ribs.
Squealing and wiggling out of his reach, she gasped, "That's enough feet to drown!"
His shoulders shook again with laughter.
She didn't think she'd ever stop being grateful for the sound of it.
Eventually, his laughter settled into something quieter.
A smile lingering.
And after a moment, he nudged her foot lightly with his.
"You know..."
His voice softened.
"I'm really glad you dragged me out here."
Something about the honesty caught her off guard.
She looked over.
His expression had changed again from teasing to thoughtful.
Aria looked back out over the lake and the places that somehow still held pieces of who they used to be.
A quiet moment settled between them again.
Then, completely out of nowhere, Chase stood.
Clapped his hands once.
"Well."
He pointed dramatically toward the kayaks.
"Let's see if your fish related trauma has healed."
She gasped.
"You are such an asshole."
"You booked the therapy lake weekend," he said, already dragging one kayak toward the water. "I'm just here to witness your growth."
"You are impossible."
"But handsome."
"Debatable."
He looked over his shoulder.
That slow, lazy, far too sexy grin back in place.
"You were literally just starin' at my ass."
Heat immediately climbed into her face.
"Oh my God."
And just like that they were laughing again while heading for the water.
By the time the sun disappeared behind the trees, the day had settled into them in that quiet, content sort of way that only came after being outside too long.
They had kayaked until their arms hurt, argued over directions, nearly tipped over twice because Chase couldn't stop splashing her paddle with his like an overgrown child.
They shared stories about their lives and the people who filled them. They got into a funny argument over who was more of a drama queen Parker or Chase.
The lake had gone dark except for moonlight reflecting softly across the water, the quiet crackle of a campfire filling the space around them while crickets hummed somewhere in the distance.
Their tent sat a few feet away near the trees, already set up thanks mostly to Chase, because apparently years of survival training made him aggressively good at things like tents and firewood.
Which he had been annoyingly smug about seeing as he didn't fully remember most of it yet.
Aria sat curled into one of the camp chairs with a blanket thrown over her lap, damp hair pulled over one shoulder after swimming earlier, sneakers abandoned somewhere near the tent.
Across from her, Chase sat stretched out in another chair, one arm resting against the side, sleeves rolled up, firelight flickering across familiar features and old scars alike.
He looked... relaxed and tired.
She couldn't remember the last time she had seen him look this calm.
The glow of the fire softened everything about him somehow.
Made the sharp edges quieter.
Made him look younger.
Closer to the version of himself she remembered.
For a while neither of them said much.
Just listened to the fire.
The water.
The strange comfort of not needing to fill silence.
Then Chase looked over.
Caught her staring immediately.
Again.
His mouth twitched.
"You know," he said casually, reaching for his beer, "at some point this crosses into creepy."
She rolled her eyes.
"You're literally sitting across from me."
"Still." That slow grin again. "Feels like I should be concerned at how you can't keep your eyes off me."
"You're so full of yourself."
"Says the woman who spent half the day pretendin' not to stare at me."
She huffed. "I was not staring."
"Sweetheart." He gestured vaguely toward himself. "You saw me shirtless and forgot how to act."
Heat immediately climbed into her face. "Oh my God. Okay, yes I tripped but it was not because you took your shirt off it was totally because I did not see that large rock and it caught my flip flop."
His laugh came easy. It was warm and soft around the edges now.
"Relax," he teased. "I'm enjoyin' it."
She reached down and grabbed the nearest marshmallow bag.
Threateningly she taunted, "I will throw this at your head."
"You would throw snacks at me after I made you a fire?"
"You made fire?" she deadpanned. "Congratulations. Cavemen everywhere are proud."
Chase threw his head back and bellowed in laughter at her taunt.
He laughed until he was coughing.
When he was done laughing, Chase leaned back in his chair, His eyes were now slightly damp from laughing.
He swiped at them as his eyes drifted toward the fire.
"This was a good idea."
She smiled a little. "Yeah?"
He nodded once. "Yeah... thanks."
The night air shifted around them then, cooler than before, wind moving off the lake in soft waves that carried just enough chill to raise goosebumps along her arms.
She shivered once it was a small movement, barely noticeable.
Or at least she thought it was.
Across the fire, Chase frowned immediately.
His whole expression changing.
"You cold?"
She shrugged one shoulder.
"A little."
That was apparently the wrong answer.
Because before she could even fully process what was happening, Chase was already standing.
Beer abandoned.
Chair scraping lightly against the dirt.
"What are you doing?" she asked, laughing softly.
He ignored the question entirely.
"Move."
"Chase!"
"Sweetheart." That tone. Gentle yet firm. The one that apparently meant he had already decided something.
Still confused, she shifted awkwardly in the chair just enough for him to step closer.
And then, without warning he bent slightly, one arm sliding behind her back while the other hooked easily beneath her knees.
Aria gasped. "Chase!"
"What?"
"You cannot just..."
Too late.
Because he had already lifted her like she weighed nothing.
Completely unbothered.
Like this was the most normal thing in the world.
"Pretty sure I just did," he muttered.
Her hands instinctively moved around his shoulders.
"Put me down!"
"No."
The answer came far too easy.
Annoyingly easy.
He turned toward his chair again.
Still holding her.
Completely unaffected by her dramatic protest.
"Sir..."
"Sweetheart," he said absently.
Then, somehow making this even worse he sat back down with her in his lap.
One arm settling automatically around her waist while the other reached for the blanket that had fallen halfway off her shoulders earlier.
Before she could argue, he wrapped it around both of them.
Then tugged her closer against his chest like it was instinct, like his body still knew exactly where she belonged.
"There," he said quietly after a second.
Much too satisfied with himself.
"Problem solved."
Aria blinked once before rolling her eyes and excepting her situation.
She was now entirely too aware of the warmth radiating off him.
The solidness of him and the steady rise and fall of his chest against her back.
The quiet weight of his arm resting securely around her middle.
She melted, her body falling into his warmth and comfort.
Being held by Chase had always felt essential to her emotional well being.
The fire flickered softly in front of them while the lake stretched dark and quiet nearby.
And behind her, Chase shifted slightly, chin brushing lightly against the top of her head.
"You always get cold this easy?" he asked quietly.
She huffed softly. "Yes, is that a problem?"
He kissed the top of her head before answering.
"No, sweetheart," he said quietly, settling back again. "It's not a problem."
One arm tightened slightly around her middle.
Warm.
Protective.
"I'm just filing the information away for the future."
God, that one got her because it was such a small thing to say.
Such an ordinary thing to say but after everything they had endured the idea of a future still felt fragile sometimes.
Hearing him say it so casually.
So naturally.
Like of course there would be a future.
Like he intended to still be here for all the tiny things...
Blankets for cold nights.
Remembering how she took coffee.
Knowing she always forgot sunscreen on her shoulders.
It settled somewhere deep inside her chest.
Warm in a way the fire couldn't touch.
Quietly, she relaxed further against him.
"Good," she muttered softly. "Cause I'm basically cold all the time."
A soft huff of laughter vibrated lightly through his chest behind her.
"Yeah?"
"Mmhm."
He adjusted the blanket higher around her shoulders.
"Guess I'll add 'human furnace' to my resume. You know on the reasons you should keep me around line."
That got a quiet laugh out of her.
"You already have enough ego problems."
"Sweetheart," he said, mock offended, "I got you warm and sweet nestled in my arms right now, are you really going to act like the idea of me being your personal heater ain't enticing."
She snorted. "You are unbelievable."
"No."
His chin brushed lightly against her hair again.
Voice quieter now.
"Pretty sure I'm just yours."
That made her pause.
Because he said it so simply.
Like it was a fact.
Like there had never really been another option.
But to her it was everything.
The fire cracked softly nearby.
Then Chase spoke again.
"You ever think about how crazy all this is?"
She frowned slightly.
"What part?"
A quiet pause.
"That I don't remember most of my life..."
His arm tightened slightly around her middle.
"But somehow..."
He hesitated.
Like he was trying to explain something he didn't fully understand himself.
"I still knew you mattered."
His voice dropped quieter.
"Like... even when I didn't understand why, somethin' in me just knew."
He swallowed once.
"You still felt like home."
God, that one nearly undid her.
He shifted slightly behind her.
"And I know this probably sounds stupid..." A quiet breath. "But I think..."
He paused again.
"Maybe I was always supposed to find my way back to you in order to be me again."
His fingers absentmindedly brushed against her arm beneath the blanket.
"Cause somehow..." his voice softened, rougher now, more honest, "I swear it feels like I'm only capable of being my real self when I'm with you."
A tiny laugh left him.
"Like without you, I'm missing vital parts... like a computer without the hard drive or something." He paused to mumble, "I know it sounds stupid when I say it like that but I can't really explain it."
Then quieter, because he was embarrassed now, he added.
"I think God knew exactly what he was doin'."
His chin rested lightly against her head again.
"Because, I don't think I was ever meant to recover me without you."