Sunday Read online

  He turned toward her in his chair, a large grin on his face. “You have no idea how much I understand that. It’s like learning how to ‘people’ all over again. Last weekend I had to go to a work function – and it was the first time that I’ve ever been to one alone and it was awful.”

  “Oh no,” Eve groaned and rubbed her brow. “Fuck I forgot about that aspect – we have a dinner in two weeks. The people I work with knew my ex and he was one of the things that kept some of the more lecherous men at bay.”

  Jake laughed. “You should make a sign and wear it around your neck – you know, something obvious like ‘fuck off’ or ‘my being here alone is not an open invitation’.”

  “That is a great idea – I might just have to do that otherwise creepy Steve is going to be ridiculously creepy.”

  “Ugh, creepy Steve – he’s so annoying.”

  “He really is,” Eve couldn’t stop smiling. “So, can we just – relax and enjoy the next two days and forget Julia and her secret plans now that we both know that we’re on the same page?”

  “Yes,” he sounded audibly relieved and he raised his beer to her. “Absolutely – here’s to us not having sex and to ruining Julia’s plans.”

  Eve clinked her can to his. “Cheers.”

  ⁂

  The plan to not have sex with Jake or do anything, which had always been her plan, somehow seemed harder to implement after agreeing to it with him. After both of them had made their little pact they naturally calmed down and began talking more openly, discussing their lives and getting to know each other. Which made it incredibly difficult to keep her mind and hormones in line with the agreement given that Jake was incredibly interesting.

  He worked in finance like she did, he enjoyed reading and he wrote in his spare time. He was incredibly well-traveled, he liked movies and he spent Sunday mornings with his family whenever he could. She told him about her job, her family, her hobbies and they realized that they both enjoyed foreign films, tacos, and staying in on weekends.

  When canoeing the next day, they took their own while Julia and Rob paddled ahead of them since the canoes available for rent weren’t large enough for four people. They got stuck twice after being swept into some reeds and Jake tipped the canoe while trying to get them out. They’d had a hell of a time getting back into the thing, as it kept turning over and eventually they’d given up and had to swim to the shore dragging the canoe behind them. Then they had to carry it downstream to a more clear section of the river so that they could get back into it – but the entire ordeal had been hilarious. She wasn’t sure if she’d ever laughed so hard before in her life. She had vegetation stuck in her hair and he had to pull a leach off his leg but they both couldn’t stop laughing. He’d shown her how to portage the canoe and they’d made their way down the shore a hundred meters before they climbed back in.

  It hadn’t taken long for her hair and clothes to dry in the summer heat and he’d helped pick the gross plants from her hair. She had to fight down a blush as he’d shifted to sit closer to her in the canoe – promising that he wouldn’t tip it again and then laughing with him as he pulled dried weeds from her long hair. The closeness had left her feeling nervous. He was so gentle in his contact, the way he brushed her hair to the side and carefully extracted the bits and pieces had almost felt tender. When his hand had brushed across her cheek, she felt her heart flutter and her breath catch in her chest as their eyes locked – both of them frozen in the moment as the air tightened around them until Julia had yelled back to them and broken them from the heated daze.

  It had been unexpected, to say the least, and it had startled her.

  She knew she was physically attracted to the guy – but that had never been enough in the past to make her want someone. She knew the strange pull she was feeling was because she felt like she knew Jake as a person now. She found him attractive as a whole and it was a problem. They’d agreed to just have fun and not let this become a thing, so she needed to let it go and keep the unsettling feelings that knotted her stomach under wraps. Besides, she figured it was probably one-sided, her mind was just being stupid.

  Yet as she cooked her food over the fire across from him that night she couldn’t help but wonder if maybe it wasn’t just her. Their eyes would catch across the flames, they would both smile shyly and then they’d continue talking with the group conversation as if nothing had happened. It sent shivers down her spine and it made her wonder if she was going to be able to keep her end of the deal. She didn’t want to develop feelings for anyone – not lust, desire, or attraction in any way. She just wanted to camp and have a good time – yet the feelings were growing regardless.

  Her thoughts kept her awake late into the night after they’d put out the fire. She laid awake in her small tent staring at the thin fabric ceiling as her mind went over every detail of her interactions with Jake from that day. He’d been fun. She’d had fun – and fun wasn’t something that she was used to having. Her past relationship had been so stringent, so by the books and professional. Aside from having occasional sex, there was honestly nothing to distinguish her relationship with her ex from any other relationship that she’d had with her friends or coworkers. Her relationship with her ex had been serious, unexciting and had become robotic – as if they were both going through the motions but void of any emotions.

  She’d ended it after he’d admitted that he didn’t love her anymore. Yet strangely, he hadn’t wanted to break-up. To him their relationship had been comfortable and safe – it was familiar, and he wanted to stick things out even though he wasn’t invested in her romantically. It had felt like a hollow blow to the chest – but it had also been fair, a true assessment of what they’d become. Two people just existing in the same space but totally disconnected from one another. In many ways, she felt the same way about him. Their relationship had been logical and it was what she should have wanted, but neither one of them actually felt anything while in it. She wasn’t entirely confident that they’d ever felt anything for each other – more so that they’d gotten together and stayed together because it had made sense to do so.

  She sighed and closed her eyes.

  Regardless of her past relationship and whatever thoughts or feelings might be flooding her head now she needed to let it all go. She needed to breathe, relax and just enjoy the next day – it would be their last day on the trip and she didn’t want to ruin things by complicating the situation. She’d made an agreement. She would stick to it, and when they left the following day she would leave feeling rested, composed and she’d maybe even have made a new friend.

  Eve took a deep breath and rolled to her side, curling deeper into her sleeping bag and forcing the air out of her lungs. Tomorrow they were going on another hike, this time up a small mountain and it would take the whole day. She needed her rest, or she wouldn’t be able to keep up. She forced her mind to empty as she laid there, drifting off into an uneasy sleep as images of Jake’s smile floated through her head.

  ⁂

  “Fuck,” Eve’s arm shot out to grab the rocks before her as her leg slipped out beneath her. This trail was a fucking nightmare and if not for Jake’s help she would have fallen on her ass or down the side of the small mountain by now.

  “I’ve got you,” Jake’s hand closed around her wrist and he hauled her up over the tall rock shelf they were ascending. It wasn’t exactly like rock climbing; it was more like having to climb up tall shelves of rock and dirt and Eve wasn’t quite tall enough to reach the top so it involved a decent amount of scrambling on her part to make it up each ledge. Jake had pulled her up several already.

  “Thanks,” she breathed, dusting her hands on her pants and giving him a sheepish smile. “I’m sorry – I should have just stayed at the campsite. This trail is beyond my capacity and now you’re stuck pulling me–“

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” Jake cut her off with a smile as she walked along the short stretch of gentle uphill slope by his side. “You think I’d wan
t to be alone with that.”

  Eve laughed as he gestured his head toward Julia and Rob who were currently much further ahead of them and locked in a passionate and sickeningly sweet kiss.

  “No, I suppose not,” Eve grinned at him.

  “Good, how dare you even suggest such a thing,” he teased as they approached the next shelf of rock. Then he turned to look at her seriously. “Eve – I’m having a great time. Honestly, don’t worry I don’t mind at all. It’s fun – and lots of people need help getting over these ledges – they’re just too tall.”

  It seemed to be a fair observation. Rob gave Julia a lift up almost every single ledge and they were not the only ones on the trail. They’d passed a few couples and had been passed by a few small groups that took a similar approach of boosting someone up each ledge and then hauling their friends up afterward.

  “Okay,” Eve said as she bit her lip. “Well thank you – I am having fun.”

  “Good,” he smiled at her and she felt herself swallow nervously. “Just wait until you get to the top too – if you thought the view yesterday was good well this one is even better, you can see everything. Here come on – I’ll give you a boost this time.”

  Eve placed her foot in his cupped hands and reached for the top of the ledge as he boosted her. Grabbing it tightly and hauling herself over. She turned to see if he needed a hand up but he’d already taken a small run and jump and was hauling himself over the ledge with ease.

  “Ugh it’s not fair,” she groaned looking at him. “I don’t have that kind of upper body strength.”

  He chuckled. “You really don’t give yourself enough credit – especially considering that this is your second trail ever.”

  “Well maybe I’ll have to make this a regular occurrence,” she said as she walked up the steepening path with him. “This is far more fun than I thought it would be.”

  “There are some great trails only an hour from the city – if you’re interested you should check them out. They’re much more reasonable than these.”

  “Really – oh is it part of the park?”

  “Yeah,” Jake grinned at her. “There’re maybe eight of them, they vary in difficulty too so you can work your way up – you know, the way most sane people do.”

  Eve laughed outright. “You think I’m insane for doing this?”

  “No,” he chuckled then turned to point at Julia again. “I think she’s insane for dragging you along on these without preparing you. You – you’re just tenacious, which is incredibly admirable actually.”

  Eve felt a blush form on her cheeks as she stole a glance at him from the corner of her eye. He was incredibly handsome; it was almost as distracting as his personality. Her flush deepened when he turned to her and grinned.

  Why did we make this pact? she inwardly groaned. Though really, had they not made it she never would have gotten to know him. It was sort of frustrating.

  He helped her over the next ledge and the ones that followed until finally, they reached the top of the small mountain and Eve felt her breath vanish from her chest. It was the most incredible view she’d ever experienced with her own eyes. She could see everything, the campgrounds to the South and the water to the North that fed into the river they had canoed the day before. Her view stretched 360 degrees and it made her feel small, humbled like she was just a blip on the radar in the grand scheme of life.

  She followed Jake over to Rob and Julia who were standing on top of a large rock and taking several pictures. She’d not brought her own camera on the trip so she hung back away from them with Jake and waited until they’d finished. They spent almost an hour at the top, sitting in the sun, enjoying the view, drinking the water they’d brought with them and cooling off in the light summer breeze. She felt free. Alive. It was incredible – and when she turned to Jake she realized that he had been staring at her.

  Eve swallowed and gave him a nervous smile. “What?”

  “Nothing,” he smiled, but he didn’t pull his eyes away. “You look really – free, I’m glad that you didn’t stay back at the tent. You would have missed this feeling.”

  “Me too,” her grin widened. “I think I really understand what you meant now about this feeling like a true break. This is – surreal. I’m definitely going to take you up on your suggestion and go hiking.”

  “I’m glad,” he hesitated a moment, his eyes flicking over her before he spoke somewhat nervously. “Depending on when you go – if you uh – ever need a hiking partner let me know.”

  Eve’s eyes widened a fraction as she stared at him. Taking in the slightly uncomfortable expression on his face. He seemed nervous, almost like he wasn’t sure if he should have said it. Then she smiled.

  “Yeah, I will.”

  He grinned at her. “Ready to go back down?”

  “Yes – we should probably head back, Julia said it might storm tonight and it’d be good to get back before those clouds roll in,” she nodded to the North over the lake where the dark clouds had started to gather.

  “Definitely,” Jake nodded, standing and offering his hand to her to pull her from the ground. “I don’t want to be a lightning pole.”

  Eve accepted his hand and fought the shiver that threatened to run through her body at the contact. His hand was warm, strong and sure and she felt her nerves firing on all cylinders as she came to stand before him, his hand still gripped firmly in her own. He was so close to her that she could smell him, she could see the outline of scruff across his jaw and their eyes had locked again into that bizarre pull. She wondered if he could feel her heartbeat racing as he held her hand, both of them staring at one another as if transfixed. She couldn’t look away, she couldn’t breathe and she couldn’t make herself move.

  “We’re heading back down!” Julia’s voice rang out and Eve quickly dropped Jake’s hand.

  “Right behind you!” she awkwardly stepped back from Jake as he did the same, a flush heating their cheeks as they looked at each other awkwardly before following behind Julia and Rob.

  It took them half the time to make the descent as it did to climb up the small mountain but even still by the time they made it to the bottom Eve’s legs were shaking and she felt exhausted. They all took a quick trip to the showers before returning to the campsite to tarp their tents and start a fire for dinner. As she worked with Jake to prepare the food she could feel a tight tension buzzing between them and it made it even more difficult to focus and keep her mind away from dirty thoughts that broke their pact. Their fingers would brush as they worked, their eyes would meet and she would blush, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d ever been this nervous around a guy – probably not since college.

  When Jake went to place the food on the fire with Rob Julia moved to her side.

  “So you two are really not going to do anything are you?” Julia sounded disappointed as her eyes flicked to Jake and back to her. “Eve you both seem to get along – why are you fighting against it. It’s obvious that you like him.”

  “Julia,” Eve whispered as she put away the supplies. “It’s not happening, neither one of us are interested in something like that.”

  “Pfft – yeah right,” Julia rolled her eyes. “He clearly likes you. He obviously would be okay with something happening.”

  Eve raised a brow at her friend who had no idea that she and Jake had already agreed not to allow anything to happen between them. “Julia – why do you care so much? What does it matter if something happens or not?”

  Julia pouted. “Because I genuinely think you guys would be good together – you get along well and you could be a great couple.”

  “Couple?” Eve shook her head. “I knew that’s what this was actually about. You don’t want us to just hook-up you want us to get together – as in together, together. Look – let’s just enjoy our last night okay? It’s probably going to get cut short from the storm anyways and we have a long drive home tomorrow.”

  “Alright fine,” Julia huffed as she grabbed drink
s from the cooler and handed one to Eve. “But you’re missing out.”

  Eve sighed as her friend walked her way back over to the fire. She was probably right – she was missing out. But Eve had missed out on a lot of things in the past and it seemed like that was her lot in life. Besides, she’d made an agreement with Jake and she would not be the one to back out of it and ruin it. If he wanted something to happen then he could make the first move.

  She made her way back to the fire and took the last remaining empty chair beside Jake. They ate dinner in a calm sort of quiet, everyone was too tired from the hike to talk animatedly and instead they just exchanged a few quiet stories as the wind began to pick up and the night grew dark. After cleaning up the rest of their dinner mess Julia decided to turn in for the night first – she’d clearly given up on trying to get Jake and Eve to hook-up and was starting to mope over her failed efforts. Rob stayed by the fire for another hour before he too decided to turn in.

  Then Eve found herself alone next to Jake once more. She did her best to fight down her nerves and ignore the tension that was building through her body in the firelight. The wind had turned cold and it made her skin prickle as they continued to talk and she found herself more and more attracted to the guy. It was like her desire was building with the storm that was inching ever closer to their campsite and it took a conscious effort not to reach for him.

  At some point, they’d shifted in their chairs so that they were leaning towards one another as they spoke, only inches between them as they laughed about Julia’s failed attempt at playing matchmaker – though she couldn’t ignore the way that his eyes glinted in the firelight or the way that his gaze shifted over her.

  “So how long do you think she’ll whine about this not working?” Eve asked him, pulling her sweater tighter around her as the chill from the incoming storm increased.

  “At least a month,” he grinned at her, passing her another drink.

  His fingers brushed hers for what must have been the hundredth time that day and they both froze, Eve’s eyes locking to his as the fire flickered before them. She forced herself to breathe and slowly pulled the can from his hand, clearing her throat awkwardly and tucking her hair behind her ear.