She squinted at him to try to force his hand, but she couldn’t get a read.
Fine, I’m getting the liquor. You really need to loosen up, Dom, and start telling me the truth.
In the meantime, watch my behind as I walk to the store. That’ll help you out.
Amy turned to check if he was checking her out. He jerked towards the window to try to hide what he was doing.
Gotcha, she chuckled to herself and then went inside to buy a bottle of whisky. Maybe having a drink would be a good idea. Amy needed to unwind herself.
She understood why Dom told her she would be hungry when they parked on the side of a country road. The road was deserted, surrounded by woods on every side. Dom said there was a forest reserve close by where they could conceal themselves, but she expected some sort of guest building or at the very least, a parking lot.
“We’re going in there?” Amy asked.
“Yeah, hope the woods don’t scare you. We need to hide out.”
“They don’t scare me. It’s just - I didn’t plan on a camping trip.”
“You’ll be fine,” he said, holding out his hand and helping her onto higher ground. “Come on, let’s go.”
They made camp a couple of miles in. Dom helped her over the rocks and the fallen branches. Traveling through the woods got them touching, getting closer. Amy was beginning to think differently about her little trip. At first, she refused help climbing over the rocks and whenever the ground got steep, but then it got difficult to say no. A couple times, brushing against him, she thought about clutching against him tighter.
She really wanted to be close to a man, which wasn’t a good sign since she didn’t know if she could trust Dom. Amy reigned in her neediness.
They hit level ground covered with dirt and short grass. At least Amy would get a workout from this.
“Where do you work?” Dom asked.
“I do data entry for an insurance company.”
“You enjoy it?”
“No, not at all.”
“I guess you don’t get much fresh air working in that kind of position?”
“No, I don’t. I miss having so much space.”
“Try to think of this as a vacation.”
“I’ll try.”
The sun was starting to go down when they got to a clearing. There was a circle of rocks around a pit, which looked like it used to house a fire. Dom told her to wait there while he prepared the bonfire. He came back with tinder and more branches. Then he struck a match.
Soon they had a fire started. As he blew on the flame to make it erupt, Amy could feel the same sensation happening in her body. She was getting a little shy. At first, with all the excitement, talking was easy, but she found herself getting more reserved and a little on edge around Dom. She hadn’t been with a man so mature and in control in a long time.
When Dom made the fire she cheered him with the whisky bottle.
“Thank you,” he said, and took a seat next to her.
When they sat down, there was a moment of heavy silence. Being so close, the tension was unbearable.
She broke it. “Let’s drink this sucker.”
Amy was more of a wine girl, but having the fire so close while in the middle of the nowhere made her feel adventurous. She put the bottle to her lips and let some spill onto her tongue. Throat burning, she coughed and almost spit it out.
She handed it over to Dom.
“You all right?”
“Yeah, haven’t drank in awhile, and certainly nothing like that.”
She was happy to see that Dom didn’t chug the bottle. He took a much heavier swig, but Amy hardly tilted hers back. Reserved, that was all he needed. He wiped his lips with a satisfied groan.
“To be honest, I haven’t had a drink in awhile either, at least, not like this, with some company.”
“You do a lot of drinking alone?” Amy stretched out and watched the timbers break off into tiny pieces, drifting off into the wind like pixie dust. Everything about this night was starting to seem fantastical.
“No, that’s not what I meant. I meant with a woman.”
“Oh,” she said, a little surprised. He looked like the type that wouldn’t have a problem with that. “Why not?”
“Long story, but eh-” He shifted, sometimes glancing Amy’s way, but mostly keeping to the flames. “I suppose I can’t use that excuse every time.”
Good, the plan’s working. He’s going to tell me a little more. Amy nodded to him, mouthing “go on.”
“A couple years ago my fiance died. I haven’t been interested in a relationship since.”
“I’m sorry,” Amy said. A part of her, a stupid little voice, said inside her, “Is that why you cracked?” He didn’t crack. You know that. You just don’t want to believe him, because not believing him would be easier than believing the truth. Maybe he is being followed for some reason. Maybe he is ex-CIA.