Something in the Way(36)

"Nobody," she stated.

"Exactly. People have different skills, Tiff. Use yours. It can't be easy to put that black shit on your eyelids."

She giggled. "Eyeliner? It's not. It's hard, actually."

Did I think twelve-year-olds away from home should be learning to apply  makeup? Not really. But in the scheme of things, I guessed it wasn't so  bad if it meant it'd change their experience here for the positive, and  Tiffany's, too. "Give them a lesson."

"All right," she said. "I guess I could try that. Then I'll teach them how to be stylish, even in hiking boots."

"There you go." I finished off both desserts and stood. "I'll walk you back."

She also got up. "It's still early."

"Not in camp time. It's like I need twice the amount of sleep here."

As we walked outside, she grabbed my hand, but when I squeezed hers, she  relaxed. My palm was probably clammy. The site was quiet, even more so  as we headed into the woods. I could've used a cigarette, but I didn't  want to stop. Best I got her to her cabin quickly.

She took it upon herself, though, not that it surprised me. She stopped,  getting me to look back with a light tug on my hand. "I want to thank  you for dinner."

"How?" I asked, but I knew.

She rose onto the balls of her feet and pressed her lips to mine. I  stood still as a statue, as did she. This was the point where I was  supposed to take over. I put my arm around her waist. For all her  bravado, she melted against me quicker than I would've guessed,  dissolving into our kiss. It didn't matter that I wasn't sure if I  wanted it. It was happening. Any guy at this camp would've killed to be  in my position.

I tried not to think of the horse earlier, of the defiant pout I'd left behind when I'd picked up Tiffany for our date tonight.

I didn't realize my hand was on the back of Tiffany's head until I  pulled her hair, and she moaned, bringing me back to the moment. She  pushed her tongue against my lips, and I opened my mouth. I owed her my  attention, but she also demanded it. She wrapped her arms around my neck  and kissed me harder. I followed her lead, going through the motions,  trying not to give in to the wet, willing mouth attached to mine. She  took my bottom lip between her teeth and nipped it. My dick woke up.  Fuck, this girl knew what she was doing.                       
       
           



       

An owl hooted so loud, I jumped back as if we'd been caught. I held her at a distance by her waist.

"What?" she whispered.

"I . . . should get you back."

"Seriously?" She stepped into me and trailed soft fingers along the back of my neck, playing with the ends of my hair.

It'd been months since I'd kissed someone. Two seconds in, we'd stripped  down to jump in bed. She'd told me her name, but I couldn't remember it  now.

"I'm just getting started," Tiffany said.

"I know." Between being turned on and needing to keep our bodies apart, I  was a little out of breath. "That's why I have to stop. You're getting  me excited, and there's not really anything I can do about it until we  get home. Know what I mean?"

"Who says we have to wait?" She removed an arm from around my neck, lowering it to my pants.

I caught her wrist. "I promised Gary we'd keep it PG."

She smiled. "How would he know? Unless he's watching with binoculars, the pervert."

"I told you." I had to force the words out while my angry cock throbbed. "I like to take it slow."

She sighed, softening against my chest. "I guess. But this is super slow."

"And what's wrong with that?" I asked with a grunt. Here was a girl who  had what men wanted and actually knew it. Why give it up so fast? "You  should be the one making me wait."

She moved away from me. "What do you mean?"

"You know what you're worth." The only sound was her breathing. "It'll happen," I said. "Just be patient."

She didn't respond right away. What she was thinking about, I had no  idea. "Okay," she said finally. "We can stay slow for a while."

"Good." I took her hand again and led her to her cabin. "See you in the  morning. Seven o'clock sharp, all right? I don't want to see you on  cleaning duty again."

She wandered away, a little dazed, while I wondered why pointing out her worth had only seemed to confuse her.





18





Lake





For the second night in a row, Manning didn't come to the dining hall  after lights-out. Tiffany did-at least that meant she wasn't with him.  With Manning away, boys had been approaching her all night like bees  with honey or moths to a flame. That's what Tiffany was to them, whether  they knew it or not. A honeyed-flame. One poor guy had been circling  for an hour, working up the nerve to talk to her. Tiffany didn't even  notice him.

Tiffany, Hannah, and I sat in a circle on the floor with a few other  counselors. Tiffany crossed her legs under her. "I don't remember half  these guys from high school. It's like they haven't seen a girl in  months."

"They probably spent four years thinking they'd never get a chance to talk to you," Hannah said.

"Most of them are geeks." She scrunched her nose. "I guess that can be sexy."

I glanced around to make sure none of them were within hearing distance, then changed the subject. "How was last night?"

She checked her makeup in her compact. "Last night?"

"Your date."

"Oh." She snapped the mirror shut. "So good. So so good."

The hairs on the back of my neck prickled. "Really?"

"Not even in a sexual way. Manning just made me realize I've been dating boys all this time when there are men out there."

"How?" It came out as a whisper, so I cleared my throat. "What did he do?"

"He arranged this dinner just for me. We had a great talk, where he opened up so much."

"About what?"

"Our relationship and stuff." She shook her head. "His sister died."

It came out fast, like an afterthought or an unwarranted slap across the  face. I couldn't believe he'd shared that with her after I'd asked  about his family and he'd said he didn't talk about it. With anyone. Not  even me. He'd given Tiffany this intimate piece of himself and me  nothing.

When the shock wore off, it hit me. He'd had a little sister. And she  was gone. His gentleness with me, at times, could be almost brotherly,  the way he didn't smoke or curse in my presence. I couldn't deny the  attraction between us, but it made more sense, his sadness, his  intensity, if he was a big brother without a little sister.

"Then he walked me back to my cabin," Tiffany continued. "He never acts like I owe him anything. He was a gentleman, you know?"

That sounded like Manning to me. A gentleman, someone who'd never push  me to do anything I wasn't comfortable with. I wanted that for Tiffany,  to be treated well, but not enough to give her Manning.                       
       
           



       

"Can you be more specific?" I asked.

"He was trying to be polite at first . . ."

At first. At first? "Then what?"

"Here's a lesson you're going to learn sooner or later, Lake, so it  might as well be sooner. Men's brains turn to mush with a little  physical contact."

My chest rattled with each breath, caving in on itself. I didn't even  know enough about men to understand if getting physical could mean just a  kiss or if it was always more. What I wouldn't give for a dinner date  with Manning. And then to be alone with him afterward, to have our first  kiss in the quiet dark under pine trees.

"I'm starting to like this place," she said. "It's romantic."

I didn't get a chance to ask for details. The boy who'd been pacing  around like a predator finally pounced. "Tiffany, right?" he asked. "We  went-"

"High school?" she asked.

His face lit up as he wrung his hands. He was definitely more prey than predator. "Yeah! You remember. Armando Diaz."

If Manning wasn't coming, I didn't want to be here. "You can sit here, Armando," I said, standing.

He took my spot without a glance in my direction. "Thanks."

After saying goodnight to Hannah, I left the hall. My tennis shoes  barely made a sound on the forest floor on the way to my cabin. Bushes I  couldn't even see rustled. There were no lights, just the sliver of a  crescent moon, but even it was blocked by trees. Frogs burped a chorus  by the lake.

I heard footsteps before I saw anyone. It unnerved me, not being able to  see who was there, which direction they were coming from. I turned  around. "Hello . . .?"

"You're not making a very good case for walking alone in the woods," Manning said.