slightly. “Kenny.” The aggravation in her tone was almost palpable. Her bottom lip protruded in a pout as she slid backward out of Rick’s lap and onto the couch cushion. Then the pout dissolved into laughter.
Rick laughed with her, feeling his upper brain clear with the additional oxygen. “I think I’d better go,” he said, and she nodded.
They held hands as they inched toward the door. When they got there, she pulled him back and stood on tiptoes to slide her arms around his neck.
“We’re adults, and we can do this,” she said.
“Absolutely,” he agreed. Not a chance, he thought.
“And there’s no reason we shouldn’t go ahead and have our time together at night when everyone else is asleep,” she said.
I can think of several reasons, he thought. “No reason.” He shook his head.
“We’ll just have to keep ourselves under control and limit the contact to kissing,” she said.
Big mistake, he thought. “Right. And we can do that.” He kissed her softly. “Good night.”
“Night,” she said, and her voice caught in his ear and swirled around pleasantly.
He headed toward his cabin and the cold shower awaiting him. “This isn’t Camp Sunny Daze,” he muttered to the tree frogs he passed. “It’s hell. Pure hell.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“HONESTLY, TARA, I THINK the urge is getting worse instead of better. I thought, after the first couple of days, it would lighten up. But it’s been a week since we had the talk, and it’s getting to the point that it’s all I think about when I’m not busy.”
A ripple of laughter from Tara echoed around her friend’s bedroom as she continued folding her laundry. Ginny and Charlie were showing the kids a movie in the dining hall—a special treat to kick off the week. It was nice having a couple of free hours in the middle of the day.
“I’m not kidding.” Summer huffed. “The corn dog at lunch nearly sent me over the edge.”
Tara gave a hearty laugh and managed to land a towel over Summer’s head. “So just do it, and get it over with.”
“No, I can’t. We made an agreement, and I don’t want him to think I’m some kind of sex addict.” Summer let out an anguished groan. “I mean, I love being with him for the hour or so we have at night. It’s really romantic. We swim or go for walks in the woods. And we talk...about everything. I’ve learned a lot about him and his family and his career, so I’m not complaining. I just want more time with him. Lots more.”
“You shouldn’t be getting this serious so soon. You may have learned a lot about him, but you’ve barely scratched the surface. I mean, Louis and I have been together for eight years, and I’m still learning new things about him.” Tara’s voice trailed away on the thought.
“I think that’s a good thing. You don’t want a relationship to go stale.” Summer folded the towel Tara had thrown at her and set it aside. “Have you noticed that look Rick gets in his eyes sometimes? Sort of a sad, faraway look?”
Tara pursed her lips as she thought. “No. Not really. He always seems pretty upbeat to me.”
Summer shrugged. “Maybe it’s just me. I think he worries more than he lets on. His best friend’s dog tags tattooed over his heart? You’ve got to admit that’s pretty heavy.”
“But sweet.” Tara wrinkled her nose and added, “Sweet in an over-the-top manly kind of way.”
“Maybe I’ll get a couple of tattoos.” Summer kept her face serious as she traced a finger across the top of one breast. “Rick—” and then moved to the other “—Warren.”
“Aye!” Tara shuddered, and Summer smiled that her comment had gotten the desired result. Aggravating her older sisters had been a favorite pastime when she was growing up. Being with Tara was kind of like being with them.
A grin tugged at Summer’s lips. “It would be a way to show him I’m taking this seriously.”
“You’re losing it. You need to breathe.” Tara took some exaggerated deep breaths. “C’mon. Take some deep, cleansing breaths.”
Summer did as she was told and started to relax a bit. She lay back on the bed again as Tara’s breathing continued. “Okay, c’mon! Now you’re being creepy. And the heavy breathing is gonna sling me right back into thinking about sex with him. Talk to me about something else.”
Tara obliged and started chatting about details of the pageant the counselors were planning for the last night of camp. “I have my costume