Chapter Seventeen
Lucy
The ground was cold with the morning dew as I slinked around on my stomach. My chest was burning, and my nose was flaring, trying to smell and see anything that would help me out of this situation. My heart raced, and I clutched my rifle close to me, scared to make a noise for fear it would alert someone, anyone, to my presence.
Twigs broke in the distance, and I froze, listening for the sounds of whatever was coming toward me. Stomps hit the ground, shaking it underneath me, and all at once, my breathing ceased to exist. Twigs broke, leaves crackled, and the stomping became running, and soon the pace was getting closer and closer, matching my heart pounding faster and faster.
I had to aim and shoot, and I had to do it now. If I didn’t, it would be over. The effort to get where I was now would be lost to the echo of the woods.
“Lucy?”
I heard Jason's voice in the distance, and a wave of relief overcame my body. I grabbed my rifle and aimed my sights down the scope of my gun, waiting for the opportunity to finally dig myself out of this hole.
“Lucy! Where are you!?”
His voice sounded closer, and the stomping neared my body. I cocked my gun and slowly searched the woods, waiting for the proper moment to save myself.
Save myself from the humiliation when Jason realized I was chasing after nothing.
“Lucy! You done makin’ an ass out of yourself?”
I sighed when I heard the deer hooves scamper away from me. I would’ve had whatever it was down the scope of my gun had Jason not come barreling in with his booming voice and his brightly colored clothes. For a man who painted his face and wore camouflage pants, it astounded me that he wore a bright orange hunting vest to the hunting ground.
“You just can’t shut that mouth of yours, can you?” I asked. I jumped up to my feet and dusted the leaves from my body while Jason crinkled his nose at the smell of me. I’d sprayed doe urine on myself to up my chances of landing my buck for the season, but neither of us were having any luck stuffing our deep freezers before the winter months hit.
“I’m about to settle for a doe and call it a season,” he said.
“That’s only my last resort. We’ve still got a few more days of hunting season, so I’m still hopeful. But I’m leaving your bullhorn mouth at home next time. Why the hell do you have that ridiculous thing on your body?” I asked.
“So other hunters around here don’t shoot me like I’m a deer,” he said.
“They aren’t gonna mistake you for a deer. They’re gonna mistake you for Bigfoot,” I said.
“Strong words coming from a girl covered in deer pee,” he said.
“Hey, I’m not the one walking around scaring off the deer for miles with that blow horn on your face.”
“I’ll have you know this blow horn is what found you in the middle of the woods hunkered down in some brush waiting for a squirrel or some shit to come by.”
“Hey, squirrel is actually decent meat.”
“Of course, you would know that,” he said.
“I’m gonna make you some squirrel stew sometime. I swear, you’ll even think it’s chicken.”
“Nope. Sorry. I’ll just take your word for it,” he said.
“Suit yourself. More for me.”
“Let me know when you eat it, though.”
“Why?” I asked.
“So I know not to kiss you or anything.”
We chuckled as we found our way out of the woods empty-handed yet again. Hunting season had been brutal, and neither of us had shot anything remotely resembling a deer this season. But, I was still having fun getting down in the dirt and blending in with nature like I used to. I wasn’t the hunter that sat up in the trees and waited for something to cross my path. Oh no, I was the hunter on the ground, looking up at my shot and taking it while the unsuspecting animal was only a few feet out in front of me.
It’d been a while since I’d been hunting. These past few years, I’d just gone to the store and dropped an insane amount of money for the meat to stow away for the winter time. I hated grocery shopping when it snowed around here, so whatever I could pack in my deep freezer before the first cold snap hit, I’d pack it down.
Come to think of it, I hadn’t been hunting since David died.
“You alright?” Jason asked.
“Yeah, just thinking,” I said.
“About David?” he asked.
“I just realized I hadn’t been hunting since he passed, and I forgot how much I’d enjoyed it.”
“Well, I’m sure he would enjoy the fact that you were out having fun.”
“I’m sure he wouldn’t appreciate me being out with such a handsome man, though,” I said.
“Well, maybe he’ll make an exception. You know, under the circumstances.”
Jason bent down and took my lips within his, and my entire body warmed at the touch. We’d been seeing each other regularly the past couple of weeks now, and things were going well. Despite his reputation, he hadn’t pressured me to go to bed with him or anything, and I felt comfortable physically expressing myself with him in situations like this. Actions like kissing and holding his hand that had once stirred emotions of guilt now fluttered my stomach in ways I hadn’t experienced in years. As I took his hand and we walked out of the woods, I realized something else.
“I guess you’re never gonna take me inside to do anything, are you?” I asked.
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“I mean, first we go to the lake and then we went fishing. You took me on that hot-air balloon ride, and now, here we are hunting. Do I suck that much to sit on a couch with?”
“Hardly. I’m just an outdoor kinda guy. Why? You wantin’ one of those fancy dates where you put on a sexy dress, and I put on a pair of pants that are way too tight for my ass, and we tease each other under the table before ripping each other’s clothes off in the foyer?”
“That a threat or an invitation?” I asked.
“Depends on how you’d react,” he said.
We walked hand in hand back to his truck, and we slung our stuff in the back. I took off the layers of clothes I had that smelled like doe urine, and he took off that gaudy-looking orange vest that I couldn’t stop giggling at. Then, we loaded ourselves into the truck, and Jason cranked it up.
“Thank God, you don’t smell like piss anymore,” he said.
“Why’s that? Don’t like the smell of doe pheromones?”
“Nope. Bigfoot no like smell deer,” he said mockingly.
I threw my head back in laughter while he navigated us out of the woods, and when my laughter had finally calmed down, I settled my hand onto the top of his. With every date, I felt calmer and more relaxed around this man, and every date brought something new that I learned about him. On the lake trip, I’d learned about our shared kindred connection of life experiences, but on the fishing trip, I learned he was a damn good swimmer. I’d fallen out of the boat trying to wrangle a fish in, slipped on the bottom of the boat, and toppled head first into the water. My leg had gotten hooked around stuff on the bottom of the lake, and when I didn’t surface, I discovered exactly how powerful his body was.
He dove down and ripped the weeds and shit up from the bottom of the lake before he brought me up with him, and then, he dragged my heaving body back into the boat after swimming dozens of feet back to it.
Then, I learned on the hot-air balloon ride how awkwardly afraid of heights he was. I laughed at him when I realized why he was white-knuckling the side of the basket we were in, but I also learned on that trip how much having me there was calming to him. He wrapped his arms around my body, and I pressed my back deep into his chest, and suddenly, his breathing evened out, and his heart rate settled to a normal pace while we gazed out over the expanse of Washington.
It was comfortable, being around him, and I was really beginning to enjoy it.
“So, I was wondering,” Jason asked, “what are your plans for dinner?”
“Well, had I nailed a deer, that would’ve been it. But, since you botched my plans with that mouth of yours, I currently have none.”
“Ah, my plan worked,” he said.
“What plan?”
“I was totally botching your hunting plans so I could ask you to come have dinner with me and Jenna tonight,” he said.
“I suppose I could do that. You know, since I don’t have a deer and all,” I said.
“That’s fine, I’ll just let Jenna know she plays second fiddle to a dead animal,” he said with a smirk.
“You better not. You know damn good and well I would’ve canceled any plans I had to have dinner with you two.”
“Really?” he asked.
“Really,” I said.
“Then, dinner at our place it is. Not gonna lie. I’ll probably fry up some steaks and then boil a pot of mac ‘n’ cheese. It’s all Jenna’s eating right now.”
“Steaks and macaroni and cheese sounds phenomenal. I don’t know why you’re snubbing your nose at it. Jenna and I have refined palettes like that,” I said.
“Well, she’ll be excited to know you’re coming for dinner,” he said.
“Good, because I’ll be excited to eat with her.”
“Just her?” he asked.
“Yep,” I said.
And the sound of his laughter cascaded along my body like smooth, melted caramel.