“I think I was the one that started the bar fight,” River insists as his face lights up from the oncoming traffic.

My mouth hangs open. “What? It was over me!”

“But I was the one who hit the guy,” he argues.

“Well if you want to get technical, he hit you first. And since it was all over me, I started the bar fight.” I smile, full of excitement, embarrassment, and maybe feeling a little shameless.

He lets the subject drop as we quietly drive back to the hotel.

When we get back, I grab a bucket of ice and put some in a towel. I crawl up on his lap and hold it on his jaw. “It’s already starting to bruise,” I say, lightly trailing a finger across the purple bruise forming on his jaw.

It feels like everything around us quietens as he looks up at me with sincere eyes. “It’s alright. I’d do it all over again for you.”

I feel myself blush. “Did he hit hard?” I ask, keeping the ice on his jaw, the simple touch making my stomach tighten with the fire burning inside of me.

“The guy was easily two-hundred and fifty pounds. Yeah, he hit pretty hard!”

I look down and see that his black and blue flannel shirt had all the buttons ripped off the front from the fight. “Awe, your shirt is ruined too. I love this shirt on you.” The various shades of blue and teal contrasting with the black, makes his eyes pop. I run my hand down his chest where the row of buttons should be.

When I look back up, his eyes are clouded over as his lips find mine. I’m totally lost in our kiss when he pulls away. “So, be honest, who’s a better kisser, me or that biker?”

I smack his shoulder, my hand slipping to hit his bruised jaw.

“Ow!” he calls out while I apologize around my giggles.

“Yeah, you seem real sorry.” He stands, holding me in his arms, against his chest as he spins us around. He lays me on the bed and starts crawling up my body. “Since I’ve met you, I’ve been bitten in the ass by a duck, and got into a bar fight.”

I run my hands under his shirt, my fingers gliding across his washboard abs. “I think you need to toughen up if you’re going to be hanging out with me.”

He pauses on top of me like he’s surprised by what I said. “Oh yeah? You’re just another rebel without a cause, huh?” He lifts himself up to his knees, pulling off his shirt.

I bite my bottom lip and nod, trying to hide my smile.

* * *

It takes a few more days, but we’re finally half way to Miami. I haven’t tried to cross anything else off the list, not after all the trouble it got us into the last time. We drive all day, stopping only for gas and bathroom breaks. Then when the sun begins to set, we find a small town to crash for the night.

We just made it to Kennard, Texas and, instead of staying in another boring hotel, we stop at an outdoor store to grab some camping supplies.

I’m a city girl and have never camped in my life, but River says it’s something I need to do, even if it’s not on the list.

We pay for one night in the Davy Crockett National Forest and set up camp.

River gets to work starting a fire while I read the directions to put up the tent.

“Think you can manage?” he asks over his shoulder.

“Think you can manage to not burn down the whole forest?” I shoot back.

He flips me off before turning to his work.

I giggle as I start pulling pieces out of the bag. I follow along with the directions, laying the tent out flat, and then move on to piecing together the poles. I lay the poles across the top of the tent like the picture shows and step back, looking at it.

There are three poles lying on top of the tent. Two make a big X and the other lies across the X horizontally. It’s just like the picture.

“What’s wrong?” he asks, dropping his pile of wood in the fire pit.

I spin around to face him. “How does it pop up?”

He cocks his head to the side and draws his brows together. “How does what pop up?”

I pick up the bag the tent was in and show it to him. “It says pop up tent. I laid everything out just like the picture shows, but how do you get it to pop up?”

His eyes flash from me, to the picture of the tent on the bag, and then to the tent lying flat on the ground. “Wait. You expect the tent to just pop up? Like, on its own?”

“Well yeah! Why else would it be called a pop up tent?”

His laughter cuts through me. I smile, not sure what’s so funny. When he begins to calm down, he looks at me and it just starts all over again.

It’s starting to get annoying. “Why are you laughing?”

“You...” More laughing. “…think… the tent…” He stops talking while more laughter escapes him. “…is going to just pop up?” When he says the word ‘pop’ his hand goes from a fist to all his fingers outstretched like an explosion.

I cross my arms over my chest. “Would you stop fucking laughing and tell me what’s so damn funny? Does it not pop up like it says?”

He’s clutching his side from laughing so hard. Tears are streaming down his bright red face. I’m sure my face is growing red from anger.

“Can I help you folks?” a park ranger asks as he walks up on our camping site.

River points at him “Ask him your question.”

I turn to the ranger in annoyance. “My stupid boyfriend bought this pop-up tent. I followed the directions exactly. See?” I show him the paper with the images on it. “Why isn’t it popping up?” I suddenly realize that I just called River my boyfriend. Panic sets in, but when I turn and look back at him, he’s still so busy laughing that he didn’t catch it. Thank God!

River is still rolling as the ranger does the same thing he did. He looks at me, the picture, and then the tent. “You do realize that those poles slide into the pockets to pop it open, don’t you?”

River stops to take a breath. “No, she thinks it just pops…” he does the hand gesture again. “…open, like on its own.”

The ranger chuckles, causing River to start all over again.

I tug the paper out of his hands and move back to the tent. How was I supposed to fucking know? I’ve never put together a tent before. If something says pop up, it should fucking pop up!

I slide the poles into the little pockets I hadn’t seen before and little by little, the tent starts to pop up. I feel embarrassment wash over me.

* * *

After the fire is going and the tent “pops up,” River and I are sitting around the burning logs, cooking hotdogs on sticks, something else I’ve never done.

“So did you camp a lot as a kid?” I ask, just wanting to know more about him.

“No, my mom couldn’t take the time off work to go. Plus, camping requires a lot of stuff we didn’t have.”

I have a feeling I shouldn’t ask, but I do. “What about your dad? Were they divorced?”

“No, they were never married. My dad knocked my mom up and refused to be a part of our lives.”

“Have you ever met him?”

“Yeah, I’ve met him. When my mom got sick, I showed up at his house to ask for some money. I figured it was the least he could do, he has plenty of it. It’s not like he stuck around to help raise me. I figured giving away money would be easy for him, unlike giving a shit about me and my mom.”

“What happened?”

“He told me to get off his property before his new family came home and caught me there. Didn’t give me a fucking dime.”

I feel my heart crumble for him. “What was wrong with your mom?”

He rubs the light scruff on his jaw. “Um, she was diagnosed with lung cancer. She never was a smoker, but she waitressed in restaurants that allowed smoking and she worked in clubs and bars. She was always around it. I remember her coming home smelling of smoke so bad it burned my eyes when I hugged her.” His Adam’s apple bobs in this throat. I can see how much talking about this hurts him.

“I’m sorry for asking. You don’t push me to talk about Katie, I didn’t mean to push you.”

He pulls the hotdog out of the fire and places it on a bun. “You didn’t force me. I like sharing things with you. I just don’t want to give away all my secrets just yet and break the spell for you.” He smiles after quoting his words from before.

“Here.” He hands me the hotdog. “Let me know what you think about your first roasted hotdog.”

I take it and study it, making sure it’s not covered in soot or dirt or anything living.

“It’s not going to hurt you. Just try it,” he urges.

I take a deep breath and close my eyes to take a big bite.

“Without the teeth, that’s a nice image,” he jokes.

I lean over and smack him while chewing and swallowing.

“So?”

I nod with a smile. “It’s not bad.”

“Not bad?” He scoffs. “Just wait until you try the smores.”

“I’ve had smores.”

He puts another hotdog on the stick. “But have you had them made on an open fire, not in a microwave?”

“No, I guess not.”

“Did you spend your life under a rock?” he teases.

I laugh. “Kind of.”

We spend the rest of the night eating our hotdogs and smores which are amazing. I discover I like them much more than microwave smores. I love them burnt to a crisp: when the outer shell peels off.

I also learn more about River. He doesn’t realize this, but the more I come out of the shadows, the more he shows himself to me. The real him. The person he used to be, the reason he is the way he is, and I love him even more for it.

He pours a bucket of water on the fire before we crawl into the tent and below the sleeping bag.

The wildlife goes on around us. It’s relaxing hearing the crickets chirp and the soft sounds of the water rippling. The smell of the wet earth is all around us, mixing with the scent of the pine trees. River’s deep, rich scent mixes perfectly with our wooded surroundings.

I roll over to face him, and I place my hand on his angular jaw, tilting his head to the side to meet my stare. “Thank you for telling me a little about your life.”

He moves, placing his arm behind my head, bringing me closer against his body. “You don’t have to thank me. I’ll make you a deal.”

“What deal?” I look up at him wide eyed.

“Each time you mark something off your list, I’ll tell you something about my past. It might not be something big or dramatic, but just a memory or something that has affected me in some way.”

“Deal!” I move my mouth to his and he kisses me softly.

He slowly rolls us until I’m on my back and he’s on his side, facing me. His right hand runs down my arm, latching onto my wrist before he pulls it above my head.

He pulls his left arm out from under my head and does the same until he’s holding me down by my wrists. His lips find mine as he positions himself between my legs that are quivering with need for him.

“Are you going to hold me down?” I whisper against his lips while I move my hips against him.

“We’re in the wilderness now, princess. It brings out the animal in me.” His mouth covers mine as he demands entrance.

This, right here, reminds me of our night behind the club. The way he could go from cute boy-next-door to the dark, sexy, demanding predator at the flip of a switch.

His hot lips trail down my neck while his hands get busy pushing my oversized t-shirt up my thighs, revealing my hot pink panties. His hand runs over my sex and it sends a chill through me. “You’re soaking your panties, beautiful.” He tugs them down my legs. “Let’s just get rid of these.”

The moment they are pulled off, his mouth finds me. His tongue runs across my slit, over the hard nub, making me buck with pleasure. My hand tangles in his hair, not allowing him to move.

He lets out a small laugh, his breath blowing across the wet junction between my legs, and it only makes me want him more.

His big hands wrap around my thighs while he doubles his efforts. The tent fills with the sounds of my heavy breathing and the sounds of him licking and sucking my clit into his mouth. Just as I’m about to let my release go, he thrusts into me, making me come undone around him. Every muscle tightens with my orgasm. I’m squeezing him so hard he can barely move inside of me. He pulls out all he can before pushing back in.

Pure ecstasy has been released inside of me. I don’t think anything of it when I roll him over and take my place on top of him. My fingers are splayed out across his shirtless chest as I ride every inch of him. He fits me perfectly, stretching just enough to add a little pain, but in a good way.

I open my eyes to see his face contorted with pleasure. His brows are pulled together and he’s biting his bottom lip. His hands hold me by my thighs as he lifts me up and pulls me back down as hard and quickly as he can.

My head falls back as my lips part with a loud moan. My eyes flutter closed. I’m no longer in control of my body. It’s pure primal now. I shatter into a million pieces as he lets out a groan and fills me with my muscles clenching around him.

I feel him shudder inside of me before I slide off of him, to his side. I rest my head against his chest, listening as his breathing and heart go crazy for me.

“I’m sorry I didn’t last long. When you rolled me over and rode my dick, I was about to come right then.”

I giggle from hearing his words. “I’m glad I finally pushed you to break.”

He rolls to cover my body with his as he looks deeply into my eyes. “I’ve been broken for a long time, princess. I fucking shattered when I met you.” His lips crash against mine again, and before I know it, he’s back inside of me, breaking me to pieces and putting them back together.

* * *

I wake in the early morning with my back aching. I open my eyes to the sun filled tent and groan. Why did I think camping was a good idea?

I reach for River but he’s gone. I sit up, pulling on my clothes, and step out. He’s up moving around the campsite, packing things away while cooking something over the fire.

“Good morning.” He places a kiss on my forehead.

“What are you cooking? And do you have any coffee?” I ask, blocking the sun from my eyes as I watch him move around with more energy than anyone should have at this ungodly hour.

“Eggs and bacon, and yes, there is coffee.”

I sit down on a big rock next to the fire pit. “Where’d you get coffee?”

“They have a concession stand.” He hands me a paper cup before plopping down beside me. He picks up a spatula and uses it to flip the eggs.

“How do you know so much about camping and cooking like this if you never went as a kid?” I take a sip of my coffee, attempting to wake up.

He looks at me with a wicked gleam in his eyes. “I can only tell you if you cross something off your list.”

I scoff. “Like what? What can I cross off right here in the middle of the woods?”

“Go skinny dipping.”

Fuck, I forgot that was on there. I look around at the tents that are fairly close to ours, but it’s so early, nobody is up yet.

I stand without argument and pull my shirt over my head.

“Really? You’re just going to do it without a fight?”

I toss the shirt in his face. “It’s too early to argue.” As I walk down the bank, I wiggle out of my shorts and panties. He stands from his spot by the fire and watches with a big grin covering his face.

I rush into the cool water and as soon as I’m deep enough, jump below the surface. The cold water helps to cool my overheated body that’s burning with embarrassment. I swim underwater until I can no longer hold my breath. I break the surface, panting for much needed oxygen.

I swim back to shore, watching him the whole way. He hasn’t moved a muscle.

I step out of the water and grab my clothes as I walk back toward him, as naked as the day I was born. When I’m standing at his side, holding out my hand for my shirt, I ask, “Did you enjoy the view?”

He smiles a boyish grin. “I did. I think the rest of the camp did too.” He uses his thumb to get my attention to the rows of tents surrounding ours.

I glance around to see three men, belonging to three different camping parties, watching me with their mouths hanging open.

I scream and dash for the tent while River’s laugh cuts through the silence.

While I’m inside trying to calm my racing heart, I hear a loud whistle before River yells, “alright guys, show’s over!”

I’m sooo going to get him back for that.