Because He's Perfect

by Anna Edwards

  I tried to tell them I wasn’t doing this regardless if Jack was here or not, but he shook his head.

  “I thought I heard her say she didn’t want to do it?” He looked at me for confirmation, and I nodded. “I’ll sit this one out.”

  He sat down beside me and Brock shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

  “I’m sure you could find someone to do this with,” I pointed out.

  I felt awful that he couldn’t take part because I refused to climb that high up. The netting in the obstacle course was high enough for me.

  “I’m okay watching, or we could go and do something else?”

  I wanted to suggest the hot tubs but didn’t want to seem boring, so we settled on archery.

  Jack shouted up to let everyone know where we were going, and the smile on Von’s face was unmistakable. I wanted to roll my eyes and shout up that she was being ridiculous, but I could already hear her taunts now.

  I was serious when I said I didn’t think I was ready for anything romantic. How could I be when I was only just gaining back my self-confidence?

  “When did you first find out you were afraid of heights?”

  I joined Jack on the trail that would lead us to the archery tent. “That obvious, huh?”

  He smiled and placed his hands in his pockets. “You looked terrified when you looked up.”

  “I don’t think it’s being high that scares me, I think it’s the feeling of not being in control when I’m up that high.”

  “I get that. It’s not nice feeling like you’re not in control.”

  The wistfulness of his voice made me pay attention, and I peeked up at him. “You sound like you know what you’re talking about. What are you scared of?”

  He grinned, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Nothing scares me, I’m fearless.”

  “Everyone’s scared of something.”

  He turned so he was walking backward as we reached the archery tent. “Not me.”

  We’d spent ten minutes being taught how to use a bow and arrow, and another hour trying to put what we’d learned into practice. Jack was a natural after a few turns and was hitting the target every time, but I’d only hit it twice. It would not be a new hobby of mine, that was for sure.

  I missed again and threw my hand up in annoyance. “I quit.”

  Jack moved behind and handed me another arrow. Our fingertips brushed, but it felt nothing like when he pressed himself against me and put his arms over mine in the target's direction. My whole body quivered.

  “Are you cold?” he murmured in my ear, his breath floating over my lobe and stealing my breath away.

  I barely shook my head and got myself under control to pay attention as he guided the arrow back onto the bow and held my arm in position. My senses felt heightened. Every brush of his fingers, his manly smell, the hardness of his body; it was all too much.

  I let go of the arrow when he breathed, “Now,” and it pierced the target. As soon as he stepped away from me a coldness seemed to settle where he was just pressed against me, but elation soon overtook the feeling.

  My arrow was sticking out from the target and I hooted and hollered, turning and hugging Jack. He squeezed me gently, and I squealed when he picked me up off the floor in a twirl of celebration.

  When he had stopped spinning us, he gently lowered me but didn’t step away, gazing into my eyes. There was something he wanted to say, I could tell, but he let the silence speak for him when he trailed his fingers up the middle of my back.

  For a second, I wanted what he was offering—him—because in that moment I hadn’t had my self-worth and trust in men stripped from me. But it all came crashing down when his gaze flicked to my lips. If he kissed me, I couldn’t handle it. If he kissed me when I wasn’t sure if I was ready, it would undo the great time we’d just had.

  I stepped away from him without a word, and he let me.

  Chapter Five

  Jack

  She thought she was an enigma, but I’d known what she was thinking the moment her expression turned frightened. She’d had the same expression when she’d peered up at the zipline; I’d known she hadn’t wanted me to kiss her.

  But I would have had it not been for that, I was caught up in the moment of celebrating with her. She was easygoing and funny, but she also wasn’t afraid to show she had real emotions. I wished I could be as sharing with mine.

  When she’d asked me what I was afraid of a day ago, I wanted to tell her that I was scared the hallucinations I used to have would come back, even though they hadn’t reared their ugly head since I was sixteen. I nearly told her I was terrified I’d fall asleep while watching Nat’s kids in case something happened to them. She was so easy to talk to, but I took the easy road and hid a part of myself I wasn’t sure I wanted to divulge.

  I tossed the baseball back and forth with Brock like we’d been doing for the last ten minutes while we waited for everyone to get up for breakfast.

  “What do you think of Yvonne?” he asked.

  She was a nice enough girl but definitely more of a serious relationship type compared to Brock’s womanizing ways, and I told him so.

  “What happens at camp stays at camp,” he sang.

  Which was something I was realizing myself. We’d had team games all day yesterday, consisting of three-legged races and water balloon fights so I hadn’t gotten to spend a lot of alone time with Felicity, but last night we’d played pool and had a few beers with the girls in the dining hall instead of going to the party tent like the rest of the campers.

  Felicity beat me twice, but she’d cheated by leaning over the table and distracting me the first time. And she knew exactly what she was doing the second time when she whispered in my ear, making me miss my shot. She was using her curves and closeness to her advantage.

  My pants strained, and I had to adjust myself as I thought about wrapping her cotton candy colored hair around my fist as I—

  “Dude!” Brock gestured to the ball in my hands. “How about keeping your eye on the ball instead of fondling your own.”

  “Fuck you.” I threw the ball hard, and he caught it flawlessly, shaking his hand out afterward since we weren’t wearing mitts. “I was just moving them.”

  “Just tell her you like her already and bring her back to the cabin, man,” Dom said from his seat on the steps of the cabin.

  “I’m not taking relationship advice from someone who thinks that would work.”

  I wanted nothing more than to bring her back to the cabin, but there was something more in it I wasn’t willing to tell them. The more time I was spending with her, the more I craved from her. A smile when I’d told a joke, the way the small freckle on her left cheek would dance when she laughed, the way she’d look at me when she thought I couldn’t see. She looked at me like I’d always wanted Lily to when we were together; like she couldn’t get enough of what I was saying.

  All I’d ever wanted was to spend time with someone that loved spending time with me the way I did with them, no matter what we were doing.

  I used to think it was selfish wanting someone to wait for me to wake up to finish our conversation, but after Lily I’d realized I deserved someone who loved me—condition and all—so I haven’t settled for anything less.

  My arm was getting tired, so I stuck my head around the door of the cabin to wake up Luke and Nat. “I’m going to fall asleep out here if you two don’t hurry up.”

  Both were almost ready and laughed at my joke. I generally made jokes at my expense, it made everything lighter.

  There was a slight breeze in the air; hopefully the river would be rough on our whitewater rafting trip. We had spent no time just us guys since we arrived, so we were taking the opportunity this morning to do just that.

  Felicity was striding out of the dining hall when we arrived. I spotted her pink hair but she hadn’t seen me yet so I hid around the corner, pulling the guys back with me.

  “What—”

  I shushed Luke and peeked ar
ound the corner, putting three fingers up behind me before jumping out in front of the five girls. They shrieked as I was expecting, but what I didn’t expect was the kick in the crown jewels Dani served me.

  I fell to the floor, gasping in pain as the guys “Ooh’d.”

  “Oh my God! I’m so sorry, that was my self-defense training kicking in,” she cried.

  “Are you okay?” Felicity asked as she kneeled beside me.

  I wanted to pretend like everything was fine, but I couldn’t even talk because my balls had crawled up inside my body to find safety.

  “He’ll be fine, give him a minute,” Brock answered for me, but I could tell he was trying his damndest not to laugh at my stupidity.

  “We need to go if we’re going to make the hike,” Yvonne said, touching Felicity’s shoulder.

  The pain had ebbed to a dull throb, and I got to my knees, sucking in a breath. “Go, go, I’ll be fine.” My voice was strained.

  Felicity looked at her friends and offered her hand for me to take. “Let me at least help you up first.”

  I took her hand to appease her but put no weight into it as I got to my feet. “Never jump out on you guys again, duly noted.”

  Dani covered her mouth when she giggled. “I really am sorry.”

  I waved her off because it was entirely my fault. “Go on your hike, we need to get to breakfast, anyway.”

  “Maybe some ice…” Gemma added before she strolled off with Dani and Lennie.

  Yvonne stayed with Felicity when she didn’t move. Her brows were pulled together in genuine concern, and I pulled my big boy pants up and gave her what I hoped didn’t look like a pained smile.

  “I’m fine, go.”

  “I’ll see you later?”

  She sounded unsure, but I tipped my head in a resounding yes; I needed her to leave so I could mourn the loss of my manhood.

  “Okay, enjoy rafting.”

  She turned and left, and I leaned against the dining hall. “Fuck!”

  “My balls are crying for yours,” Nat commented.

  “That was one hell of a kick, I’m a little turned on,” Dom added.

  “Thanks for the concern, cockwombles.”

  FELICITY

  I’d never had a set of balls myself, but I could imagine it was excruciating being kicked hard in them. He’d taken it like a champ though. I remember one time it had happened to my brother, and he’d flipped out.

  “I wonder how Jack is doing,” I thought aloud.

  “Don’t worry, I think it’ll still work,” Lennie joked, and winced when I punched her in the arm. “Violent!”

  “Stop saying things like that,” I searched around. “Someone might hear you and get the wrong impression about me.”

  Lennie and I had decided to take a swim in the lake to cool down after our hike. We arrived at the dock, and I squatted down to take off my sneakers. We both dipped our feet in the deliciously cool water.

  “It’s beautiful here,” Lennie said, her face tipped up to the sun and basking in the rays.

  “Yeah, I’m glad you and Von persuaded me to come.”

  I was finally feeling like I could breathe for the first time in six months. Who knew nature would call to my soul the way it was?

  Lennie squeezed my hand that rested on the dock. “I think we all needed it. I haven’t felt this relaxed in a long time, I missed my girls.”

  Lennie traveled a lot with being a flight attendant. We went from seeing each other every day in college, to only sometimes with her jet-setting off to incredible places and having experiences I could only dream of.

  “I missed you too.”

  I rested my head on her shoulder and thought about the underlying meaning to my words. I’d seen her even less than Von had since I wasn’t allowed out much by my ex. He’d controlled everything, even down to what I could eat and my social life. I didn’t know what I would have done without Von and Lennie.

  They’d picked me up and brushed me off, helping me get my life back on track after I’d had the bravery to leave him. They’d known something was wrong for months before, Von trying to tell me often how controlling he was, but I didn’t listen. He’d loved me, or so I thought. What he really loved was having every inch of my life in a vice he would squeeze when I tried to push back.

  I’d vowed to let no one make me feel like I was suffocating again, like I couldn’t do anything on my own.

  I let a tear slip down my cheek, but it wasn’t drenched in sadness like it had been for the last six months, I had a smile on my face. I was finally free.

  “Ladies,” a rich voice sounded from behind us.

  We both turned and Lennie got up from our position on the dock. “I think I’ll go and find my sister.”

  She left without another word and I changed my gaze to Jack. He had showered recently judging by his damp hair and was wearing a tight gray t-shirt and navy shorts that showed off his muscled body. You could tell he worked out a lot.

  “Hi,” I breathed.

  “Can I sit?”

  “Sure.” I discreetly wiped away the tears as he sat down, but I knew he’d already seen them.

  He took his shoes off and dangled his feet in the lake, his face turned the other way as if to give me privacy.

  “How’s your…” I trailed off; I didn’t want to say balls.

  He chuckled lightly. “Less fragile than earlier, but I think when they feel the presence of Dani they’ll cower in fear.”

  I laughed. “How did you know I was here?”

  “I saw your hair from my cabin.”

  I couldn’t stop myself from pulling on it self consciously. I wanted to know what he thought about it. Did he think I should dye it back blonde?

  “I love that color, it suits your personality.”

  How was he so in tune with how I felt?

  “It does?”

  “It’s fun but not too out there that it’s the center of attention. Very you.”

  He seemed to be very aware of the people around him and how they were feeling, but he was guarded with himself. The only things I knew about him was his name, his job, and that he was a year older than me.

  “When I was younger, I never went to camp,” he said out of the blue. “My friends would come back and tell me all about it, but I always wanted to experience it myself.”

  It shocked me that he was voluntarily giving me insight into himself. “I never went to camp either. I was the nerdy girl always on a deadline with the school newspaper.”

  He smiled. “I didn’t peg you for a nerd.”

  I shrugged. “I grew up and got contacts, but I still have an aversion to the outdoors.”

  “You look like you belong here if you ask me.”

  I pulled my feet out the water and moved so I could lie down, shutting my eyes against the harshness of the sun. “It’s not so bad.”

  I felt him sidle up next to me as he lay down in the same position. “It’s calming.”

  “I thought writing was my only calm place, but it turns out I like the outdoors when I’m not crawling through mud.”

  He said nothing in reply, so I took in a deep breath and enjoyed birds chirping and the distant sounds of adults having fun like teenagers.

  After ten minutes in the sun, I was hot. “Do you want to get a cold drink?”

  I sat up and opened my eyes slowly as I gazed down at his face, waiting for his answer, but he was asleep. Had I bored him to death?

  “Jack.” I nudged his shoulder, trying to wake him.

  “Huh?” He stirred and sat up abruptly. “What were you saying?”

  I giggled. “You fell asleep mid-conversation.”

  He scrubbed a hand down his face. “Sorry, I… How long was I out for?”

  “About ten minutes, I think. If you want to hang with your friends, that’s fine. You don’t have to spend time with me.”

  “I want to.” He stood up as I did. “Spend time with you that is,” he spluttered.

  I grinned as my st
omach rippled in excitement. “How about we do something livelier than sitting around then?”

  He looked at the lake and stripped off his t-shirt. “Last one in buys drinks tonight.”

  I was too busy staring at his abs to care I’d lost, but the spell broke as he disappeared under the water, and I pulled off my clothes to reveal the bikini I was wearing underneath.

  I dove in and splashed him as I surfaced. “You cheated!”

  He smoothed his hair back as he swam over. “I would never let you pay for drinks, anyway.”

  A warning bell sounded in my head at the words “never let you.”

  I needed to get as far away from him as possible but he touched my shoulder. “You all right?”

  My gaze floated over the concerned expression on his face. “I… maybe I wanted to pay for drinks.”

  He raised a brow. “Then pay for drinks. I’m not complaining.”

  I let myself relax when I’d realized I had freaked out for no reason. Jack wasn’t Paul, I needed to let myself trust that not everyone was, or I’d be alone forever.

  “Good, but the first ones are on you.”

  He moved closer. “Is that so?” I gulped when his eyes sparked and he looked at my lips briefly like he had the other day. “I’m normally not so forward, but I feel like you getting that flat tire was meant to happen.”

  “I don’t believe in fate.”

  “Well, fate sure believes in us.”

  He pressed his lips against mine softly and my heart stuttered in my rib cage. It was nothing more than a simple kiss from a relative stranger, but it set my whole body on fire.

  I wanted more. More I couldn’t let myself have.

  Chapter Six

  Jack

  What I did was foolish and reckless—I wanted to do it again, but Felicity was already climbing onto the dock and picking up her clothes.

  “Felicity, wait!”

  She turned to look at me and shook her head. “Let’s forget that ever happened, we have three days left and I don’t want to ruin it.”