Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

The sun peeked through the bakery's back window, the deep purple sky getting lighter and lighter as Jess rolled croissants for the morning. Honey snored on the dog bed by the door, belly up, paws in the air. She made a mental list of what she needed to do while they proofed—spoon the muffin batter into the tins, brush the tops of the scones with cream, and fill the danish pastry with jam. Customers had been coming into Port Wheels asking for the strawberry danishes and raspberry pastries from Haverfest, only to leave empty handed and disappointed. So Jess had Rory come in and add both treats to the colorful menu.

She slid the croissants into the proofer when the door swung open.

Without saying a word, Kevin placed the two mugs in his hands down on the counter, then snatched one of their energy drinks out of the fridge. He cracked it open, pouring half into each mug.

She stepped up to him and took the mug he handed her. "I'm usually more of a coffee-in-the-morning person."

"I figured it wasn't a good idea for me to try to tinker with that fancy machine you have out there."

"That's fair." She took a sip. "Why are you up so early?"

"How would you know my morning routine? Maybe I'm always up at five."

She cocked her head and he laughed.

"Fine, you caught me. I actually came down here to ask a favor."

She nodded and placed her mug down, reaching for the clean muffin tins on the shelf.

Kevin stepped to the sink and washed his hands, then rolled up his sleeves. He knew by this point if he wanted to hang out in the kitchen he would have to lend a hand.

He placed paper wrappers in the tins while Jess scooped the batter.

"My mom's birthday is tomorrow. My family and I have always done a big brunch for her in the morning, and I've yet to miss one."

She reached for the sparkling sugar and topped each muffin. "You need the car."

"Is that okay? Just for tonight and tomorrow, I'll be back by Tuesday morning."

Her heart sank into her stomach. "So you're skipping our Monday."

"That's right, you'll be off the hook. How will you spend your day of freedom?"

Her face felt tight. She transferred the muffins to the oven, then went to the fridge for the pre-baked scones, not bothering to look at him.

"Jesssssss…"

"Hmm?"

"Look at me, please."

"What? You can take the car. Go see your family. I'll see you on Tuesday."

She listened as his breathing grew heavier. She dipped the pastry brush in the small bowl of cream.

His hand enveloped her wrist as he guided her to put down the brush.

"Do you want to come with me?"

She dropped the brush in the bowl, cream splattering onto the counter.

He grinned. "Come with me to Vermont. Meet my family. Are you okay with tofu scramble? Mom's vegan."

"I—but the bakery—" she sputtered.

"Will survive. You have enough stock to miss a day of prep. We could ask Zach to close up this afternoon and we'll leave after the morning rush."

She blinked, unable to string words together.

He kept smiling, as if her inability to form a sentence amused him. "We could even camp tonight, if you wanted. There are so many campgrounds on the way up to Burlington."

"I don't have any camping gear…" she mumbled.

He scoffed and placed his hands on his hips. "Jessica Valerie, I come from a long line of hippies. Do you really think I don't own any camping gear? We can share."

She shuffled back and forth. "Your family won't find it weird that I'm just…showing up with you? It's not like we're together or engaged or anything…"

He laughed at that. Laughed. Her cheeks flushed. She felt nauseous.

Kevin must have realized her reaction because his laughing slowed, his mouth forming a silent O . "Sweetheart, that is—"

"Don't call me sad," she whispered.

He hesitated. "Is that really why you didn't hang out with his family? Because he never gave you a ring?"

She nodded. "They only allowed partners to join in on holidays and trips if they were engaged. I waited years for Charlie to pop the question, waiting for the day that I could finally be part of his family. But he never did, which I guess is a good thing. After a while I wanted nothing to do with them. They're a brood of vipers."

He scowled. "What an absolute piece of shit."

She hummed and checked the croissants. "What's your family like?"

"The complete opposite. It's all good vibes and mantras and mary jane. Mom always told me marriage is a business transaction and I should focus instead on finding a soul connection with someone. I'm honestly not even sure if my parents are married."

She smiled. "She sounds wonderful. I can't wait to meet her."

He perked up, hopping back and forth. "So you're in?"

"And we'll bring Honey?"

The puppy flipped from where she slept at the sound of her name and noticed Kevin. She charged for him.

He scooped her up and planted kisses on her furry head. " Duh. Camping with my girls? Sounds like a dream."

She shook her head, not bothering to fight him on his use of my girls , riding on the high of being included in his family's traditions. She spent the rest of the morning mulling over his words, liking the idea of finding a soul connection with someone else. It felt far more approachable than hopping into another relationship and losing herself all over again.

"Favorite road trip snack?"

Jess scrunched her nose and patted Honey in her lap. "I haven't been on a road trip in forever so I have no idea."

Kevin leaned back in the driver's seat, one hand placed casually at the top of the wheel. "All right, imagine this; we take a pit stop somewhere for gas. What is the food you want to get?"

"Cheetos."

Kevin cheered. "Now that's what I'm talking about."

Jess smiled as she kicked off her shoes. Kevin offered to drive the first leg of the trip to Burlington, but after three hours in the driver's seat, he hadn't asked her to switch, and she didn't mind. It was nice being able to sit back and simply pet the pup on her lap, watching the sun lazily set among the hills and the trees that only grew taller as they drove north.

She kissed Honey's head. Her ear perked up from the touch, then she melted into Jess's lap and began to snore. "What's your favorite road trip snack?"

"Chocolate milk and gummy worms," he said unashamedly.

"That sounds repulsive together."

"Jess, you put a literal meatloaf in an ice cream cake. I feel like nothing should repulse you."

She chuckled. "Yeah, but the intention was to be disgusting. You're choosing to do it of your own volition."

He grinned, his eyes on the road. "I like that you guys have that tradition. It makes me wish I had coworkers."

She brushed a hand through Honey's fur, her pale-yellow locks longer than when they first picked her up. "You have coworkers now."

He rubbed a hand across his face, then rubbed his neck, his cheeks pink. "Yeah, I guess I do."

Jess liked his rosy cheeks, his hazel eyes sparkling against the golden summer sun. "Maybe we should make our own traditions."

"Yeah? Like what?"

"Hmm…annual camping trip?"

He hummed. "Let's see how tonight goes first."

She scoffed. "You think I can't handle it ?"

"Oh, I do," he said. "But I'm not sure how you're going to feel after sleeping in a tent with me."

She fidgeted in her seat. "Oh."

"Sorry, I only realized as I was packing. But it does sleep four people, so there's plenty of room."

She exhaled. "That's fine, Kev. Don't worry about it."

He nodded. They remained silent as he turned around a bend and down a road veiled in trees. He slowed the car at the entrance for a campground and pulled in. Honey perked up as he stepped out of the car, but Jess kept a tight grasp on her pup as Kevin spoke with the attendant, then grabbed a stack of firewood and a bag of ice. He hauled them in the trunk and got back in the car.

"I told him it was your first time camping and he gave us the best lot on the grounds," he explained. He rolled the car down the dirt road, past campsites with couples and families building fires and setting up tents for the night. Kevin turned and parked next to an empty spot. Jess stretched her legs and stepped out of the vehicle, holding Honey firmly in her arms as she walked toward their small fire pit in the center of a clearing overlooking a lake behind them. The water glistened as the sun set, the sky streaked with soft peachy pinks.

"Wow," she breathed. She felt Kevin step up beside her. "He wasn't kidding. This is the best lot."

Kevin hummed. "Come on, let's get set up. First rule of camping: never wait to set up camp until the sun goes down."

Her eyes widened. "Why? Bears? Are we going to get eaten?"

He barked out a laugh. "No, silly, we're safe here. It's just a pain to set up a tent in the dark."

She relaxed. "What's rule number two of camping?"

"S'mores must be consumed."

"I like that rule."

"Me too," he said, swinging an arm around her shoulders as they walked back to the car.

They set up the tent and tossed sleeping bags and mats and pillows in, then focused on dinner. Honey remained tied up with a long leash that gave her enough room to run around, but she seemed content sitting next to Jess as she tossed sliced peppers, onions, and sausage in a bowl with oil and seasoning, then dumped them in sheets of aluminum and wrapped them up tightly. She noticed Kevin standing over her as she finished folding up the packets.

"Jessica, camping means hot dogs on sticks, condiments not always necessary. This is fancy."

"You really think I'm going to settle for a hot dog on a stick?" she quipped.

"At this point, I don't think you'll settle for anything ."

"Damn straight," she mumbled to herself, heat trickling up her neck.

Kevin set down two camping chairs as she carefully tossed the packets on the grill, then took a seat next to him. Honey jumped up on his lap and licked his face, then dropped down with an exhausted foof.

"You know, for someone who's never been camping before, you sure look like you know what you're doing," he said, gesturing toward their foil pack dinners.

She pulled up her legs and sat crisscrossed, getting comfortable. "My dad has this obsession with making foil pack dinners on the grill. Or…he did. I guess I don't know if he's into it anymore."

Kevin nodded. "I bet he still does. Logan doesn't strike me as the kind of guy who likes change."

Jess's mind flashed to their days at Cap's, remembering the way her father bristled at everything Charlie's father suggested they do. She knew he hated it, but he'd kept it to himself—mostly. The space was in dire need of saving, and Charlie was willing to make the investment. So her father nodded along, and watched his precious boatyard transform before his eyes.

"Yeah," she breathed. "Not really his thing."

"What kind of foil pack dinners did he make?"

"Clam bakes, with corn and sausage and potatoes and lemon. We always made them when we got back from our days clamming."

"You used to go clamming ? Jessica, that's so cool."

Jess gripped her knees tightly. "Yeah, we would go every summer. Sometimes multiple times. Just me and Dad…Dakota hated how messy and muddy it would get. But I always loved those mornings with him. We'd get up early and eat donuts on the beach and wait for the tide to get super low, then we would dig for a couple hours. We would come home reeking with buckets and buckets of clams. Mom always complained how his truck smelt like clams for weeks after, but I never minded. The smell of seafood never bothered me. It just…smelled like home."

She paused, realizing how much she'd admitted, and felt a flash of embarrassment. There was something about Kevin that made her comfortable enough to share things, comfortable enough to let him in on those parts of herself she tried to push away or forget. Everything about her family had felt too raw with Charlie, so she never spoke about them, never admitted how much she missed them. But with Kevin, things felt…safe. He gave her space to share her thoughts and feelings, to talk through what was going on in her head without any judgment. It reminded her of what he said weeks before, about how friends liked to do things for each other without asking for anything in return.

Her eyes lingered on him, the way his mouth quirked up on his left cheek always, how his wavy hair curled around the flat-brim hat on his head. The navy sweatshirt he wore looked soft, the sleeves pushed up to his elbows, the muscles in his forearms flexing slightly with each stroke of Honey's fur.

His smile widened, letting her know he was very aware of her lingering gaze, and her cheeks flushed.

"What's going on in that mind of yours, my dear Jessica?"

She broke her gaze and stared hard at the fire, listening to the oil sizzling in the packets, the smells of fatty sausage and onion wafting toward them. "I was thinking about your tattoo."

"Oh yeah? What about it?"

"What it means, why you have it."

"Does a tattoo always have to have a meaning?"

She pursed her lips. "I…guess not."

A gust of wind rushed past them. Jess shivered, burrowing deeper into her seat, and crossed her arms tightly to her chest.

Kevin stood up, keeping Honey tucked in his arm as he opened his duffel bag on the table. He pulled out another sweatshirt and tossed it her way.

"Thank you," she said, shimmying it on. It smelt like cinnamon and sand with a hint of metal. She wondered if he wore it while working at the shop, tinkering away at the bikes.

Kevin stepped in front of her and placed Honey on her lap. Before she could protest, he shoved a thick beanie on her head, pulling it below her ears. He patted her cheeks with an amused smile, then sat back down in his chair.

"I could have grabbed my own sweatshirt, you know," she muttered.

"Jessica, you clearly wanted one of mine," he jested, motioning toward the sweatshirt he was currently wearing.

Her face flushed. "That's—that's not true."

He grinned and crossed a leg over his knee. "You know, for someone who's against sharing, you've let me share with you. A lot ."

She grumbled to herself and ignored his comment.

They ate in a contented silence, listening to the crackling fire and the buzzing cicadas. Honey stood on Jess's lap and attempted to nip at the fireflies floating around their camp. She felt herself drifting off in her chair, the sounds of the forest and the trees so different from rolling waves and cawing seagulls. It sounded like magic.

She felt a warm, calloused hand on hers. "Want to call it a night?"

"But what about rule number two of camp?" she murmured.

"We'll do it another time."

"Promise?" she whispered.

Gentle, featherlight fingers brushed the line of her jaw. "Yeah, sweetheart, I promise."

She stepped into the tent and slipped into Kevin's extra sleeping bag, zipping it up to the top. Honey nuzzled under her arm and curled into a ball. She dozed off to the sounds of Kevin stoking the fire, waking briefly when he crawled in next to her. She sighed at the comforting smell of cinnamon and the warmth of his body next to hers as she fell into a dreamless sleep.

Jess woke to the sound of birds chirping and the whistling of trees overhead. She blinked her eyes open and was welcomed by the sight of Kevin sprawled out next to her, one arm stretched toward her, the other curled around Honey's belly. The pup was in her usual sleeping position; on her back, paws in the air, snoring. She must have ditched Jess at some point to cuddle with Kevin instead.

"Player," she whispered.

Honey's ear twitched, which made Jess's heart swoop. Her hearing still wasn't great, but little things here and there seemed to catch her attention. She wondered if her hearing would fully heal and made a mental note to take her to the vet.

She let out a soft sigh as she slipped out of her sleeping bag. She carefully crawled over Kevin so she wouldn't wake him, then unzipped the tent and stepped into the warmth of the glowing dawn sun. The lake behind them was breathtaking, the waves shimmering with light. A herd of ducklings followed their mother along the water, dipping in and out of the water and ruffling their feathers. The whole scene felt innocent, almost untouched. It was hard for Jess to fathom that such peace could even exist.

"Morning," said a gruff voice.

Jess turned toward Kevin. She sniggered at the way his hair stood up straight on one side of his head. His cheeks were covered in a light dusting of stubble. He rubbed his eyes, his sweatshirt lifting in the front. She dared a glance at his tan skin and the dips at his hips.

Honey pattered up to Jess and licked her ankles. She tore her gaze from his golden skin and scooped her up, looking back out at the water.

"Well, there you have it. You camped. Four down, six to go."

She smiled. "Which one should we tackle next?"

"Don't worry, I have a plan for the next four. But there are two that I will not touch with a ten-foot pole."

Her smile shifted into a smirk. "Not gonna help me find a stranger to hook up with, huh?"

"Nah, sweetheart, that's all on you," Kevin said, his voice gravelly.

A squirrel ran past them and climbed up a tree. Honey let out one of her hoarse barks, then began squirming in Jess's arms. She clicked on her long leash and let her down, the pup running for the tree and taking a seat, like she expected the squirrel to come back for her.

"I've never kissed anyone else," Jess admitted, keeping her eyes on Honey as she said it. "It's only ever been Charlie."

She saw him shift in her periphery. "Are you nervous?" he asked

"I don't know. Maybe a little?"

"Do you need to practice?"

She snapped her gaze to his. He licked his lips and smiled at her, his eyes bright with amusement.

Jess glared. "That's awfully bold of you."

"Oh come on, just one kiss. I can even give you notes, if you want them."

The idea isn't horrible , she thought. If anything, Kevin was the most comfortable she'd felt with a guy (besides Calvin, who was basically her brother). So, kissing him? That didn't seem so bad.

He wiggled his brow at her. "Come on, you know you're curious."

She frowned. "You're acting way too eager."

"Can you blame me? Jess, I'm kind of curious."

She looked down at her clogs and kicked at a rock. "I—I don't know."

He took a step closer. She let her gaze trail slowly up his body, thinking it through. She was curious. And after years of having someone to kiss constantly, going over a month without that intimacy felt weird. She would like to be kissed. She wondered what it would be like to kiss someone who wasn't her ex-boyfriend.

Her eyes landed at the faint freckle near his bottom lip. Her nerves thrummed, her body felt warm.

Just one kiss.

"Okay," she whispered.

"Holy crap. "

Her breath hitched as strong arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her close.

"Holy crap what?" she murmured. She fisted his sweatshirt, the cotton soft between her fingers.

"I didn't actually think you'd say yes."

She scowled. "Don't make me regret it."

Kevin pressed his forehead to hers. "Trust me, I won't."

He dipped down and nuzzled her nose with his, then he leaned in and kissed her.

Butterflies soared in her stomach at the feel of his lips on hers. He tasted like cinnamon sugar and golden sunrises and good decisions. She leaned her head back, allowing him to deepen the kiss. He groaned, his soft lips gliding against hers as he slipped a tongue into her mouth. She shivered, moving her hands to his stubble-dusted cheeks. She followed a trail to his neck and dug her fingers into his sleep-tousled hair. He sucked in a shocked breath, then nibbled at her lip and plunged in again, her fingers in his hair rousing him to another level of intensity as he kissed her deeply and thoroughly. His arms remained wrapped tight around her waist, his hands curled at her hips.

Honey barked.

They broke apart, breathing heavily. She cracked open her eyes, noticing his were still shut, his face anguished.

He dropped his hold on her and stepped back, then scratched the back of his head.

"I take it back," he muttered, not looking in her direction.

"Take what back?"

"I take what I said back," he breathed. "I can't practice with you. I'd lose my damn mind."