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I was surprised to find myself still wrapped in Chance's arms when I woke up. Usually he'd be outside tending the fire or making breakfast. Not this time. This time he was laying there watching me and stroking my hair.
"Morning, City Girl."
"Morning." I stretched my hands above my head. "It's cold," I said, feeling the air on my bare skin.
He reached for my hands and pulled them inside his sleeping bag holding them against his chest. "Better?"
"Much, but we'll never get to base camp if we don't leave the tent."
"We've got time. I want to enjoy having you all to myself a little longer."
I didn't argue. But making out in the sleeping bag with Chance only made it more difficult to face the cold when he said we really had to get moving.
We didn't bother getting the fire going again. We packed up as quick as we could, ate granola bars, and climbed back onto the snowmobile.
I wrapped my arms around Chance, leaned my head on his back and let myself fantasize about spending a lot more time with Chance when there was nothing holding me back.
We made it to the base camp site before noon. We set up the tent we had slept in and a small single tent that we were using to store gear. Tom was bringing the other tent. We made a fire ring, and I gathered as much dry firewood as I could find in the immediate area. Chance let me start the fire because I needed the practice. Jim and Tom would be bringing more gear with them, so once the snowmobile was parked in a good spot, Chance had me dump out my pack so he could help me repack what I needed for the hike.
There was nothing left to do but wait for Tom and Jim to arrive. "Happy Thanksgiving," I said as we sat with our butts on our sleeping mats inside the edge of the tent flap.
"It's been a good one so far," he said. "I'm usually on a hunt somewhere. Will that bother you?"
"What?" I didn't understand what he was asking.
"Will it bother you if I'm not home on the holidays?"
He must have seen my lack of understanding on my face. "We're talkin' about building a life together, City Girl. I'm asking if you'll mind if my business takes me away on holidays?"
It hit me. Chance was talking about us being together long-term. Not just dating but living together. Where had that come from? "You OK, Everly. Say something. You're scaring me."
He tightened his arm around me and reached for my hand. He kissed my forehead. "You OK?"
"Sorry. Uhm. I'm fine."
"You didn't answer my question."
"I'm going to need some time to adjust to this."
"This what?"
"Us, I guess."
"I'm too old to play games, City Girl. I want something solid. Something forever."
"Not helping, Chance. Now you're scaring me."
"I thought that's what you wanted. Was I wrong?"
We sat in silence for a while. I reached up and kissed his cheek. "You weren't wrong, Chance. I'm just surprised you're that serious about us."
"Is there some reason I shouldn't be?"
"Of course not. It's just a lot to wrap my head around."
"I told you we'd be together when we first met."
"You did. To answer your question, if your work requires you to be gone on holidays, then we'll adjust our celebrations to work with your schedule. Maybe I'll help with your expeditions."
"I'm guessing I might not get the chance to do this again until we get back home." He bent his lips to mine and kissed me until I was dizzy. He raised his head and moved his hand behind my head holding it against his chest. I don't know if I fell asleep or not, but the next thing I knew, Chance whispered, "They'll be here soon. You gonna be able to handle this?"
I nodded my head.
"I sure wish I could go with you. If what's in the journal is true, it's an almost unbelievable find."
"If we find them, you'll be able to see if for yourself soon."
When the engine noise was close, I gave Chance a soft kiss, stood up and walked around the campsite. I still wasn't convinced that it made any sense for Chance and Jim to wait at the campsite, but it didn't seem to matter. We had a plan, and we were going with it.