Free Burnt by Bella Love-Wins Page B

outta my wits,” she answered, pulling two plates and cutlery from their set of dishes.
    “And it was worth every cuddle,” he teased. “Pass me the plates.”
    She handed over the plates one at a time so he could load them up with their dinner. She was enjoying the time alone with him, and had forgotten about any worries she had before. The truth was, she didn’t want to be anywhere else.
    After they ate, he took their plates over to the water bowl to clean them up.
    “I’ve got an idea,” Tara called out to him. He looked back at her as she got up from the chair and went into her tent. He heard sounds like she was rummaging through her things. When she emerged, she held a bag of marshmallows and a couple of campfire forks. She walked back over to the fire, placing the marshmallows on the forks and holding them over the fire.
    “I don’t have any graham crackers or chocolate, but we could still roast some of these.” She smiled. “Now it’s really like old times.”
    He stacked the cleaned dishes and walked over to her side. She was right. This was how he remembered their camping trips.
    “This is the life,” he said to her softly, taking the roasted marshmallow on the fork she passed to him. Everything was going better than he had expected. It was a great start to their weekend.
    ***
    T ara stood up from the chair. The fire was slowly dying down.
    “We should get some rest. We’ve gone over each of these cards twice already. We can do some more on the hike tomorrow.”
    “Yeah...” he slowly replied. It was just slightly above a whisper. He stood up, turning to her.
    “Well, goodnight,” she said, turning away and moving quickly to her tent. As hard as it was for her to pull away from the great evening they shared, it would be easier than complicating things further.
    “Goodnight Tara,” she heard him mumble behind her. As she unzipped her tent opening, she heard him again.
    “Tara...wait!”
    She turned around, wondering what Kevin wanted. He was heading her way.
    “I’m sorry, Tara,” he started, “but I can’t go to sleep without doing something first.” He placed his hand around her waist, pulling her to him. Their lips met and his tongue invaded her mouth. A soft moan escaped from her lips. She could feel his arousal pressed against the zipper of his shorts. She wanted him...she needed him.
    He parted from her lips, resting his forehead against hers. “Tara. I love you and I have loved you for so long. I have just been too stupid...or too scared...to admit it.”
    Her mind raced.  It seemed like it was so out of the blue, but she had subconsciously been expecting the words for so long.
    “Kevin...” she started.
    He rested a finger against her lips. “You don’t have to say anything. I know this probably isn’t what you want.”
    Tara was nervous. He confessed his love for her, and it made things even more real. She didn’t know how to start. As close as they had been as best friends, until a couple months ago she never would have dreamed of uttering the words she was going to say.
    “I want to be with you tonight,” she whispered, feeling her body react to the words. “Make love to me, Kevin.”
    She watched him as his jaw dropped. She meant every word, but there was still a subtle fear of being rejected. They realized their mutual worry was unfounded. They were of the same mind. Kevin wrapped his hand around her neck and brought her lips to his. They stood there, eagerly exploring each other. They were about to demolish a boundary they had kept erected between them. It was the boundary that allowed them to remain just friends.
    She was eager, yet wanted to savor every moment. They hungrily kissed each other, letting the last of the fire warm them. Kevin slowly pulled away, and took her hand, leading her in the direction of his tent. She walked beside him for a few steps, then stopped and pulled his t-shirt up over his head. They reconnected in their kiss as she dropped the