Mid-August

If Sarah hadn’t already been pretty sure that she was at least a little in love with Lucas, this - him organizing a group of people to come and cheer her on during the marathon she’d signed up to run even before she knew him, just to be supportive - would’ve solidified it.

But he had, and so now she’s just fallen harder for her tall, scruffy, too-loud roommate, who has ‘a guy’ for airlock jars and who doesn’t like to wear shoes. He’s impulsive and bright and probably has mild attention deficit disorder and she’s so, so, so into him.

When she’d seen him standing there with Marcia and all of the others that morning before her run, Sarah had been so touched that her heart felt like it almost physically hurt. If her parents and their friends hadn’t also been right there, she probably would’ve kissed him. She’d settled for a hug, but her mother had given her a knowing look afterward. She can never hide from her mother. It probably doesn’t help that she’s definitely talked a little too much about Lucas during their weekly calls; it’s all just getting so hard to contain.

And finally, with this gesture, she’s fairly certain it’s mutual.

They’re at a campsite at a lake a little ways down the highway from Reading. The place is decked out with everything she imagines that they could need, including a couple of different cast iron options for cooking over the fire, a coffee press, and lots of food and drinks. There are also three tents - one tiny one that apparently belongs to Lucas, another for Lemuel and Hamil, and a larger one for the three girls to share. Sarah’s in that tent now with Marcia, going through the bag she’d packed for her. Outside, the guys are playing beer darts with Jordan, and judging by her happy shriek, she’s just one.

Generally, Sarah thinks, Marcia has done a decent job. It’s her standard summer fare - tank tops, shorts, and a couple of different footwear choices. “I can’t believe you guys did this still,” she says to Marcia as she pulls out a beach towel. “Where’d you get all the gear out there?”

“Lucas, mostly,” Marcia answers. “Jevon for a little bit of it. But mainly Lucas. He’s like, a real woodsman.”

“That … fits,” Sarah replies, and they both giggle. Then, she pulls out what is unmistakably the top to a bikini, a bikini that she only owns in the first place because of Marcia and Jack, and she groans. “Marcia.”

Marcia looks completely unfazed. “Sarah don’t make that face, it’s like, the most conservative bikini ever. You look incredible and you should show it off. And hey, if Lucas happens to notice, it’s not like that’d be the worst thing in the - ouch!” She rubs her arm where Sarah has swatted it.

“Shh,” Sarah hisses. “Announce it to the whole place, why don’t you-”

“Erm, you guys making googly eyes at each other every time you’re around one another is basically an announcement in and of itself, Sarah.” Marcia holds up the bikini top. “We’re going to go to the lake tomorrow,” she says pointedly.

Before she can think of a suitable retort, Lucas’s voice calls out, “Sarah!”

She pokes her head out of the tent, glad for the break. “Yes?”

“I have to take the truck to load up with wood at the pile. You want to help?”

Marcia waggles her eyebrows at Sarah and makes a crude gesture with her hands. Sarah gives her the finger, then calls back, “Yes, I’ll help!”

Before she can leave the tent, Marcia reaches out and grabs Sarah’s wrist. “Hey. I know I’m teasing, but for real, he planned this almost a month ago, and he’s been so excited. Think about what that means.”

Sarah chews her bottom lip, nods, then leaves the tent. Lucas strides up to the truck, swinging the keys on one finger as he whistles cheerfully. He seems so happy and at ease; being outside seems to really agree with him. It’s so cute that she doesn’t even bother to suppress a light laugh.

“What?” he asks, grinning as he hops in the truck.

Sarah climbs in the passenger side. “Nothing,” she says truthfully, buckling the seatbelt. “You just look like you’re really in your element.”

“Erm, yeah, Sarah.” Lucas pulls out of their site slowly. “What’s not to love about this? Trees, friends, fresh air - it’s all the best!”

“It is nice,” she agrees, her fingers tapping restlessly against her leg. It’s beautiful, yes - but honestly, while she’s looking forward to this surprise trip, a part of her also wants to be back in their apartment, where she could crawl into his lap and he could hold her, and maybe she’d finally kiss him, or maybe more. Maybe, maybe.

When they get to the woodpile, Lucas backs the truck up. Sarah hops out and begins to root through for dry, good pieces. She carries a few to the truck and Lucas takes them from her, looking amused.

“What?”

He smiles and shakes his head. “No, nothing - you don’t actually have to help, Sarah. It don’t need to be a two-person job.”

Sarah’s confused. “You asked me to come help,” she reminds him, but she lifts herself up and sits on the tailgate. She watches as he walks over to the pile and picks up a big armful of wood, his muscle flexing - god, she’s basic, but she finds it unbelievably attractive how strong he is.

Lucas sets it all down in the truck bed. As he unloads, he says, “I just wanted an excuse to talk to you.” He brushes wood shavings off his t-shirt and looks at her. “We kind of sprung this whole thing on you and I wanted to make sure it was actually okay.”

He’s sugar, she thinks immediately. And she’s always loved dessert.

“Lucas,” Sarah says, smiling. She gestures for him, and he moves to stand in front of her knees, placing two big palms on them. “It’s incredible,” she reassures him. “It’s a very, very good surprise.”

Lucas squeezes her kneecaps. “Yes?”

“Yes.” She scoots forward and reaches out for a hug, parting her knees so he can stand between her legs and be closer. His arms come around her and he surrounds her like always, all him and his earthy scent. He’s so warm, so calming. It’s like a drug.

“Real proud of you, Sarah,” Lucas says into her hair. “Knew you could do it.”

“I’m so glad you came,” she says softly. “I wanted you to come, but it’s so far away, it felt stupid to ask.”

Lucas pulls back and smiles down at her with his deeply blue eyes. They twinkle in the sunlight. “Anything you want, Sarah. You never have to ask.”

Sarah swallows. She searches his face and lifts one hand from his arm to carefully trace the edge of his jaw. He’s really handsome, she observes, and masculine in a way that she’d never expected to be so into. She can’t believe that this guy is also so kind and funny and smart, the guy that charmed both her stuffy lit professors and her coolest friends, who’s looked out for her since before they were even friends. God, she wants him.

“Never?” she asks, her voice almost a whisper.

Lucas is looking at her intensely, and right now it’s just the two of them, here by this truck and this woodpile. No one else exists. “Sarah,” he says, his voice ragged.

Sarah’s hand cups the side of his face. She tilts her head up slightly and leans forward, then, like a prayer into the wind, she kisses him softly.

It lasts only a second, and when she pulls back he’s staring at her, expression unreadable.

There’s a moment of silence, with only a bird chirping and the wind in the trees, where she thinks she’s misread the entire last few months. Then his hands grip her hips, haul her forward, and they’re kissing again.

The kiss is intense but gentle in the same way that Lucas is, careful yet all-in. Sarah hooks her right leg over the back of his thigh, tugging him toward her. His hand slides around from her right hip, up the side of her thigh and over to roughly palm at her ass. She groans into his mouth, parting her lips, and he uses it as an opportunity to deepen the kiss.

Her hands slide over his biceps, squeezing his muscles, until she’s grasping at his shoulders. He lifts her off of the tailgate like she weighs nothing, supporting her with his hands at the backs of her thighs, and Sarah wraps her other leg around him too. If they weren’t in public right now, she’d have half a mind to let go of him and lay herself flat on the truck bed; it’s the perfect height for him to fuck her like this, rough and wild like she thinks he might be.

But she’s Sarah, and he’s Lucas, and she wants more than for it to be like that right now. She needs something different. She breaks the kiss, breathing heavily for not the first time today, and hugs his neck so tightly that she thinks she might compromise his air supply.

He’s with her, of course, in sync like usual. She’s set down on the tailgate again but he still holds her close, his grip firm and secure on her hips and her back, until her breathing settles.

Lucas grips the side of her ribs with his right hand. This time, she’s fairly certain that his thumb rubbing the side of her breast is entirely intentional. “Wow, Sarah,” he breathes, his eyes almost closed.

“Yes,” she agrees, staring at the faded grey of his t-shirt. “Wow.” She flicks her eyes up nervously to his face. “Hey Lucas?”

His eyes open. “Yes?”

Sarah leans up and kisses him again, delicately this time. “Thank you. It’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever done for me,” she says softly.

Lucas’s big hand shifts on her side and his thumb brushes over her nipple. The pressure is ever-so-slight through the layers of her shirt and her bra, but it feels incredible all the same. “I really like you, Sarah,” he tells her, leaning in to press another kiss to her mouth. “I like you so much I thought I might fall apart.”

“Lucas,” she breathes, feeling the beginnings of a familiar coiling sensation between her legs as his thumb makes another pass. “Me too.”

“Thank god,” he says, giving a heavy exhale. His head lifts and he seems to realize where they are, because then he abruptly moves his hand to her leg, clears his throat and says, “Jesus Christ, Sarah, I’m sorry - just wanted to kiss you and here I am feeling you up right here where anyone could see.”

He’s making good points. “I didn’t mind,” she says, feeling almost shy, but yes. Public groping is bad. “But yeah, maybe - maybe not here.”

Lucas nods. “Yes, right.” He steps back and begins piling wood in the truck again. “We should probably get back soon.”

Sarah hops down. “Here, I’ll help.”

They grab a few more pieces of wood, then Lucas shuts the tailgate with a firm slam. “Sarah, do you think - I don’t know about you, but Hamil’s been on my ass about you for a long time now, and I’d rather not give him the satisfaction until we’ve worked out, um - like, worked out what this -”

He looks so helpless and nervous, so Sarah cuts him off, taking pity. She knows exactly what he means. “I agree,” she says, and he looks relieved. “I really like you, Lucas,” she adds gently. “A lot. But we live together and it’s complicated and I think we should take it slow. Including maybe not making a big deal out of it yet to your friends.”

Lucas taps his temple, finger brushing against his backward baseball cap. “Same page, Sarah.” He opens the door of the truck for her, then goes around to the driver’s side and gets in himself. When they’re inside, he adds, “To be clear, if they ask, I don’t want to lie.”

“No, of course not,” she says quickly.

“But no - like, no announcements.”

He nods and starts the truck. Sarah watches him stare at the steering wheel for a second. Then he undoes his seat belt, leans over, and kisses her. His palm rests on her thigh gingerly.

The kiss is short and chaste, but it takes all of Sarah’s willpower not to part her legs and drag his hand between them. When he pulls back, he’s smiling. “I’m real happy, Sarah. What a great weekend.”