Total pages in book: 111
Estimated words: 106092 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 530(@200wpm)___ 424(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106092 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 530(@200wpm)___ 424(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Unlike most earthquakes that last a minute or so, this one continues to rumble. Everyone snaps into action, quickly finishing their shopping spree. Tyler tugs me out of the camping side and over to the food side. We grab what we can, topping off our bags, and then hurry out of the building before it crumples on top of us.
Outside, most everyone has already escaped the store. Aaron and Hope are the last to run out, their arms full of gear.
“We should get to more stable ground,” I call out above the grumbling complaints of the earth. “Camping is that way. We can always come back if we forgot anything.”
Elise staggers over to me, frowning. “What about the list for the owner? I don’t feel comfortable stealing their things.”
Dan gestures for her to follow him away from the store. “I left a note and my card. Told them to charge me as much as they want for whatever we took. It’s fine.”
Satisfied, Elise runs to catch up to Hope and Aaron, who are already down the road, headed for the campsite. This time, me and Tyler take up the rear, making sure we don’t lose anyone. The rumbling eventually slows, but it doesn’t do anything for my erratically beating heart.
When will this ever end?
The rest of our walk is uneventful. It’s dark, but the rain has held off. We eventually make it to the campgrounds. At the front is a registration building—also presumably without power like the general store. Beyond that, we find two cabins nearby. There might be more the farther into the campground we go, but no one seems eager to find more.
“We’ll stay here for the night,” I say, gesturing at the cabins. “Split off. Hope and Elise, you two can stay with Dan and his family. The rest of us guys can stay next door. Any objections?”
Jesse raises his hand. “I should stay there too in case Dan needs help protecting the women.”
Hope rolls her eyes when Dan agrees with him. She’s proven thus far to be quite capable of protecting herself and others.
Everyone splits off. We have to break into these cabins as well, but it’s not too tricky as they’re old and we’re only contending with wooden doors, not glass. Once inside our cabin, we set up some of the battery-operated lanterns to determine our sleeping situation. There are two sets of bunk beds on one wall, a sofa on the other, and a musty rug in the center of the cabin.
Kyle claims one of the bottom bunks and Gerry climbs above his. Wayne takes the other bottom. Aaron lifts a brow at Tyler.
“You take it,” Tyler says. “I’ll take the floor. Kellen can have the couch.”
Aaron smirks and ruffles his little brother’s hair before climbing onto the bed.
“We can share the couch,” I tell Tyler. “No one has to sleep on the floor.”
We walk over to the couch and then set to shedding our bags. While I pull my boots off, Tyler rummages in his bag before pulling out a bag of beef jerky. “Hungry for dinner?”
My stomach growls as if to answer him. “Hell yeah.”
He settles on one end of the couch while I sprawl out on the other. Even having half a couch to sleep on is better than the stairwell in my building. We’re quiet as we eat the jerky, but neither of us falls asleep long after everyone else does.
“Can’t sleep?” Tyler whispers.
“Nah.”
“Want to play tic-tac-toe again?”
I grin and nod. “Who’s winning so far?”
“Me. You’ll have time to catch up, though.”
He finds a pen in his bag before crawling across the cushions to sit right next to me. Despite the pain in my side, I stretch my arm across the back of the sofa, inviting him into my space. His warm body chases away any lingering chill I had. I pull his arm into my lap, pushing the material of his new long-sleeved shirt up to reveal his tattoo. When I run my thumb over his flesh, he shivers.
“Cold?”
“I’m good now.”
He tilts his head to look over at me. This close, with our mouths inches apart, I ache to kiss him. I almost do, but then he turns away to draw an O in the center of his tattoo.
For the first time since all this chaos happened, I’m actually relaxed and happy.
I like Tyler. Really like him.
Here’s to hoping I can actually do something about it.
Tyler
Last night was both the best and worst sleep. The best because I’d used Kellen’s thigh for a pillow. The worst because we had a few more tremors that were worrying. Still, I managed a few hours, which was probably the longest stretch I’ve had in days. What I wouldn’t give for an actual bed, though. I’d even share with Kellen.
He’s sitting at a picnic table, absently eating a protein bar and frowning as he listens to Dan speak in a low tone. Aaron, Hope, Elise, and Wayne are also sitting with them. I’m slightly annoyed they let me sleep in rather than pulling me in for their strategy session.