The Light Through the Leaves(20)

She ordered a salad and grilled cheese sandwich. He ordered a second beer, and she asked for another old-fashioned.

“I guess you needed that drink,” he said.

More than he knew. She was feeling good, the pills and alcohol mixing well. And the park ranger was even better than she’d hoped. She was glad she wasn’t drinking alone in her tent over at the campground.

“Normally I wouldn’t ask this so soon,” he said, “but since we’ve already discussed genitalia, I suppose we know each other well enough for a slow dance.”

“We didn’t exactly discuss it,” she said.

He stood and extended his hand to her. “We can talk more about it while we dance. Come on—I like this song.”

Ellis wasn’t much for dancing, but she took his hand and went along. She’d asked him out because she wanted him to touch her, after all.

He held her close but didn’t press into her. She liked the song, whatever it was. The bourbon was going strong to her head. She let herself relax into its mistiness and the music, movement, and him. He smelled good, very different from Jonah. She started to imagine what it would be like to make love to him.

As if he knew, he tucked her closer. When the song ended, she thought they might kiss. But it was too soon. He put his hand on her cheek and smiled at her.

Ellis returned to the table as drunk on the unaccustomed intimacy as the whiskey. She drank her new cocktail and ate her dinner. For the first time in months, eating didn’t feel like something she was forcing on her body. She was almost hungry.

“Where did you study biology?” he asked.

“Cornell.”

“How did you decide to go there?”

“It was the best of the schools that gave me a full scholarship.”

“Wow, you must be a brain.”

“The scholarship was more about economic hardship than academics. I grew up poor, lost my mother at a young age, and moved in with a grandfather who lived on a tiny pension.”

“So you aren’t at all smart?” he asked with a smile.

“I’m having a drink with a total stranger who carries around a plastic pony. How smart can I be?”

“I’m not a total stranger. We’ve met, and you’ve seen me in uniform where I work. You’re smarter than you’re letting on.”

“What about the pony?”

He put his finger to his lips. “We shouldn’t talk about the pony in her presence.”

“Then let’s talk about you. How does a person become a park ranger? Is that a specific program?”

“I have a degree in environmental science, but there are other ways to become a ranger.”

“You knew from the start that’s what you wanted to be?”

He nodded. “When I was a little kid, I wanted to be a cop—because my grandfather was a police chief. But I was happiest when I was running around the woods and creek of my parents’ apple farm. I sort of split the difference and became a ranger.”

“You grew up on an apple farm? That sounds idyllic.”

“I guess it was.”

“Where was that?”

He finished his beer. “A little town in Pennsylvania. Doubt you ever heard of it.”

“Pennsylvania? Are you a Steelers fan?”

“Of course. Are you?”

“I had to be to live with my grandpa. His father was a die-hard fan from Pittsburgh.”

“Now I see—that side of the family is where you got your smarts.”

Ellis smiled at the joke but said no more about that side of her family. She wasn’t sure about smarts, but they had gifted her with a predisposition toward addiction.

She finished her food. She wanted to order another drink, but she wondered what he’d think. And there was the matter of driving under the influence. He was sort of a law officer, wasn’t he?

He put her dilemma on hold when he asked, “Would you like to dance again?”

She did because the band was playing another slow song.

They danced closer than the last time. Toward the end of the song, he tentatively nuzzled at her neck. She’d never felt anything so delicious. She arched her neck to let him have more. When the song ended, he leaned in and kissed her. It was more intense than she’d thought it would be. The room, the people, the music, everything disappeared. Everything but him.

When they parted, he looked into her eyes. His irises were dark, his pupils like two black moons in eclipse.

“Would you like to come over to my place for some cognac?” she asked.

He smiled. “Your place? Where would that be?”

“I can’t remember the name. Something to do with a lake. It’s close. You can drink cognac while I put up the tent.”

“I know the campground you’re talking about. Wouldn’t you rather come to my place?”

“No.”

“It’s snowing pretty hard out there.”

“I know.”

He kept staring into her eyes. “Why do I feel like a gorgeous witch is luring me into a dark wood?”

“Good, the spell is working.” She took his hand and pulled him toward their table. “Follow at your own risk.”

He followed. They paid their bill, put on coats, and went out into the snow.