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I watched him jog over to where the Ranger waited. Words seemed to be exchanged and then Cam showed him his notebook. The Ranger laughed and they shook hands. Tipping my head up, I could already see tiny stars appearing in the deep blue sky. Nightfall would be on us in minutes.
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
Cam swaggered back to my side. “We’re good to go. And we’re not the only ones. There are a few students down by the other side of the tower.”
“Cool.” I fell in step with him, keeping a healthy distance between us. “Why do so many people come here to do this? I’m sure there are places closer to campus.”
“Not like this. Look around.” He shoved the flashlight in his back pocket. “Besides the houses across the street, there are no city lights or towers everywhere. It’s just the sky.”
“And cornfields,” I pointed out.
He nodded. “Lots of cornfields.”
We hit the paved portion of the lane and started toward the tower. “How long do you think this will take?” I asked.
“Why? You got a hot date tonight?”
I barked out a short laugh. “Uh, no.”
One single dark brow arched up. “You sound like that’s an insane idea. That no one would go out on a Saturday night for a date.”
Dropping the piece of hair I was playing with, I forced a casual shrug. “I’m not dating anyone.”
“So why the rush?”
Admitting that I was seriously uncomfortable being out here would be embarrassing and rude, so I said nothing.
“Are you worried that I’ve brought you out here for my own nefarious plans?”
I came to a complete stop. Knots formed in my stomach. “What?”
Cam stopped and turned toward me. His grin slipped a notch. “Hey, Avery, I’m just joking. Seriously.”
Heat swamped my cheeks and the knots unraveled, replaced by a strong feeling of total lameness. “I know. I’m just…”
“Jumpy?” he supplied.
“Yeah, that.”
He studied me a moment longer and then started walking again. “Come on. It’ll be dark soon.”
Trailing behind him, I pictured myself running straight into the old wooden fences and impaling myself on one of the pointy ends. God, I needed to get a grip. Not every guy was like Blaine. I knew that. Totally understood that. I wasn’t completely damaged by my affliction.
On the other side of the tower, near the plaques, two students from our astronomy class sat on the bench, notebooks in their laps. They waved at us and as we waved back, Cam headed a little further down the wide parking lot and then veered off toward the grassy hill overlooking the dirt path of Bloody Lane.
Cam picked a spot and pulled out the flashlight before he sat down. I hovered a few steps back, listening to the low hum of the crickets. The ground had dried out from yesterday’s weather, but even if it was wet, it wouldn’t have stopped me from sitting down. I was just too keyed up.
“Join me? Patting the spot beside him, he inclined his head. “Pretty please? I’m lonely all by myself over here.”
Biting down on my lip, I sat a few feet away from him and then busied myself with finding my astronomy notebook. As I pulled it out, I glanced over at him and our eyes locked. I couldn’t look away. Intense. That was the first word that came to mind. His stare was intense, like he was seeing right through me.
Clearing my throat, I fixed my attention on the notebook. Finally, Cam spoke. “What constellation are we supposed to be mapping.”
He held the flash light while I skimmed through my notes. “Um, the Corona Borealis, I think.”
“Ah, the northern crown.”
I glanced at him, brows raised. “You knew that off the top of your head?”
