Ends of the Earth

Maggie did as she was told. “Is that good?”

“Looks great to me, kiddo.” Ben stood. “What about Dad?”

“Huh? Oh, I’m fine.” Jason’s fingers were suddenly shaky and useless as he tried to fit one side of the zipper of his life jacket into the other.

“Here, let me help.” Ben gently pushed Jason’s hands aside and zipped the jacket in one smooth motion. Standing so close, Jason stared at the curl of Ben’s long, dark eyelashes. Up close without the ranger hat, he could see the warm hint of auburn in Ben’s short, thick hair.

Ben slowly tightened the straps on the jacket. Jason’s throat went dry, and he swallowed hard. Sweat trickled down the back of his neck, his heart skipping as Ben did up one buckle and tugged. One of his hands rested lightly on Jason’s hip, and Jason swore his skin tingled even through the cotton of his shorts and T-shirt.

He held his breath as Ben tested the other buckle. A moment later, Ben stepped away with an easy smile. “There you go.” He turned to Maggie. “Is your helmet comfortable?”

Jason loosened the strap of his own helmet to wipe a band of sweat from his forehead. He took a deep breath. Maybe a dip in the glacial water would do him good.

“Okay, everyone! Let’s take our positions.” Ben told the gathered group where to sit, placing Maggie and Jason near him in the back. There were nine people in the raft, including Ben. Everyone had his or her own paddle but Maggie, much to her chagrin.

“But that’s not fair! I want to paddle too!”

“Baby, you’re not big enough to reach. I’m sorry.” Wincing internally, Jason could see a hissy fit coming on and kept his voice low and calm.

“It’s not fair!” Tears welled in her wide, hazel eyes. She was a remarkably mature child most of the time, but her occasional tantrums could come on without warning.

“Maggie, stop it. Now. Or we’re getting out and we’re not rafting.” Jason’s skin itched with the judgy gazes of the other passengers in the raft. He hated it when Maggie acted out in public. He could practically hear the whispers saying he wasn’t fit to be a parent. Not old enough, not responsible enough—look at how his child was behaving! Why couldn’t he control her? Terrible father…

“But it’s not fair!” Her lip quivered and she banged her fists on her thighs.

“Ben, I’m sorry. We’re going to have to go.” They hadn’t left the shore yet, and Jason stood to step out of the raft, his arms out for balance.

“No, no!” Maggie wailed. “Daddy, I want to stay. I’m sorry. Please, please!”

“Okay, but no more of this attitude today. Or we’re getting off.” Maggie nodded vigorously, and Jason sat again and nodded to Ben, who seemed to be waiting for a sign that it was okay to shove off.

“You’re the lucky one, kiddo. We have to do all the work, and you get to sit back and enjoy it!” Ben patted her back. “Pretty good deal if you ask me.”

This got a tiny smile out of Maggie, which wasn’t easy after one of her tantrums. Ben must have had children himself considering the patience and coaxing touch he had with her, and Jason was grateful for it. He realized he didn’t actually know if Ben was married or a father. He didn’t wear a ring, but that didn’t mean anything.

Face down, Maggie wiped her red cheeks sheepishly, and Jason gave her a squeeze. She was always incredibly embarrassed after an outburst, and it made his heart ache.

They headed into the center of the river with Ben giving them basic paddling instructions. Then he told them to put their paddles across their laps, and the raft drifted lazily.

“Okay, so here’s what you need to know if you fall out. You won’t, but just in case, it’s important to know what to do. First off, the water’s darn cold, and it’ll knock the air right out of you. So make sure you force yourself to breathe. Float down the river on your back with your feet pointing in the direction you’re going. Don’t ever try to put a foot down. It’s very easy to get stuck between rocks, or any of the other detritus that might be down there—old tree branches and that kind of stuff. If you get stuck, you can be pulled under and trapped by the current.”

Jason shuddered. “But we won’t fall out, right?”

“Not if everyone paddles when I tell them to.” Ben grinned. “Don’t worry, I’ve got everything under control.” He clapped Jason on the shoulder.

He swallowed hard as the warmth from Ben’s hand seemed to shoot right down to his dick. He practically squeaked, “Right. Good to know.”

As Jason struggled to process his body’s reaction, Ben went on. “So, feet pointed downriver and don’t try to touch down. The other thing to remember is not to fight the current. You will not win. To get to shore, swim sideways, and eventually you’ll make your way over. Of course, if you happen to fall out of the boat today, we’ll pick you right back up, or one of the other rafts will.”