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It really wasn’t that bad.
Rafael had rolled out Olivia’s sleeping bag over his own, and he’d tucked Noah’s smaller one underneath his head as a pillow. The tent flaps were open just a bit, letting in light and the pleasant but unidentifiable sounds of nature and other faraway campers. He had a tattered collection of John Muir essays he’d bought at a secondhand bookstore, perfect for the occasion both for its content and because it was the type of book he wouldn’t mind accidentally leaving on top of the car or dropping in the lake or whatever other ways people accidentally lost books while on camping trips.
In a tent in the woods wasn’t where he’d choose to spend his time normally, but it was actually quite peaceful, and it certainly was an easy price to pay to spend time with Olivia and Noah.
Although he was currently spending time with America’s most prominent historical naturalist instead of Olivia and Noah, who were off doing something outdoorsy that Noah had been very excited about. Olivia, on the other hand, was hobbling from an ankle she’d twisted pursuing a suspect earlier in the week and worsened when she’d stepped in the hole of some burrowing creature as they were setting up the tent, and he’d offered to tag along as both crutch and supervision help. But she’d been absolutely insistent that he stay behind and relax, to the point where the thought that she didn’t want him with them had stung a little. He’d gotten over it quickly though, because he certainly didn’t hold it against her that she wanted to spend time alone with her son, and he’d been a last minute addition to the trip in the first place. In fact, Olivia had seemed pretty surprised he’d wanted to come at all.
He finished his chapter and let the book rest on his chest for a few moments, glancing at his watch. Olivia hadn’t said what time she and Noah would return, but as he checked the length of the next essay, he could hear them outside the tent. When he poked his head out of the front flap, he was greeted by the sight of the two of them, Noah with his arms held out away from his body and Olivia limping even more noticeably than before.
“Is everything… okay?” he asked, watching Noah make his way toward the car while she dropped down and crawled past him into the tent.
“It’s fine,” she said, leaning back against the wall of the tent with a sigh. Which was quickly followed by the sound of unzipping as the wall came fully loose behind her and she tumbled back out of the tent.
“Liv?”
“I’m just gonna stay down here for a while.”
He grabbed Noah’s sleeping bag from where it was resting and shifted over to lie next to her, half inside and half outside the tent. When he held it out, she took it with a quiet Thanks , and she sighed again as he rearranged his own sleeping bag so he could put his elbow on it.
“It’s not fine,” she said, and he might have laughed at her tone, which he’s not sure he has ever heard from her, if she didn’t sound so genuinely distressed.
“I never would have guessed. What happened?”
“Noah’s got poison ivy, I think. He was picking wildflowers for a bouquet, and then I noticed him scratching at his arms and they’re all red. He’s getting some calamine lotion from the car.”
“Ok. What about your ankle?”
“The trail we were on was pretty steep, and I turned it bad again trying to rush back here. I’m afraid of what it’s going to look like when I get my boot off, if I can even get it off. And this is Noah’s first time camping, he’s got all these things he wants to do. I’m not going to be able to keep up with him.”
“I can help out with that, Liv,” he said, but she just shook her head.
“I don’t want to just dump my kid on you, especially when he might be crabby from the poison ivy. You didn’t even want to come, you only said yes because he asked you.”
Rafael blinked at her for a few seconds, realizing why she’d been so insistent that he didn’t need to come with them earlier, that he could just stay behind and relax. The change in their relationship was still new enough that he wasn’t completely shocked that she was worried about things like this, since he’d certainly had his own share of concerns that it would upset things, but he hadn’t really considered that she would be worried about this trip in that context. He reached out and carefully tucked a loose piece of hair back behind her ear.
“Liv, of course I came because he asked me. I was really happy that he wanted to include me, and excited about the opportunity to spend time with the both of you. Traipsing around the woods isn’t something I’m interested in every weekend, but I think I can handle going on a few hikes or boat rides or whatever it is Noah wants to do, either with you tagging along or resting your ankle so you’re not miserable the whole time. I’m happy to be here with you guys, I don’t need to spend the whole time in the tent reading like the kid who didn’t want to go to summer camp.”
“You never went to summer camp.”
“I didn’t, but Rita did, and she still sometimes complains about that kid.”
Olivia laughed, sliding her hand over his where he’d rested it on her cheek, but then she sighed again.
“It’s not just my ankle and the poison ivy and everything.”
“Are there bears?” he said, looking around exaggeratedly just to get her to laugh again.
“No. Well, there might be somewhere, but I don’t know. But,” she answered, biting at her bottom lip, “there is a storm coming. I hoped the radar might clear up, especially because this was the only time we could both get away from work, but it’s supposed to get pretty ugly out tonight. It’s going to ruin Noah’s first camping trip before it really gets started.”
He ran his hand through his hair, glancing around and considering his options for a few moments before sitting up, extending a hand to help Olivia do the same.
“Here’s what we’re going to do about that. I’m going to go up to the entrance and talk to the ranger about switching our reservation to a cabin instead. He mentioned that they had some open, and I’ll happily pay the difference. No, this is on me,” he said, when she opened her mouth to interrupt, “It’ll be my contribution, since I’m not going to bring any sort of outdoor knowledge to the equation. While I’m doing that, you and Noah do your best to get everything packed back up, and then we’ll go to the lodge. They’ll have medical supplies that’ll help with your ankle, and I noticed when we were checking in that they’ve got games and puzzles, which will help us get through the storm this evening. And then once Noah goes to bed, you and I can sit down and figure out what things I can do with him and what you can hobble along with.”
The look Olivia was giving him wasn’t one he’d seen from her before. It was reminiscent of the one she had sometimes in court when he’d done something particularly brilliant, but there was a softness and openness to it that made it markedly different. She reached out, placing a hand on his chest, over his heart.
“You’re really good at this.”
“Camping? I think we’ve very much established that I’m not.”
She shook her head. “Knowing exactly what to say. Being here, with Noah and me.”
He wondered if his grin looked as big as it felt.
“That’s easy. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”
She tightened her flattened hand into the fabric of his shirt, pulling him forward for a kiss that made him think that planning out their itinerary for the next few days might not be the only thing they were doing after Noah went to bed.