Monthly Bonus Content #1—The Perfect Date…well, nearly! (Nat Version) (Patreon)

Sun pours across the green, spreading its golden light to encompass the whole of the curved lawn that spreads out from the forest to houses at the bottom of the hill.

Perfect date weather.

Birds tweet their tiny little hearts out around us, the gentle breeze caressing the trees’ canopy overhead, and whistles of crickets in the bushes create a chorus around us.

Perfect date soundtrack.

Nat looks wholly at ease in her worn, brown leather jacket, the check shirt beneath open to reveal a moss green t-shirt that stretches across her lean torso. A smile sits on her lips that has a constant stream of happiness whirling through my body, as peaceful as the babbling brook which bubbles over rocks beside us.

Perfect date partner…You know, if this was the date it was supposed to be.

“This isn’t exactly what I pictured our weekend to be like,” I groan, hefting a box of surveillance equipment from the back of my small car. The vehicle seems to let out a sigh at having been relieved of the weight of it.

Nat’s expression creases. “I’m sorry, [Name]. It wasn’t exactly what I’d had in mind either.” She eyes the laptop I’ve set up in the open boot of the SUV parked beside my car, shakes her head, and decides to help me unpack instead of dealing with that.

The two cars are mostly hidden by thicket, out of sight of any nosey residents from the houses below (and I can think of at least three—I’m pretty sure Mr. Trevino lives behind his binoculars). But they’re not exactly inconspicuous to any walkers who might pass us by.

“And how exactly are we supposed to explain all of this to anyone who wanders on by?” I ask, voicing my thoughts as I lay down the box and begin digging out the necessary cables to hook up the small set-up of tech beeping and flashing at me.

“Ah,” Nat replies, holding up a hand as her eyes shine. “I’ve got that covered.” She rushes to the front of the SUV and yanks open the door. I let her continue on with her task, as I tether the monitors together, sorting out the slight static that buzzes across the screens before they finally settle.

When Nat appears at my side again, she has a cream linen wrapped package in one arm and a beautifully sewn, gold-embellished backpack in the other.

I eye the items before flicking my gaze back up to hers. “What is it?”

“It’s camping equipment,” she states, a small frown creasing between her brows as she looks at the items to apparently check she has the right ones.

I bite at my lip to stop a chuckle. “Really? And just how much did that backpack cost?”

“I purchased it for the quality of the workmanship. It will last years,” she defends.

“Not once it gets damp with morning dew it won’t.” I tap at my lips, really struggling to contain my laughter now. “Have you actually been camping before?”

Obvious memories sweep a bright smile across her face. “Of course.”

“In the woods?”

Her posture slackens as she glances away. “Well…no. It was at someone’s estate…and the tent was equipped with the essentials.”

“Essentials like?” I press.

“Electric. Plumbing. A small wardrobe.” Her admission is barely more than a mumble.

My gaze drifts back to the backpack. “It doesn’t look like you managed to pack a generator in that bag.”

“Well, it will only be for a night to act as a cover story anyway,” she says with a shrug. “We’re having a romantic camping break. Just the two of us.”

“And Redland Topher’s mother,” I remind her, sweeping my hand out towards the monitors where a white-painted, adorable cottage-style house is captured on the screen. Redland Topher has been a pain in the Agency’s side for quite some time, but he knows how to stay hidden—by staying in the limelight.

The only way to get any information on the well-known businessman, who normally remains safely out of reach in the Big City, is to catch him where he’s vulnerable. And a trip to see his ageing mother might just be that ticket.

Unfortunately, the rest of Unit Bravo are covering patrols, and we were the only two left at last minute to cover the surveillance mission. Even after we’d planned a blissful weekend for just the two us.

Not that I’m bitter about it or anything.

Well, maybe just a little.

Nat sets the linen bag and backpack down onto the ground—doing a very good job at not wincing when dirt already stains the cream fabric—and closes the gap between us.

She brushes the back of her fingers against my cheek, and my body softens instantly at her touch. “I know you’re disappointed. I am too, more than you can imagine. But I hope we can make the most of what we do have.” She leans forward and kisses my cheek, pulling away with a smile. “And that is still time with each other.”

I both hate and love the way she can lift my mood with a few words and a kiss.

“You’re right,” I admit with a sigh, stepping closer and wrapping my arms around her. “Any second I can take with you is worth it.”

“Oh, such a sweet talker,” she purrs, stretching her fingertip beneath my chin as her gaze tips to my lips. They part as if in command to her attention.

“I learn from the best,” I reply, leaning forward to show my eagerness.

A smirk curls one corner of her mouth. “And who knows, maybe Redland will decide not to turn up at all. Think of all the free time we’ll have to fill.”

Her warm breath washes over me as she nears and once more my body reacts. She draws emotions from me I never thought possible, heightens senses I didn’t know I had, excites me in ways I’m desperate to explore.

Her eyes fall closed, but I keep mine open a moment more to savour the sight of her.

Her soft moan echoes between us before her lips even touch mine, but I only get to taste a whisper of them before we both realise it wasn’t a moan at all but a buzzing.

We draw apart, the distaste of disappointment leaving a sourness across my tongue, and we look towards the surveillance monitors.

“…Redland,” Nat sighs. “Of course, he’d turn up now.”

“And we hadn’t even set up the tent yet,” I comment, deciding it’s better to laugh than give into my annoyance—which will have me marching right down the hill to clap Redland in handcuffs just to get back to mine and Nat’s moment.

Nat presses up against me and kisses a slow line from my jaw to my lips. A hollowness aches within me at the quick contact as I’m left wanting more.

“I guess we better get to work,” she mumbles.

I try to draw in a breath through my heavy lungs. “I suppose we should.”

We don’t move away from each other for at least another minute.