Read Online Answering to Him (Old-Fashioned Husband) by Dinah McLeod - Free Book Online

asked, getting excited.
    “I was thinking we would go camping.”
    I laughed at him—only a man would call camping a vacation . Still, it would be nice to get away. We hadn’t been anywhere just the two of us since Jonah was born. “I don’t know if I still know how,” I teased.
    “You’ll remember. It’s like riding a bike. And anyway, if you’re too delicate for dirt and sweat, we could always get a hotel room.”
    I winked at him. “I happen to like sweat very much, thank you… a certain kind of sweat, anyway.”
    “Oh, I bet I know just the kind,” he intoned, his voice smooth as silk.
     

Chapter 5
     
    We were packed and ready to go first thing Friday morning. It had been so long since we’d had a reason to pack, I’d nearly forgotten how organized Oliver was when it came to vacations—almost to the point of being dictatorial, an opinion I voiced often, if not to his face.
    We were going closer to the mountains to camp, and the drive was surprisingly pleasant. I’d begun the trip with a knot in my belly, afraid that he was going to bring up the elephant in the room. Instead, we talked about Jonah, about work, and how quickly the time had been flying by. We remembered the earlier days of our marriage, laughing at things that had seemed so important at the time, but were now nothing more than a distant memory.  Before long, I felt myself relax and found that I was enjoying myself.
    Oliver pulled over and we ate a quick meal. “Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve been to Ihop?” he asked when his pancakes arrived.
    “Too long?” I guessed as he drowned them in heavy syrup.
    “Too long,” he concurred.
    When we got back on the road, it was already getting dark. I could see the grim set of Oliver’s mouth and knew that he wasn’t happy about it.
    “Maybe we shouldn’t have had dessert,” I commented, with a quirk of my lips. We’d shared a hot fudge sundae and gotten into a spirited debate about whether or not Jonah knew that Santa was not real. It had ended with both of us laughing, because we were agreed that the myth had ended for him long ago, and that he was stringing us along just to get a lot of gifts.
    Oliver didn’t answer, but kept his eyes straight ahead, the furrow in his brow growing more pronounced the darker it became. I knew that he hated having to set up in the dark.
    Sure enough, by the time we checked in and got directions to our campsite, the sky was pitch dark. What little light there was from the moon was blocked by the forest of pine trees around our site. Some looked big enough to touch the sky itself. I knew that most women didn’t enjoy the great outdoors, but I loved getting away from the business of our everyday life. I loved how bright the stars twinkled, how crisp and fresh the mountain air was.
    I didn’t have long to muse over the campsite, because Oliver was quickly getting annoyed. He didn’t say anything, but I could hear it in his grunts, and the way he kept throwing the poles down dramatically. “Need some help?” I asked with forced brightness.
    “Yes, go ahead and light the lantern and bring it over here, please.”
    I rummaged through our gear and produced our Coleman lantern. I turned the knob, but nothing happened. “Hmm,” I mused aloud. I tried again, with the same result. And again—this time, I saw a flickering of gas at the bottom, but it was quickly extinguished. “Oliver…”
    “Bring it over here so I can get some light, babe.”
    “Honey…”
    “What?” He voice was exasperated and sharp.
    “It’s not working.”
    “What do you mean it’s not working? I checked it before we left.”
    I shrugged my shoulders. What more could I say?
    “Bring it over here.”
    Obediently, I stepped toward him and handed him the lantern. He promptly twisted the knob, as I had, with the same result.
    “Damn it,” he swore. “It needs to be replaced. Get a flashlight, please.”
    I promptly procured a flashlight and started toward