Marcus laughed. “Oh, I don’t think she’s worried about that. Anyway, what happened with Roger last night?”
“Yeah, he came pounding on the door. I didn’t step in until I heard him yelling at her,” I continued. “He was still outside, hadn’t forced his way in, so I turned on my floodlights and went out to make sure she was okay. That got his attention.
She told him to leave, and I backed her up. He left, but I doubt we’ve seen the last of him. She told him to go through his lawyer, but I’m not holding my breath on that.”
We walked in silence for a few moments, the crunch of gravel underfoot filling the space.
“What do you think, Marcus? Should he be allowed to see his daughter? I mean, he is her dad, and he never hurt Savannah or the baby, right?”
Marcus grunted. “He didn’t have the chance to hurt the baby. Roger’s twenty-five now. He and Savannah were together forthree years before he went to prison. In that time, he committed six burglaries.”
He continued. “It wasn’t until the last one—when he shot someone and paralyzed them—that they caught him. Something about the gun tied him to the other crimes. That’s how he got ten years. Honestly, he should’ve gotten more. Assault with a deadly weapon alone should’ve earned him a longer sentence.”
I shook my head, taking it all in. “But he was never abusive to her? No bruises? Nothing?”
Marcus shook his head firmly. “Nope. I never saw any bruises and I don’t think she was lying when she said he’d never been that way with her. If he had been, she would’ve said something when everything came to light. Might’ve even gotten him a longer sentence. But no, he wasn’t violent with her—not that I saw or heard about, anyway.”
I pondered that for a moment. Roger really did sound like a frightful character.
“So he’s a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde type?”
“Exactly,” Marcus said, his tone sharp.
We hiked in comfortable silence for a bit, taking in the beauty around us. The trail was lined with towering pines and evergreen bushes, offering a serene escape.
The entire time, even while we talked, I thought about Savannah. I wondered if she was okay at her job. Was Alana safe at her daycare? Did they need me right now?
We reached the peak about twenty minutes later. At the summit, we stood on the rocky ledge, taking in the breathtaking view. The landscape stretched out for miles, the drop below us dizzying. All you can hear is the sound of the leaves rustling in the wind. We were about three thousand feet up the top of the mountain. I liked the silence when I was up that high.
“I can see my house from here,” Marcus joked, staring out at the horizon. He never looked down. He wasn’t afraid of heightsper say. But he was uncomfortable looking three thousand feet down to the ground, which was approximately how far up we were.
“Funny guy,” I replied, smirking. Though he knew I was kidding with him. We smiled at each other.
After snapping a few pictures—some of the view, some of each other.
“Want to stop for a bit and eat lunch now? We can only go down from here.”
“Yeah, I’d like that. Stomach is aching’ for something’ other than a granola bar.” We settled down to eat. The sound of crinkling wrappers and unscrewing soda caps filled the air as we enjoyed the quiet.
I listened to the wind blowing past us. It wasn’t harsh, though at that height it could have been. I’d been up this high before when the winds were terrible. Today it was barely a breeze.
“Listen,” Marcus said, breaking the silence. “I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”
I glanced up, a cheesy cracker halfway to my mouth. “Yeah?”
“What do you really think of Savannah? I mean from a guy’s perspective—she’s pretty, right? Smart? Nice?”
I raised an eyebrow, caught off guard. “Uh, yeah. She’s all of those things. Why’re you asking?”
He shrugged, tossing crumbs into his mouth and staring out into the distance. “I just think you’d be a good match for her. You’re both great people. I could see you taking care of her, being there for her and Alana. For the long haul.”
I laughed, more to mask my nerves than anything else. “Are you matchmaking now? Trying to set me up with your sister?”
“Maybe,” he said with a grin. “Unless there’s a problem with her?”
“Of course not!” I shook my head. “I’ve never had a friend try to set me up with his sister before. I thought there was some kindof code where I was supposed to be hands off”. In reality, I was incredibly pleased by what he was proposing.
Thinking back to all the moments Savannah and I had shared. The night before and the great time we’d had at the beach were examples of how well Savannah and I got along. But things were different when you got to know someone. We might not be compatible just because we got along well on those few occasions.
