Ignoring my dire state, Noah walked back into the building, his effortless stride showing no sign of the fact that we’d basically just duplicated Lewis and Clark’s entire trek to the Pacific and back.
Eventually, I dragged myself through the Adventure Center’s doors on my own two feet.
Jenn glanced up from her paperwork at the front desk with a smile.
Diego paused in sorting a pile of life jackets when he saw me. “Damn it.” He stomped over and slapped a twenty-dollar bill in front of Jenn.
“What was that for?”
“Nothing,” both Jenn and Diego said together.
“Well, look who survived Dawn Patrol.” Maya emerged from the back.
“Barely.” I slumped against the counter. “Noah tried to murder me in at least seven different ways.”
“Only seven?” Jenn returned to her paperwork. “Noah must be going soft.”
“Seriously, how’d it go?” Maya asked, wincing at my worn appearance.
“Well, first, Noah made me climb what had to be the steepest mountain in Colorado. Then he forced me to carry this massive backpack that weighed more than my entire luggage collection.” I ticked off each offense on my fingers. “He wouldn’t let me rest, rushed me through my content creation, and made me trek through tick-infested wilderness.”
“Yeah, those things are nasty,” said Diego. “Whatever you do, don’t let them on you. They carry all kinds of diseases.”
“They do? What kind of diseases?”
“Well, there’s Colorado tick fever,” said Jenn.
“Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever,” added Diego.
“Don’t forget tick paralysis,” said Maya.
“Tick paralysis?” I tested my limb function.
“Don’t listen to them. You’re fine.” Noah dropped his pack by the desk with a thud. “Probably.”
“And don’t even get me started on the death march shortcut through the woods after YOUR Jeep broke down.” I turned back to Jenn. “Which, by the way, was absolutely not my fault.”
“The interior light you left on would disagree,” Noah muttered.
“See what I have to deal with?” I thumbed at Noah over my shoulder. “Pure evil in flannel and hiking boots.”
Diego laughed, abandoning his gear sorting completely. “Sounds like a typical Noah morning to me.”
“At least the muffins were good. Almost made the whole thing worth it. Almost.”
“Wait,” Jenn said, her pen freezing mid-air. “Muffins? What muffins?”
“He said they were huckleberry.” I turned to Maya. “Huckleberries aren’t poisonous, are they?” She shook her head.
“Noah baked you his huckleberry muffins?” Jenn’s and Diego’s eyes both snapped to Noah with synchronized precision.
Noah pointed at Maya. “That was her idea. She was the one who suggested I give her the full experience.”
“Mmm-hmm.” Jenn’s smile only grew wider.
“If you say so.” Diego smiled with her.
“It was her idea.” Noah pointed at Maya. “Tell them.”
