“Are you sure? I don’t want?—”
“Yes,” Danika said.
Everyone else agreed, they wanted her there. She could tell they were sincere.
“Okay, I’ll come over for dinner. Can I bring something?”
“We still have some of the cookies you baked,” Nichole said.
“I have a good broccoli dish,” Elowen said.
“Sure, that sounds lovely,” Danika said.
“I’ll walk you back,” Griz said.
She was about to tell him he didn’t have to, but spending more time with Griz would be good. When he kissed her goodbye on her front porch, she reached back and opened the door.
He paused and narrowed his gaze. “You don’t lock it.”
She shook her head. “No. There are only about five, maybe six people in a six-mile radius. One of the couples is very old, and then there is the couple that just had kids. There’s an old guy living on his own and someone else I don’t know well.”
“You should be more careful.”
She shrugged. “I lock up if I leave the area.”
He turned to leave then paused and turned back. “So the trail camera down by the river. Is that yours?”
She shook her head. “Is it on my property?”
“I don’t know. We didn’t cross any fences.”
“I don’t have a fence between here and the river.”
“Then it could be on your property, or maybe someone else’s.”
Worry slid through her. “I don’t have a trail camera. I don’t know who would have put one up. I haven’t seen any.”
He nodded slowly. “Want me to show it to you?”
“Sure.”
“Let me text the guys and tell them that I’m headed over to the river to show you the camera.”
“Sure.”
He texted while she went in to use the bathroom. An odd feeling slid through her as she thought about the mixing bowl that had been washed. It sounded ridiculous in her head. There was no way someone would break into her house and do the dishes.
When she stepped out, she turned and locked the door. “There, it’s locked.”
“Everyone wants to come. So we can start walking, but let’s go slow because all the women want to see the river where we were fishing.”
“Sounds good. It’s beautiful out here and hiking is a good activity for everyone. The path isn’t too dangerous, either. On the far north side of my property it’s dangerous. That’s getting into the mountain and steep rock faces.”
“We haven’t gone that way yet. It looks beautiful, though.”
“It is. I haven’t hiked up there in a while.”
“So you don’t really know who could be camping there.”
