Page 32 of When The Mountains Held Us

I send an elbow towards him, but he dodges it easily.

“Not saying it’s true, because it’s not, but I think I’d be okay with that.”

Justin chuckles. “Oh yeah. You’re totally screwed.”

It’s a three-mile hike to the waterfall and, after a while, the four of us fall into a comfortable silence, save for the sound of our heavy breathing and the occasional black fly buzzing around our heads. Oakley still walks ahead of me, but I’m not complaining. There’s an excitement that laces every eager step she takes, and the swing of her hips as she moves makes my mouth water. I’m not necessarily staring at her ass, but…

Okay, I’m staring at her ass.

Round and firm. How could I not when it rivals every view around us?

Our pace slows as we take the final incline in the trail that will put us out right in front of the waterfall. Bandit sticks close by Oakley’s side, her fingers brushing the top of his head with every step. Something feral rumbles deep in my chest at the sight of her with my dog—and his unwavering loyalty to her already.

We round the final bend, and Oakley stops dead in her tracks and lets out a little gasp as she takes in the sight of the waterfall. I wish I could see the look in her eyes as she witnesses it for the first time. I remember the utter awe I felt the first time I saw the gushing crystal clear water and how small I felt in comparison to it.

Justin and I come up next to the girls, and Jessie is taking pictures of the waterfall on her phone. Oakley gives herself a shake before pulling her phone out of her pack. I watch her from the corner of my eye, noting the slight frown she gives her phone screen before swiping up on the camera app and snapping a couple of pictures.

“Do you want me to take one for you?” I ask, my voice low and gruff. I clear my throat, and Oakley turns to look at me, stirring the air around her and causing the scent of her lavender shampoo to wash over me. Her eyes are bright and full of wonder as she holds her phone out to me.

“Would you?” She stands in front of the waterfall, looking up at it for a moment and, while I know she’ll want one of it behind her, I can’t help but take a picture of her gazing up at it towering above her. She turns and gives a shy smile, and I take another.

“Come on. You can do better than that.”

She laughs, and my thumb taps the capture button. Bandit runs up to her, plopping his butt down on top of her feet, and I capture the sight of her head thrown back in laughter.

“Bandit! Here, boy!” Justin snaps his fingers over my shoulder.

Bandit ignores him and continues to stare up at Oakley with what can only be described as hearts in his eyes. He turns his head, his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth, and I snap another. Jessie throws her arm around Oakley’s shoulders, and I capture a few more.

“Alright, that’s enough. Now, for the fun part!” Jessie exclaims, bouncing on her toes in anticipation.

“Oh good. And here I thought the hike was the fun part.”

Jessie rolls her eyes at Justin’s remark. She may act annoyed with him ninety percent of the time, but I know she secretly loves his teasing. If only they both weren’t so stubborn.

Oakley’s phone buzzes in my hand, and before I can stop myself, I glance down to see a text from an unknown number lighting up the screen.

Unknown

This isn’t over. You can run, but you can’t hide.

My stomach drops and my thoughts race, my senses on high alert as the words roll like movie credits through my mind. My pulse thunders in my ears, and Bandit, sensing my rapid shift, returns to my side, looking up at me with a questioning look.

The flash of blonde hair catches my attention as Oakley moves to stand in front of me. I quickly lock the phone and hand it back to her without a word. I don’t want her to know I saw the message. It’s none of my business.

My body protests the thought, but I take a deep breath and bring myself back to the present, to the trail I’m standing on and the waterfall in front of me.

“You know what comes next?”

“Um, no…?” Apprehension drips in her tone as she looks up at me.

“Hell yeah! Initiation time!” Justin lets out a whoop and takes off running.

Jessie follows, laughing as she yells at him to wait up.

Oakley’s expression can only be described as pure fear as her blue-gray eyes peer up at me. This close to her, I can count the freckles that grace the bridge of her nose.

“Initiation?”