Chapter 43

forty-three

ANDREW

I looked behind me and smiled. “Come on, slowpoke. We’ll be here all day if you don’t walk faster.”

“I’m enjoying the scenery,” Jacob told me. “Some of us like to take life at a slower pace than others.”

I knew for a fact that his mind and body worked at a million miles an hour. “I’ve seen the way you live your life and, believe me, there’s nothing slow about it.”

The snap of twigs was my only warning that Jacob was on the move. In a blur of denim and nylon, he sprinted along the trail, heading toward the summit with the ease of a mountain goat.

“Wait for me,” I yelled after him. Jacob slowed, but only enough to let me catch up. “You deliberately puffed me out so you could reach the top first.”

It was Jacob’s turn to grin. “If you promise to be nice to me, I’ll share the victory.”

I stuck my hands on my hips. “I don’t know what you consider nice, but if you let me go first, I’ll share some of Jonathan’s fudge with you.”

“You brought fudge and didn’t tell me?”

“When my parents and I went hiking, we always took trail mix with us. I didn’t have any nuts and chocolate at home, so I raided my supply of Jonathon’s candy.” I swung my backpack off my shoulders. “I’ve got chocolate, caramel, and strawberry dream fudge.”

He watched me take an old ice cream container out of my bag. I didn’t need X-ray vision to see how interested he was in the supply of candy. I popped open the lid and waved the container under his nose. If Jacob’s sense of smell was as good as his strategic plotting, he should be drooling by now.

“Blackmail won’t work.”

“Who said anything about blackmail? This is an old-fashioned trade. You can have two pieces of fudge if we walk to the top of the mountain together. If you let me go first, I’ll give you four.” Jacob was so close that I could smell the tangy freshness of his aftershave. “What would you like to do?”

“I’m an equal opportunities kind of guy.” Jacob peered inside the ice cream container. “I’ve also got a strong suspicion I’ll enjoy each of the flavors. For that reason alone, you’ve got a deal. But if you find any grizzly bears or mountain lions in the caves, run fast.”

“The only bear I’ve seen was in the zoo.”

“They might be closer than you think.” Jacob wiggled his eyebrows. “Especially the dark-haired, brown-eyed variety. They tend to get desperate for company and make a nuisance of themselves.”

“They’re probably lonely. The poor things might want someone to give them a hug when everything becomes too much.”

“I’d like to see that happen.” Jacob helped himself to a piece of fudge. “You’d be a tasty treat for a grizzly bear.”

I moved the ice cream container away from him. “That’s not very nice.”

“I was only joking.”

I forced myself to scowl. “You’ll have to eat the other pieces of fudge when you reach the summit. If there are any big, hairy animals in the caves, you can be the bait. There’s more meat on your bones.”

“I’m shocked. Would you really feed the man you love to a grizzly bear?”

“Only if he beats me to the summit.” I threw my backpack over my shoulders and took off up the trail.

Jacob was only a few steps behind me. “That’s cheating,” he said with a smile in his voice.

“Shh. You’ll disturb the wildlife.” I ducked under a branch, hoping it didn’t spring back and hit Jacob.

“Ow!”

“Oops. Sorry.”

Jacob muttered something before grabbing my hand and bringing me to a standstill. “I believe you owe me three pieces of fudge.”

I dragged deep breaths into my oxygen-starved lungs. “We’re not at the summit.”

Jacob opened his backpack and handed me his water bottle. “It depends on what you call the summit.”

I took a sip of water and studied the dirt trail. Sunlight filtered through the overhanging trees, casting pretty shadows on the ground. In the distance, the pale blue sky peeked through the canopy. “I suppose you could say we’re on the outer edge of the summit.”

With a raised eyebrow, Jacob stared intently at the ice cream container.

“Oh, all right.” I handed him the fudge. “Don’t take the extra piece of caramel fudge. It’s my favorite.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Now you have manners.”

“I gave you my water bottle.”

I grinned. “That’s true. There might be hope for you yet.”

Jacob returned my smile. “Thank goodness for that.”

We kept moving, walking under the trees in an easy silence.

“Have you been on this trail before?” I asked.

“Years ago. When I was little, Granddad used to bring me here at night. We’d lie in the grass and stare up at the sky. I used to think that if I tried really hard, I’d be able to touch the stars.”

“That’s a great memory.”

Jacob nodded. “Granddad showed me the different constellations and told me about the missions to the moon. By the time I was seven, I knew all the names of the Apollo 11 astronauts.”

“I bet that impressed your friends.”

“They didn’t care. But it came in handy when we did a space project at school. Mrs. McIntosh thought I was some kind of science genius.”

I smiled as I imagined his teacher’s amazement. “My one claim to fame was being able to tell my classmates how solar panels work. Mom and Dad lived off the grid until a couple of years ago.”

“That must have been hard, especially in the middle of winter.”

“My parents knew what they were doing, so it wasn’t too bad. The worst thing was when our solar panels got covered in snow and the generators became jammed with ice.”

Jacob’s hand hovered over another piece of fudge. “I’m surprised you didn’t continue the family tradition.”

“If I lived somewhere warm, like California, I might live off the grid. But once I moved to Nashville, I was spoiled. I became too used to soaking in bathtubs full of unlimited hot water.” When we reached the top of the mountain, I walked to the edge of the plateau. “This view of Willow Lake is stunning.”

“It’s one of Colorado’s best-kept secrets.” Jacob handed me the fudge, then sat on the grassy slope. “Do you ever wonder what your life would’ve been like if you hadn’t grown up in Sunrise Bay?”

I sat beside Jacob. “Sometimes. If I’d grown up in New York City or Las Vegas, everything about my half-hippie lifestyle would have been different. What’s one thing that could have changed your life?”

“If Dad and Granddad hadn’t been doctors, I don’t know if I would’ve chosen medicine as a career.”

“Let me guess—you would have become an astronaut.”

Jacob laughed. “Close. An astronomer. Granddad’s enthusiasm for the stars and planets rubbed off on me.”

“He sounds like an amazing man.”

Jacob’s smile disappeared. “He was. Granddad died eleven years ago.”

“I’m sorry.”

“He had bone cancer. It wasn’t a great way to die, but he had a great life. One of the main reasons I joined Doctors Without Borders was because of him. Even when he was really sick, he never stopped wanting to make a difference in other people’s lives. After he died, I was devastated. Working in refugee camps was my way of paying forward everything he taught me.”

Tears stung my eyes. “My grandma was like that. Her cupboards were always full of home baking and preserves. Whenever we went to see her, the house smelled like cinnamon and apples.”

“Is that why you enjoy making jams and preserves?”

I nodded. “It also makes people happy when they eat them. There’s nothing like enjoying big, juicy peaches in the middle of winter.”

“Talking about food…” Jacob opened his backpack and took out two plastic containers. “While I was in Sunrise Bay, I stopped by a café and bought lunch. I hope you like chicken, cranberry, and Brie croissants?”

“They sound delicious.” I smiled as Jacob pulled out even more food and drink. “I wondered why your backpack was so big.”

“That’s the other thing Granddad taught me.” Jacob handed me a wineglass. “Always be prepared, especially if you’re sitting with a beautiful man overlooking a picture-perfect lake.”

I grinned. “I like your granddad even more.”

“And I love you.”

Jacob’s kiss was as gentle as the spring breeze blowing across the lake. I didn’t know what would happen in the future but, right now, I was the happiest I’d ever been.