Page 67 of Why Not Both?

I look to where she’s pointing. “It says one quarter.”

“Are you telling me we’re only a quarter of the fucking way?”

“Yep.”

She stops walking, shifting off the path in case anyone comes up behind us, then fixes me with a glare. “You seem a decent fellow. I hate to kill you.”

I know what the next line should be. Everyone who loves The Princess Bride knows what the next line should be. But there’s a better one. “We are men of action. Lies do not become us.”

She laughs. “You’re right. I’m going to enjoy killing you for this. I’m very good with knives, you know. I get kind of stabby when I’m angry.”

I wrap my arms around her, unable to stop myself, and press a kiss to her temple which is sweaty beneath my lips. I don’t care at all.

“Come on, firecracker. You can make it. Besides. That marker is actually the elevation. Not the distance. We’re further than a quarter of the way distance-wise.”

We continue walking, my arm around her, urging her forward.

“I still hate you and I’m still going to kill you.”

I have to let her go. We can’t walk like this on this trail. As much as I wish we could.

“How long does it usually take you to get to the top?” she asks.

“Usually an hour and a half. I pushed once to see what I could do and managed it in an hour, but I don’t like going that fast.”

“I feel like I’m going to take longer than an hour and a half.”

“We’ll go your pace. There’s no rush. Besides, when the trail gets narrow, you can walk in front. I will happily follow you up the mountain.”

She lifts an eyebrow at me. “Are you implying you’re going to stare at my ass?”

“Yes.” I give her an unrepentant smile.

“Well, then I think it’s only fair we take turns,” she responds primly.

“You want a chance to stare at my ass then?”

“And your shoulders. You have nice shoulders.”

We stop for water. Lis does a few stretches. We continue. The trail gets harder and we don’t talk as much, climbing stair after stair, some built, some formed from the mountain itself. When we reach the three quarter sign, Lis stops, bending over with her hands on her knees.

“Fuck. This is awful. You do this for fun?”

“Yes,” I say, grinning. “You’re doing great. And the worst is behind us now.”

“I think the whole thing is the worst. I think you’re the worst for making me do this. I am never doing this again.”

“Yes, you will. You’re going to get to the top and the endorphins are going to flood in and you’re going to beg me to take you next time I come up here.”

She snorts. “Sure. And you can hike up the mountain and I’ll take the gondola. I’ll have a nice leisurely breakfast and you can reach the top all sweaty.”

We keep going, climbing the last quarter faster than the last while. When we reach the top, we find the timer station and I hand Lis my card.

“Want to do the honours?”

She grabs it and swipes it, letting out a huge breath.

“Come on,” I say, grabbing her hand and tugging her with me. “Let’s get a selfie.”

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