Page 19 of A Secret Crush Valentine's

Jan frowned. “What about your companion?”

“What?”

“The woman you’re traveling with. Who’s she?”

Grim Jim’s treasure.

“She… she’s someone I met on my way here. I’m doing her a little favor while I search for the snow leopard. Once I give Grim Jim what he wants, I should be free.”

Unless I get to Caprichor with the snow leopard first.

Chapter Eight

“I Didn’t Want to Go to the Dance Without You”

Fifteen miles. They had traveled this distance without so much as pausing to rest. For Julia, it felt like so much more. A dull ache filled her legs with each step, but she pushed forward. She swept her gaze around. As always, Frost Mountain stretched even farther than her eyes could see. It was an infinite dimension, probably millions of miles across—or more.Dimensiondidn’t even seem to be the right word for this place. It was starting to feel more like a universe.

But even a universe had its limits.

“How long has it been since we left Dragon’s Den?” she breathed, stepping over an upraised root.

“Five days,” Damon replied without glancing at her. He didn’t look it, but she could tell he was also tired, not that it would stop him.

“You sure it’s not two weeks?” She bit her lip, wincing as it stung. “I’m starting to miss that town.”

More specifically, she missed being indoors. She missed it because it meant she could pretend she wasn’t surrounded by all this snow. Out here, in eternal winter, she felt ill at ease.

She knew she wasn’t the first to feel this way, and with time, she should get used to it, like Damon.

“We’ll get to Caprichor soon, Red,” he said, adjusting his bag.

“How soon?”

She supposed the silence that followed meant he was thinking of an answer. Finally, he said, “Soon.”

“That definitely answered my question,” she said, rolling her eyes.

He had something on his mind. That much she could tell. He’d been brooding ever since they’d left Dragon’s Den. Whatever he was thinking about, it was clearly serious, but she couldn’t readhim, not after all these years. The man walking alongside her was a far cry from the guy who’d offered to walk her home in high school.

She decided a direct approach was in order. “Penny for your thoughts or whatever passes for money on this mountain.”

He cracked a smile, which made her heart swell for a moment. The memory of his gorgeous face hovering over hers flickered in her mind. She shifted her gaze to the sky, where the afternoon sun shone, only half as bright as his grin.

“It’ll be evening soon. How much longer until we get some rest?”

His eyes narrowed slightly. “There’s a set of caves up ahead. We should arrive there by tomorrow evening.”

“You’re kidding, right?”

She knew the answer before he went on. “There’s a shortcut, though. One that should save us a day at least.”

“What kind of shortcut?”

He looked her dead in the eye. “There’s a lake ahead of us. It’s been frozen for years, and—”

The sound of ice cracking and groaning filled her ears, and she shook her head. “No lakes. Please. Let’s take the longer route.”

“That’s an extra day, and we’d be walking through the woods.”

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