Page 19 of Colton's Last Resort

Underneath, was some part of it—or someone inside of it—deadly?

She shuddered, blamed the cold, then polished off the éclair. “She had a crush on you.”

“Who?” When he glanced over, she canted her head tellingly. He gawped. “Allison?”

Laura sighed. “She wasn’t the type to hold back. But she worked with you. She valued her job. So she sat with her feelings.” Reaching over, she cupped his chin in her hand, helping him to close his mouth. “I promised her I wouldn’t tell. But I think you two could have made each other happy, at least for a time, and... I don’t know. All this reminds me not to waste time if you know what’s right for you.”

Joshua looked shocked, bereft and everything in between.

He jerked the wheel onto the scenic path, along the wall that fell away from the ridge where Mariposa dwelled. She looked out over the countryside. Snow, red rocks and the Sonoran Desert clashed to make the view that much more spectacular. “We’re going to be okay. Right?”

“We’ve done this before.”

She nodded. The three of them had weathered quite a few storms together. “Should I have kept my promise? Should I not have told you?”

He shook his head. “I liked Allison. I liked her a lot. But I have rules, same as she did.”

Joshua liked to have fun, but he didn’t date anyone in-house. Mariposa was as sacred to him as it was to Laura and Adam, and that included every single person under its umbrella. “I didn’t mean to make this harder for you. I just didn’t get much sleep last night, wondering whether you two missed out on something special. She was special, Josh.”

“I know.” His Adam’s apple bobbed. He reached for her hand and clutched it. “It’s going to be okay.”

She had told him that after their mother’s death, every night he’d cried himself to sleep. Eyes welling, she turned them away, feeling his fingers squeeze hers. “It’s coming up on that time of year.”

He kept driving, pushing the golf cart as fast as it would go. If Adam saw him driving like this on the guest pathways, he would chastise him for it. Laura said nothing, however. When Joshua didn’t reply, she added, “The anniversary.”

“I know.”

Every year on the anniversary of Annabeth’s death, the three of them took the day off. They’d disappear for a day, first bringing mariposas to her grave, then embarking on a hike. The date coincided with the bridge between winter and spring. Snow gathered in places along the trail. Snowmelt tumbled down passes, rushing for valleys. And early spring growth punched through the bedrock, clawing for purchase like hope incarnate.

They never spoke much on the hike. They never took photos to capture the day. And while Joshua was a more proficient hiker than both Laura and Adam, he never left them behind. They didn’t turn back for the resort until they reached the high point—Wrigley’s Rough, a jagged fall of rocks with a view of the architectural site of the ancient ruins of the Sinagua people. From the top, they could see every piece of land Annabeth had left them.

Laura couldn’t help but think that this year, the anniversary would be especially hard to navigate.

They pulled up to L Building. “Adam doesn’t like when you park here,” she reminded him.

“It’s freezing,” Joshua said, engaging the brake. “I’m not making you walk from C Building. Hey,” he said before she could step out of the vehicle. “We really are going to be okay.”

She adored him for saying it. “When I figure out when the service will be, would you like to go with me?”

“Of course,” he agreed. “Are you ready for what comes next?”

“What comes next?” she asked curiously.

“Drink,” he advised as they walked to the door that led to their offices at the back of the building. “I got you the big gulp for the meeting with Dad.”

She raised her face to the clouds. “Oh,” she said.

“You forgot.”

“I forgot,” she admitted. Pressing her hand to her brow, she shook her head. “It completely slipped my mind.”

“That wasn’t something else keeping you awake?”

“I didn’t think about it at all.” She groaned. “Oh, Josh. He’s going to waltz in, being all Clive, and I’ve had no sleep, no prep...”

He nudged the coffee toward her mouth. “Drink, ace.”

“Right,” she said, tipping the to-go cup up for a steaming swig. She quickly covered her mouth with her hand. “Lava.”

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