Page 20 of Wild Hearts

Mick looks me in the eye. “I trust you.”

I swallow hard. I know that it might seem silly, but that one statement means a lot. Mick’s used to trusting only his brothers to have his back. Even Josh can’t help but check behind me. It’s some psychological need for him. The fact that Mick’s putting his trust in me means more to me than he will ever know.

Mick stands up, holding his hand out to me. I slip mine into his and he pulls me up. He bends down grabbing both packs, putting one on each shoulder.

“Lead the way.” He nods toward the door.

I open the garage door as soon as we step inside.

“I thought we could take one of the four-wheelers part way.” I turn and look at Mick.

He tweaks my nose. “Sounds good.”

I chuckle, loving how comfortable it is to be with him. Instead of this feeling new and awkward, it feels right. Like we’ve known each other our entire lives.

It seems crazy to think had I taken the time to go out and visit Josh or had he come home with Josh before, that we could have met sooner. I could have felt this sooner.

“You okay?” he asks, brushing a stray hair from my face.

I smile. “Better than okay.”

He grabs my hand as we walk over to the four-wheeler. “You can bungee the packs down.”

Mick gets to work doing just that while I check the gas tank. It’s a little low so I grab the small gas can I keep in here for times like this and fill it all the way up.

“You don’t use the tank by the barn?” Mick asks, leaning against the four-wheeler.

“I do, but sometimes it’s easier to do it with a can instead. I hate stopping when I just get going.”

“Makes sense.” Mick gets onto the four-wheeler and slides as far back as he can. “Take me on an adventure, baby girl.” He pats the seat in front of him.

“You don’t mind me driving?” I ask, swinging my leg over, sitting in front of him.

Mick pulls me flush against him. “Nah, this is your territory. You know what you’re doing.”

He leans in, kissing my neck softly. I savor the feeling before turning the four-wheeler on.

I pull out of the garage and take off toward the back of the property. Twenty minutes later, I park the four-wheeler inside the tree line.

“We have to hike from here,” I tell him.

“Sounds good.”

I slip off the four-wheeler and Mick does the same. I unhook the packs from the rack and slide mine on while he does the same.

“How far back?” he asks.

“It’s about three miles up, count in the elevation change, and it will take us a little over an hour, an hour and a half.”

“Not bad, lead the way.”

We set off on the barely seen footpath with me in the lead.

“Are we staying on your property?”

“We are. The land sits against the national forest, so we’re pretty lucky.”

“Do you get a lot of trespassers?”

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