Page 26 of Trail to Trouble
That old familiar sensation of dread coiled in the pit of Hannah’s stomach, and the skeptical look in Hunter’s eyes let her know there was something more to this. Something was not right. Not right at all. This trip wasn’t going to end well for any of them.
A branch snapped, and Hannah’s gaze darted in that direction.
ChapterSeven
Hunter’s stomachchurned so much as he ate his pizza that he passed on the blueberry pudgy pie. He never turned down a pie before, but something wasn’t sitting right with him. Yeah, it appeared it was only a pair of sunglasses that was out of order, and sure, someone may have put them on the tree by the pit toilet, thinking they were simply being funny. But, between that and a few out-of-the-ordinary noises he’d heard, he was on high alert. The feeling of being watched didn’t help and stayed at the forefront.
He glanced at Hannah, who sat quietly on the bench, staring at the fire, picking at her cherry pudgy pie. The concerned expression she wore matched how he felt.
Darkness had settled in. The woods were quiet. His senses were in tune.
He could call base camp and have someone pick them up quickly. Get the ladies out of this potential danger. Or, at least, find out if anyone else had experienced any oddities. He shook his head. Was he just being paranoid?
Bianca rose to her feet. “I’m turning in.”
“Me, too,” Alyssa replied.
His gaze landed on Hannah. He hoped she wasn’t of like mind because he wanted some alone time with her, wishing to resume what they’d started earlier in the day. She met his gaze, and a slight smile curved on her face.
She pulled her gaze from him and looked at her friends. “I’ll be along shortly.”
His pulse ratcheted up a notch.
The ladies disappeared into their tent.
He and Hannah sat in silence for a few beats before he rose from his spot, walked around the fire pit to where she sat on the bench and sat next to her. Close enough to her so that the side of his left arm and leg pressed against hers.
“I enjoyed the day,” she said as she craned her neck to look at him.
“Me, too,” he replied.
He slung his arm over her shoulders and scooted closer to her.
She felt nice to the touch, and it felt even nicer when she leaned toward him.
“Tomorrow’s going to be great. We’ll be hiking to Lover’s Leap Falls. It’s not huge, but it is the biggest one on the property.”
“Sounds nice.”
“The hike to this one is four miles round trip. Think your friends will be up for it?”
Hannah’s pleasant, soft laughter wafted into his ear canals.
“I think the wilderness has already taken its toll on Bianca, for sure. I still can’t believe she agreed to this kind of trip. Alyssa may be up for it, but I’m sure she would have preferred a trip to Nashville or somewhere of the like. I appreciate they did this for me. I told them they didn’t have to, but they insisted. They’re good friends, despite our sparring sometimes.”
“You ladies seem so different. Your tastes, I mean.”
“We are, but we were roommates throughout college. We got along well, but we didn’t do everything together all the time. That’s part of what was nice about our friendship.”
“Nice.”
“What was your college life and roommates like?” she asked.
“I was in the dorms for the first two years, then I moved into an apartment with three other guys whom I hadn’t roomed with before. We all stayed together for two years. When they graduated with their bachelor’s degrees, they left. I stayed on for another year to get my MBA degree, so I ended up with three new roommates. I hung out with all my roommates while we lived together. We keep in touch a bit. Mostly on social media.”
She offered a slight nod.
“I wonder about the three of us. We’re all headed in different directions. Bianca and Alyssa will return to their hometowns close to the Twin Cities. I’m not sure where I’ll end up. Maybe I’ll stay close to home, but it will depend on where I get a job. I have some interviews scheduled.”
