Page 58 of Official

“That’s never been an issue between us,” I say.

“No, but it was helpful when Gladys stopped me at the café the other day.”

“Mr. Logan, do I need to be jealous of this woman?” I nudge him with my shoulder.

He chuckles. “No, no. Her husband, Edgar, made it very clear that I was too young for her.”

“So, you two parted amicably?”

“Right after I paid for her coffee because Edgar ran off with her wallet when he thought he saw a Kiwikiu outside. I did add them to my character notebook, though. She was quirky, especially when she described the owl she saw in a Koa tree like it was a talking animal. I should include her in a show or movie someday.”

“I have a lot of questions.” I grin, watching where I step for any holes or branches.

“I have one of my own.” He spins and walks sideways to face me, a gleam in his eye that’s sparkling with a dangerous mix of curiosity and mischief.What is he up to?“What does jealousy look like on Samantha Ray?”

My exhale comes out with a whoosh and turns into a giggle. I thought his question would be more devious than that. “I don’t get jealous,” I simply state.

As he falls back into step next to me, his laugh echoes around us, making it feel like we’re the only two people on earth. We haven’t run into a single person yet, and it’s been peaceful.

“Okay, I confess.” I eye him as we continue ahead. “There was this one time…”

He rubs his hands together. “Go on.”

“His name was Tony Garfield, and I was jealous when he shared his animal crackers with Megan Jones instead of me.” I nod, my cheeks red from trying to keep a straight face. “It made elementary school pretty tough.”

“Where’d you go afterward?”

“What do you mean?”

“Obviously, you had to have transferred schools after the heartbreak you experienced,” he jokes.

“I thought we already established that I don’t cry over jerks.” I lean into him and walk along the curve in the path, which quickly becomes less recognizable as such. Instead, footsteps of other hikers in the mud lead us in the right direction.

That, and the map we got from the hotel helps guide us through the jungle of banyan trees, which later spits us out onto a clearer trail along the edge of a drop-off.

Eventually, we come to an overlook, and my feet stop, along with my heart.

“Wow,” I breathe.

Green mountainside stretches tall and strong across the island, and the winds are gustier at this elevation. The loose strands of my hair fly backward and out of my eyes as if the wind didn’t want me to miss this view. It feels like we’re untouchable up here, and we haven’t even reached the highest point yet.

It’s times like these when I feel connected to something bigger than myself. Something significant and meaningful. A rare and inspiring experience.

This trip has been full of those, and when Xander sneaks his hand into mine, I’m overwhelmed with gratitude.

I grip it tightly like I’ll fall off the edge otherwise, and it grounds me more firmly than if I were to carve out my name on one of the trees ahead.

As we continue down the path hand in hand, he breaks the silence and asks, “Why Samantha Ray? You could’ve picked anything for your brand name.”

“Um…” I gulp as nostalgia overcomes me, the knot of emotion from this hike rendering me nearly speechless. “My mom had a miscarriage after she had Teddy. She and my dad didn’t think they’d be able to have any more children, but then I came along three years later. Ever since I can remember, they’ve called me their miracle. Their ray of sunshine. I didn’t even think twice about the name.”

“I had no idea.” He comes to a complete stop and peers over at me, intensity setting his eyes ablaze. “I love it.”

I squeeze his hand tighter as we sway along the path, our pace slower than when we first started in order to take in more of the scenery.

When we come to a waterfall, my jaw drops again.

This island has amazed me beyond words on numerous occasions, this moment included.

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