Page 43 of Tattered and Torn

I take hold of Loki’s reins and nod toward the trees. “You can go far enough into the woods for privacy, but not too far. You should still be able to see and hear us, even if we can’t see you. Got it?”

Krista chuckles. “Maybe you should go with her, Burke, so she doesn’t get eaten by a bear.”

“It’s not a bear she wants to eat her,” Andrea says.

All three women laugh.

I catch Gabrielle’s gaze, and again she rolls her eyes, then looks up to the sky and shakes her head.

“I think Brittany can manage her business on her own,” I say, nodding toward the trees. “Watch out for poison ivy.”

Brittany gives me a tight smile before she walks around the front of Loki and steps into the woods.

I drop Loki’s reins because I know he won’t go anywhere and walk down the line to check on everyone.

“You ladies doin’ okay?” I ask Krista and Andrea.

“I’m starving,” Krista says. “When do we get to eat?”

“When we reach Pine Lake,” I say. “How about you?” I ask Andrea. “You doin’ okay?”

She shrugs. “Other than having a sore butt, I’m fine.”

When I reach Gabrielle, I pat Odin’s back flank and gaze up at her. “How’re you doin’?”

She nods. “Fine. How much longer until we reach the lake?”

“We’re halfway there.” I stare up into her green eyes, which are framed by thick brown lashes. Her hair is secured in a single braid. Her cheeks are pink from the cooling air. The higher the elevation, the cooler the temperature.

Gabrielle unties her hoodie from around her waist and slips it on.

“You were smart to bring that,” I say. “It’ll be a bit chilly up at the lake.”

Andrea turns to look back at us. “Brittany’s been out there a while, Burke. Maybe you should go look for her. She has no sense of direction.”

“Yeah,” Krista says. “Seriously, Brittany could get lost in a paper bag. She got lost in a Neiman-Marcus changing room once. I kid you not.”

Both Krista and Andrea laugh. I glance at Gabrielle, who shakes her head.

I rest my hand on her thigh. “I’m glad you decided to come along.”

She gives me a small smile. “Me, too.”

Finally, Brittany comes traipsing out of the woods, frantically running her hands over her hair. “I think I walked through a spider web.” She makes a disgusted face. Suddenly, she pales. “There aren’t tarantulas in Colorado, are there? Please say no.”

“Actually there are,” I say. “But we really don’t see them in these parts. They’re mostly in the southern regions of the state.”

Her blue eyes are wide as saucers as she mounts Loki and picks up her reins. “I’m never getting off this horse again.”

I refrain from laughing at her. “Besides, they don’t make webs above ground—not the kind you’d walk through.”

The trail starts climbing now as we head up to a higher elevation. I can feel the change in the air.

“You’ll notice the landscape changing a bit,” I tell the group, “the higher the elevation. The trees will start to thin out a bit, and you’ll see more evergreens. You’ll also see more outcroppings of rock.”

“We don’t have to climb any rocks, do we?” Krista asks, sounding horrified.

I shake my head. “No. That’s a different outing entirely.”

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