“You.”
He does not move, and I immediately regret everything.
“That was not meant to sound dramatic,” I say.
“It didn’t.”
“It felt dramatic.”
“It felt honest.”
There is that word again. Honest.
Before Cady Springs, I would have said honesty was easy. Tell the truth. Don’t cheat. Don’t lie. Don’t make promises you never intend to keep. But now I think maybe honesty is harder than that. Maybe it is also admitting when the life you chose is killing something in you. Admitting that a man’s age bothers you mostly because you want him anyway. Admitting that you are less afraid of the jump than of how alive you felt when he held you afterward.
I look down at my sandals. My toes are somewhat hidden, thank God. Hudson notices anyway.
His voice lowers. “You’re doing it again.”
I sigh. “My toes are minding their own business.”
“No, you’re hiding.”
“I am standing beside an ice machine in broad daylight.”
“You know what I mean.”
I do. That is the problem. I reach for the bucket because I need something to do with my hands.
“Maybe hiding is underrated.”
“Maybe.”
That surprises me. He lets me take the bucket this time. For a moment, we just stand there. Then a voice calls Hudson’s name from the dock. Someone needs something. Of course someone needs something. Hudson’s world seems to be held together by his willingness to notice things before they break.
He glances toward the lake, then back at me. “I’ve got a couple of things to finish.”
“Of course.”
He steps closer, just enough that I feel the warmth of him. “I’m taking a supply run up to Willow Falls later. Trail check, mostly. Small waterfall. Swimming hole. Not a cliff.”
My heart gives one hard beat. “Oh.”
“You want to come?”
Every reasonable part of my brain sits up straight. No, thank you, it says. You have already done your reckless thing for the day. You almost kissed this man twice. Do not go wandering to a hidden waterfall with him like a woman in a paperback who has never seen a warning sign. The rest of me leans forward.
“What time?”
His mouth curves like he heard both parts. “Four.”
“Is this a guided activity?”
“No.”
“Work?”
“Some.”
