“Oh, this is devastating news.”
She laughed, brighter now, shoulders loosening. “So if you think hiking and parasailing are going to scare me…”
“I stand corrected,” he said. “Clearly I’ve been underestimating you.”
“Everyone does.”
The way she said it wasn’t bitter, just honest. And somehow, that made him want to reach for her hand—even though he didn’t.
“Well,” he said instead, turning back to the controls, “in that case, I’m upgrading the itinerary. You can lead the hike.”
She pretended to consider it. “Only if you promise not to hover because you think I’m going to trip or something. You know, like I hear you all do with Milo.”
“To be fair, we had our reasons, and we were right.” Turning his head slightly, he added, “I’m surprised he shared that with you.”
“Oh, he didn’t at first. Nora told me the story when she first came to Seattle and we had lunch together. Then I casually mentioned it to Milo, and he confirmed it.” She let out a soft sigh. “It’s nice how you all look out for each other.”
“We’ve been friends for a long time. It’s what you do.”
“Yeah, well…I’m sturdier than I look, so don’t think you’re going to have to baby me.”
“No promises.”
She smiled, easy and genuine, and for the first time since he’d known her, Slater thought: She’s not reserved. She’s just been waiting for someone who sees her clearly enough to let her be more.
And in that moment, he silently vowed that he wasn’t going to treat her with kid gloves. He would let her lead, set the pace, and whatever else it was she needed to do to realize how awesome she is.
“Can I ask you something, Slater?”
“Sure.”
Whatever it was she was planning on asking, she seemed to be second-guessing herself. They typically had no problem talking to each other, but the topic was always light, so he had a feeling maybe this wasn’t. “Do you ever let what other people think of you get you down?”
He glanced over at her, brows furrowed. “That’s a little deep, don’t you think?”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know. I guess you and I never talk about stuff like that.”
Now it was her turn to frown. “If you’re not comfortable, I can go back out there and read my book.”
“I didn’t say I wasn’t comfortable, I’m just saying it’s a little different from our usual thing.”
“Yeah, well…I’m in a contemplative mood and honestly, I don’t want to go back out to the cabin. I’m afraid of what I’ll be interrupting.”
He laughed. “Yeah, when you’re actually ready, I’ll announce it over the speaker so they can finish whatever it is they’re doing and get decent.”
She laughed. “Thanks.”
“But back to your question,” he said, his tone growing serious. “Sometimes I do.”
“Really?”
He nodded. Evie was safe; he knew that. Sharing stuff with her? He had a feeling she’d take the information to the grave.
“I recently had an awkward conversation with Milo,” he began, and then hesitated. “My father is kind of a famous athlete. Baseball. They’re retiring his jersey or something at the end of next month. There’s going to be a big ceremony and they’re dedicating an entire day to him.”
“Wow! That’s impressive!” She was smiling but must have caught on to the fact that he wasn’t. “Or maybe it’s not.”
