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My gaze immediately shot to Lila. She was practically vibrating with joy. Of course she was. I chuckled. “I’m really glad we’re up here, then. Lila’s last words on this earth would absolutely be boop.”

Claire, seated next to Rhett in the cockpit, turned to look at us. “Girl, same.”

Rhett laughed. “Then you’re both going to enjoy this. We’re tracking hibernation of black bears. They should be heading to their dens right about now. The grizzlies tend to hibernate later, around November. But weather patterns have been all over the place for the past decade, and we’ve been noticing how that changes animal behavior.”

“Tell me more about that,” Claire said. She clicked the button on her recorder, but she also had a notebook and pen.

“Famous last words, darlin’. I’m about to talk your ear off.”

She laughed. “I hope so.”

Lila’s camera clicked. I arched an eyebrow at her, and she shrugged, smiling to herself. I had the feeling I wasn’t the only one sensing something was going on between my brother and Claire.

“Take the elk migration, for example,” Rhett said. “Each spring, the herds move from the lower winter ranges up into high elevation. This year, the winter was so mild that they started moving in January, months earlier than normal. We haven’t seen changes in the bears’ hibernation yet, but we’re watching. Hibernation is tied to shorter daylight hours and scarcity of food, so it’s not as weather-dependent as the elk migration. But they all belong to the same ecosystem, so a behavioral change in one animal can affect another.”

Rhett talked, Claire took notes, and Lila captured it all with her camera.

And I watched Lila.

“We’re coming up on a collared bear now. She’s got an older juvenile and two cubs,” Rhett said.

Lila unbuckled and squatted down, aiming the camera between the pilot and copilot chairs, giving her a clear view out the windshield. Damn, how I loved watching her work. The total focus in her expression. The way the tip of her tongue peeked out from between her pink lips.

But my favorite part—my absolute favorite—was when she checked the LCD to see how the photo had turned out. Sometimes she’d give a little shake of her head, fiddle with a few settings, and then aim again. But when the photo was finally what she wanted, she’d smile this tiny, satisfied smile. And then she’d find my eyes, and I could see the anticipation all over her face. She couldn’t wait to show me that photo later.

And I couldn’t wait, either.

Because the only thing better than seeing this amazing world through my own two eyes was seeing it through hers.

Rhett handed me a soda from the cooler, claimed one for himself, and popped the top. It hissed as air met carbonation. “So.”

“So.” I opened the can and took a long swig.

A beat of silence passed, and then another. We stood next to the Cessna, waiting for Lila and Claire to wrap up their conversation. Lila had the back of her DSLR open, and it looked like they were going through the photos on the LCD. I rolled my shoulders. We were going to be here a while.

“You’re really not going to say anything about Lila being back in your life?” Rhett pulled my attention back to him. “Come on, man. What the hell is going on?”

I swiped a drop of Coke from my upper lip. “As I said, she needed a place to lay low for a while.”

“A bad heart doesn’t affect my brain cells, Seb, so don’t treat me like I’m stupid. I know about the photographer who got stabbed at Yellowstone. That was her, wasn’t it?”

I studied the ground.

“Look, you don’t have to tell me anything that threatens Lila’s safety. What I want to know is, what the hell is going on with the two of you? I see the way you look at her. I see the way she looks at you. Are you back together?”

What did that mean, together? We lived together. We kissed together. We fucked together.

But she’d filed for divorce. Her petition was still open. I’d checked this morning. Stared at it with that ache in my chest growing worse by the second. And then I’d closed my laptop without answering it.

So I guess according to Lila, we weren’t together. I didn’t know that I was willing to accept her view of things, however.

“None of your business,” I said.

“It is my business,” Rhett said quietly. “You’re my brother, and I love you. That makes you my business.” He paused, squinting across the field. “Maybe you don’t want to hear it, but I’m going to say it anyway. Once, and then I swear I’ll keep my mouth shut and support whatever decision you make.”

I raised my soda and tipped it back. “Say it.”

“You’re in over your head with this girl. You always have been.”