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ChapterThirty-Four
When Olivia woke the next morning, still groggy from her late night at Sofia’s, she regretted her decision to return to camp. Why hadn’t she slept over at her sister’s place? Then she could have spent her day swimming and sunbathing. Instead, she was dragging her sorry butt on a group outing led by Rick, who was still freezing her out.
Though she needed to find the courage to confess her feelings, she couldn’t do it with the others around. Maybe tonight, she could catch him alone. For now, she’d endure his silence.
The drive to the mountains took them an hour inland along winding roads, past steep hills and small villages that looked lost in time. At TJ’s urging, they stopped at Lofou to indulge in Greek coffee and delicious pastries. The cobblestone streets and open-air shops gave the village a more traditional feel than a touristy harbor town like Paphos. They took another break at Monagri, where they visited a twelfth-century church decorated with vibrantly colored frescoes. After five weeks in Cyprus, Olivia appreciated seeing something other than ruins and beaches.
When they got to the town of Platres, near the base of the Troodos Mountains, Rick parked the car in a public lot. The group clambered out and gathered by the trailhead.
TJ glanced up from his phone. “Our best bet is the hike to the Caledonian Falls. It’s not too steep and should give us some sweet photo ops.”
“Sounds good to me,” Stuart said.
Olivia was about to agree with him, but Rick spoke up first. “I’m going to take the Madari Trail up to Mount Adelphi. It’s challenging, but the views are supposed to be spectacular.”
“Surprisingly enough, the term ‘challenging’ isn’t doing it for me,” Dusty said. “Not on my day off. I’ll do the falls hike, too.”
“How about you, Olivia?” Rick asked. “You up for a real hike in the mountains?”
His question caught her off guard. She assumed he’d chosen the arduous hike as a way of avoiding her. Was he trying to get her alone? She tried not to read too much into his question for fear of getting her hopes up.
“Are you sure?” she asked. “I might slow you down.”
He fixed a steady gaze on her, like she was the only person there. “You haven’t yet.”
Goose bumps pebbled her arms. Maybe he did want her to himself. “Okay, I’ll go with you.”
At this point, what did she have to lose?
TJ grinned. “A tough hike might be fun. I don’t want to wuss out. Ow!” He rubbed his side and glared at Dusty. “Why’d you hit me?”
She grabbed his arm. “You’re going with me and Stu. Got it?”
Her expression was so ferocious that TJ nodded. “Sure. Whatever you say.”
As their group split up, Dusty smiled at Olivia and mouthed the words “good luck.”
She was going to need it.
At the outset, Rick kept quiet. He led her along a rough dirt trail, past pine and cedar trees. The scent reminded her of hiking in the High Sierras, during a trip with some friends from grad school. Unlike her hiking buddies, Rick’s strides were ridiculously long. Though he occasionally stopped to let her catch up, she was forced to bring out her inhaler after twenty minutes.
When his brow constricted, she shook her head. “I’ll be fine.”
He waited patiently until her breathing resumed an even cadence. But once they started up again, the steep incline made her legs scream for mercy. Though the air was cooler, the sun was as fierce as ever, making the back of her shirt dampen with sweat. Maybe she’d misjudged Rick. Instead of wanting to get her alone, he’d planned this hike as a way to torture her.
At the first viewpoint, she leaned over, braced her hands on her knees, and took a few deep breaths.
“Do you need to stop for a while?” Rick said. “We’re not in a hurry.”
“I’m good. No problem.” The words came out as more of a gasp.
She would have been happy to stay where she was, looking over the hilly terrain and enjoying the gorgeous blue-sky day, but Rick only nodded and resumed climbing.
What was his game? Why had he invited her if he planned to stay silent the whole way?
Maybe he wasn’t ready to open up to her yet. Or he wanted her to make the first move.
Dusty’s words came back to her. You need to put yourself out there.
