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The moment when she looked up at him, glowing, simply glowing while surrounded by the world that had always been his.
Then she stood, put her phone away, and took his hands. “Thanks. You couldn’t have picked a better day, a better trail.”
“That’s a killer in the fall.” He nodded toward the view.
“I bet, but right now, it’s just so full of summer.” Looking out again, she tipped her head to his shoulder. “Fall’s bounty, winter’s waiting, spring’s beginning. But summer? It’s fruition.”
The silence broke as voices carried up the trail, so he moved on. Putting the moment aside, he walked with her and the dog.
“Now you’ve done it,” she told him as the track wound downward. “I’m going to have to make a lot more time for this. Even an hour now and then on a day off. How do you feel about camping?”
“I feel humanity’s progressed through work, innovation, necessity, and luck since they were cave dwellers or pioneers, and I respect their efforts, and value those efforts toward indoor plumbing, thermal windows, sturdy mattresses, and broadband. I don’t see a reason to choose to ignore those innovations and sleep in a tent.”
“That would be a no to camping. I’d say it’s nice that I also have a healthy respect for progress and innovation. But I bet you know how, which would be handy in the event of that zombie apocalypse or alien invasion.
“And that’s a bear,” she said, stopping dead when one crossed the path about two yards down. “An actual bear.”
“He’s not interested in you.” But Miles took the leash as Howl began to mutter and wag. “Brown bear, usually not aggressive. We’re not taking another selfie with it.”
“The thought never occurred. It’s a bear. It’s a really big bear.”
But it lumbered its way into the trees.
“We’ll give him a minute. You hiked with your grandfather a few times, right? You never crossed paths with a bear?”
“I did not. He told me what to do, what not to do if we did. I remember being disappointed we never saw one. Now I wonder why.”
“We have some wander onto the resort now and then, especially around the cabins.”
As they walked she looked toward the direction the bear had taken, but didn’t see a sign of it.
“I’d probably be excited to see one—if I were sitting inside a cabin.”
He shrugged. “They were here first.”
It made her smile at him. “Dear Diary, today I saw a waterfall, stood and looked out over miles of mountains, and had a bear walk by.”
“Do you do that? Keep a diary?”
“No. Who has time? But if I did, I’d add in the bear. I’m going to stop by the bakery after we pick up my car, get something for dessert for tomorrow.”
“Nell’s doing this cake thing she does.”
“Nell bakes?”
“Sometimes. Plus, I’m grilling—you’re doing the potato thing. She’s not about to be outdone.”
“I like that about her. The way she competes. It has to be challenging, being sandwiched between two brothers.”
“Maybe it’s challenging to be the oldest.”
“Is it?”
“Not really. But it could be.”
“It’s not, because when it comes down to it, you’re a team. There’s one of your cabins. Look how it’s all nestled in there, with rockers on the big front porch. I didn’t realize we’d circled back so close to the resort.”
“Nearly back where we started.”
