Where We Meet Again, стр. 22

9

Fifteen and a half years earlier…

“Where are we going?”

Law’s hand squeezed and tugged me up the dirt path. He glanced back at me with a crooked smirk but said nothing to answer my question. His bright eyes spoke of his excitement for him. We were on another one of our adventures, and as usual, he refused to tell me where we were going.

One nice part about living in a small town was being able to get where we wanted by walking or riding our bikes. Law and I lived close enough that we walked to one another’s house, and once we were together, our parents let us go anywhere. Well, his parents did. My dad was dead, and my mom probably couldn’t care less. In two months, Law would have his license and his dad already promised him his old truck, so this era of our lives was ending.

The early morning breeze whipped my hair around my face, the strands tickling against my cheeks. Sunlight filtered through the boughs of the trees, ripe with mid-summer leaves. It was chilly, but in a few hours and after a few miles of hiking, it would warm up.

“What if something happens to you, and I have to call for help? I’ll have no idea where we are, how we got here, and how to get out. A bear or something’ll eat me, since everybody knows bears like their food living instead of dead. I don’t think it’s fair you always get to lead the way.”

I stumbled over a rock. Law’s arm went taut, and he spun around to steady me. He moved his grip from my hand to my hip. I had to tip my head way back to look him in the eyes. I swear he grew six inches in a month that summer. When he looked down at me, he smiled, and my stomach flip-flopped.

“In a couple months, you’ll have your driver’s license. You can lead the way then.”

My brow crinkled, and I frowned. “So will you. And I won’t have a vehicle, either, which means you’ll have to drive.”

He let out a laugh and scratched his eyebrow with the side of his thumb. “I suppose you’re right, darlin’. If you’re lucky, I’ll let you drive occasionally.”

“You aren’t funny.” I crossed my arms over my chest. I was annoyed, but not actually upset. This was one of those differences between us I had learned to live with. Law still had parents, and I didn’t. Not really. He’d get a car on his birthday, whereas I’d have to save up for one.

And it was fine, for the most part. I wasn’t against being independent. Mostly I was happy for everything that Law had, as a lot of those things benefited me too. I only became bitter when I wanted to do something for him and didn’t have the means to do so. At those times, I felt inadequate.

“Yeah, well, you’re cute.” He moved his hands from my hips to cup either side of my head, just above my ears. He tugged me off balance. I nearly fell, and to save myself, I twisted my fists in the shirt at his waist. Law bent down and planted a kiss in the center of my forehead. “Now, quit whining. We have a lot of trail left to cover, and we aren’t going to do it by standing around.”

Any response died in my throat. My skin tingled where his lips were, and I hoped it never stopped. Law grinned wider and hiked his backpack up on his shoulder before he started up the path again.

It took me a second to get my head back on straight and chased after him.

My favorite thing about exploring the woods with Law was we didn’t have to fill the silence with chatter. It felt natural to walk the trail and peacefully take in the outdoors. Our steady breaths joined the birdsong and the soft rustle of the nearby leaves.

We’d trade spots on the trail, and if I got too far ahead, Law would catch up and take my hand. I can’t lie and say that wasn’t an incentive to go faster. It became a game that made the distance pass quicker. The sun was nearly overhead when we reached an opening in the trees. I could hear rushing water nearby.

“Is this it? Is this where we’re going?” I asked excitedly and let go of his hand to get ahead.

“Hey, wait for me!”

Where the trees opened, the trail turned and went down an incline. It looked steep, but not unmanageable, so I began the climb down. The trail wound around a pool of water that was surrounded by rocks in different shades of brown and gray. A huge waterfall poured over a rocky ledge, feeding the pool, which then ran off a hill in a river. The complete back of the waterfall was exposed in a way we could easily walk 360 degrees around it.

I was so busy taking in the beauty and peacefulness of it all that I hadn’t realized Law was behind me.

“Do you like it?” His words sent his breath against my ear like a warm breeze, and I shivered.

“It’s beautiful.”

“Come on.” He took my hand and tugged me around the edge of the pool to climb behind the waterfall. “Be careful. Some of the rocks are wet.”

We navigated behind the fall, and it was even more breathtaking from the other side. Fingers of sunlight filtered through the flowing water, throwing prisms against the rocky walls. I ran my fingers against the rough surface. Even though I was touching it, this place didn’t feel real.

“Have you been here before?”

I turned back to Law to see he’d laid out a blanket from his backpack and was pulling cans of root beer out.

He shook his head. “I asked my dad for a suggestion.” He lifted his