Chapter 16
CHAPTER 16
C heyenne
As they approached her condo, Eli stood, pushing his hands into the pockets of his khaki shorts. His posture was rugged as he glared at Micah, who gave Cheyenne’s hand another comforting squeeze.
“What can I do for you, Eli?” she asked when they reached him.
Eli stared at their hands. “What is this?”
She shrugged, feeling a tad unsettled. “Micah went snorkeling with me.”
“But you said last night that you wanted to focus on going to law school now.”
“I do.”
“But you’re snorkeling with him?” He waved a hand at Micah.
Cheyenne would have laughed at the way Eli was acting, if it wasn’t embarrassing her in front of Micah. “I told you we were over a long time ago.”
“Yet you went out to dinner with me the past two nights.”
“Eli, I told you last night we both need to go our own ways.”
Eli shook his head. “Do you think it’s just random that we ended up in the same condos together over spring break? Because I don’t. I think it’s fate. I think it’s something we ignored last year. Well, I don’t want to ignore it anymore. Cheyenne, give us a chance.”
Cheyenne avoided looking at Micah. If only the ground would open up and swallow her whole. “Eli, I have no idea how we ended up in the condos next to each other. We are not fated to be together. We are finished.”
He glared at Micah. “How do you even know each other besides one wedding?”
Micah smiled, and it wasn’t kind. “I’m not getting into this, but if I was, I would tell you that our business is not your business.”
Eli stepped closer to Micah. “Is that what you would tell me, dude?”
Micah puffed out his chest. “That’s what I am telling you.”
Cheyenne moved between them. “Eli, that’s none of your concern. Good luck to you the rest of spring break, and good luck to you in general.” She pushed past him to go up the stairs.
Eli glared at Micah. “Dude, I don’t know what your play is, but save yourself some trouble.” He moved toward his condo, shouting over his shoulder, “Because that’s all you were, Cheyenne—a lot of trouble for me!”
Micah took a threatening step toward him.
Cheyenne grabbed his arm. “Don’t pay him any attention. Come on in. I’m going to shower real quick. You can wait in here.”
Luckily, Micah followed.
“Sorry about that,” she said once she’d closed and locked the door behind them.
“He’s still got it bad for you.”
She sighed. “I’m really not his type.”
Micah eyed her. “Pretty sure you’re everyone’s type.”
“What does that mean?” It felt like an insult.
“You’re beautiful, smart, fun.”
His compliments didn’t sit well with her. “Okay, I’m going to shower. I’ll be right back.”
“I’ll wait.”
She ran up the stairs, feeling all out of sorts. This guy kept saying he didn’t want a relationship, but then he told her that she was beautiful and smart and fun. Not to mention the fact that she was attracted to him.
Part of her wanted to call Samantha to tell her everything and ask what she should do, but the larger part just wanted to get back to Micah and spend more time with him. They still had to figure out this treasure hunt.
Cheyenne showered and got dress, then put on a little makeup and brushed her hair. That would have to be enough. She grabbed the amulet and rushed back downstairs, where Micah was waiting with the truck keys in his hand.
When they reached the Stone Family Inn, it was a lot different than Cheyenne had thought it would be. Maybe because she had heard her family talk about it, especially her brother Chance, because he had stayed here when he was undercover and looking for gold.
The place was not just an inn; it was a mansion.
Micah led the way, giving Cheyenne a quick tour of the place. He took her upstairs and pointed out all the themed rooms, pausing at the library to show her where they would be looking at the map through the amulet. “That’s the original map that’s been handed down through the family for over two centuries.”
“Let’s look at it.”
Micah screwed up his face. “I need to get a security code for it. And I’ll have to ask Trey. Maybe I should have asked him earlier, but I didn’t want him to think we were on a gold hunt. After all, I’m just supposed to be checking on you.”
“So how are we going to get into the case?”
Micah shrugged and nodded toward the door. “I’m thinking. Let’s go order pizza and relax for a bit. I want to show you the whole wall we have in the house that explains the treasure hunt. The picture your family got from Kentucky is on the wall too. It’s so old, it might be worth looking over with the amulet.”
“Great idea.” Cheyenne followed Micah down the stairs and once again admired this majestic home. “I can see why your mother loved this house. And I can see why Trey didn’t want to sell it once he found out she was going to turn it into an inn. It’s a cool place.”
Micah nodded. “It is. I love it here.” He stopped next to the Wall of Gold. “This is the most recent picture.”
Cheyenne inspected the ship. The artist had drawn it so that it was floating on the ocean, and it was clearly hand painted. It was protected by a glass covering, and there was smaller writing at the bottom. “Can you take it off the wall so we can see if we can find anything?”
Without hesitation, Micah pulled it off the wall and moved it into the kitchen, carefully laying it on the counter.
Cheyenne took the amulet out of her pocket, placed it on top of the painting, and then tried to peer down through it. “Nothing,” she said, moving it in different angles. “It’s just fuzzy and doesn’t show anything.”
“Can I try?” Micah asked.
She handed the amulet over to him.
He used his shirt to wipe any dirt off of it, then placed it over the image.
“What do you think?” Cheyenne pressed him after he’d been looking through it for a minute.
“Nope.” He wiped it again and put it to another angle. “I honestly can’t see through the amulet at all. I can’t even see the pirate ship.” He pulled it back again and then held it up to the light. “It’s foggy. Dense. I wonder if it was just urban legend that the amulet could do anything, especially read a map.”
Cheyenne felt antsy. “Maybe we should just take it back.”
“Give it time.” He held it out to her.
She didn’t take it. “You keep it until we can get access to the other map. I don’t want the creepiness of it around me.”
Micah cocked an eyebrow, but he slipped the amulet into his pocket. “Okay. But before I decide what to say to Trey to get the code, let’s get this food ordered. I’m starving.”
“Me, too.”
Micah tapped on his phone. “What kind of pizza do you like? I like anchovies and pepperoni.”
Cheyenne scrunched up her nose. “I like Hawaiian.”
Micah grinned at her. “So you want Hawaiian for half of it. It’s a good thing I really like you, because if I had known that you are the type of person that likes pineapple on her pizza, that would’ve been a deal breaker for me. Good thing we’re just friends.”
She laughed. “Yes. For so many reasons.”
Micah looked offended. “Hey, I was just kidding. Why are you glad that we’re just friends?”
“One, because you clearly work out too much. I mean, muscles like that take time, and I wouldn’t want you to spend all that time away from me.”
“O-kay.”
“Two, you are totally a protective alpha-male type. I mean, you gladly took the creepy amulet.”
“And this is a bad thing, how?”
“I feel safe around you. Don’t you know that’s the worst thing you could do for a woman in a relationship?”
He leveled a look at her.
“Kidding, of course,” she said, smiling.
He rolled his eyes. “What’s another reason?”
“I’ll get back to you.” Dang, she liked flirting with him. “Can I go out and look around?”
Micah unlocked the door to the back patio and opened it for her. “Of course.”
She walked outside, and he followed. “Why don’t you text Trey and tell him that we are hanging out and eating pizza, and I asked if I could see the original map? No big deal. You don’t have to tell him anything else.”
Micah snapped his fingers. “You’re brilliant.” He pulled out his phone and started typing out a message. “Hey, you know what? A deal breaker for me would be that you’re too smart. I mean, no guy likes to have a woman give him brilliant ideas.”
She turned back to see that Micah had a coy look on his face. She laughed. “Nice one.”
He laughed too.
The pool, deck, and hot tub were clearly in immaculate condition. Cheyenne followed the path down toward the beach and pushed through the gate. She took her flip-flops off and walked barefoot onto the sand. Even though they had been playing in the water today, she felt drawn to the ocean.
She strolled farther out so the water could lap at her toes. There were other people out on the beach, families playing and people holding hands and strolling. So many thoughts went through her mind. It wasn’t just that she was here on this treasure hunt. It wasn’t just that she was starting to have feelings for Micah. It was that another part of her could see herself living in South Port. For most of her life, she’d thought she would go back to the ranch, settle down with her brothers and their children, ride horses and all that. Yet when she felt the ocean on her feet and smelled the salty air, something inside her felt like it was loosening and coming free.
Micah appeared to be texting back and forth with Trey. He looked up and waved.
All sorts of butterflies erupted inside her. She liked this guy. She didn’t want to dwell on the fact he’d made it clear that he couldn’t do a relationship. Well, she had too.
She had to focus on finding the treasure. That was the only priority that could matter right now.
“Hey,” he said from right next to her. She jolted, and he laughed. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“It’s okay,” she said, putting a hand to her chest.
He held up his phone. “I got the code. Should we take the amulet and try to read the original map with it?”
Excitement pulsed through her. “Absolutely.”