Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
They’d been hiking for hours, and Kat was starting to think they might not ever get to the peak. Not for the first time, she cursed herself for not training enough. She was an idiot to think she could do such a challenging hike without more training.
Kat spotted a fallen log and sat heavily on it. “I think I made a mistake, Andy.” Her shoulders sagged in defeat, and she let her head drop forward. “I can’t do this. It’s too hard.”
“You can.”
She heard him move to stand in front of her but refused to look up.
“And it’s not.”
“It is.”
He chuckled. “Whine about it if you need to, but I’m not letting you turn back. No way. ”
With a sigh of frustration, she lifted her head. “You’re very annoying, you know?”
“I know.” He laughed again. “And that’s why you love me.”
Her heart skipped with his word choice, but the grin on his face told her that he didn’t mean it. Not like that. And that was her own damn fault for insisting that whatever it was they were doing wasn’t serious. If she could take back that moment in the Sugar Shack, she would. Especially after the last few weeks they’d spent together with him in her apartment.
But when she’d seen Jess sitting with Andy like that, so cozy and intimate, she’d panicked. And when he said they were on a date … Well, that pretty much sealed it for her. There was no way she was going to be made a fool of. Especially considering it was true. They were never supposed to be anything more than casual. Nothing long-term would ever work.
No matter how much she wanted it to.
“Right,” she said with as much sarcasm as she could muster in her currently exhausted state. “I’m beginning to regret having you as my partner in all this chaos.”
It was a lie, and they both knew it. Kat had loved every minute of having Andy help her with the list. After the bungee jumping night, they’d sat and examined everything that was required of her, making a reasonable and totally doable plan for her to accomplish everything. Including knocking some of the tougher things off the list first. Like the hike to Pulpit Peak. At the time, it seemed like a good strategy. But she was very quickly starting to question that decision.
Every single one of her muscles protested when she let Andy pull her up from the log. “Vamos, Andy.”
His lips quirked up into a smile. “Muy bien, Gatita.” Andy wiggled his eyebrows at the use of her nickname in Spanish.
“I told you I was practicing.” Together, they started to walk along the trail again. “I think I’m going to have to ask Steven what qualifies as learning another language. Because at this rate, it’ll take me years to be able to speak a complete sentence.”
“Well, I don’t think he expects you to have a full-on conversation with a native Spanish speaker. Besides, we’ve only been using the app for a few days.”
“Are you using it, too?”
After seeing that Kat needed to learn how to speak another language, Andy immediately jumped into action and found an app that she could install on her phone that promised to help teach her another language in only a few short minutes a day. True, they didn’t specify how many days it would take, but at least it was a start.
“Of course I am,” Andy said. “I told you I was going to help you with your list, and I meant it. Whatever it takes, Kat. You don’t have to do it alone.”
Her heart did that thing where it squeezed a little bit and made her think of things that could never be, so she quickly shook her head and reminded herself that whatever it was that was going on with Andy, it was temporary .
“And anyway,” he was saying. “It’s going to take longer than just a few days of practicing another language. You have to give it time.” Andy chuckled. “Not that you were ever very patient, though. Were you?”
She spun to face him and pushed a finger against his chest. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
He caught her finger in his hand and held it. “Kitty Kat, from the moment I met you, you’ve been chomping at the bit for whatever’s coming next. You are not a patient person. Not even close.”
“That’s not true.”
He tilted his head but said nothing else. He didn’t need to. The smirk on his face said it all.
“It’s not.” She pulled her hand away and started to walk again.
They walked in silence for a few minutes before Kat dropped her hands and groaned, “Seriously, how much longer is this hike?”
The moment the words were out of her mouth, she realized what she’d just said, but Andy was already laughing.
“Case in point, my little impatient kitten.”
He had her there. Still, she shot him a glare and then picked up her pace. The only way to get through this was to get to the top.
“Just a little bit more. You got this, Kat. We’re almost there.”
Andy hoped like hell he wasn’t lying because, truthfully, it was starting to feel as if they might never reach the top of the mountain.
There was a reason this was a bucket list hike.
He’d lost track of time since they’d left the packed trail behind and started the scramble through the loose rocks and scree to the very top of the peak. The climbing was rough, and it was a lot more challenging, to be sure, but it wasn’t anything they couldn’t handle. Andy was confident of that.
Next to him, Kat was using climbing poles to steadily climb. Her wrist was still in a brace, and Andy knew it still gave her trouble, so he stayed close in case she needed assistance. Kat’s lips were pressed together in a line, her face set in a mask of pure determination as she worked her way to the top.
A wave of pride and emotion washed through him.
Andy held back a little as they approached the peak. It was a big moment, and he wanted her to have it for herself.
A few more steps, and she was there.
Kat raised her arms in the air, pointing her hiking poles straight up as she threw her head back as she yelled out a whoop of excitement. “I did it! I did it! Dad, this one’s for you.”
He stood and watched her from where he’d stopped, a few feet below her, and let her have a minute to process what had happened.
As soon as she lowered her arms and her head dropped down to her chest, and Andy realized her cries of excitement had turned into tears of emotion, he resumed climbing and joined her at the top .
“You’re amazing, Kat.” He pulled her into his arms and held her close. “You are absolutely incredible. Your dad would be so freakin’ proud of you.”
She sobbed against his chest, and Andy just held her, letting her work through her emotions. The act of completing such a challenging hike was emotional in itself. But the reason they were there in the first place added a whole different element, and he knew it was hitting her hard.
After a few minutes, Kat looked up at him with her tear-streaked face and smiled a little. “We did it.” She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head a little. “I’m not going to lie. There were a few times I wasn’t sure we were going to make it.”
Andy used his thumb to wipe a tear from her cheek, and her eyes fluttered open again. “I never doubted you for a second, Kitty Kat.”
He’d held himself back long enough. There wasn’t a chance he could hold out any longer. Andy lowered his face to hers and kissed her deeply.
The moment his lips touched hers, his whole world spun the way it always did when they connected. But this time it was different. This time, as he lost himself in the taste of her and the feel of her lips on his, he felt himself falling in an entirely different way. Maybe it was the thrill of the accomplishment, or the sheer exhaustion in his body, or that they were standing on the top of a mountain with the most amazing view all around them—but whatever it was, kissing Kat and holding her in his arms felt like forever .
And that was going to be a real problem.
The trip back down the mountain only took about half the time going up did, and a whole lot less effort. Which was a good thing, because Kat had nothing left in her.
And not just physically. Emotionally, she was also completely wrung out.
Getting to the peak of the mountain had been a lot more emotional than she’d expected it to be. Maybe because the bungee jumping, although exhilarating, hadn’t given her the same feeling. Something about being on the top of a mountain that her father had always wanted to climb, but didn’t have a chance to, hit her differently.
The moment Kat stepped onto the top and threw her hands up in the air, the emotions crashed through her. Her father should have been there with her. They should have been able to accomplish that feat together the way they’d planned.
The reality that she would never be able to do something so special with her father ever again slammed into her.
Thankfully Andy had been there to catch her and let her cry. Just the way he had been for the last few weeks.
He’d been a constant presence in her life, and Kat knew, logically, it couldn’t last—for so many reasons. Not the least of which was that he wasn’t even supposed to be in Trickle Creek. He was only there temporarily, to help her with the list. And maybe it was that temporary status that had given them the false sense of security that had let them slip so easily into a…whatever it was they were doing.
Kat stopped and watched Andy for a moment while he deftly jumped from rock to rock in order to keep his boots dry while he crossed the last stream before they reached their parked vehicle.
When he was across, Andy turned and caught her watching him. “What are you looking at?”
“You.”
“Oh yeah?” He smiled and crossed his strong arms over his chest. “And you like what you see?”
He was teasing and trying to keep things between them light, because wasn’t that exactly what they did? Nothing between them was real or serious. She was responsible for that.
Kat blew out a breath and forced a lightness into her voice. “I mean, I was just thinking that you looked a little old.”
“Old?”
She laughed. “Well, you are older than me. I’d say you’re kind of an old man.”
“Is that right?”
Even with the creek between them, Kat could see the flash in his eyes. Before she knew it, he was splashing through the creek, headed straight for her.
“Would an old man be able to do this?”
She squealed and tried to run, but she was too late. Andy scooped her up easily and tossed her over his shoulder as if she weighed nothing. He held her in place with his big hands and Kat wiggled against his grip, but didn’t try in any real way to get free. Because not only was Andy holding her, but she was getting a free ride across the stream, and given that her legs were about to give out on her after the strenuous hike, she was definitely not in a position to turn that down.
When Andy finally put her down in front of the car a few minutes later, she gave him a sassy grin. “Thanks for the ride.”
“Anytime, Kitty Kat.”
It didn’t matter how many times he used her pet name, it did something to her. And like a secret password, it was all she needed to hear to ignore any of the negative thoughts that continually tried to creep in.
She stood on her tippy-toes and pressed her lips to his. Andy responded by pushing her gently up against the side of the car and deepening their kiss with a groan that held the promise of a whole lot more to come.
But first, she needed a shower. Badly.
Kat broke their connection first. “I don’t know about you, but I’m starving.”
His eyes flashed with a completely different kind of hunger. But, when a second later, his stomach growled, they both laughed and started to pack up their gear into the back of the car.
“If I wasn’t so hungry, I’d be looking for another reason to bail on family dinner.”
“Really? It’s not like you to miss any. ”
“True.” She shot him a look. “But nothing is normal right now. But…it’s just that they feel like a lot right now.”
He winked in her direction. “You know they love you and just want to make sure you’re okay. Besides, I’ll be there. I got your back.”
“Thank you,” she said as they started the drive down the mountain road and back into town. “Not just for that, but for everything. I feel like I’m saying that a lot lately, but I can’t thank you enough for everything you’re doing for me. I know it means you’ve been taking so much time out of your own life.”
“You don’t need to thank me, Kat. I’m enjoying every single moment of it and honestly…” He kept his eyes on the rough gravel road but reached over to take her hand. “I think I might be enjoying our time together a little more than I probably should.”
Kat’s stomach flipped. “What does that mean?” She hoped she knew what it meant. Would it be any easier to feel the things she was feeling about Andy if she knew he was feeling the same things? Of course it would. Together, they could deal with any of the challenges that being together for real would bring. Together, they could do?—
Before he could answer, the notifications on his phone started playing through the car’s speaker system.
“We must be back in service.” He pulled his hand away and reached for his phone, just as it started to ring. “I’ll turn it?—”
“Call from Jess.” The car’s Bluetooth system announced the caller who’d unknowingly intruded on their moment .
“Jess, huh?” After running into the two of them at the Sugar Shack over a week ago, she’d wanted to believe Andy when he told her that they weren’t on a date. And even if they were, she had no business feeling jealous about it at all.
She’d done her best to pretend it was nothing and put it out of her head.
Still.
She never had been a good actress.
“I thought you weren’t dating?”
“We’re not.” Andy reached forward and pressed the button to ignore the call. “She’s actually?—”
“It doesn’t matter.” She forced a smile to her face. “You know what matters right now? Family dinner. Are you sure you want to subject yourself to that after today?”
As far as segues went, it wasn’t a good one. But the last thing Kat wanted to talk about after the day they’d shared together was Andy’s dating life. He didn’t owe her anything, and they’d never actually set any boundaries for their situationship, so it wasn’t like she could say anything without sounding like a crazy person.
Besides, it was probably a good thing that Jess’s call had interrupted them before either of them said something they couldn’t take back. The last thing she needed right now was anything else making life more complicated than it already was.