Chapter 3
McKenna
Annika and I chatted about different flowers, birds and of course any gossip we hadn’t discussed last night in the car ride.
Annika had been away for three months checking quality control of some newer hotels that her family had been building back east in New York and Maine.
Then we just got lost in our minds while hiking.
I enjoy the quiet but at the same time my mind is going hard in two directions.
The first I am picturing how I would be selling this if I was doing an actual tour right now.
Business ideas never seem to stop. The second direction is the hot stranger back at camp.
Is he here for fishing? Hiking? Who was in the other tent?
Maybe he is just camping, never going to adventure far.
What if he is a serial killer and the other tent is for his bodies of the family he had violently murdered.
Yeah my mind is a little all over. I know that that guy probably isn’t a serial killer. I just can’t stop thinking about him.
“Okay stop. You are driving me nuts." Annika stops suddenly in front of me and I have to really pull back so I don't mow her over. She may be taller than me but with the momentum I had going I could have taken her out.
“What are you talking about?” I look around to see how far we have gone up the mountain.
“You won't stop grumbling. What the hell happened back at the campground when I caught you staring at Mr tall, dark and handsome?” Shit I didn't think she had caught on to that.
“Nothing, I don’t know what you are talking about.” That’s right, deny, deny, deny. I am not ready for the whole ‘Annika support’ on this. She will throw herself fully into my love life, or lack there of, if I let her.
“Girl. I am not stupid. That man back at the fire was totally your type. I just listened to you ramble for the last hour of this hike about nonsense so you could distract yourself from thefact that you wanted to go over and jump his bones.” I roll my eyes, hating that she is right.
I definitely have a type. Long legs and strong shoulders.
Damn it if the man has blue eyes I will probably get on one knee and propose.
“Yeah see you have that smile on your face again.” She laughs and starts back up the trail.
We are going to get to the small lake soon and take a quick break.
I don’t wanna get tired early. My legs are enjoying the stretch of the incline.
My senses are heightened without the sounds of the cars and people of the city.
The birds are chirping and I swear I can hear animals in the brush around me.
Twenty minutes later we hit the clearing and the lake is as beautiful as the website had said.
Bright blue water looks cool and inviting.
It isn't one of the biggest lakes on the mountain but it definitely is gorgeous.
There are a few scattered picnic tables and I unload my backpack on the one closest to the water.
I press stop on my timer on my watch. I grab my notebook noting how far we hiked, the time and how many steps I put in.
I want to be as descriptive as possible for my website.
This will be a trail I will use for groups.
Annika instantly starts taking photos of the lake and the surrounding areas.
I have no doubt I am going to be using them for the site.
“Soooo, how are we going to get you over to the cute guys campsite?”Annika turns to me. I should have known she wasn’t letting it go. I just stare at her.
“Don’t look at me like that. We both know you are thinking about when we get back to the campsite how to go over to Mr tall, dark and handsome.” She is back to taking photos, ignoring the fact that I am straight up glaring at the back of her head. I hate that she knows me so well.
“Fine, I will entertain you. I plan on going over to his site tonight. I noticed there were two tents and I am guessing or at least hoping that with the way he stared at me, that he isn’t here on a date.” She lowers her camera and looks over at me.
“So there may be two of them?” She wiggles her eyebrows at me and I laugh. The reason why I love her.
“Let’s hope so.” We enjoy ourselves a bit more, promising to wade in the lake on our way back down the hill. Grabbing my backpack I throw it on just to look up, meeting bright blue eyes. My heart actually stops.
“Oh shit her kryptonite.” Annika mumbles but I know this stranger heard her. She isn’t wrong.