“I’m...not usually much of a hiker,” I said. I saw his disappointment and hastened to add, “I mean, I can try it. It’s just that going for long walks isn’t usually interesting to me.”
“This time it’ll be worth it, I promise.”
“Okay,” I agreed, shrugging. Maybe I would get some good pictures of the island on my phone and being alone with Briggs sounded like a good time, no matter what we were doing.
I followed Briggs outside, where he handed a valet ticket to the guy hanging around in a red jacket. He used a walkie-talkie to have the garage attendant bring the car around to us. It was a white sedan that was spotless on the inside, just like any rental that had been recently deep-cleaned by the company that owned it.
“Where are we going?” I asked, surprised that he didn’t use a GPS as he pulled out onto the road.
“The north end of the island. I heard about a great hiking trail from an island local the first day we were here. Thought we could check it out.”
The further north we went, the less houses there were. I could see elevated land ahead, but Briggs parked in an area surrounded by trees just before we reached it. But instead of killing the engine and getting out, he turned to me.
“Listen, about last night…” he trailed off.
I saw the hesitation on his face, and prompted him to reveal more. “What happened?”
He sighed. “My ex called. She got herself into some trouble, and I had to help her out.”
I took a moment to process all of that. My mind flashed back to the day we met. He told my dad that he was in the process of fighting for custody of his child with his ex.
“Why did youhaveto help her?” I asked curiously. There was more to this story, I was sure of that.
“She’s my kid’s mom,” he said simply, even if the situation itself was not. “If her life is a mess, it could negatively impact my son. No matter how much I wish my life could just be completely separate from hers, we’ll always have a connection through Sam.”
I nodded, understanding and respecting how his son’s welfare was his main concern. “How old is he?”
“Ten.” Brigg’s smiled fondly for a moment. “He’s a hell of a good kid, and he doesn’t deserve to deal with his mom’s messy life. If I need to step in to help shield him from her poor choices, especially while we’re sharing custody, I’ll always do it. Alyssa—that’s my ex—she knows that and isn’t afraid to use me to get what she wants.”
“And that’s what happened last night?” I guessed.
“Yep.” He sighed heavily. “She needed me to take care of some parking tickets for her. Of course, I did it. Without a car to drive, she’s not the only one stuck in her shitty apartment. Sam is, too. So, I called in a favor, which hasn’t exactly given me a great reputation in the department.”
I put my hand on his arm and gave it a squeeze. “I’m sorry.” I wasn’t sure what else to say. He was in a tough situation, and I understood why he’d been upset and distracted after dealing with this last night.
“Thanks.” His lips flattened into a grim line. “I just wanted to give you an explanation. Sometimes, when I have to deal with Alyssa, I can get tunnel vision. My focus last night was on her and Sam and letting my lawyer know what was going on. This time it was parking tickets, but let’s just say that she’s had a knack for getting intorealtrouble in the past.”
I wasn’t sure what that meant, but I didn’t want to pry. In fact, I wanted to change the subject. There were small frown lines appearing around his mouth, and I didn’t like the stress that was pouring off of him in waves.
“Don’t worry, I’m not upset about last night,” I told him, and meant it, especially after hearing about his incredibly tough dilemma with his ex-wife. “Let’s just go on this hike and enjoy ourselves.”
One side of his mouth twitched up in a half-smile. “So, now youwantto hike?”
“I was promised that it would be worth my time,” I said, opening the door and stepping out while flashing a grin over my shoulder. “So, show me what’s so special about this place.”
Briggs got out of the car too, and gestured to a dirt path that led into the trees. I fell into step beside him, and we walked into the woods. The day was cool, especially under the cover of the trees, and the slight breeze blew small tendrils of hair across my forehead.
We didn’t talk much as we walked, but it didn’t feel necessary. We were just enjoying each other’s company. The path widened out the further we went, and started to angle upwards. We passed a few people going the other direction, mostly couples.
I had to admit, I was actually enjoying the walk. It was nice to be out in nature, breathing in the fresh air. But as the incline of the path got steeper, my thighs started to burn. I wasn’t in terrible shape, but this was more exercise than I was used to. After we’d been walking for about twenty minutes, Briggs slowed down and started to look around.
“What is it?” I asked curiously.
His brow furrowed. “Well, part of the reason that I wanted to come here was because of this spot I heard about...I was told it was right around here, just after the big tree with the heart carved in it.”
Briggs gestured to the huge mangrove just beside us, and I saw the crude carving he was talking about. He stepped off the path, heading toward some tall bushes nearby. Pulling them apart, he peered through to the other side, then turned back to me with a huge, satisfied grin.
“This is it,” he said, holding his hand out to me. I took it without hesitation, and he pulled the two of us through the shrubbery.