He shrugged, ignoring the twinge of relief. “True. This is my favorite place on earth.”
She looked back out the window, tilting her head back to try to see the lightening sky between the trees. “I can see why. It’s amazing.”
Hunter chuckled at her enthusiasm. “City girl?”
“Sort of. I spent my teenage years on a farm, and now I’m in Denver—the city part, not the nature part. For now, anyway. I used to take vacations with my parents to Eagle Lake in Michigan when I was a kid, but it’s been years and years.”
He stiffened in his seat and his hold on the steering wheel became tight. “Eagle Lake?” he repeated faintly.
She nodded. “It’s up near–”
“PawPaw, I know.”
She looked at him in surprise, and he met her eyes, just as stunned. His family had a house on another lake near there, closer to Decatur, but he’d become familiar enough with all the smaller lakes and towns. They’d been going there for years, almost as often as they came here. His cousin lived close enough to look after that place, and he had this one. Had they ever been at that lake at the same time? It wasn’t as formally set up as the resort where guests mingled and events were held; it was a much quieter, simpler setting, but still one of his fondest childhood memories.
He broke eye contact and focused on the road, exhaling silently. They were almost to the spot he had in mind, and he needed out of this truck. They didn’t talk again until they reached the summit, and he pointed her in the direction of the best spot. She nodded, suddenly all business, got out of the truck, and started for it.
“Watch your footing,” he blurted out, leaving the truck himself, his eyes tracking her footsteps and the slick spots on the ground.
She looked over her shoulder at him with a crooked smile that sent his pulse skittering. “I remember. Thanks.” She purposefully tiptoed around a puddle, then stepped out on the stone ledge, camera raised.
Hunter watched her for a while, bewildered by the amount of clicks he heard. He came closer, trying to see whatever magic Mallory saw. It was a gorgeous view, but the sun had yet to come over the mountains, so the light wasn’t very good. Apparently, that didn’t matter to Mallory. She kept saying things to herself, directions and corrections and hushed praises of the view and the mountains.
He was smiling again before he knew it.
She leaned forward, getting more excited about the increasing light.
“Whoa, whoa,” he murmured, coming forward and grabbing the back of her jacket. “No cliff diving. You’re not close enough to the lake.”
“So hold tight,” she replied without concern, leaning even farther.
He chuckled and grabbed hold with both hands.
“This is incredible,” she said, speaking to him this time. “I haven’t seen nature like this since… maybe never!”
“It is one of a kind, isn’t it?” he replied, looking around and finally feeling that wonder and awe she seemed to have. “There’s no place like it. And I’ve been a lot of places.”
She leaned back and lowered her camera, but he still held on to her jacket. She turned to look at him. “What are you doing with this crowd, Hunter?”
He reared back, smiling a touch at how perfectly she said his name. “What do you mean?”
She gave him a curious smile. “You’re floating around with the likes of Jenna and Tom and Sophie–”
“Don’t include her,” he interrupted with a slashing motion.
She clamped her lips together on a laugh, then continued, “But you’re so… normal. What gives?”
He’d never been called normal a day in his life. He’d always thought normal a fairly boring thing to be. It had never occurred to him that it could be a compliment. He shrugged. “What can I say? I know people.”
Mallory grinned. “I know people. And they don’t give me speeches like you got last night.”
He rubbed at his forehead, where his beanie suddenly itched. “Tom’s a good guy. Doesn’t see the bad in anyone.”
“Is there bad in you?”
He looked back at her and could see she was surprised by her words too. He held her eyes as steady as he could, his chest suddenly somehow warm and tight.
“Could be,” he finally said. “Depending on who’s looking and how deep.”