Page 96 of Burning Caine
She looked at me, but her eyes fell to the trail. “What are the most important traits in a relationship to you?”
“You avoid many important questions, you know?”
“Now, you’re avoiding mine.”
“It depends. Are we speaking of romantic relationships?”
“Yeah.” Her eyes remained down, but there was a hint of a smile on her lovely lips. We were speaking of us. For all her nerves and her protests, she hadusin mind.
I said, “Friendship and respect. And you?”
She hooked her thumbs in the shoulder straps of her heavy pack. “Honesty and loyalty. Knowing the person you’re with will be there through everything, they’d never lie or keep something important from you, and they’d hold you to those same standards.”
It was like she knew my secret, testing me further. What would she say if I confessed the truth, that I knew the location of the true Chagall and had all along? It would be a relief to tell her everything. But complete honesty would ruin this budding relationship. “Have you ever had that?”
“I thought I had it with Matt. I mean, he’s a fantastic man, and I could trust him with most things. Part of my heart will always be with him, but we should have just been friends.”
“As I said, friendship comes first. Usually, that’s as far as it should go.” Her relationship with her ex-husband was a fascinating one. So much pain, yet it was clear he meant a great deal to her still. “Have you come close with anyone else?”
“Geez, are you writing a biography or something?” She nudged me when the trail became too narrow for us to walk side-by-side, and she took the lead. “You ask a lot of questions.”
“You and I have a great deal in common, bella. Talking about the pain helps you move past it and on to something new.”
“Talking about things is overrated.”
I laughed and took a sip from the water reservoir in my pack, watching her long stride. Her legs went on forever, and the outlines of the muscles enthralled me. Her ass looked almost as good in the shorts as it had in the leather pants. “The view is fantastic. I particularly like this narrow path.”
Choking on her laughter, she stepped into the bushes at the edge of the trail and ushered me ahead of her. “You’re pathetic.”
I winked as I passed, and she fell into step behind me. “Is the view any better from back there?”
She laughed rather than answer, but she didn’t say no.
“It was the same after Faith and I broke up. I don’t think she ever truly loved me, but it’s hard to trust again, all the same.”
She patted the side of my pack. “Well, you can trust me.”
“I hope so.” I cast a glance over my shoulder, and we shared a smile. “That leaves honesty. So, tell me a secret.”
“Don’t have any.”
“Liar.”
“Yeah, complete lie. But I don’t have interesting ones. What about you?”
“Oh, bella, I have some big ones. But I would have to kill you if I told you.”
“Perfect. This would be a great place to hide a dead body. No one ever comes out here.”
I paused as the trail became wide enough for us to walk next to each other again. “So, we are all alone, just the two of us?”
“Yeah. You, me, the snake, and that red fox.”
“In that case, I think this is my second most perfect day.” I moved closer to her, eliminating the space between us, the back of my hand finding the back of hers.
My fingers slipped into her palm, and she took in a slow breath, goosebumps creeping up her arm. I caressed the arm to admire the result of my touch and slid the hand back down to interlace my fingers with hers. I had held her hand many times—to shake, to kiss, to lead her through a crowd—but that moment was special. She smiled at the ground, accepting me as more than a friend.
We chatted as we walked, hand-in-hand, until we arrived at the river. The trees were thick on the other bank, but our side had a small beach. It was only deep enough to lie down on, sand dotted with rocks and pebbles, but the river was wide enough for a swim. A swim would be a wonderful nudge.