my chest like a fool because he had a hold of my hand. He was just helping me. It’s nothing, I told myself, so quit acting stupid about it.
“Thanks,” I said.
“Tell me how you’ve been liking the island. Did you try the sushi place I told you about?”
“Yeah, it’s definitely the best I’ve had in the Caribbean, and I’ve had some amazing seafood. Thanks for the tip. I checked out a few beaches and rented a jet ski for half a day. The hotel spa had a good hot stone massage, and a food truck out by the cruise ship docks had a damn fine banana daiquiri.”
“You’ve been all over the place. What happened to your shell bracelet?” he asked. I knew he’d noticed my anklet at the beach and on our walk through town. I told him the truth.
“It was a gag gift for my friend Maggie back home. I promised her a sweet ankle bracelet like the kind the rich girls always brought back from summer vacation in middle school.”
“You’ve known her that long?”
“No, we met in college, but it feels like we’ve known each other forever. She’s the single most unfiltered person I’ve ever met, and she’s loyal. Loyalty is missing from a lot of relationships,” I said. I didn’t mean to get maudlin about it, but there we were. In deep waters again five minutes into our hike.
“I brought extra waters and sunblock,” he said, “in case you don’t have any.”
I held out my bag for him to inspect.
“Looks like you got all your gear. You even have organic bug repellant? You’re ready for anything,” he said.
“It’s not my first time, so you don’t have to be gentle,” I said with a grin. Then I realized what I’d said. I hadn’t meant to make sexual innuendo with him, especially not after we drifted into naughty territory when we got lemonade before. There was just something about him that made my mind turn dirty, that made everything take on weighted meanings.
Billy smirked a little but didn’t say anything. I appreciated that he let it go.
He took me to the trailhead and snapped a picture of me out in the blazing sun. “It’ll be pretty shaded on most of the trail. I wanted you to have a picture in full sun in case you need it.”
“Thanks. I’m also only going to get sweaty and red-faced the further we go,” I said. “Not that my readers haven’t seen me disheveled. I try to keep things as authentic as I can,” I told him.
“I admire that. Authenticity is as rare as loyalty, from what I’ve found,” he said, and the way he said it sounded almost angry, like there was something tightly coiled beneath his happy go lucky surface. Instead of repelling me, it intrigued me and made me want to step in closer and maybe touch one of those heavily muscled pectorals. I had a thing for pecs. And his were phenomenal. I wanted to bury my face between him.
“What’s the point of being fake?” I said, “I’m out of patience with the photo filters and editing features. Sure, I crop my photos for my articles, but I don’t change them up, don’t make them look like some polished, sparkly pretend reality.”
“That’s different. I like what I do, but I’ve stood around wasting time too often while I waited for some people to get their selfies edited and posted the way they want it. I get a lot of family groups and girls trips—"
“They’re hoping you strip,” I teased. “They see your picture on the web site and think, ‘did somebody call for a hiking instructor?’ wink-wink.”
“That’s not a thing. Fireman, yes. Hiking instructor? No. I can’t imagine anyone ordering a stripper that specific.”
“You could be a lumberjack,” I suggested.
“In this heat? No flannel,” he joked. “Are you ready to tackle my favorite hike?”
“Absolutely,” I said. “So tell me about your usual tours. How many people do you take in a group? What age demographic would you say—"
“Shhh,” he said softly as we climbed a ways and then stepped between closely packed trees and into the humid, shaded space. A hush fell over us and I stopped to look around. Far above me were the slender boles of trunks reaching into the dense canopy of feathery leaves seemingly intertwined with each other. The greens were fresh and varied from a bright almost lime hue to the deep blackish-green in deeper shadows. I swayed closer to Billy, my hand on