Madison dug through Brook’s closet. They might be the same size, but their taste couldn’t be more different. She was going to have to give Brook a lesson on the travesty of mom jeans as soon as she returned from Arkansas.
She held up a faded Hillbilly BBQ Cook-Off T-shirt and threw it back in the drawer. No way could she stomach that. But after the rust stain had relegated her yellow sundress to the rag pile, she didn’t want to get anything else messed up. For a second she imagined Grant’s response if she called to cancel because she didn’t have anything to wear. After the way he’d suggested she dress appropriately for hiking, she didn’t want to give him any more reason to judge her.
She finally settled on something from her own suitcase: her favorite black Nike running skirt paired with a hot-pink tank. She pulled on white ankle socks and her running shoes to complete the outfit. She might not be outdoorsy, but she had a gym membership. And the day she’d joined the gym, she’d bought some cute workout clothes. Looked like they’d finally come in handy.
Just as she finished putting on her makeup, she heard the unmistakable roar of Grant’s truck pulling into the driveway. She swept her hair up into a high ponytail. I might be pushing thirty, but today I can pass for a cheerleader. At least from a distance.
A loud honk from the driveway brought her primping to an end. She hurried down the stairs and grabbed her purse from the counter.
“Mornin’,” Grant said as he hopped out of the truck. “I was beginning to think you’d backed out of our little outing.” She shook her head. “Not a chance.”
“No flip-flops today, I see.” He leaned against the truck and grinned.
Madison narrowed her eyes. “I believe you said sturdy shoes were in order.” She held up a foot encased in pristine white tennis shoes with a hot-pink Nike swoosh that perfectly matched her tank top and her fingernails. “These are sturdy.”
He chuckled as she slid across to the passenger seat. “Have you ever even worn those outside?”
She silently buckled her seat belt. It looked like the passenger seat had been wiped clean, because last week’s offending dirt was gone. “Does it matter?”
He grinned as he backed the truck out the driveway. “You do know we aren’t headed to a tennis match, right? Some of the caches at Ha Ha Tonka might be off the beaten path. You gonna be okay if you get a little dirt on your shoes?”
She lifted her chin and didn’t say anything. Why did he have to make fun of her? She’d tried to come prepared for the hike. Just because she wasn’t decked out in ugly boots and those hideous cargo shorts didn’t mean she couldn’t maneuver along a hiking trail. At least she hoped not.
“Don’t sulk.” He shot her a dimpled smile. “I’m only kidding. Workout wear is a step in the right direction. Before the summer is out, maybe we’ll have you in real hiking gear.”
“Maybe. I wonder if Prada makes hiking clothes.”
Grant groaned. “You’re impossible.” He turned the truck onto Highway 54 and headed toward Camdenton. “How’d the last week go? Any job leads?”
She’d actually sent in résumés for a couple of jobs that seemed perfect, but she saw no need to share that with him. “I’m still looking.”
“I’m sure you’ll find something soon.” He slowed down as they got behind a tractor. “Bet you’re not used to this anymore, huh?” He motioned at the green tractor in front of them.
Madison shook her head. “Not exactly.” She grinned. “But would you believe that I know how to drive one of those?”
Grant veered around the tractor and waved at the driver. “No way,” he said once they were safely back in the right lane.
“You?”
She grinned. “My grandpa had farmland. When I was a little girl, he used to let me ride with him on the tractor.” She had a sudden memory of coming in from the field and sitting on her grandparents’ porch, eating fresh watermelon and not caring about the sticky juice running down her bare legs. She might’ve grown up and left her rural roots behind, but she hadn’t forgotten the simple joys of childhood summers in a small town. “When I got a little older, he taught me how to drive it.”
“I’ll keep that in mind in case I ever buy some land.” He chuckled. “Maybe you could give up your big-city job and become a farmer.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Laugh all you want. I might have grown up and moved away, but I haven’t forgotten my roots.” Not for lack of trying, though. Twelve years in the big city and she hadn’t quite been able to break free. But the last résumé she’d sent out had been to a PR firm in New York. If anything could allow her to leave her past behind once and for all, it would be that. She’d always seen New York as the brass ring.
“So how about we come up with a game plan for today?” Grant asked. “I read up on the caches at Ha Ha Tonka, and it looks like they’re a little different than the others.”
Madison wrinkled her nose. “What do you mean?”
“I guess the organizers want to mix things up a little, because in addition to finding and logging the caches, we have to take a picture at each site and upload it to the Rainbow’s End website.” He slowed down and flipped on his left blinker. “Hey, we’re close to your hometown, aren’t we?”
She nodded. “If we stayed on this road for another ten minutes, we’d be smack dab in the middle of Roach.”
Grant glanced at her. “Does your dad live in the house you grew up in?”
She nodded. “He does.” At the thought of Daddy, she grew sad. “I went to visit him last week.”
“How’d it go?” He turned left and headed toward the park entrance.
Madison sighed. “Considering it was the first time I’d seen him in six years, I guess it went okay.”
Grant let out a low whistle. “Six years. That must’ve been an awkward reunion.”
“Not really. Just …” She trailed off, unsure of how much to share. She preferred to keep people at a distance, so the idea of opening up to Grant threw her off her game. “He has some health problems. I don’t think the prognosis is good.”
“I’m sorry.” He gestured at the park visitor center. “I’m pretty familiar with this place, so we don’t need to stop for maps or anything unless you want to.”
Madison was thankful for the change of subject. Another minute and she might spill her guts about the angst she felt over Daddy’s need for a kidney transplant. She’d been researching kidney donation for the past few days but hadn’t decided how to handle the situation. His parents had been dead for years, and if Uncle Harold and Brook had already been tested, that left Madison as his last hope. “I don’t need to stop. We have the GPS, and my smartphone has a map app in case we need it.” She let out a tiny laugh. “Actually, there is a geocaching app, too. I didn’t know it until a couple of days ago. I guess Brook didn’t realize it when she bought the GPS.”
Grant chuckled. “I didn’t know either. I haven’t upgraded my phone yet. The way I see it, my phone is for making calls, and even then I leave it in my truck sometimes when I don’t want to be bothered. I prefer the no-frills way of life.”
“No kidding.” She glanced down at the truck floorboard. “I mean, if that rust gets any worse, we’ll have to Fred Flintstone it home.”
He laughed out loud. “It’s not that bad.”
She smiled. “If you say so.”
Grant pulled into a parking lot and cut the engine. He shot her a mischievous grin. “You sure you’re prepared for this? We might see lizards and snakes.” He hopped out of the truck.
“I’m not a complete wimp just because I prefer city pavement to dirt roads.” She slid across the seat, thankful he didn’t offer his hand again. The less contact she had with him the better. She walked around to the back of the truck where he was spraying bug repellent on his legs and arms. “About those snakes … are they big ones?” she asked.
Grant burst out laughing. “Not a wimp, huh?”
Madison scowled and grabbed the repellent from his outstretched hand. This was going to be a very long day.
Grant knew he should be ashamed of himself for trying to scare her a little. But she was so much fun to mess with. “I’ve got water in my backpack.” He grinned. “I figured you’d be armed with that big old purse of yours that’s probably full of beauty products, so I packed our supplies.”
Her glare told him he was pushing it.
“Anyway, you can leave your purse in the truck. Just cram it underneath the seat.”
She wrinkled her nose. “This bag cost four hundred dollars. I’m not going to just leave it under the seat. Someone might steal it.”
Grant rolled his eyes. Four hundred dollars? He’d never heard anything so ridiculous. “The upside to having a truck as old as mine is that it isn’t exactly a target for thieves. I feel certain your overpriced bag will be fine for a couple of hours. Besides, you don’t want to lug that thing around.”
She didn’t say anything as she tucked her purse underneath the driver’s seat. She slammed the door and walked over to where he stood. “So what’s our plan?”
He held up the GPS. “We’re going to head down the Spring Trail. There are two caches down there. The other two caches are in different areas of the park. I think these might be a little easier though, so I thought we could start here first. Is that okay with you?”
She nodded. “Lead the way.”
They started off down the trail.
“How far do we have to go for the first one?” Madison asked after they’d been walking for a few minutes.
He stopped and consulted the GPS. “It shouldn’t be too much farther until we get to the first one. Here’s the clue:
The place you seek Was full of flour Once it used The spring as power.”
Madison burst out laughing. “I think I know where we’re headed.”
“I’m clueless on this one. Care to share?” She grinned. “What’s this? Mr. Outdoor World is asking me for help?”
“First time for everything.”
“It’s got to be near the old gristmill. I remember it from when I was a kid. We didn’t do a lot of hiking or anything, but believe it or not, I’ve been down this trail once before to see the springs. And my grandma made sure we stopped at the site of the old mill so she could explain to us how it used to work.”
He liked the way her brown eyes lit up as she talked about her childhood. Something awful must’ve happened for her to turn her back on her family. Something more than just her mom’s early death. The fact that he wanted to know her secrets caught him by surprise. Ever since he and Samantha had broken things off, he’d closed himself off to getting to know anyone new. “It sounds like you’re probably right then.” He looked at the GPS again. “We should be close.”
Ten minutes later they came to the site of the old mill. “Cool,” Grant said. “I can’t believe I’ve never been down this trail before.”
“They burned the mill in the 1930s to make room for the Lake of the Ozarks. My grandma wasn’t born yet, but her parents told her about it burning.”
Grant consulted the GPS and checked the coordinates of the cache. “Looks like it should be right over here.” He walked toward a rustic shelter that housed an interpretative display. “Check underneath this little table.”
Madison came up with the ammunition box. “Here it is,” she said with a grin.
She snapped a picture with her phone and then signed the logbook. “You have one of those fishing lures with you?” she asked.
He grinned. “Yep.” He pulled a bright-pink lure from his cargo pocket. “Look, it matches your shoes.”
Madison giggled. “I guess you know what lure I’ll choose if I ever go fishing.”
“That’ll be the day.” Grant tucked the cache back where it came from then hoisted his backpack over his shoulder. “I’m sure you’d just be a regular Bill Dance.”
She frowned. “Who?”
He shook his head. “Never mind.” He’d grown up watching Bill Dance’s bass fishing show on TV and had even gotten to meet him a few times over the years, but Madison would never understand. “Okay. It looks like the next cache is down the trail and closer to the springs.” He grinned. “You ready to keep going, or do you need to rest?”
Madison tossed her dark ponytail. “I’m fine, thanks.” She grinned. “In fact, this time you can follow me.”
He set out down the trail after her, trying to keep his eyes off her long, tanned legs. She might not consider herself outdoorsy, but she obviously worked out. And even though he still thought she was way too prissy for his taste, he had to admit that her beauty wasn’t lost on him. In fact, his attraction to her seemed to grow by the hour. “How about if I take the lead? Scare off any snakes.”
She stopped and motioned for him to go around her. “Good call.”
They rounded a corner, and the paved trail turned into a wooden boardwalk. “Here’s an overlook.” Grant motioned toward an interpretative panel that gave more information about the spring. From their vantage point, they could see the water. “Isn’t it beautiful?”
“Wow.” Madison stood next to him, and her bare arm brushed against his. “It’s so pretty.”
He gave her a sideways glance. “Sure is,” he whispered. Get a grip. “So it looks like if we just keep going down the path, we’ll find another cache.”
“What’s the clue on this one?”
Grant groaned. “Whoever wrote this one isn’t much of a poet. It doesn’t even rhyme.”
“Let me see.” She grabbed the GPS and scrolled to read. “Two rocks meet But never touch. To find the treat You’ll have to climb.”
Madison consulted the GPS. “Let’s just keep going and see if we figure it out once we’re at the right coordinates.” She motioned for him to follow.
“I can tell we’re getting close to the spring because it’s getting cooler.”
She stopped suddenly, and he ran into her.
Grant put his hands on her waist to keep them both from tumbling. “Sorry,” he breathed. He was close enough to smell her shampoo. He let go of her and stepped back. “You okay?”
Madison glanced over her shoulder with a grin. “I didn’t mean to stop like that. But look.” She pointed ahead at two large rocks with just enough space between them for a person to fit through. “I think that must be the first part of the clue.”
He followed her through the opening. “You’re right. Two rocks meet but never touch. It’s got to be these.”
Madison stopped in front of a tree. “Okay, according to the GPS, we’re here.” She pointed upward. “And now we have to climb.” She laughed. “Well one of us does. And I nominate you.”
Grant smiled and shrugged the backpack from his shoulders. He grasped a low limb and shook it to see how sturdy it was. “I haven’t climbed a tree since I was a kid.”
“Were you good at it?”
He made a face. “Only broken bone I ever had was from a tree climb gone wrong.” He shimmied onto the first limb and looked up. The box was right above him. “But this isn’t bad at all. Guess they didn’t really want us to get too far off the ground.” He grabbed the box and held it out for Madison to take.
She snapped a picture of the box and then opened it. “Isn’t this cute? A little plastic castle.”
“Yes, so cute,” he said mockingly once he was on the ground.
She rolled her eyes and passed him the logbook and box. “Don’t forget the fishing lure.”
Grant held up a bright-turquoise lure. “Of course not.” He closed the box and hurried to put it back in place.
“Check this out,” Madison called.
He made his way to where she stood in front of a trail sign.
“I’m glad this is the last cache on the trail.” She pointed at the sign. “Because otherwise we’d be climbing 316 stairs. And they look pretty steep.”
“Sounds fun to me.”
She shot him a dirty look.
He held up his hands in surrender. “But maybe on another day when we don’t have two more caches to find.”
She glanced at him. “How about you come back another day without me? You can send me a postcard and let me know how the climb goes.”
He nodded. “Right.” He kept forgetting that she’d be leaving soon. Off to the bright lights of the big city where she could find some guy who wore business suits and drove a fancy car.
But the sooner she was gone, the sooner he could get back to his old routine.
Somehow that didn’t make him feel any better.