One foot in front of the other. Hadley plodded along the lakefront trail, following the coordinates for the first cache, which she’d downloaded from the website that morning. Walking on the uneven terrain in the muggy Missouri heat hit her body a lot harder than the hours and hours she’d logged on her treadmill over the past year. Her body wasn’t used to regulating itself against natural elements—it liked air conditioning and fans, lots of fans.
She lifted the tube extending from her hydration pack and took a long drink of water. She’d have to make the hundred ounces last several hours, judging by the location of this first cache. Why had she started with one so far away instead of the easy ones like most of the others probably had? Because she wanted to avoid the crowds. Because she had something to prove—at least to herself. And because she liked the clue poem:
Only the strong survive
Get ready like you’re going to dive
Perch atop the stone
Make sure you’re all alone
No idea what it meant, but the first line had intrigued Hadley. She figured the rest would make sense when she arrived at the location—at least that’s what her information packet had promised. She glanced at her GPS unit, at least an hour to go. After seeing the poem, Hadley was even more glad she’d declined Brad’s company on the hike. It was something she needed to do alone, at least for a while. Who knew how she’d feel as the summer drew on? But for now, she needed to rely on herself and not get distracted by Brad’s charm and good looks.
Yet here she was, distracted.
Hadley adjusted her pack and picked up the pace.
The trail was noisier than she’d expected. Not background, filler noise like her MP3 player—more like the sounds of life. Rustling of leaves in the wind. Fluttering of wings as birds startled from their hiding spots. Chipmunks, squirrels, and rabbits foraging in the underbrush. Birds and crickets chirping in harmony. Fish jumping in the lake that ran beside her path. Hadley filled her lungs with the fresh air. She felt invigorated—much more than after a five-mile trudge on her treadmill.
So this was why people teemed the Chicago lakeshore bike path every day? Hadley had wanted to try a run over there since her birthday last June when she embarked on this personal journey toward health and fitness as a gift to herself. Her apartment overlooked the mayhem of people running and biking while Rollerbladers weaved between them all, and there was no mistaking the freedom they felt. But she just couldn’t bring herself to put on her shoes and join them; she was too afraid of running into someone she knew. She didn’t want to see the judgment in their eyes. Whenever she happened on someone who hadn’t seen her in a while, she could read their thoughts, which always seemed to go one of two ways. Either they gazed at her with pity at how much she’d had to work to take the weight off, assuming she’d put it right back on before year’s end, or they eyed her in wonderment that she’d ever let herself get to the point where she had to work so hard. It was much easier to exercise at home than to endure that scrutiny.
Ava said Hadley was crazy, that she wouldn’t accept a compliment if it was handed to her on a silver platter with a big red bow. She tried. It was hard, though.
At least here Hadley was a stranger. Brad had no idea who she really was. If he saw the driver’s license picture in her wallet, he’d probably run away out of fear she’d look like that again, and Hadley wouldn’t blame him. Maybe that would be for the best anyway. Would she ever escape the demons that chased her?
The time passed quickly, and Hadley realized she must be near her target. She checked her GPS, examined her latitude and longitude coordinates, and grinned. She broke into a slow jog up the hill to her destination—the approximate location of the first cache. Now to pinpoint the exact spot with the clue poem.
Only the strong survive. Did that mean only the strong could make it that far? Maybe. She could go with that for a minute.
Get ready like you’re going to dive. A swimming pool? No there wouldn’t be a pool out here. Hadley scanned the horizon but saw no water access. She could hear it, though. A dive … a dive? Where was the lake? It had been at Hadley’s right during the hike up, so it had to be over the rise in front of her. She trudged up yet another hill and peeked over a huge rock.
She gasped at the sight. The boulder led to a steep drop-off overlooking the lake. Did people dive from the rock? How could she know if the water below was deep enough? She looked for evidence of that but found none. She scrambled up and stood atop the stone, searching the water below for assurance. Surely the hunt people wouldn’t ask her to take a blind dive into uncertain waters if it wasn’t safe. Was she supposed to trust they knew what they were talking about? What if she dove in but that wasn’t what the clue meant at all? What if she came this far only to break her neck on day one?
Perch atop the stone. Wait. What? That’s exactly what she was doing. How did the cache’s creator know she’d do that? She stared at the rugged rock beneath her feet as though it had magical properties.
Make sure you’re all alone. She glanced in every direction. Alone.
Okay. Here goes nothing.
Noah couldn’t believe his luck. Hadley had chosen this cache as her first hunt. The one he’d written and added just minutes ago. He watched her eyes dance in the sunlight as she reasoned the clues until her face shone with excitement at having figured it out.
Her strong, lithe body looked so perfect as she climbed atop the rock aptly named Love’s Reward.
But, wait! What was she doing? Was she about to dive? She’d never survive a dive from that spot. The lake below was deep enough for a canoe this time of year, but she had to be two stories high. He had to stop her. Somehow. If only he could do it without giving away his presence. Noah glanced in every direction. Frantic. He was running out of time.
She dropped her backpack beside the rock, kicked off her shoes, and inched her toes forward.
“Stop!” Noah bolted from his hiding place. “Stop!” He reached Hadley and grabbed the hem of her shorts before she could carry out her plans. “Are you trying to kill yourself?”
She turned on him with fire in her eyes. “Excuse me? Get your hands off me.” She jumped from her perch in a fluid motion, like the gazelle he’d known she was.
“Hadley, I—”
She searched the area around her, fear mingling with the anger that already clouded her face.
“Why did you stop me? I was about to jump in for the cache.” Hadley held up her waterproof GPS unit.
“Why on earth would you jump in the water from here? The clue never told you to do that. You’d have killed yourself.” Simmer down, Noah. “I meant … you’re only supposed to get ready to dive so you can find the cache from the viewpoint on top of the rock. Can’t you see that right here?” He leaned over her shoulder to point at the geocaching site on her web display. Why had he written such a stupid clue?
“Yes. I see it,” Hadley sputtered. “I just thought … oh, I don’t know what I was thinking. But thanks for ruining it for me. Now if I uncover the cache because you helped me—it wouldn’t be fair. There goes a wasted day.”
Not for me. “Oh, don’t worry about that. You can still find the cache. I didn’t tell you its location.”
“No thank you.” Hadley pointed her nose at the sky and turned away. “I’m finished here.”
Of all the nerve! First he had to write an ambiguous clue. Then he intruded on Hadley’s privacy—although he did save her life … but that was secondary to her humiliation. What had he been doing hiding in the bushes anyway? Come to think of it, had he been following her? The horror of being a spectacle while exercising flooded into her brain, and Hadley hated the young youth pastor for ruining her day … maybe even the whole hunt. How could she go out again tomorrow? And now she was behind, since it was likely everyone else had already retrieved their first caches of the hunt.
If a bike could stomp, hers acted like a petulant child all the way back to Norma’s. Hadley paced alone in Norma’s living room. If only she could avoid him the rest of her time, she’d be fine. Maybe, if she gathered the nerve to go out tomorrow, she should follow the crowd and hope he wasn’t among them.
A light knock sounded at the front door. Who could that be? It better not be Noah there to apologize. Hadley wanted nothing to do with him. She jerked the door open. “What do you wa—Oh.” Her tone fell, and her anger washed away as she saw Brad grinning on the other side of the door.
“Hey, gorgeous. I’m here to take you to dinner. Let’s go.”
Why was he whispering? “Um … I don’t remember setting up a date for tonight.”
“No, it’s a surprise. Come on, let’s go.”
“Can I at least change my clothes?” Hadley plucked her damp shirt away from her sticky, grimy body. “Come on in.”
Brad glanced at the stairs. “Nope. You won’t care in a minute. I promise.” He held the door open for Hadley to walk through.
At least someone was a gentleman. Brad steered his beemer through the streets of Osage Beach and turned on a dark road—almost a path—into a wooded area. The trees cleared almost immediately, and they were in a clearing that housed a modern two-story house.
“This is a great location, Brad. Do you live here?”
“Yep. Wait until you see the back.” They walked around the house, climbed the stairs to the deck, and stepped into another world. The deck was actually a dock where several boats were moored. The private lot shielded them from everything but an expanse of water and the stars in the sky. Hadley could get used to this.
Brad stepped onto a small yacht and steadied himself as the water level ebbed in the wake of passing boats. He held out a hand to Hadley. “Come onboard. You’ll love it.”
She placed her hand in his and climbed into the most luxurious private boat she’d ever been on. Luxury boat, handsome man. Yep. She could get used to this.
Brad’s eyes twinkled, and the moonlight glinted off the silver hair around his ears. His gaze held intent … intent to …
He leaned his face close enough that she could smell the musky scent of his cologne mingled with the salty sweat of the day and feel his hot breath on her face. Realization smacked her: she was about to receive her first kiss in thirteen years.
No! Hadley needed time to think about this. It was happening way too fast. She wasn’t prepared. She stepped back and put her hands on Brad’s shoulders. “Sorry, I’m—I don’t think I’m ready for all this. Can we just slow down a little?”
Brad’s eyes darkened momentarily, but the corners of his mouth raised. “Of course, doll. I’m sorry. We’ll slow down for a while. We can take a quick buzz around the lake and enjoy the night sky. Sound okay?”
Hadley nodded. She’d heard the “for a while.” What did that mean? How long was a while? She’d hurt his feelings, obviously. Brad wasn’t the kind of guy who was used to being turned down. She was out of her league with him. But maybe he was exactly what was needed to pull her from her shell.