Page 74 of Tequila Tuesdays
Olivia huffed and sat back. “She nevervoluntarilytells me anything. She’s like a damn vault.”
We met the group at the trailhead, and I introduced them all to Olivia. Everyone said hello except Sebastian, who just grunted.
Brock studied Olivia. “She’s like a Mini-Me version of you, Harley.” Olivia was shorter than me but had similar coloring.
“No, she’s not. She’s a lot smarter than I am, she doesn’t like most sports, and for some godawful reason she loves horror movies.”
Zeke looked at her more closely. “I’ve never met a woman who likes horror flicks.”
Olivia shrugged. “Then you need to get out more because I know quite a few. If they’re done well, horror films take more talent and creativity than most drama or action films. Harley loves foreign indie films, the weirder and more esoteric the better. I can’t stand most of them.”
Zeke nodded and turned to Damien. “There’s Harley’s one major flaw. I told you, every hot woman has one.”
I rolled my eyes. “That’s a major flaw? Really?”
Zeke grinned and just shrugged.
We loaded up our packs and got on the trail. Olivia turned out to be the slowest and least experienced hiker. She’d spent a lot of time in school and working over the past six years, and it appeared she didn’t get out on many hikes or do much cardio. I knew she liked Pilates and yoga, but we needed to talk about her endurance.
“Is this pack supposed to weigh this much?” she whined, huffing a little.
“You have the lightest pack out of all of us, and I’m carrying your tent. Suck it up, buttercup,” I shot back.
Damien looked back at me. “You really are aLord of the Flieshiker.” He turned to Olivia. “The trail isn’t as sandy about half a mile in. It gets easier from there.”
We’d started on the Boy Scout trail to avoid all the sand at the beginning of Big Pine, but even this trail had its fair share.
“Thanks, Damien. Hopefully,youwon’t leave me behind if we run into a bear.”
I sighed in exasperation. “It’s the desert. We might see a rattlesnake or maybe a coyote. But no bears.”
Olivia stopped abruptly. “Rattlesnakes? Why didn’t you tell me this before?”
Zeke snickered. “People rarely die from rattlesnake bites, and they’re more afraid of you. You might lose a foot if you get bit, but you probably won’t die.”
She glared at him. “That makes me feelsooomuch better.”
Damien pointed to Sebastian ahead of us. “The people in front are more likely to get bitten. It’s rare, but it usually only happens if someone startles a rattlesnake.”
“But the coyotes do like to pick off stragglers,” Zeke added.
When Zeke glanced back at her, Olivia wiped nonexistent sweat from her brow with her middle finger. Zeke started laughing.
Olivia seemed to find her rhythm, and we hiked steadily for the next few hours. The trail went by rock formations, large groves of Joshua trees, and the huge dead pine tree the trail was named after.
We only ran into two other groups of hikers, and neither had overnight packs. Laurel pulled out her camera and stopped to take a few photographs later in the day when the lighting got softer. She looked comfortable with her camera, and she used it with familiarity and ease.
I’d walked behind Damien for most of the hike, and it was a nice view. Olivia caught up with me and whispered in my ear. “Quit looking at his perfect bubble butt.”
I didn’t turn around or break stride. I also didn’t quit staring. “No.”
“Yes. You’re creeping me out.”
“No, I’m not. And I don’t like that you also noticed he has a perfect bubble butt.”
“How can younotnotice? Theyallhave amazing butts. Admit it,” she said.
“I admit nothing.”
