Page 45 of Luke

Eight

They reached the falls thirty minutes later. There were at least a dozen people splashing or swimming in the multiple pools that were fed by the waterfall. The water looked more than a little inviting as the temperature was now in the upper seventies.

Brad handed out his wife's homemade cookies and bottles of cold water from the pack he'd brought, while some of the group stripped down to their bathing suits and jumped in the water.

Lizzie let go of his hand. "I'm going to get my feet wet," she said, kicking off her shoes. She made her way into the water, flinging him a surprised but happy look as she waded in up to her knees. "It's cold," she said.

"I'm not surprised."

"Why don't you come in?"

"I'm okay," he said, as she splashed around in the pool. Lizzie had always liked water. They'd gone to school twenty minutes from the beach, and they'd spent many, many weekends, diving in and out of the surf in Santa Monica.

As he watched her now, he was reminded of the story she'd told him about his parents' first meeting, the way his father had watched his mother skip from rock to rock in the creek, how he couldn't take his eyes off of her, how he knew she was the woman…

He blew out a breath, feeling a strangely deep connection to his dad, one he'd never expected to feel. After his mother died, his father had been all about ambition, making money, buying and selling companies, networking, traveling—anything but being with his family. But before that…before that, his dad had been a husband in love, a father who spent time with his kids, a family man. He just hadn't known how to be that man without his wife.

Kathleen Brannigan had left a big hole in all of their lives, but maybe he'd never appreciated how much his father had loved her until now. Now, in the valley where they'd fallen for each other, he could see it so much more clearly.

Maybe that was the legacy his dad had left him. Maybe it wasn't all about Lizzie.

But as she turned around and gave him a radiant smile that hardened his body and made his heart race, he knew it had a little to do with Lizzie, too. His dad had wanted to throw them back together to see what would happen…

What would happen?

A lot of ideas ran through his mind, most of which involved both of them getting naked and spending a lot of time together in bed.

Damn. Maybe he should go into that cold water and give himself a dose of reality.

"So, Luke," Brad began.

He dragged his gaze away from Lizzie, both relieved and annoyed by the interruption.

"Shari tells me you and Liz used to go out," Brad said, a curious gleam in his eyes.

"A long time ago. It didn't end well."

"Looks like you're getting along okay now."

"Well, Lizzie has good reason to be nice to me since I inherited the resort."

"I don't think it's just that."

He shrugged, not sure what to say to that. He decided to change the subject. "How long have you worked at the resort?"

"Six years. I used to work in the park before that, but then I met Shari. She was a sous chef here for the previous chef. It was love at first sight. We got married the next year, and she became head chef a year later. Then I took over the adventure program. It's been great. We live together and work together, but not too close," he added with a grin. "She does her thing, and I do mine. It's all good. Of course, things will be changing in a month when our daughter comes along. I do not know what I'm going to do with a girl."

"You'll figure it out. Congratulations."

"Thanks. We're excited—terrified."

"Sounds about right."

"I know I shouldn't ask. It's not my place, but if you are going to sell the resort, can you give us a heads-up? I want to make sure I can take care of the family, and both our incomes are tied up here. There aren't a lot of jobs in the valley where we can both work and live."

He saw the concern in Brad's eyes. "Of course. I still haven't decided what I want to do."

"I'm not trying to push you. I know your father recently died, and I'm sorry. I didn't know him beyond his name, but Lizzie always said she liked him."

---