Page 20 of Cheyenne

“So?”

“Do you think people moved it all the way into town? That thing looks heavy, and this land is not stable.”

“Of course they moved it,” Micah sputtered. “There were tough guys back then too.” He flexed and flashed a grin.

Cheyenne rolled her eyes but had to admit he was attractive.

Micah surveyed the area. “That priest talked about a huge stump, and I’m not seeing any trees that look like they even came down.”

Cheyenne looked as well, but it felt like they were looking into a forest. “I’m not either.”

They kept searching for what felt like forever. The sun disappeared behind the trees and they fell into shadow.

Cheyenne’s stomach grumbled. “I’m getting hungry.”

Micah pulled his wrist up and checked his watch. “How is it already five o’clock?”

Cheyenne shook her head. “I don’t know, but maybe we should go back to South Port, grab some food, and try to figure out what to do next.” She suddenly felt awkward. “If you want to do it. We don’t have to.”

Micah jerked his gaze toward her and gave her a once-over. “Hey, I’m supposed to be checking on you, so I guess you’re stuck with me this week.”

Cheyenne felt weird thinking about Micah being part of her entire week. She shrugged. “I do have some other activities that I’ve already paid for. If you want to come with me, you can. I have a snorkel tour tomorrow.”

Micah began walking back toward the truck. He gave her a teasing look. “You think you can handle me all week? Especially in a bathing suit?”

His arrogance made her laugh. “Whatever. Maybe I can just do those things by myself, and then we’ll get together to check into this.”

Micah laughed. “No, my dad likes me to be thorough, so you’re stuck with me. Just go with it.”

The way he said that made it sound like they were already in a relationship.

He turned to her and cocked an eyebrow. “What if we go back to South Port, grab some dinner, and look over some of the things from the conquistador gold my family has? Maybe we can find something about this map.”

Cheyenne’s phone buzzed. She turned it over. “Oh man. Eli is texting me. I told him I would go to dinner with him and meet his friends tonight.” She checked the time. “Shoot. In, like, an hour.”

Micah hesitated, then shrugged. “Okay. Let’s get going.”

The ride back to South Port wasn’t as jovial. Sure, they had country music on, but neither of them spoke.

Finally, Cheyenne held up the amulet and examined it from different angles. “If you want to, we can look over things at your place tomorrow. But I have the snorkeling thing first.”

His eyes flitted to hers and then back to the road. “Okay.”

She hated that it almost felt like she was cheating on him by going to dinner with Eli. It wasn’t like they were together; they were just stuck doing the same treasure hunt. She hadn’t meant to be stuck with anyone in this treasure hunt except herself. That said, she didn’t mind being around him. “Do you want to come on the snorkel adventure with me?” She hated that she felt so vulnerable.

“Are you sure you don’t want to ask Eli?”

She smiled wryly. “Are you jealous? Because you shouldn’t be.”

Micah stayed quiet for a moment. “I’m not … anything.”

She was dumbfounded. She didn’t need this macho jealousy crap. “Look, you showed up today, forced yourself on me to go parasailing, and insisted that you come with me to the church,” she snapped. “Plus the whole spit handshake thing.”

Micah glared at her. “I’m sorry for making myself such an inconvenience.”

The conversation had not gone at all the way she wanted it to. She was frustrated.

For the next twenty minutes, they were quiet.

---