Page 35 of Cheyenne

She peered anxiously over his shoulder. “Is it okay?”

He finished hanging it. “Right as rain.”

She pointed down on one side. “Maybe tilt it a little that way.”

He fixed it, and her hand rested lightly on his shoulder as they evaluated it together. It was stupid to react like this when she touched him, but he was feeling more and more attracted to this woman every time they were together.

“That’s good.” She smiled. “At least you’re not too good at hanging things. That could get annoying.” She moved to turn away, but he slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her back into him.

Shock washed over her face.

Her scents from earlier overwhelmed him: mango, strawberry, and lemon. That fruity combination drove him crazy. He leaned into her, drinking in her smell.

“Ahh.” She didn’t move for a second, then relaxed against him, even putting her head on his shoulder.

He turned and more fully hugged her, unsure what was happening between them but helpless to stop it.

For a long time, they just held each other. He wanted to kiss her. He wanted it badly, but …

There were so many buts, both real and teased about.

After a bit, Cheyenne pulled back and peered into his eyes. She gave him a small smile and said, “It’s a good thing we can’t be together, because you holding me in your strong arms would sure be a turnoff.”

He laughed and squeezed her extra tight before releasing her. “Okay, should we go see if the amulet can tell us anything about that map?”

“Let’s go.”

They both took off racing up the stairs. He found it funny that she was actually trying to beat him, but he wouldn’t let her win.

She giggled when they got to the top. “I’m always racing my brothers everywhere.”

The side of his lip quirked up, and he moved toward the library. “My male ego could not let you win.”

She laughed harder as Micah turned on the lights and moved toward the case that held the map. He pulled up his phone to get the code Trey had sent and typed it in. The latch moved, and he gently pulled out the map and took the amulet out of his pocket.

“Do you think we’ll have better luck with the original map?” he asked.

“We’re about to find out.”

He spread the map out in front of them, then gestured for her to have a look. “Go ahead.”

Gingerly, she took the amulet and tried to look through it. “Nothing. It’s just foggy. I still can’t see through it.”

Micah held out his hand. “Would you care if I try?”

She handed over the amulet. “Of course.”

He brought it up to his eye. She was right; everything still looked foggy. He leaned closer and then pulled back to get his bearings on which part of the map he was looking at, but he couldn’t see anything. Disappointed, he put the amulet down on the glass on the counter. “Bummer.”

Cheyenne was already peering into the glass case below them. “Is there anything else in here that the amulet could be used to read?”

Micah moved across from where she was and evaluated everything in the case. “Not that I know of.”

“Is there anything old?” She pointed to his grandfather’s journals. “How old are those?”

Carefully, he reached inside the case and pulled one out. “Pretty sure you’re not gonna be able to see anything on these. My grandfather wrote them in the eighties and nineties.”

She reached for it, and he handed it to her. Carefully, she thumbed through it. “I remember hearing about some type of pictures and how they were clues.”

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