Page 91 of Keep On Loving You

Overhead, the sun was obscured by dark clouds and the previously bright, sunny summer sky had turned gray and angry.

It was cold and getting colder. And way too late to pack up and head down the mountain. She’d only be stuck in the storm in a worse spot than she was now.

At least if she stayed put, she’d have shelter. Kat’s tent was whipping from side to side in the increasing wind, but it was holding strong.

She quickly checked the stakes and ties she’d used to pin her tent down and made one last trip to the stream for some fresh water before taking cover in her tent, right as a crash of thunder sounded overhead.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Andy was somewhereon the trail when the first clap of thunder sounded.

It was so loud, at first that he was sure a tree had been struck by lightning. He quickly scanned what he could see but all the trees were intact.

The rain had started in the last few minutes, and the wind was getting stronger, making it feel like bullets on his exposed skin.

He tucked his head down and hiked faster. He’d been making good time until the storm had unleashed, but it was a lot slower going now as he avoided fallen branches and slipping on rocks, roots, or mud puddles. It wouldn’t do anyone any good if he hurt himself before he got to Kat.

He’d expected to run into her halfway down the trail. Maybe she’d been delayed leaving or, worst case, had a twisted ankle or something. But the longer he hiked without running into her, the more worried he became.

What if something serious had happened to her? A wild animal? Or worse, a questionable human hiding out in the forest who happened to come across a young woman alone and?—

No! He couldn’t let his imagination go there. She was fine. She had to be.

So focused on getting to her as quickly as he could, Andy hardly felt the driving rain as he powered up the trail. According to the GPS unit Kane had given him, he was almost there. When he was less than a kilometer away, he broke into a light jog.

The moment Andy left the shelter of the trees and was out by the lake, he realized exactly how bad the storm was. The wind howled straight off the mountains across the lake and directly onto the opposite shore, where Kat was camped.

His eyes landed on the bright green of her tent that even in the dark of the storm was bright enough to spot.

“Kat!” He picked his way through the downed branches and puddles of mud toward her. “Kat! Are you there?”

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, a light inside the tent flickered to life.

“Andy?”

“Oh, thank God.” He choked back a sob and called out, “I’m coming! Stay there!”

“Andy?”

Kat fumbled in the dark of her tent, found her flashlight, and clicked it on.

“I’m coming! Stay there!”

ItwasAndy.

She wiggled out of her sleeping bag and unzipped the tent enough to stick her head and the flashlight out into the storm.

When she saw his figure moving toward her in the dark, Kat’s heart leapt into her throat.What was he doing out in the storm?It was too dangerous.

“Andy.” She reached out into the rain as he got close. “Oh, my goodness. Get in here.”

The moment she zipped the tent behind him, he pulled her into a big, and very wet, hug.

“Thank God you’re okay, Kat. When you didn’t come down today, I was so worried and then the storm and?—”

“I decided to stay an extra night.” Her voice was muffled in his shoulder. “But, wait.” She pulled back a little. “How did you know I was up here?”

He grinned, and she laughed. Of course he would figure it out.

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