Page 106 of The Proposal Project

“They were both emphasizing how romantic their hike was going to be. You don’t think that Ryan would say ‘screw it’ to all of the plans for next weekend and propose to her up on the summit, do you?”

Oliver thinks about it. “He doesn’t have the ring, but… I don’t know. What about Tina?”

“She’s been known to do impulsive things.” I have a bad feeling about this. Oliver and I have both put in too much time and effort to see it all go to waste. Maybe it’s selfish because it’s not my proposal, and someone else’s happiness shouldn’t depend on how much time I’ve invested in something. Even so, it’s not just about me, either. Oliver’s band students have been working hard at learning the music and the dance moves and preparing for the big day. There are a lot of people who have been hired, deposits paid, and fireworks purchased all for this event that could be ruined just by one impulsive move up on the summit.

“We need to stop them,” Oliver says.

ChapterTwenty-Six

The Most Romantic Hike

Oliver slides off the bed and begins dressing. I’m glad that we’re on the same page.

“Do you think they’ve made it to the top yet?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “Maybe not but they’re probably getting close. If we run, we might be able to interrupt them in time.”

The idea of running up that trail seems a little daunting, but it’s the only way. I rummage through my backpack and get dressed as fast as I can. Oliver and I run downstairs and out of the cabin toward the woods where the trail starts.

I keep my eye on the ground, watching for rocks and roots so that I don’t trip or twist an ankle. Oliver runs ahead of me, but he slows his pace so that we stay together. When we reach the steep part of the trail that I had trouble with last time, he stops.

“I can carry you up,” he offers.

I ignore him and make a run for it, leaping up the slope in two easy steps. I cheer when I get to the top, shooting my hands up in the air in victory. Oliver laughs behind me. We continue on. My little victory has me feeling invincible. Adrenaline courses through my veins, pushing me forward. My legs burn with each step I take, but it’s the good kind of burn that keeps me going.

As we get closer to the end of the trail, Oliver and I slow down.

“What do we say when we get up there?” he asks.

“I hadn’t really thought this part through,” I admit. “Do we just pretend we were going for a hike?”

“It’s not like we can tell them we’re there to stop them from proposing,” he says.

I nod. “Okay. We’ll just play dumb, then.”

I can see the light filtering in through the trees as we come to the end of the trail and approach the summit. I can hear Ryan’s voice, but I can’t quite make out what he’s saying. Then I hear Tina, but her voice sounds a little higher like she’s excited about something. Oliver and I exchange a look. We slow down as we come to the edge of the forest. The wooden bench that Ryan’s grandfather built comes into view.

Tina is lying on her back on top of the bench, her bare legs pointed up in the air. Ryan stands between her legs, holding her ankles on his shoulders. It takes me a full second to realize that we’ve just walked in on Tina and Ryan having sex on top of the mountain.

My eyes go wide. I cover my mouth and look at Oliver, trying to keep from laughing. I can tell by the way he twists his lips that he’s also trying not to laugh. We turn around and run until we’re out of earshot. Then we both let loose, dying laughing. I double over, laughing so hard that I scare a rabbit out of its hiding place. It darts down the trail.

“I can’t believe that just happened,” I manage to squeak out in between laughs.

“We just ran all the way up a mountain to seethat,” Oliver says.

“Good thing we slowed down when we did. Imagine the looks on their faces if we had just charged up there all fired up in the middle of that?”

Once we’ve recovered enough to walk again, we head back down the trail.

“You know what the worst part of all this is?” Oliver asks.

“Hmm?”

“I had to get out of bed with a beautiful woman for this.”

“What if I told you we could do something even better when we get back?”

“What could possibly be better?” he asks.

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