Lie of My Life

13 Miss Ava

The others had made it very far ahead of us on the trail, undoubtedly because of Emma's strict timeline of sights to be seen. We had nearly decided to give up and take the trail back to the car to wait for them there when we found Aaron hunched over a log, chugging water from the canteen at the top of a rather steep hill. Emma was nearby, hands on her hips, glaring at the back of my brother's head at the delay he'd managed to cause with his unplanned break. Shane was reading the map and staring out at the horizon. Wes was doubled over himself, hands on his knees, breathing heavily.

"There you are!" Emma called out in exasperation when she saw Carter and I approach. "Where have you been? Why are you all wet?"

"Carter pushed me into the water," I told her as rehearsed, practically feeling him grinning behind me at the easy lie. "So I pulled him in too. What's going on with you guys? Looks like Aaron and Wes are about to pass out."

"We are," my brother groaned.

"I should have known she was just luring us out here to kill us," Wes grunted back and Carter chuckled.

"Come on guys, can't handle a little hike?" he asked, stepping forward and giving Wes a slap on the shoulder that nearly knocked him over before jogging up to join Emma. "Where to next, Miss Mountain?"

She grinned at the enthusiasm and gestured for us all to follow her as she made her way to the peak of the hill and down the craggy rock on the other side.

"Someone seems to have gained a burst of energy," I muttered as Carter fell back to join me on the path.

"What can I say? Guess I found some... inspiration," he winked and jogged away, playfully pretending to jump on my brother's back only to laugh at the terrified scream that met him.

The rest of the sights that Emma had planned were just as beautiful as the others but exhaustion kept me from straying too far behind again to admire any of them for longer than the allotted time. After a couple of miles, we all breathed a sigh of relief when we emerged into the parking lot once more.

"I'm just saying if everyone thinks these things are so damn beautiful, why not build a drive up to them?" Wes was arguing as we headed for the truck and the SUV.

"Because that would disturb the beauty of them," Emma snapped back. "The peace and quiet, the serenity."

Carter caught my eye and I bit my lip.

"Maybe peace for me is sitting in my air-conditioned Lexus while enjoying the sights of nature," Wes countered.

"Wesley!" Emma shouted back.

"Alright," Shane said, finally intervening. "What's next on the plan, babe?"

"Lunch," she declared and we cheered. She rolled her eyes but couldn't help her smile. "There's a bar and grill nearby that has fabulous ratings. Anyone in the mood for barbeque?"

We all murmured our assent and filed back into the cars we'd come in. I settled in beside a grumbling Wesley as Shane pulled out from the lot and headed for the nearby bar. Or, what could better be described as a dive bar, I realized when we pulled up to it.

A few locals were milling about outside, talking and laughing as they sipped their beers, raising their glasses to us in welcome as we headed for the doors.

We found a booth in the corner large enough for all of us and Shane and Aaron went to scrounge up some menus. I would have been surprised to learn there was even a kitchen in this place if it weren't for the smokey scent of delicious pork drifting in from somewhere in the back.

We placed our orders, I of course opted for pulled pork, and the guys went to get us drinks as Emma and I tried in vain to appear less sweaty than we were.