The Road That Leads to Us (Us 1)

The Colorado River cut through the steep valley, roaring with life.

Willow threw out her arms above her head and yelled, “I’m on top of the woooorld!”

People turned to stare, but neither of us cared.

Let them look and see that this was what living looked like.

Willow flipped around in my arms and wound hers around my neck.

Her cheeks were flushed with happiness and her eyes were bright without worry. “Thank you for this.”

“For what?” I asked stupidly.

“For coming on this trip with me, for giving me the opportunity to see this.” She turned, sweeping her arm out to encompass the land.

“I’d do anything for you.” It was the truth. I’d go out of my way to make that girl smile, to hear her laugh, to be her world.

She glowed at my words and kissed me quickly before turning in my arms once more to look out at the canyon.

She shivered and I rubbed my hands up her arms. “Cold?” It was hot where we were, but there was a light wind so it was plausible.

“No.” She shook her head and her hair brushed my exposed collarbone. “The view gave me chills,” she admitted. “Think about what it must’ve been like to have seen this hundreds of years ago, before there were cars, trains, anything really. Just imagine stumbling upon this…they must’ve felt like they’d found heaven.”

I glanced at the huge drop to the river below.

“Or hell,” I added.

She giggled and tilted her head back to look at me, squinting from the sunlight. “It’s too beautiful to be hell.”

“The most devilish of things can come in the most unassuming of packages,” I quipped.

She shook her head and reached up to brush away the blonde hairs plastered to her forehead from the wind. “Why do I feel like you’re talking about me?”

“If the shoe fits…” I shrugged.

She punched me in the stomach with enough force to momentarily cause me to lose my breath.

“Willow,” I groaned, pulling in a lungful of air.

Laughter bubbled out of her throat. “I didn’t mean to hit you that hard,” she defended.

“I can tell you’re real torn up about it,” I commented as I regained my breath.

She giggled and lifted to press a kiss to my cheek. “Better?”

I pointed to my lips and she kissed me agai

n.

“Better now?” She asked, her lips twisting as she fought a grin.

“I think I’ll live to see another day.” I grinned down at her—at this crazy, beautiful, adventurous, girl that had somehow decided I was worthy of being loved by her.

“Good.” She patted my stomach gently where she’d punched me before.

She returned to staring at the view. We stood there for as long as we could before venturing back to the car.

Willow laid her head on the back of the seat and turned to look at me. “That was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. I would’ve hated to have missed that.”