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I jumped at the voice as my heart slammed into my chest.Looking to my right, I faced Hank, who had on a backpack and binoculars in his hands.

Nerves stirred in me. I shouldn’t be here alone with him. I didn’t know him, and there was something off about him, which I didn’t want to find out though.

“Okay,” I said and prepared to walk back toward the campground.

“N-not safe to walk around by y-yourself.” Concern brimmed in his eyes. He reminded me of a classmate in high school with a speech impediment. The kids at school always made fun of her. She lived near me, so sometimes we walked to school together.

Empathy rose in me as I remembered Amber’s difficulty trying to fit in at school. Hank was different, but that didn’t mean he didn’t deserve kindness like everyone else. We were all looking for a place to belong, weren’t we?

Perhaps my reservations about him stemmed from not knowing him. I had to be cautious, but that didn’t mean I had to be unfriendly.

“Thank you, Hank. I’ll keep that in mind.”

When I got home, I showered and created an agenda for each of the outfits Forrest would wear. Nerves continued to stir inside me.I checked my menstrual calendar. Nope, not that time of the month. I couldn’t blame it on my cycle. I should’ve known because my period ended right before I came here. During menstruation, I was supersensitive to everything, but right now, I was feeling all kinds of emotions for no reason. Trusting myself these days was difficult. I didn’t know what was real and what was just fear mixing with confusion.

My phone buzzed, and I smiled as a message from Audri popped onto the screen.

Audri:Hey! What’s happening in Texas? Any cute cowboys?

Kiera:None yet. We’ll catch up when I get back.

Audri:. . .

Kiera:What?

Audri:This isn’t you. No hot models to dish on?

With my friends I could tell them anything, so why was I hesitant to tell them about Forrest?Because he had affected me like no man had. So the more I talked about him, the more he would take over my life.

Kiera:Hot guys are here. Just worried about my mom.

Audri:Oh, honey. Don’t worry. Michelle and I are stopping by to visit her tomorrow. We’ll send pics.

Kiera:Thanks for everything.

My friends didn’t need to help me, but I was grateful to have someone check on my mom. How could I tell Audri that my mom’s rare illness required a new medication to survive? That this new medicine would cost me millions. Just talking about the absurdity of that made me angry. Who in the world could pay that for medication? I had done my research on expensive medications, and there were more out there than I realized, especially the kind that was still in a trial phase.

The thought made me nauseous, so I shoved it away.

Kiera:Forrest is here.

Audri:He is? Doing what?

Kiera:Business.

Audri:Something going on?

Kiera:Why do you ask?

Audri:Best friend radar. (Smile emoji)

Maybe it was time I told her the truth.Okay, here goes.I released a tense breath.

Kiera:I slept with him.

Then I tossed my phone aside as though I’d just released a secret too heavy with sin to keep in my hand.

My phone rang, and I cursed at my ridiculous behavior as I picked up the call.