Chapter 68

We were standing side by side, and he leaned over, kissed me, and said, “I’ve never brought another person up here.”

“Never?”

“Never. This has been my retreat for many years. There’s a local couple who watch the place for me and keep it clean and for that reason must have access. Other than the two of them, nobody else has been here.”

“Thank you for sharing it with me.”

“Let’s go down and get our bags. There’s a great deal to see around here.”

We descended to the car and retrieved our gear. On the way back up the stairs, I noticed a doorway at each of the three levels below the great room, a detail that I’d missed on the trip up. Philip saw my curious glances and told me that there were a few surprises in the place. When we’d stowed our belongings in the sleeping loft, he looked at me.

“How about a swim?”

“Where?”

“There’s a nice deep pool in the stream above the waterfall, and although it’s getting late in the day, the air will still be warm enough.”