Chapter Two
As they’d approached Firecamp, Nora’s thoughts had lingered on Fallon.
It was odd how her clothes didn’t seem to fit quite right, like they’d been bought for someone else.
She wasn’t drop-dead gorgeous, but she had beautiful eyes and a nice smile.
But when Fallon had looked into the back seat, Nora had pretended to be consumed by her phone for a reason.
She didn’t want to walk into camp and have people assume they were buddies.
Nora intended to move on from here with no additional encumbrances, so she’d start Firecamp in the same way she would finish it: alone.
Besides, Fallon’s moments of bashfulness and uncertainty seemed like the behavior of someone immature, and there was no chance of them being BFFs anyway, given Fallon’s remarks about family being something to cherish.
Nora adored Tyler, but she could take or leave the rest of them.
And why shouldn’t she? Her older brothers were already out on their own, and she’d certainly be disappointing her parents when she didn’t present a husband.
Nora watched Fallon head toward the small group of women standing near the largest of the wooden buildings.
Her pace was uneven, like she wanted to run but was holding herself back.
Someone with that kind of energy could be really fun in bed.
Nora gave a short cough, squelching the unexpected thought as quickly as it appeared.
Fallon might be moving the way she did because she’d been driving for a while—before running out of gas—and the relief of having reached her destination hadn’t sunk in yet.
“Now, that’s someone you could learn something from while you’re here.” Her father’s voice boomed in the confines of the Jeep. “That young woman understands respect and gratitude.”
Accustomed to his verbal jabs, Nora didn’t answer.
She climbed out of the back seat and stretched, surprised to see Fallon stopping short of the group.
In spite of her eagerness, she now seemed hesitant, almost wary, until another woman stepped forward, her expression and manner welcoming.
When Fallon smiled and shook her hand, Nora found herself hoping Firecamp would be everything Fallon wanted it to be.
But when Fallon glanced back at the Jeep, Nora hurriedly shifted her attention to collecting her gear.
Why should I care what kind of camp she has?
She wasn’t taking on a broke, wide-eyed underdog as a project.
Gathering her rolling duffel and backpack, Nora stole another look at the group.
Fallon had disappeared. Unexpectedly, Nora felt a familiar edginess creep over her.
She knew what it was to be the odd one out, and not only in her family.
During her junior year in high school, a girl named Darcy Ellerbee had moved to town and changed the dynamics of their high school class, including Nora’s standing with friends she’d had for years.
On Darcy’s first day, Nora had made some teasing remark about her drawl, unaware she was making an enemy for life.
Darcy had joined every club, charmed her way into various groups, and won over anyone who mattered, including all the popular kids and many of the teachers.
She’d begun spreading rumors about Nora every chance she got, and by the time Nora started hearing passing comments in the hall and catching odd looks in class, the damage was done.
She’d never imagined that her classmates, many of whom she’d known since first grade, would be so quick to listen to some new kid.
Soon, her usual seat at lunch was unavailable, and the people she’d sat with before school had gone somewhere else.
The desolation of being cast aside had strengthened her defensive walls, and she’d learned to keep her head high and her heart protected.
Eventually, she’d made her way into Addison’s artsy group, aligning with the quirky clique who didn’t care what anyone else thought.
They were the first people other than Tyler to compliment her photographs, and they’d commiserated with her when she’d lost three of her favorite images while trying to transfer them to the school’s computer.
The lessons about being selective and safeguarding what she most treasured had become second nature.
She gave her head a quick shake, bringing herself out of the past. Whether she got along with the others here or not, this was the last step before she could learn her craft while finishing college, and create the life she wanted.
And nothing that happened in the next three months would interfere with that. Get in, get out, get on with your life.
Her father gave her only a brusque nod as a good-bye—thank God—but she held Tyler tightly for an extra moment. “Hang in there, bro. Try to enjoy your summer.”
He shuddered. “It won’t be the same with you gone.”
Nora fought back tears. Without her at home to speak up for him, they both knew their father would work on making her baby brother into his version of what a man should be.
She’d talked to Tyler about when to just go along and when he should stand his ground, but it was one thing to discuss it in the abstract and something completely different to live it across a whole summer.
Their father would be relentless in his ridicule if he saw Tyler crying now, so for his sake, Nora ripped off the proverbial Band-Aid.
She gave him a hard squeeze and kept her voice light.
“You’ll be fine. And I’ll see you soon.”
She hoisted her backpack and started toward the group just as two more young women got out of a small sedan across the dusty parking area.
When they met at the back of the car, the driver looked around the rocky and rugged terrain and the log buildings that comprised Firecamp headquarters and rolled her eyes.
The other leaned into her and whispered something that made the first girl laugh as she shook her head.
Here was the flip side of the coin. Contrasting with Fallon’s enthusiasm and the goodwill of those who had greeted her, these two were probably more like Nora, here to do their time and move on.
Angling by them, trying to avoid eye contact so she could avoid conversation, she could just make out the words “the stuff” and “cool, or we’ll get busted” as the driver heaved a large suitcase out of the trunk.
Nora must have gotten too close because the passenger fixed reddened eyes on her as she walked by.
She jerked her thumb in the group’s direction.
“You going over there?” Her tone suggested that Nora’s reply held very little interest for her.
Both girls moved closer to the large bag as they assessed her.
Nora considered repeating her father’s commentary about how government programs didn’t need a warrant to do searches if contraband was suspected.
But she wasn’t the Firecamp police, nor was she a narc.
She’d gotten high a few times at parties with Addison.
It was all right, but she didn’t like the idea of not being in control, especially around strangers.
Shrugging, she said, “Yeah. I just got here.”
As if on cue to ruin Nora’s anonymous entrance, someone called her name. She winced but turned. Fallon and the woman who’d greeted her were waving at them.
The girls looked at each other and burst into laughter. “But someone knows you…Nora,” the first one said, swaying slightly.
Nora eyed them, feeling no need to explain herself. “You know, the sooner we get started, the sooner we can get out of here. I don’t know about you, but that’s my plan.”
The two girls blinked. Too harsh? “That and maybe a little relaxation along the way,” she added in a softer tone, nodding at the suitcase.
“Now you’re talking,” they both said at once.
Nora managed a wry smile while hoping they were too high to remember what she’d said. In any case, once camp got underway, they’d all be too busy for any prohibited partying.
“I’m Gwen,” the driver said, and the passenger introduced herself as Tina. “We’re down for anything as long as it doesn’t involve hard work or staying sober.” They laughed as if hearing the funniest joke ever told.
Was it a joke? Nora bit her cheek to keep from telling them they’d certainly come to the wrong place.
Did they not read the online information before they’d signed up?
Had they ever handled a chainsaw before?
Both women were heavily made-up and wore activewear sets.
Nora couldn’t envision either of them spending three weeks out of each of the next three months roughing it in the great outdoors.
Sleeping in tents, cooking, and doing personal business outside, all while doing an incredibly demanding and dangerous job didn’t seem like these girls’ jam.
Fallon might not have been any better prepared, with her baggy jeans and ratty T-shirt, but at least she was eager.
Not my circus, not my monkeys, as her brother Art always said. With a shrug, she hoisted her backpack and began walking toward the group, intending to distance herself from these stoned amateurs.
“Hey, wait up,” one of them called after her.
She winced as they caught up. So much for her plan to go it alone. Momentarily, she regretted not following Fallon. Then again, hanging out with these two might help maintain her goal of detachment and disinterest, unlike associating with Fallon, who seemed already in with the rest of the group.
The woman who’d been waving introduced herself as Jade, their group leader.
She gave Gwen and Tina a long look but said nothing about their apparent condition.
After everyone exchanged names, she announced, “Welcome to the Women’s Plus Firecamp Crew.
We’ll be working hard, but we’ll be working together.
Follow me, and we’ll ditch your gear for now and get to know each other a little better. ”