Chapter Two
Somehow Rob had gotten the short end of the stick again.
Actually, it wasn’t somehow. As the youngest of four boys, he’d learned early that by the time things trickled down to him, they were crap.
Whether it was hand-me-down clothes or chores left on the list, he got what his three brothers didn’t want.
Today was no different. Joey and Danny were in the store.
Joey was greeting people because, according to him, he was the most personable.
That was actually Rob, but whatever. And because Joey was also the most organized, he was stocking the shelves in between campers arriving.
That part was actually true. Rob would have just stuck the stuff on the shelves wherever and let people hunt for what they needed.
Danny was handling the paperwork because the guy who spent his life sitting at a desk was a logical choice for being behind a desk.
In theory, he could sneak some writing in, but Rob didn’t think that was happening.
He could tell how the writing was going by his brother’s temperament, and Danny wasn’t a lot of fun right now.
Brian was all over the campground, Stella at his side, helping new campers find their sites.
Returning seasonal campers—those who’d been there under the old owners—had been given first crack at their old sites, and they’d been thrilled to have almost half of them return.
Brian also had to mediate husbands and wives trying to maneuver trucks and trailers into small spaces together, but at least he was interacting with people.
Rob had been stuck fighting today’s battle in the ongoing war with the pool.
Turning a neglected algae swamp into a sparkling pool fit for swimming came with a learning curve, but they’d decided the budget didn’t allow for professional intervention.
By the time it was warm enough at night to ensure freezing wouldn’t be an issue, they’d been busy with electrical and sewer upgrades and left it too late.
Then the pump broke on the second day they ran it.
The pool had seriously tested their theory they could learn how to do anything by watching YouTube videos, but Rob was confident they’d have it ready for swimming by Memorial Day weekend.
And because he’d said so out loud—and because nobody else wanted to do it—making sure that happened had become his job.
Babying the pump. Chemical tests. Skimming dead bugs and leaves and chasing frogs.
Not the most glamorous of jobs. And on the day they officially opened for business, it didn’t feel very important.
Birch Brook Campground was supposed to be a turning point for him—he was capable and responsible and dammit, he wanted his family to see it—but here he was wielding a skimmer pole.
He glanced up when he heard a vehicle slowing to pull in.
Another truck pulling a camper, though this one was coming from the north, which was unusual.
And this camper was smaller than the others that had arrived today.
Many of the seasonals had big campers with multiple bump-outs and screen rooms. They spent a lot of time in their campers and they wanted to be comfortable.
But this was a smaller Airstream, and he guessed the camper was either single or a couple with no kids or kids who were grown. It also looked very familiar.
The driver stopped the truck in the parking area for checking in, and Rob set the skimming net down as the woman from the restaurant got out. She didn’t look in his direction as she walked around the back of her camper to the office door, which was good since she would have caught him staring.
His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he pulled it out to see a text from Joey. Dude, you’re never going to believe who just walked in.
Yeah, he would, because he’d watched her do it. He was about to slide the phone back into his pocket without responding when another text came through.
She’s one of our seasonals. Her name is Hannah.
Rob didn’t even have to try to get an image of her in his mind. Her face was unforgettable. Hannah. It was a pretty name, but it was also none of his business.
Well, it actually was since she would essentially be their tenant for the summer. But it wasn’t his business in the way his brother was implying.
When she told you she was passing through, she left out the fact it’s taking her three months to do it.
He was going to keep ignoring Joey’s text messages since any response at all would only encourage him.
Only one adult on her site, so no partner in the picture.
Rob rolled his eyes at his brother’s text message and then set his phone down on the closed bucket of pool chemicals by the fence’s gate.
Anything he said would just keep Joey going, and he had work to do.
But he couldn’t resist glancing over his shoulder at the store’s big window, hoping to catch just a glimpse of her.
And that’s when he tripped over the pole of the pool skimmer and hit the water with a splash.
Hannah was waiting for the man behind the desk—Danny, he’d said his name was—to finish filling out her receipt for the balance of her site fee. Rather than stare at him, she turned to look out the window at the pool.
She barely had time to register that the man inside the pool fence was the man from the restaurant when he tripped and fell into the water.
Hannah gasped, but the two men in the office immediately started laughing.
“You’ve got your phone,” Danny told the other man—Joe, she thought he’d said. “Get a picture of that.”
“Is he okay?” she asked them, because there was a lot of flailing happening in the water.
“He can swim,” Danny said. “He’s just mad.”
“If his phone was in his pocket, he’s going to be really mad,” Joe said over his shoulder before he went out the door.
“My brothers and I spent a lot of time in that pool as kids,” Danny told her. “Our family—the whole family, grandparents and all—used to come here when we were growing up. When we found out the campground was for sale, we couldn’t let it go, I guess.”
Brothers. “So you and your brothers bought it together?”
“Yeah. There’s the four of us. Me and Joey, of course. He’s the oldest, and then me. Brian is next, and he’ll help you find your site and get your camper parked. And that’s Rob in the pool. Considering the state of that water, you hopefully won’t meet him until after he takes a shower.”
Rob. The name went well with that slightly impish grin.
“Although, I guess you’ve kind of already met,” he continued, and Hannah sighed. She knew Rob would recognize her since he’d been watching her and they’d had a conversation. But, considering they’d already had a laugh at his expense, she’d hoped the others wouldn’t place her.
She nodded, but didn’t add anything to the conversation. Technically, she was just passing through, so it wasn’t as if she’d lied. She was just passing through with a three-month layover here—in the campground they owned. Her sister was really going to get a kick out of this situation.
It took longer than it should have to finish the paperwork because Danny kept getting distracted by the goings-on at the pool. It was hard to sign things when you were laughing. Hannah turned and looked out the window again, despite her best efforts not to, just in time to see Rob walk by.
Joey was following him, laughing, and taking pictures with his phone, and she wasn’t surprised when Rob laughed, too. He seemed like the kind of guy who’d see the humor in any situation.
The back door opened and another guy with dark hair and blue eyes walked in. Now that she knew there were four brothers, she could see the family resemblance and she assumed this was Brian.
He confirmed it by introducing himself, and then the dog who’d come in with him. “This is Stella. She’s pretty well trained, but she’s also shameless when it comes to wanting new friends to hang out with.”
Hannah rubbed Stella’s head. “Dogs make the very best friends.”
“If you want to head to your site, I’ll help you get your camper in place. Just take a right at the fork and go around the playground. Then it’ll be a left and the road goes into the tree line, but by the time you get there, I’ll be there to show you which site.”
Rob was nowhere in sight as she drove the truck slowly through the campground.
He was probably in the shower, and yeah, that was really not a visual she needed in her head right now.
Luckily, his brother appeared on a four-wheeler with Stella running alongside, and she concentrated on following him to her campsite.
This part of the campground was wooded, offering shade and a slight buffer against noise. She didn’t have the luxury of appreciating it in that moment, though, because it took all of her concentration to work with Brian on getting the camper into place.
Luckily, there was a minimum amount of backing up. The site was designed for an RV to pull in rather than backing in. And it was tight for her truck, but her camper was small enough so she was able to get it in place without Brian having to go get the tractor to maneuver it.
He didn’t stick around after they’d gotten the camper placed the way she wanted it and unhooked her truck. After helping her back out between the camper and the firepit, making sure she hit neither, he pulled a business card out of his pocket and handed it to her.
“You know where to find us if you need anything,” he said.
“The number for the landline in the office is on there. But our cell phone numbers are on the back, so you can call or text if there’s nobody in the store.
There are stars next to mine and Rob’s because we’ll be the two around most of the time. Joey and Danny will come and go.”
“Thanks,” she said, glancing at the card. “And thanks for the help setting up.”
“No problem. Oh, and if Stella makes a nuisance of herself, the words go home will send her looking for me.”
“Stella’s always welcome here.” She loved dogs and would have one for company if her apartment building was more pet-friendly. Maybe someday, when she had a yard of her own, she’d rescue a few pups.
For now, it was time to make this spot her temporary home.
Hannah and her sister, Jenn, had been raised by parents who thought camping was the ultimate family adventure. Luckily, their mother had a hard limit when it came to roughing it—learned after their first and last time tent camping—and there had always been campers in their life.
The bugs seemed pretty excited about finally having a human on the site, though, so she took a minute to apply some bug spray before getting to work leveling the camper.
After doing the water and sewer hookup, she plugged in the electrical cord and tested to make sure everything was in working order.
It definitely wasn’t time for the air conditioner yet, which was a blessing. Hannah hated the constant drone of the fan—like an extreme white noise machine. She liked being able to hear the birds singing and the wind in the leaves.
Once she confirmed everything was on and the fridge was starting to cool, she went back outside to pull the last few things out from under the truck’s tonneau cover.
There was an outdoor carpet, which she unrolled and spread out under the awning.
Then her single camping chair. The site had a picnic table, but she probably wouldn’t use it often.
They were uncomfortable to sit on, and she’d probably eat inside, out of the bugs.
The last thing was the small, collapsible grill. It was meant for tailgating, but it was the perfect size for her parents’ camping trips once their nest was empty. And was a perfect size for Hannah.
The next thing on her list was buying groceries. Distracted by Rob falling in the pool, she’d forgotten to ask them about stores in the area. She wanted directions to the grocery store the locals used, not the local markets that were overpriced and tourist-friendly.
She was about to walk down to the office when a flash of light caught her eye. It was the sun glinting off a camera lens and when she realized it was pointed in her direction, every muscle in Hannah’s body tensed.
Somebody was taking her picture, and she was pretty sure it was Rob.
That was a weird invasion of her privacy, making her skin feel hot and prickly. If there was one thing an interest in true crime had taught her, it was that a bad man could have a great smile.
She spun, presenting the camera with her back. Then she walked across her site—not allowing herself to break into a jog—and retreated into her camper.