Cam
“Madison’s earning her keep today,” Coach called out to him, arms loaded with supplies for the race. “I’ve got a mountain of things to do before the visiting crews get here. Give her a hand?”
“You don’t have to,” Madison said. “I know you earn your keep at your house. You don’t have to earn it at mine as well.”
She tugged a box out of the back of the truck and dumped it in his arms. It contained a Crock-Pot, soup cans, and individual snack packs of quick-energy foods. “Are you sure you trust me with the food?”
“Sure. Unless you can open those cans with your teeth?” Madison teased. She grabbed a couple of bags with blankets and other stuff and they headed toward the main staging site down by the water. “How’re you feeling about today?”
He was feeling lots of things about today, but since he’d decided to show up with his rower’s blinkers on, he could answer honestly. “I like our chances.”
“So…” Madison gave him a quick glance. “What happened with you and Teagan? I didn’t see you at the end of the dance. Did it go well?”
“No.” His fault. Not hers. “It’s not happening.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
He could tell she already knew the answer but, because she was a friend, asked anyway.
“Nope. I do not. It’s not going to work. It’s fine.”
“Why not?”
They’d reached the staging point so he ignored the question. Headed back to the truck with her for more gear. When he grabbed his tote from the truck, she did a double take at the For Sale sign in the back of the cab. “You’re selling Walt?”
He shook his head. Didn’t want to talk about that either.
Madison put her hand on his arm. “Cam. Is something going on?”
He closed his eyes and tried to picture a world where he could get away with lying to someone who was going to find out anyway.
Couldn’t. Made himself tell the truth. “The shop’s in trouble.
Dad had to lay off the other mechanics. I’ve been picking up the slack when I’m not in school or at practice, so…
in answer to your earlier question… I don’t have time for a love life right now. ”
He knew he wasn’t being his best self. Whoever that guy was.
The one who’d felt like he’d been the real Fall Formal King when he’d seen Teagan?
The one who’d laughed and joked with the rest of the crew after dusting off his dance moves?
Or the one who knew his world wasn’t anything like the rest of the team’s?
The only choice he had was to keep his head down, grades up, and work hard—at the shop, at school, and on the water. Being that guy was his only option.
“That sounds really hard.” Madison wasn’t pitying him. She wasn’t like that. Just saw someone hurting and wanted to help. “Can I give you a hug?”
“No. Sorry. It’ll make it worse. Here, let me get that.”
He put his bag down to help load up her arms with more gear.
When the guys razzed him about stuff, there was something to fight back against. If he let someone in, let them comfort him like Teagan had wanted to last night?
He was terrified he might lose it. Fall apart and not have a clue how to put himself back together again.
Once he’d gotten her loaded up, Madison tried one more time. “Are you sure there isn’t anything I can do?”
“I just need to get through this.” Today at the regatta there would be college scouts. If he rowed well enough, one of them might see something in him.
“Understoo— Ohhh, no!”
They’d both heard the crunch when she’d stepped backward, foot accidentally connecting with his duffel bag. He didn’t have to open it to know that was the sound of his reflective sunglasses crunching. But he did it anyway.
Madison looked horrified.
He felt sick. One of the frames had broken in half. Well, that was three hundred dollars he’d have to conjure out of nowhere. If his heart hadn’t cracked into little tiny pieces, too, he’d laugh. It was almost funny. Almost.
“It’s okay, Madison. Let’s get this stuff down to the base.
” He just wanted to get out on the water and forget about everything but rowing.
Feel the burn of his muscles as he pulled his oar against the water.
Hit that sweet spot when he and the rest of the team were moving as one, propelling the boat against a force a thousand times stronger than them, but doing it anyway.