37. Blaze
Blaze
Friday night. Bonfire night. It’s clear and cold, with barely any wind. Perfect conditions to light a fire the size of a small house on the shore of Sanctuary Lake.
Halloween is a few days away, and there’s a waxing moon so bright it makes it hard to see the stars around it.
I don’t need to see the stars to know they’re there.
The townies start trickling in, bringing thick woolen blankets and beach chairs, and the occasional piece of furniture destined for the burn pile.
Gail and Billie from the bed-and-breakfast show up, along with Jim from Laketon Woodworks, and his wife Cora.
The staff of the retreat is here, of course—Nolan and May, plus Davy, Nita, and Roger.
Marika’s the perfect hostess, flitting around and greeting everyone, making sure all feel welcome.
The guests from the retreat filter out of their cabins and join us on the beach.
When there’s a sizable crowd gathered, Marika nods at me, and I hand a lighted torch to her so she can touch it to the enormous pile of wood and sticks we’ve assembled for our annual pyre.
It takes a minute to catch, then the smaller stuff goes up in a pleasing whoosh and crackle, and before long we have an honest-to-god rager on our hands. It’s bright and beautiful and dangerous and awe-inspiring. We made this; we control it, but we have to tend it, lest it get out of control.
I take the first shift, watching to make sure no flying embers go where we don’t want them. We’ve got barrels of lake water stashed all around the perimeter, and I’ve done this enough times I’m reasonably confident that everything is good.
Shawn ambles up to me, and god, it’s still astounding to me that he’s here, with me, instead of half a continent away cheering on the Laurels in game one of the World Series.
He doesn’t seem like he regrets being here instead of there when he slides his hand into mine and gazes at me, expression soft, his green eyes reflecting the bonfire’s flames.
Someone nearby has the game on the radio—we don’t have cell service, but we still get radio waves out here. I’ll check the score later.
“You warm enough?” I ask, edging closer to him.
“Oh, yeah.” He moves his lips to the shell of my ear and murmurs, “But if you want to get me warmer, I’d be happy to slip away with you.”
The proximity of his mouth to my skin is definitely turning me on, but we’re surrounded by so many people I have to keep myself in check. “Baby, you’re killing me. You know I have to be a grown-up tonight.”
He laughs lightly and steps back. “You’re right. I get carried away sometimes.”
To be the person Shawn Camden gets carried away for.
“I was thinking about partaking of some kind of beverage,” he says. “Want anything?”
There’s a table set up with a hot chocolate dispenser, coffee, and various libations to doctor them, should that be one’s cup of tea.
“I’ll take some hot chocolate,” I say. “Virgin, though. I’m still on fire duty.”
“You got it—oh, hey, there are the guys.” He waves, and I look across the crowd to see Luis, Leo, Cord, and Raphael have arrived. Shawn goes over and they take turns giving him half-hugs and slapping each other on the back. It’s amazing how easily he became a linchpin of their crew.
If the weather holds, the roof of the house is going on next week.
We haven’t talked about whether or not we’re going to move there together when it’s finished next year.
I think we’ll see how cohabitation goes first. Nothing like a long, cold Maine winter living with your new boyfriend for the first time to see if a relationship has what it takes to last.
“Hey, B,” Brooke says, Rocky right behind her. “This is great.” She hugs me, and I shake hands with Rocky. “Best bonfire we’ve ever had.”
“It’s something else,” Rocky says. “You made this?”
“I had help building it,” I say modestly. “Your first time to bonfire night?”
“Yeah, I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Hey, Brooke, Shawn was going to get me some hot chocolate, but I think he forgot. Can you grab me some?”
“Sure.” She glances at her boyfriend. “You want?”
“Definitely,” he says. “I’ll come help you.”
“Actually, Rocky, I have something to talk to you about.”
Brooke looks surprised, then shakes her head, amused. She leaves for the drinks table, and Rocky looks at me expectantly.
“So you guys are moving in together,” I say, crossing my arms over my chest.
“Yes,” Rocky says warily. “But there’s no rush,” he adds.
“I just want you to know I think you’re really good for Brooke. And I hope you guys are really happy.”
His face clears. “Oh, thanks, Blaze.”
“And if you guys ever need anything from me, all you need to do is ask.”
“That’s really nice of you, man,” he says, relaxing further.
“But if she ever has any reason to call me because you’ve done something shitty, I know all the nooks and crannies of these woods. No one would ever find you. Understand?”
His face seems to pale, but it’s hard to tell in the light from the fire. “Uh, yeah, totally. Got it.”
“Now, go enjoy the evening,” I say, satisfied my big brother work is done.
Rocky takes off, meeting Brooke over at the drinks table with a forced smile.
“You got off on that,” Nolan says, appearing at my side with a beer in his hand.
“Maybe a little,” I admit. “How’s your night going?”
“Not as good as yours, given that your boy is here instead of San Fran, but the bonfire lives up to its reputation for glory,” he says.
“Oh, I forgot you started working here right after last year’s. That means you’ve been here for just about a year.”
“That’s right,” he says.
“Happy anniversary. I’d raise my glass to you, but I don’t have one.”
“Well, allow me to rectify that,” he says, and I nod my thanks as he departs for the drinks table. I do a circuit of the fire, saying hello to some acquaintances from town, while Misty finds a friendly Labrador to play tag with on the sand.
When I get back to my spot, I don’t see Nolan.
Shawn’s nowhere to be seen either, and my sister and Rocky are missing as well.
I’m able to catch Marika’s eye, and she excuses herself from her conversation and comes over to me.
“Can you take a turn manning the fire?” I’ll just have to get my hot chocolate myself.
“Sure thing,” she says before letting out a screech. “Oh my god, oh my god! I didn’t think you were going to make it!” She runs toward a dark-haired man in a chunky L.L. Bean sweater and slacks. It’s Josh, Marika’s nephew, the PR guy who sends us a lot of his clients. Including Shawn.
It’s been a minute since Josh has visited, so I don’t begrudge Marika’s excited greeting or her swiftly abandoned promise to watch the fire. I let them have their reunion, and then I hear a cheer, and a few boos, from the crowd.
“What? What is it?” I ask no one, since no one’s paying me any attention.
Shawn’s head rises above the crowd, his baseball cap clearly visible. He swivels around, spots me, and puts up his hand in victory—that’s when I know the Laurels have won the game. I whoop, and he jogs over.
“Five-three, Laurels,” he says, “and get this, Jett hit a homer!”
I pump my fist and stick two fingers in my mouth to make a celebratory whistle.
“I have to say I’m relieved,” he says, wiping imaginary sweat from his brow. “What if they lost, and I wasn’t there?”
“That would have sucked,” I say. “But you’re not their good luck charm, after all.”
“I guess not,” he says.
“Maybe you’re mine,” I say, drawing him close for a kiss. He kisses me back in his thorough way that makes me forget everything else except the pressure of his lips on mine.
“That was cheesy,” he says when he’s kissed all the brains out of my head.
“You’re going to have to get used to it,” I say. “I plan to lay on the cheese.”
“I can’t wait.”
“There’s only one thing that could make this night better,” I say. “And that’s if I had some hot chocolate.”
He smacks his forehead. “Oh, I got distracted. I’ll get you some.”
“How about you stay and watch the fire, and I’ll get some?” I counter, not trusting him to get held up by other enthusiastic Laurels fans.
“Fair. But what am I watching for?”
“You know, don’t let any kids run too close, that kind of thing.”
He makes a worried face. “Okay.”
“You can do this.” I kiss him again, short and soft, then let him do the job I’ve assigned.
Free of my burden for a moment, I walk to the drinks table, get a clean mug from the stack, and push the handle of the hot chocolate dispenser. A dribble comes out, then the flow stops. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“Nolan went to get more.”
I turn to interrogate the voice and discover it belongs to Josh Morse.
“Josh, hey, good to see you.”
“Hey, Blaze.”
“Didn’t know you were coming.”
“I didn’t want to disappoint Aunt Marika if it ended up that I couldn’t make it. But I was able to get away for the weekend.”
“I’m glad you did.” I observe his face. He’s about my age, but he has dark circles under his eyes and fine lines etched into his forehead. “You should visit more.” He used to spend every summer with his aunt on the lake when we were teenagers.
He smiles ruefully. “Yeah, I send my clients up here to reset, but I never send myself.”
“Ironic.”
“Exactly. Hey, I heard you and Shawn Camden have gotten to know each other.”
I smile at the choice of words. “We have. Do you know Shawn?”
“I’m closer with his agent, Callie Roman, but I’ve met him a couple of times.”
“Yeah, well, he’s here. I put him on bonfire duty so I could grab something to drink. Come say hi.”
I glance toward the lodge, but I don’t see Nolan returning with reinforcements, so, a little sadly, I bring Josh toward the fire and Shawn.
“Where’s your hot chocolate?” Shawn asks.
“No hot chocolate, but I found Josh Morse.”
Shawn bounces up and down on his soles. “Josh, oh my god, I have to thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are a prince among men.”
Josh laughs uncomfortably. “Why?”
“Because I thought you and Callie were punishing me when you sent me here, and it turned out to be exactly what I needed.”