Chapter 29
The sun was burning off the morning mist as I stood alone at the edge of the lake by the ski dock doing sun salutations.
It was a glorious way to start the day, getting lost in the beauty of the morning, watching the light shimmering on the water.
I felt blessed to be able to enjoy this view—it sure beat the hell out of a yoga studio.
I’d just swan dived over my legs and swayed, loosening my mind and my back, when my radio sounded. It was Marilyn. Talk about a zen kill.
I fought a head rush from standing up so quickly. “Lori here.”
“What’s your location?”
“The ski dock.”
I heard some murmuring in the background.
“Why are you at the ski dock? You’re supposed to be at the morning meeting,” Marilyn said.
I stared at the radio for a moment. “No one told me. I’ll head right up.”
Even if I ran, it’d take at least twenty minutes. It was a good two miles to the office, the last quarter mile a steep hill.
“Ted offered to pick you up in a golf cart.” Marilyn sounded annoyed.
“Okay, I’ll start heading back to meet up with him.”
I racked my brain trying to remember if someone had mentioned the meeting to me. Bethany asked me to take over Flagpole last evening. She’d driven home late last night with her husband and Nate, but she hadn’t said anything about a meeting. Maybe it was implied, and I’d somehow missed it.
I’d walked out on the Bergers yesterday, now this morning I’d have to sit in the same room with them to get instructions about new responsibilities.
I should’ve been proud to be trusted with some of Bethany’s duties on top of my own, but that placed me in the Bergers’ direct line of fire.
I took a deep, cleansing breath and braced myself.
Teddy honked the horn when I was between sail and ropes. He had a playful look on his face.
“Hop in, Kramer.”
I slipped in next to him and smiled when he placed his hand on my thigh. But before starting the cart, he pointed at the willow trees across the lake.
“Over there, through that curtain of branches, is where we got to know each other better.” He was irresistible when he blushed.
Squinting, I could barely make out the porch.
“Let’s get out for a second. I’ve been wanting to do this and now’s the perfect opportunity.” Teddy took my hand and led me onto the dock where he wrapped me in his arms, kissing me in broad daylight. “That’s how we should start every day.”
I could tell he was pleased with himself. “I’m not so sure. Do it again, and I’ll let you know.”
“Cheeky.”
My morning had just gotten a lot better.
“We should go before they wonder what took us so long,” Teddy said.
“I’ll tell them that Ted and I were snogging down by the lake.”
Mike was at his usual morning post outside his Airstream, sipping a cup of coffee. I waved as we drove by, laughing at the confusion we saw on his face.
“Is he still making passes at you?” Teddy asked.
“Yes, but I look at it as a game, my daily sparring with Mike. I’ve come to enjoy our banter. I like to think he’s exercising his mind, keeping up with my retorts.”
“Having spent the past weeks trying to keep up with you myself, I’m not sure that lunkhead is up to the task.”
“You’d be surprised. He’s landed a wisecrack or two that were pretty impressive.”
Teddy looked at me. “I see you’re wearing the whistle he gave you.”
“You mean this?” I held it up. “Our engagement whistle?” We laughed.
As we continued up the hill, I asked, “Tell me what I need to know before we enter the conference room.”
“We review the counselors’ paperwork from the night before. Talk about what worked and what didn’t. Then we go over today’s schedule.”
“That means we’ll be talking about the carnival,” I said.
“I’d think it would be the main topic.”
“I have to brace myself for the obnoxious remarks Jack will hurl at me,” I said.
“I wouldn’t worry—you’ve proven you can handle whatever foolishness comes out of that man’s mouth.”
Girls Camp was peaceful with everyone still asleep. I placed my hand on his knee. “Thanks for having faith in me.”
“Lori, I’ll always have your back.” He covered my hand with his and I believed him.
As he pulled into the parking area in front of the office, I said, “This is the exact spot where we met.”
“No, Nicole introduced us in the office. This is where I teased you for the first time.”
“We’ve come a long way since that day.”
We gazed into each other’s eyes. “We have, haven’t we.”
We sat there for a moment. Teddy took a deep breath and said, “I jumped at the chance to pick you up, but now I see I brought you to a hornet’s nest.”
“Don’t worry. After yesterday, they don’t scare me anymore. Plus, what’s the worst they can do? It’s not like they can fire me. After all, I’m sure you’ve heard, I’m the camp’s national treasure.”
No one acknowledged us when we walked into the meeting, which, thankfully, seemed like it was mostly over. I sat next to Mindy as she pushed some handouts in front of me.
“Lori, just so you know, Bethany will be back Wednesday at the earliest, maybe as late as Friday. You’ll be covering for her while she’s gone,” Jack informed me.
“That means you need to attend the morning meetings.” Marilyn’s voice dripped with attitude.
It dawned on me that she was probably the person who was supposed to tell me about the meeting and hadn’t.
I could’ve called her out, but what good would it do to make Marilyn look bad? Though she hadn’t done anything to gain my sympathy, I felt some for her, having to deal with Jack 24/7. I nodded and said, “Understood.”
“Where’s your knapsack and clipboard?” Marilyn snapped at me, probably the way Jack snapped at her.
“I left it at the arts & crafts studio where I pick it up on my way back from my morning walk.” I assumed Abby heard Marilyn radio me. Otherwise, she’d be worried I met up with another bear.
“Well, you’d better make sure you’re prepared for tomorrow’s meeting.”
Any feelings of sympathy had just gone up in campfire smoke.
“Will do.”
As the meeting broke up, I looked directly at Jack and asked, “What’s Nate’s diagnosis?”
“He should have no lasting effects from the accident, but we’ll know more later today.” Jack looked at his clipboard as he spoke, as if he might melt if he looked me in the eye.
I picked up the paperwork, left the table, and stuck my hand into my mail slot to see if there were any messages. I also checked Bethany’s box. As I walked by Nicole’s desk, she gave me a supportive nod, which I returned. Bob and Teddy were waiting outside.
“Don’t pay attention to the Bergers. They’re in particularly bad moods, having been reamed by their partners after yesterday’s disaster,” Bob said.
“You’re a bloody hero, and they have the nerve to accuse you of being unprepared,” Teddy said.
“I’ll be fine. I’ll figure it out.”
Abby and Maggie intercepted me on the way to breakfast. Roger was a step behind them carrying my knapsack.
“I brought you some dirty-water coffee.” Maggie handed me my cherry blossom covered thermos.
“You’re a life saver! This is exactly what I need.” I took a gulp and, as usual, a drop fell smack in the middle of my clean white T-shirt.
“How’d you forget to go to the morning meeting?” Maggie asked.
“Marilyn forgot to tell me, and she made it out to be my fault.”
“Typical,” Abby said.
Roger handed me the bag. “When did you become so important, you get to hang out with the big kahunas?”
“My theory is that in the Bergers’ warped way of thinking, since I was the one who saved Nate, I should be the one to cover for Bethany,” I said.
“‘Warped’ being the operative word,” Maggie said.
“She was aggressively obnoxious about it. I figure Jack gets kicked by the partners, Jack kicks Marilyn, Marilyn kicks me,” I said.
“So, who are you kicking?” Roger asked.
“Not my style,” I said.