Despite her fatigue, Summer wasn’t sleepy. She’d hoped for a little time alone with Rick this evening, mainly to satisfy her curiosity, but Mother Nature had effectively squelched that.
She’d also heard Kenny and Rick discussing Kenny’s new living arrangements. He was going to share Rick’s cabin until insurance paid for him to get a new camper.
She thought back through the day, to Rick’s acts of selfless behavior. That she’d been wrong about him was obvious. She had a lot of making up to do and wasn’t even sure where to start.
A knock on her door startled her.
Please don’t be anybody needing anything else done tonight. She swung it open.
Rick met her startled gaze.
Without a word, he stepped into her cabin and swept her into his arms. His mouth closed down on hers, which was already open, and she found she hadn’t the slightest desire to close it. Instead, she brushed her tongue softly against his in invitation, feeling his muffled groan as he tightened his arms around her. Her arm slid across his shoulder and her fingers played in the hair at the nape of his neck.
His lips pressed firmly as his tongue swept into her mouth, releasing a need deep within her, making her breathing erratic.
His tongue retreated and his lips closed slowly, guiding hers closed as his hands glided from her back to cup the sides of her face. He placed two or three soft kisses on her still-puckered lips and then stepped back, leaving her in a blissfully dazed stupor.
“Good night,” he whispered before he disappeared into the darkness.
Summer stood watching for a few seconds, willing him to come back for a repeat performance.
When it was clear he was really gone, she closed the door and leaned heavily against it.
“Oh, my!” Her chest heaved in a contented sigh.
CHAPTER NINE
“SO...ANY INEXPENSIVE BUT fabulous ideas on ways to give this place more eye-appeal?”
His mom’s laugh on the other end of the line made Rick smile. “The place is really dated. It needs color,” she answered. “All that white and gray is...blah.”
Rick looked around and noticed for the first time the lack of color. Camp Sunny Daze was drab. It looked like the military barracks he was used to rather than a summer camp for kids. “What would you suggest?” he asked.
“I’d start with painting the buildings different colors. The colors wouldn’t have to be bright. Organic greens, rust tones, corals.” Rick scribbled the ideas into his folder as she talked. “Flower beds would add color and vibrancy, and they wouldn’t cost much because perennials go on sale for next to nothing in July. Window boxes would look great. Oh, and striped awnings would really spiff things up, but they’d be expensive.”
“I’m sure expense will be key in what gets done.”
“I can’t tell a lot about the property from the pictures you emailed, but it looks like it has plenty of potential and would be a great investment. It just needs to be brought back to life.”
Rick visualized how the place might look if his mom’s ideas were implemented. “Paint and flowers sound easy enough. I have that week off between sessions, so I could stay here in the cabin and work on that project myself.” Would Herschel and Agnes be interested in putting in a week of work? Or Summer? If she stayed and helped, maybe he wouldn’t need her parents. The thought of Summer and him alone at the camp for a week stirred up various and sundry ideas that were indeed colorful. Mostly red hot.
“I was hoping you’d come home that week.” When did his parents become so predictable? He knew his Mom would want him to come home. She never missed a chance to try to get the family together. “We haven’t seen you in a month.”
“Or maybe you could all come here and help.” Rick cringed. Had he really just suggested a week with his dad? The elder Warren would pull him off work detail and insist he go see that shrink in Paducah, sure as hell.
“Sorry, sweetheart, but we have a couples’ tournament at the club that week.”
Whew! Dodged that bullet.
“Well, I’ll come home sometime in August. I promise.”
“I’ll think some more on the project you have there. You know, I love that you’re taking the Realtor role more seriously. You haven’t shown much enthusiasm toward it until now.”
“The Delaneys are nice people. They helped me when I needed it. I want to return the favor.”
“And what about the daughter? Summer, isn’t it? Made any progress there toward getting along?”
“Um, yeah, you could say that.” Rick felt his face heat.
“Oh, my goodness! I hear the smile in your voice from here.”
Rick gave an embarrassed laugh. “We’ve made peace. We’ll leave it at that.”
“Oh, no, we won’t leave it at that. But we’ll have to leave it at that for right now because I’m showing the Eldrige place in twenty minutes.” Rick heard the door to the garage close and a car door open. “You call me back when we both have time to talk, you hear?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Rick answered. “Love you, Mom.”
“Love you, too, sweetheart.”
As he hung up, a sound from behind alerted him that someone was approaching. He closed the folder quickly, lest it be the fairy princess herself. But it turned out to be Kenny.
“You need to get some rest.” He gave the security guard a once-over, taking in the heavy eyelids and dark circles. “You’ve had a long night.”
Did his own eyes look as tired as Kenny’s? Last night, the nightmare had been especially vicious. What started out as Kenny over his shoulder soon became his brother Luke before morphing into Dunk. Like being with the kids, carrying Kenny through the storm had triggered strong memories—and fears. He blinked to clear his thoughts and finished off the coffee in his cup.
It was almost noon on Saturday. The insurance adjuster had just left, and even the woman’s promise to get Kenny a check “very soon” couldn’t shake the security guard’s glum mood.
“Go on,” Rick urged. “A good, long sleep will help you more than anything.”
Kenny yawned, his whole body shuddering in response. “Maybe you’re right.”
He sauntered away toward Rick’s cabin as the sheriff’s car pulled in.
Sheriff Buck Blaine ambled out of the car, adjusting his holster belt, which anchored his pants firmly beneath the roll of his large belly. “Well, if it isn’t Rick Warren as I live and breathe.”
Rick’s mood lightened when he shook the hand of his old friend. “How you doing, Buck? It’s good to see you.”
“Good to see you, too.” Buck clapped him on the back as they exchanged their handshake. “Heard you was stickin’ around these parts for a while, and I was sure proud to hear it. Paducah would do well to hang on to the likes of you.”
Ever since they’d worked together on the Brennans’ cave rescue operation a few years ago, Buck had treated Rick like he hung the moon. Rick found it embarrassing but tolerated it because he knew Buck’s praise was genuine and not given lightly.
“I’m glad to still be here,” Rick answered. “I actually hope something opens up soon that’ll allow me to stay for good.”
Paducah, Kentucky, had been a good match for him. It reminded him of his home in Arkansas—he noticed Summer watching him and Buck from a short distance away—and the saying about Kentucky’s fast horses and pretty women seemed to be more truth than tale. “Summer—” he motioned her over “—this is Buck Blaine, the Marshall County sheriff.”
“Hi, Buck.” Summer extended her hand and flashed a disarming smile.
“Glad to meet you, little lady.” Buck looked around, his eyebrows drawing together in feigned concern. “Rumor has it y’all have a camp for kids going here. You got ’em stashed away in a closet?”
Summer didn’t miss a beat. Her face grew somber, but a telltale, mischievous glint appeared in her eye. “Yeah.” She shrugged. “But the sleeping bags add an authentic camping experience. We open the door and throw in some trail
mix every six hours.”
Buck popped his chewing gum and gave Rick a lopsided grin. “Got your hands full with this one, huh?”
Summer’s laugh tinkled pleasantly in Rick’s ear. It was a nice sound—soft and feminine—and the memory of his hands full of her last night stampeded southward from his brain. “You know it. I had to send the kids fishing. I couldn’t keep an eye on them and her, too.” He said it only half in jest. Despite the mess and the work, the past couple of hours with Summer had been fun. Flirting. Teasing. The occasional “come-on” look that placed a repeat of last night’s kiss high on today’s agenda. If his woman radar wasn’t totally off-kilter, the little lady wanted a repeat performance, too. He’d be more than happy to oblige when the right time came.
“You ended up on the best end of that stick.” Buck gave Summer a wink before his manner became all business. He eyed what was left of Kenny’s camper with the tree still slicing through it. “Looks like y’all had a little trouble here last night.”
Rick’s gaze followed the sheriff’s. “That we did, but this is the worst of it. The rest was just downed limbs, most of which we’ve taken care of.”
“Nobody was hurt,” Summer added. “That’s the important thing.”
“You got that right.” Buck took a deep breath, and Rick noticed that he, like Kenny, had dark circles under his eyes. No doubt, the sheriff had had a long night, too. “We had twenty-two from Marshall County taken to the hospital. Some broken bones. A couple of concussions. This county’s huge...covers a wide area. But nobody died, thank the Lord.”
Summer’s face went serious again, but this time she wasn’t faking. “Our security guard would’ve been goners if Rick hadn’t woke him up.”
Buck gave a knowing nod and his hand clapped heavily on Rick’s back again. “Rick’s a true hero. Savin’ lives is what he does best.”
Rick flinched. Everybody but my best friend.
Buck meant it as a compliment, but his words stung just the same.
Summer tilted her head, regarding Rick closely, and it would be only a second before she started interrogating him about things he would rather not discuss right then...or ever. “Summer’s the lifesaver.” He shifted the focus away from himself. “She’s the one who realized Kenny wasn’t in the storm shelter with us.”
“Well, I’d say having the two of y’all around makes Kenny one lucky son of a bitch,” Buck concluded. “’Course, it could just be that Mr. Warren here has a nose for trouble. Seems like he manages to sniff it out no matter where he is.”
Summer snorted. “Well, it’ll have to smell worse than a skunk for Rick to catch a whiff of it,” she drawled.
Buck’s brows furrowed, and his glance bounced between them, demanding details until Rick finally threw up his hands in surrender.
Oh, his friend the sheriff was going to love this.
* * *
SUMMER HAD DRAGGED THIS STORY out as long as she could. Time to let Tara in on the best details... “And then he kissed me,” she sang in a whisper.
Tara let out a surprised shriek in response, then covered her mouth quickly. Easing the door of her bedroom open, she glanced around and quietly closed it all the way. “All still asleep. He kissed you? How was it?”
Summer’s stomach did a quick-step and she chuckled that a sixteen-hour-old memory could still bring on such a response. “Hmm.” She searched for the most appropriate term. “I’d rate it as the best first kiss since Adam and Eve.”
“Oh, wow! I want one like that.” Tara’s voice sounded dreamy. “And I also want a week like this has been for you.”
“This week wasn’t that great until last night,” Summer reminded her.
“Yeah, it was. You just haven’t been listening to yourself talk about it. There’s been fun and excitement...”
“And way too much drama.”
“But look what it’s all led to.” Tara’s eyes glistened with excitement. “Charlie went from wanting to fire you to praising how you handled the kids in a crisis situation. You went from gnashing your teeth about Rick Warren to licking your lips—”
Summer chuckled when she realized she’d licked her lips just as Tara said that.
“—and we still have three more weeks of this session, and then another whole month—”
“During which anything can happen,” Summer inserted.
Tara smiled and sighed. “Precisely.”
“You’re letting your imagination run away with you, Tara. It was just a kiss.”
Her friend gave a knowing laugh. “That’s how it always starts. With ‘just a kiss.’”
Summer noted the time. “And that’s how this conversation’s gotta end. My parents are due here any minute. I’d better finish straightening up my cabin.”
Tara gave her a quick hug. “This is so exciting! Keep me informed?”
“Always, girlfriend.”
Summer hurried through the dorm, careful not to awaken the napping girls. The conversation with Tara had her giddy. She was so glad the young woman had taken the job as assistant counselor. Of all the friends she’d made at this camp over the years, Tara was turning out to be the one she most wanted to keep in her life.
On the way to her cabin, a quick phone call to Kate assured her that Fairy Princess Parties wasn’t going broke without her—in fact, five more parties were booked into August and the first of September. That was a good thing, but time allowed for so many more. The small ad running in the local paper was garnering some attention, though most of the business seemed to be coming purely by word of mouth. Someday, she would be able to pay for an expensive, eye-catching color ad, but until then, she’d have to be contented to do what she could afford and keep customers happy.
Happy. The word seemed to sum up most of what she was feeling today despite the unusual morning.
She closed her eyes and again imagined the kiss with Rick, wondering if it was really that good, or if her imagination had embellished it. She replayed it in her mind several times and concluded she’d have to experience another to know with any certainty. Last night’s surprise element had added to the excitement. She’d be ready for the next one when it came...tonight, she hoped.
She continued tidying her cabin and thinking about the kiss until car doors slamming brought her back to the present. Through the window, she saw that her mom and dad had arrived. There was a time when they’d made these visits to the camp weekly, but with the decline in her dad’s health, the visits had become sporadic.
The happy glow she’d been enjoying dissipated as her stomach twisted into a knot. Even though she’d received praise from Charlie for her handling of the kids yesterday, she still didn’t know how he would respond to her parents when they asked how the week had gone. Her dad didn’t need any anxiety, and she especially didn’t want to be the cause.
Rather than rushing out to greet them, she stayed in her cabin for the rest of quiet time. Charlie would have fifteen minutes alone with them to report what he wanted...good or bad.
She lay across her bed and tried to concentrate on the book she was reading, but her mind kept wandering to Charlie and her parents. What was he telling them? Was her dad getting upset?
When quiet time was over, she hurried to the girls’ dorm, expecting to be met by Charlie and her parents, but the trio was nowhere to be seen.
The day’s nature hike had been shifted to the late-afternoon activity slot, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Not only did it give the campers a different perspective on the animals’ activities, but it also shoved her mom and dad’s presence into second place. The knowledge they were at the camp still niggled at her, but she didn’t have time to brood...much.
On the return hike, the closer she got to camp the more her pace slowed as though her feet were practicing avoidance behavior and overriding her brain’s commands. Before long, she found herself at the back of the group.
Rick dropped back to fall into step beside her. “You okay? You seem a little preoccupied.�
��
She nodded. “I’m okay. Just worried about what Charlie’s telling Mom and Dad about me.”
“I’ll bet he’s filling their ears with how you saved the day yesterday by keeping the kids occupied during the storm.” He trailed a finger down her arm.
It was barely even a touch, but her brain understood the message. He wanted to touch her, and suddenly the discussion going on at the camp didn’t seem nearly so threatening.
“I watched how you kept them calm,” Rick went on. “You would have been a good soldier if you’d been a little bigger,” he added, regarding her size. “You’re good under pressure.”
It was a strange compliment, but she could tell he was sincere. “Thanks,” she answered. She smiled, and the way he smiled back unleashed a flurry of butterflies in her stomach. Her temperature rose and she wasn’t sure if it was from his smile, his words, his touch...or the sight of her parents standing with Charlie at the point where the path broke out of the trees.
Neil stopped the kids and had them line up single file. They introduced themselves and shook hands with her parents as they walked by. Summer giggled softly at the stunned look of surprise on her parents’ faces.
When she and Rick got to them, he stepped behind her. He’s got my back, she thought. And whether it was the marine or the Southern gentleman, she wasn’t sure, but the idea relaxed her shoulders either way.
“Nubbin!” Her dad’s hug was followed by one from her mom. The greeting and the warmth of the hugs told her she had nothing to worry about.
“Charlie’s been telling us what a great job you two have been doing.” Her dad’s smile was as broad as she’d ever seen it. Knowing that his smile meant he was proud of her made her giddy, but only momentarily. Three more weeks of camp remained. She couldn’t get overconfident and let her guard down yet.
Her mom’s eyes glistened with what Summer assumed was probably relief. “He says y’all have made a good team.”
Dad motioned toward the kids, still in single file as they headed to dinner. “I’m impressed. Really impressed.”
“Thank you, sir.” Rick shook her dad’s hand and nodded. “It’s been a good week.” His glance shifted to Summer, and he gave her a smile that brought the butterflies to flight in her stomach again. “Actually, it’s been a great week.”
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