The Summer Place

by Pamela Hearon

  Rick made individual introductions between Chance and the adults in the group while the kids played a game of freeze tag.

  Was it Summer’s imagination that a flash of recognition lit Chance’s eyes when Rick introduced her? “I’m glad to meet you, Summer.” Chance’s low voice was warm and mellow like his handshake, and Summer liked him immediately. “Your parents own the camp, right?”

  “That’s right.” What else had Rick told him about her? “Thank you so much for having us.”

  “It’s our pleasure.” His glance shifted above her head. “There’s Kyndal.”

  Kyndal Brennan’s long black hair was pulled back into a ponytail that swung from side to side as she made her way quickly to Rick’s side, welcoming him with a bear hug around his waist. He shifted Hank to one side and squeezed Kyndal about the shoulders with his free arm, planting a kiss on the top of her head.

  The ease with which Rick showed affection to these people was certainly an eye-opener. Summer had wondered if his gentle side only came out when he was pursuing a female, but obviously he wasn’t nearly the hard-ass she had him pegged as. He smiled and her breath, which she hadn’t realized she’d been holding, left her in a rush.

  Once again, Rick made the introductions and when he got to Summer, Kyndal’s head tilted momentarily in question. “You’re the fairy princess?”

  “That’s me.” So Rick had told them some things about her. Was it about the Summer he couldn’t stand or the one he’d grown to like?

  “I think our girls—” Kyndal pointed to the baby monitor attached to her belt “—are going to love you in a few years.” She flashed Summer a genuine smile that made Summer feel like they’d known each other a long time...and gave her the answer to how she’d been portrayed to them by Rick.

  “I hope so,” Summer answered.

  Just then, a heavy arm slid across her shoulders and Rick spoke low in her ear. “Let’s get the kids rounded up, okay? I’d like to get started.”

  Summer nodded and his arm dropped away. But when she looked back at Kyndal, the young woman’s face broke into a wide, knowing grin, and she gave Summer a wink.

  Summer winked back, feeling like they’d shared some secret. She liked this woman. She believed they could become good friends if given the opportunity.

  After a few calls and whistles, they had the kids seated in a semicircle on the grass in the Brennans’ backyard. A concrete structure jutted out of the ground with a door built on a slant into it.

  The campers had spent so much time Friday night in the storm shelter at the camp, showing them another one seemed silly. “Another storm cellar?” she whispered to Rick, wrinkling her nose.

  “Trust me,” he whispered back.

  “Does anybody know what this is?” Chance asked, pointing to the structure. His dark eyes scanned the crowd and a grin illuminated his face when everyone’s hand went up.

  Howie waved his hand frantically and was rewarded when Chance pointed to him. “It’s a storm shelter. We were in one of those during the storm the other night.” The boy sat back with a look of satisfaction on his face before blurting, “My dad’s going to build us one of those.”

  “We need to talk about Howie,” she whispered, and Rick’s eyebrow shot up in question. She shook her head. “Not now.”

  “You’re right. It is a storm shelter,” Chance was saying, and the boy’s face beamed with smug satisfaction. “But this isn’t an average storm shelter. This door also leads into an underground cave.”

  A collective gasp of surprise moved through the group.

  “Have any of you ever been in a cave?” Chance asked, and three hands went up, including Howie’s, which was once again waving.

  Before Chance could call on him, Howie was already talking. “My dad says he’s gonna take me to some cave that’s big and famous and has snowballs in it!”

  “He’s talking about Mammoth Cave. It’s only a couple of hours from here,” Chance explained. “It doesn’t really have snowballs, but there is a huge room called the Snowball Dining Room that’s covered in white quartz crystals, so it looks like snowballs are stuck to the walls and ceiling.”

  Howie’s hand shot up again, but Neil leaned down and said something to him and the boy dropped his hand, disappointment etched on his face.

  The look weighed on Summer’s heart.

  “Well, caves can be dangerous.” Chance’s face grew serious. “My wife and I got lost in this cave a few years ago. We entered the cave about a quarter mile from here, not planning on going very deeply into it. But a piece of the floor broke, and Kyndal and I fell into a subterranean passage. Do you know what that means?”

  “A path that’s underground,” M&M said.

  “That’s right.” Chance nodded. “And Kyndal broke her ankle in the fall.”

  Hank squirmed in his mother’s arms and she put the child down. He ran to Rick, who picked him up. “We have to be quiet while Daddy’s talking, bud,” Rick whispered, and the child nodded.

  Summer smiled to herself, noticing how her once-frosty attitude toward him had melted into a warm puddle that seemed to linger in her belly now.

  “Beneath where we’re standing is a little room that was built a long, long time ago by the Native Americans who lived in this area.”

  “My dad says we’re part Indian,” Howie said.

  Chance smiled patiently. “A lot of people around here are, and that makes the little room very special. Mr. Rick led the rescue team that found us and saved our lives.”

  Another gasp of surprise moved through the group and all eyes turned to look at Rick. He shifted uncomfortably. A spontaneous round of applause caused his face to blush redder than Summer thought possible. This was the same rescue Sheriff Blaine mentioned yesterday—and Rick had been embarrassed then, too.

  When the applause quieted down, Chance finished his story. “Kyndal and I want to keep this ancient room safe, so we don’t allow many people to see it. But we’re going to take you all down a few at a time to look at it.” An excited titter passed through the campers.

  “You won’t be allowed to go into the room,” Kyndal added. “But you can stick your head in the opening, and look around. We’ve put some lanterns in there so you can see.”

  “Okay, y’all, let’s line up,” Rick said, and the kids scrambled into two lines. Summer watched with pride as the girls lined up alphabetically, just as quickly as the boys did.

  Chance opened the door, which revealed a set of concrete steps descending into the subterranean cavern. He motioned to Neil and Tara, and the three of them went down first, while Summer and Rick stayed near the back of the lines.

  Kyndal came over to them. “Hank, did you show Rick the surprise you found this afternoon?”

  “No, Mommy. I go get it!” The three-year-old zoomed off on his errand.

  Summer squeezed Rick’s hand. “That was some story.”

  He gave a modest shrug and pointed to his friend. “Kyndal’s a photographer. She captured the entire event with her camera, and then she and Chance wrote a book about it. It’s fascinating.”

  “And available at all the local bookstores.” Kyndal laughed. “I’ve become an expert at shameless self-promotion.”

  Summer vaguely remembered hearing about the story around town a few years back. “I’ll have to get a copy. I’d love to read it.”

  “I’ll give you a copy,” Rick offered. “I’ve got five signed by the authors.”

  Hank came running up, proudly gripping a box turtle, and Rick sat down on the lawn to hear the little boy’s story of its capture. A squawk from the monitor on Kyndal’s hip sent her scurrying into the house.

  Summer moved around the group of campers, listening to the exuberant chatter from the kids as they emerged from the dark hole in the ground. The ancient room was a hit. The anticipation of seeing it herself made her heart beat a bit faster.

  When everyone had a turn, she and Rick were the only ones left.

  Rick had Hank in his
arms again as they descended into the dimly lit cavern where Chance waited. With each step, the scent of damp earth became more pronounced, and the temperature dipped a few degrees. Summer moved slowly, allowing her eyes to adjust from the twilight outside to the near-dark inside.

  As they got to the bottom of the steps, the child started to wail. “No, Daddy. I don’t want to. I want to pway wif de kids. Pwease, Daddy?”

  Chance took his son into his arms and raised an eyebrow toward Rick. “I’ll take Hank back up. Think you two can find your way around by yourselves?”

  Rick laughed and nodded. “I know my way around this place pretty well.”

  Chance clapped him on the shoulder with a broad grin. “Take your time, and go on in the room. We’ve got a half hour still before it’s time for the bats.”

  As Chance ascended the steps, Rick reached out to Summer and pulled her to him. His mouth pressed hers, kissing her thoroughly and leaving her breathless.

  While she brought her respiration under control, he pointed to a small opening in the side wall of the cave that glowed from the lantern light within. “There are paintings on the walls and animal pelts cover the floors. We suspect the Native Americans used it for fertility rites.”

  Summer was shocked by his words. “A room for making love?”

  He nodded and the thought sent her heart into overdrive.

  She looked at him and saw her own reaction reflected in his eyes.

  “Um...” Rick cleared his throat. “Maybe I’ll just mosey on back upstairs. You take as long as you want.”

  She nodded. “Good idea.” Her pulse didn’t return to normal until he was completely out of sight.

  * * *

  RICK SAW JUPITER emerging as the first object in the night sky. “Won’t be long now,” he told the group.

  “They’re not as predictable as Old Faithful,” Chance said. “But they have to eat, and they do that as soon as it gets dark.” He took the few spare minutes to tell the kids about the vandalism the cave had received.

  It was a good lesson for the kids to hear. It might keep them from defacing property in the disgraceful way Chance and Kyndal’s cave had suffered a few years back when it was a prime party place for local teens bent on drinking and mischief.

  Rick watched Summer’s face, intent on Chance’s words. Her eyes flashed with anger as Chance relayed the story of the names scrawled in spray paint on the walls just inside the entrance.

  Her face was so expressive. He swallowed hard, remembering the heat that registered in her eyes outside the ancient room. He would have given his right arm to have had a couple of hours to remove her clothing one item at a time and slowly explore each area as it was exposed.

  An odd rumbling sound—thunder forced through a giant sieve until it shattered—filled the air, jerking his thoughts out of their delightful reverie.

  “Here they come,” Chance called, and at that moment the entrance to the cave blackened with a mass that moved as one entity across the open space, then broke into what seemed like millions of pieces as they reached the tree line and scattered.

  Though he’d seen it many times, the sight of the bats never ceased to fill Rick with a sense of awe, which made him appreciate Summer’s reaction even more. She squeezed his hand, and her breast brushed the back of his arm as she bounced up and down with excitement.

  The turbulent breeze from the beating of the bats’ wings seemed to suck the air from everyone’s lungs, but it returned just as quickly. Shouts and squeals reverberated from the group, with Summer’s louder than everyone else’s.

  She clutched her chest like her heart might escape and swiped at tears streaming freely from her eyes.

  Shannon put an arm around her waist. “Why are you crying, Ms. Summer?”

  Summer laughed, pulling the hem of her T-shirt up to wipe her nose and eyes. “It’s so...so magnificent. It’s even better than a rock concert!”

  A woman who found bats magnificent? More enjoyable than a rock concert? Summer’s words drove through the spot her kisses had burned in his thickened hide. It nicked at his heart, this vulnerability. He was falling for this woman. Falling hard and fast.

  Hell-pee-roo! His breath froze in his lungs. A marine and a fairy princess. What am I getting myself into?

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  “I’VE LECTURED HIM SEVERAL times about safety. He’s promised not to go anywhere dangerous,” Rick said. He and Neil were once again on their nightly search for Howie. The kid was a master at hide-and-seek. So good, in fact, Rick made it a point to search for him, trying to learn his strategy. It was kind of fun—a real challenge. Neil found it beyond annoying and showed no remorse about voicing that opinion.

  “Well, if you ask me, the kid’s as loopy as my mom’s chenille robe.” An irritated grunt pushed through Neil’s bared teeth. “Just call him in free again.”

  Rick shook his head. “Not yet. This is the thing he does really well that sets him apart from the others. His time to shine. It won’t hurt to give him a few more minutes.”

  “Very touchy-feely of you.” Neil shot him a quizzical glance. “You going soft on us, Mr. Rick?”

  “Nope.” The near-constant erection caused from being around Summer was a good indicator he was being honest with his answer, but he couldn’t share that bit of information. “The kid’s begging for male attention, and this strikes me as an innocuous means of getting it. You have to agree that, except for all the wild stories, he’s pretty well-behaved.”

  Neil scratched his head. “He’s got one hell of an imagination, all right.”

  Rick couldn’t hold back the chuckle. “Which makes him think of hiding places that wouldn’t enter the other kids’ minds.”

  “Um, speaking of imagination.” Neil lifted the lid on a trash can and peered inside. “Is mine working overtime, or have you and Summer managed to put your differences behind you?”

  The question wasn’t much of a surprise. The staff surely noticed the warming climate surrounding him and Summer, and he’d suspected there might already be some talk. “We’re making a concerted effort to get along.” He shrugged nonchalantly.

  “Get along or get it on?”

  “We don’t want to be a distraction.” Rick scanned the roof of the dining hall. Would Howie consider a rooftop dangerous? Limbs from overhanging trees would give access, and Howie certainly had proven his climbing agility. Hell, the kid was part monkey. Thankfully, nothing on the roof looked suspicious. Rick dropped his gaze to the ground. “But as long as you brought up the subject.” He’d been curious and now seemed a good time to ask. “Did I notice some interest in Tara on your part?”

  Neil gave a lopsided grin. “Strictly one-sided. She evidently has eyes for only one guy, and it’s not me. They’ve been together for, like, eight years.”

  “Too bad.”

  “Yeah, her loss.” Neil punctuated his remark by pushing his glasses farther back on his nose.

  Rick spotted fresh footprints in the mud left behind from Friday’s deluge. They led behind the building. Putting a finger to his lips, he jerked his head in that direction.

  Drawing on the infinite hours they’d both pretended to be ninjas during childhood, the two men stealthily followed the footprints to the door of the storm cellar. On the pantomimed count of three, Rick jerked the door open as Neil did his best imitation of a lion’s roar.

  Howie’s startled shriek evaporated into a hoot of relieved laughter. “You found me! But I hid great, didn’t I? Am I the last one again?”

  Neil tousled the kid’s hair. “You’re the last one. You win again.”

  “Ooh-rah!” Howie jumped and punched the air.

  The marine slang coming from the boy’s mouth dropped Rick’s jaw. Summer had mentioned it when they talked, but he hadn’t realized how much he had become a role model. The responsibility overwhelmed him momentarily. How many bad habits was he teaching these kids without even being aware? He’d have to be more careful.

  The three of them
started back around the building to join the others. “How’d you manage to become so good at this?” Rick asked.

  The child’s face lost its glee and took on the somber look of someone five times his age. “I hide at home...sometimes.”

  Aw, hell. Rick clenched, then unclenched, his fists. What he’d give for one round with Howard Gerard, Sr. It might change the son of a bitch’s tune if he had to stand up to a real man. “Well, we might have to let you start giving lessons.” The boy’s ready smile returned. “Go on, now.” He started to swat Howie’s butt locker-room style, but thought better of it. He tousled his hair instead. “Get your bragging over with so everyone can get to bed.”

  Cheers greeted them as they rounded the corner, and Howie broke into his victory run, high-fiving all his fellow campers.

  “Okay, you’re right,” Neil admitted as they watched the boy revel in his moment of fame. “And, for the record, his dad needs his ass kicked up around his shoulders.”

  Rick nodded. “I just wish I could be the one to do the kicking.” He clapped his hands to get the kids’ attention. “Okay, everybody. Let’s call it a night.”

  “Y’all get ready for bed,” Summer called after the girls. “I’ll be there in a few minutes. We’ve got some fairy princess business to take care of.”

  The girls took off at a run toward the bunkhouse with Tara. Summer started down the path to her cabin but veered off to meet Rick and Neil as they followed the boys.

  “Staff meeting tonight?” she asked.

  Rick nodded. “Whenever you get finished. No hurry.”

  She waved and her accompanying smile made Rick hope the next hour would fly by fast. They’d get the kids to bed and have the staff meeting. Then she and Tara would spend about thirty minutes together. After Tara went back to the girls, maybe they’d have some time alone tonight...and every night.

  “Man, I hope Howie doesn’t run out of hiding places.” Neil rubbed the back of his neck as they watched Summer walk away.

  “Why the change of heart?”