I moved my head quickly, hoping that no one was watching our interaction, but all I saw was Chris’s expression. He was looking between Gabe and me and nearly vibrating with excitement.
“You’d better join the others, Chris,” Gabe said as he righted himself.
“Yes, Coach,” Chris replied eagerly before dashing across the field.
I chuckled as I watched him go, then turned to Gabe with a sigh and started, “Look, Gabe…”
“Later,” he interrupted, then gave me a wink before jogging off. Gabe turned his head and added, “Just blow the whistle every five minutes and we’ll start a new exercise,” as he joined the kids.
I nodded my consent, but thought, Crap on a stick, he’s going to make me sweat.
Then I spent the next hour watching Gabe work out with his campers. It was not a bad way to spend an hour.
Chapter Twenty-Three ~ Gabe
“How’d your first day go, brother?” Reardon asked as he sat down next to me, his plate piled high with grilled chicken, salad, and a pudding cup.
“Great,” I replied as I picked up my tuna sandwich to take a bite. “The kids are in great shape, with a couple exceptions, but overall, I was impressed. You?”
“Well, I had the easy stuff, swimming and whatnot, so I couldn’t speak to the kids’ fitness levels, but they all seem to have great attitudes.”
I nodded as I chewed, my eyes surveying the room. It was dinnertime, and we tried to keep the menu pretty healthy during the week, saving the hamburgers and hot dogs for the Friday barbecue and bonfire. The kids didn’t seem to mind. They were all tearing through their meals like they were starving, which, after a day outside, working out and playing in the sun, they probably were. I knew they’d all be sleeping hard tonight, which was good, because by day three, we usually had to start night patrols to stop the kids from sneaking out.
I grinned as I watched Zoey and Chris a few tables away. It looked like she was seated with a table of fans, and they were all shooting rapid-fire questions about her books.
I’d expected Zoey to look uncomfortable, she didn’t seem the type to want to be the center of attention, but she was smiling and laughing along with the kids. They seemed to be in a deep discussion, so I was surprised when I caught Chris’s eye and he yelled out, “Coach Gabe, what’s your favorite movie?”
“Rudy,” I answered automatically, then saw half the kids around me nodding in agreement.
“Aunt Z says Star Wars is the best movie ever made!” he shouted back, trying to bring me into a conversation that was happening a good four tables away from me. Still, I could see he was excited by our relationship, so I didn’t see the harm in humoring him.
“Another excellent film,” I replied.
I heard Reardon chuckle next to me and shot him a look, then looked back at Chris when he said, “Aunt Z’s never seen Rudy.”
“We’ll have to remedy that,” I replied with a grin.
Zoey must have told him to stop yelling across the room, because he shot me another grin, then sat down in his seat. Zoey looked over her shoulder and gave me a half shrug.
I winked, then turned my attention back to my plate. I still had some work to do after dinner, which I was hoping to do quickly so I could get some time in with Zoey before lights out.
Once we were done with dinner, I stopped by the General Store to see if they needed anything, then popped into my office to check email and get some paperwork done. When I looked at the clock and saw it was already after eight, I decided to call it a night and headed up to my cabin.
I was almost to my steps, the day running like a play reel in my head, when a sound caused me to look up and I saw Zoey rocking on my porch.
“You been waiting long?”
I could barely see her shake her head in the dark, before she answered, “Not too long.”
“Sorry, I had some work to do,” I explained as I walked up the steps and opened my door, then waited for her to get up and lead us inside.
“It’s no problem, really,” she assured me. “After dinner I hung around while Chris called Chloe, then I went back to my room to get some work done. I was able to get a chapter in before everyone started coming in, then I came here to see you.”
“Well, I’m glad you did,” I replied, shutting the door behind me then turning to her. “Did you come by to watch Rudy?”
Zoey laughed. “No.”
I crossed the room to her and wrapped my arms around her, pulling her close and bringing my face close enough that our noses touched.
“That’s too bad, it’s a good flick,” I said, then dipped lower to kiss her parted lips.
She opened for me immediately, her tongue meeting mine as they danced. I tilted my head and took the kiss deeper, my hand pulling the rubber band out of her hair as I did, so I could free her long locks and tangle my hand in them. When I tugged lightly, she groaned in my mouth and leaned in, trying to get even closer.
When I pulled back, we were both breathing heavily and I admitted, “I missed you today.”
I felt her lips tip up as she breathed, “I missed you, too.”
When she pushed back, leaving her hands on my chest as she looked up at me, her face holding a trace of worry, and asked, “Are you mad at me?” I decided to let her off the hook.
My hand at her hip flexed in emphasis as I said, “No, Zoey, I’m not.” I could see the relief in her eyes as I continued, “I get it, I do. I can’t say I’m not disappointed that you didn’t come clean when I did, but I understand your reasons for wanting to be incognito for a while.”
“I just felt silly,” she replied, and I wondered what she was talking about. “When you came clean …it made so much sense, the stuff that you’ve been through and the fact that you’ve had women use you for your money and status. I’ve never experienced that. I’ve had people want to get close to me to try and get a leg up in the business, or see what I could do for them, but for the most part, I just wanted you to see me as Zoey, not as Zoey Zahn. I just wanted to be a woman who was falling for a man, not Zoey Zahn and Gabriel Lewis.”
At her confession I grinned and asked, “You’re falling for me?”
All trepidation cleared from her expression, replaced by a sweet, joyful smile.
“Yes,” she admitted softly.
I brought my fingers to her chin to keep her eyes on me when she would have ducked her head and replied, “That’s the best news I’ve heard all day. I’m falling for you too, Zoey.”
Swiftly, I lifted her in my arms, causing her to laugh loudly and happily as her arms came around my neck. Then I walked her to the bed and proceeded to show her just how far I’d fallen.
Chapter Twenty-Four ~ Zoey
I’d gotten up early, unaccustomed to the sounds that come from sharing a small space with four other girls, and decided to go for a run. It felt nice to be out in the crisp morning air, and I couldn’t help but think of that first morning Gabe and I went running together.
I’d hoped maybe I’d run in to him, but … no luck.
I had breakfast with Chris, and caught just a glimpse of Gabe and Reardon as they rushed out of the dining hall, then parted ways with my nephew when he went to join his new friends in the weight room and then go hang out at the lake before they had to be at their first scrimmage.
So now I was back in my cabin, typing furiously away at a new idea that just wouldn’t go away. It was completely out of my style and genre, but I couldn’t get the vision of a tall, gorgeous, pillow-lipped hero out of my head. I didn’t know if it would amount to anything, or if I would ever even let anyone else see it, but I had to get it out.
My very Gabe-like hero had just discovered he has the power to time travel, and is about to go on an adventure unlike anything he’d ever imagined. I knew the heroine would be an Old English romance writer, similar to Jane Austen in the early eighteen hundreds, but I’d yet to figure out the best way to get the pair together.
I was daydreaming visions of bonnets and
flushed cheeks, when I heard the giggling of girls. At first I thought it was coming out of my daydream, then I heard the door clap against the jam, and I jumped in my seat.
They hadn’t heard me yet, Georgia and Grace, because their heads were down as they talked, their focus on each other.
“Just talk to him,” Georgia was saying to Grace.
Grace shook her head, her blonde ringlets swinging about her face, and I made a quick note to give my heroine blonde ringlets; they were just too cute.
“I can’t,” Grace replied miserably. “He’s so cute, and funny … plus his aunt is…”
I figured it was time to make myself known once I realized who they were talking about, so I cleared my throat and bit back a laugh when they both jumped.
“Oh, hey … Ms. … um, Zoey,” Grace stammered, her face flushed with embarrassment at being overheard.
“Hey, girls,” I replied, smiling at them both. I decided not to embarrass Grace further by commenting on what I heard, instead asking, “How’s your morning been?”
Grace smiled gratefully while Georgia responded, “It was pretty great! After breakfast we hit the gym, then went to the lake and went kayaking. The lake is beautiful. I wish I could stay here forever.”
“Where are you from, Georgia?”
She flopped on her bed, then planted her head in her hand and replied, “Las Vegas. Living there can be fun, but mostly it’s boring. I’m too young to really spend any time on the strip. You can only see the dolphins and stuff so many times. And my parents have to work a lot, so…” She shrugged and laid back.
“Well, it was nice of them to send you here. Do you play football back home?”
“Rec ball, but I’m one of the oldest on the team. Most kids my age play for the school, but girls aren’t allowed to try out, so I take what I can get.”
“That’s terrible,” I replied, incensed for her. “You should be able to try out just like everyone else, no matter what your gender.”
“My parents have been fighting that battle for the last three years,” Georgia said, now looking up at the bunk above her. “I think after this summer it’ll be time for me to give up. Some of the kids at school make fun of me, and there’s no use causing drama if we have no chance of changing anyone’s mind.”
“Is it the same for you, Grace? Where are you from?”
Grace sat on the side of Georgia’s bed and nodded.
“Yes, I’m twelve now, so this year will be my last year of rec ball. We don’t go above age twelve like they do where Georgia’s from. I live in Boise.”
“Would you want to try out for the middle school if they let you?” I asked.
“Not really,” Grace replied, then looked at Georgia and explained, “Right now we play two-hand touch. The middle school is tackle. I don’t think I could try out against the boys and win. I’m a lot smaller, and I think I’d be more afraid of getting hurt.”
“That’s nothing to be ashamed of, Grace,” I said, when she looked worried that Georgia would be disappointed in her. “You can still love football and support your friends and the team, even if you aren’t on it.”
“Being tackled doesn’t worry me, I just wish I’d be given the chance, you know?” Georgia said from under her arm, which was now covering her eyes.
Grace put her hand out to pat Georgia on the arm, then brought her eyes to mine and asked, “Are you coming to the scrimmage?”
“I wouldn’t miss it.”
A knock at the door had us both swinging our heads toward the sound. I was about to get up and see who it was when the door opened and Christopher peaked his head around.
“Hello,” he called out.
“Chris,” I admonished. “You can’t just barge in. Knock first.”
“I did,” he said, walking into the room and lifting his chin at Georgia and Grace.
“Wait for someone to call out or answer the door. This is a female cabin. Someone could have been changing.”
He held up his hands in surrender, causing my no-nonsense tone to be ruined by my indulgent smile.
“What’s up? Is it time to go to the scrimmage?” I asked, saving my document and powering down my laptop.
“Yeah, but, um, I was actually coming to see if Grace wanted to walk over with me,” Chris said, his voice a little shaky.
I watched as Grace closed the mouth that had dropped open at his words and stood slowly, almost as if in a trance.
“Um, yeah,” Grace replied, then turned to Georgia and asked, “See you there?”
Her friend smiled and nodded, then looked to me and wiggled her eyebrows.
I bit back a smile and I watched my sweet nephew hold the door open for my painfully shy roommate, then shoot me a grin and say, “See ya there, Aunt Z.”
“Be good,” I called out, not really sure what to say, or if Chloe would even be okay with what had just happened.
“Yes, ma’am,” Chris said with a wink, then took Grace’s hand and led her away.
Chapter Twenty-Five ~ Gabe
I snuck up behind Zoey, who was currently talking with Jenny, our female counselor. I put a finger to my lips so Jenny wouldn’t give me away, then wrapped my arms around Zoey’s middle and hugged her close.
She started for a second, then turned to me with a happy smile and said, “Hey.”
Unable to resist, I dropped a kiss on her nose and replied, “Hi.” Then added, “How’s it going, Jenny?”
“Great, Coach,” Jenny replied, beaming as she watched Zoey and me. “I’ll catch up with you later, Zoey.”
“Okay, see ya, Jenny,” Zoey answered, then swiveled her head back to me and asked, “What are you up to? Want to have lunch?”
“Actually, that’s what I’m here for,” I replied, turning her in my arms so she was flush against me. “I’m stealing you away for lunch.”
“Oh, really?” Zoey asked, her eyes twinkling.
“Yup, let’s go.”
She laughed as I pulled her away. The campers and counselors started going into the dining hall for lunch, while I led Zoey back to my cabin. It felt fun and silly, as if we were doing something we shouldn’t be doing, so that by the time we hit the path to my cabin, we were almost jogging.
It was nice to feel this way, almost like we were the teenagers at camp, instead of the adults.
When we reached the stairs, I pulled her to me once more, waiting until her face was tipped up and her eyes were on mine before admitting, “I missed you last night.”
Her face warmed and she replied, “I missed you, too. I just felt like I needed to chaperone Chris and Grace’s late-night lake excursion.”
“You could have come over after.”
“It was late, and I was tired. I figured after the last few days, you’d be pretty wiped too.”
I nodded, bent to kiss her cheek, and said softly in her ear, “Just putting it out there, but it’s never too late for you to stop by. I would have loved to feel you slip into bed with me and hold you throughout the night, but I understand if you were tired and needed some space.”
“Thanks,” Zoey replied, then breathed, “God, are you real?”
I chuckled and assured her, “One-hundred percent.” Then I squeezed her hand gently and asked, “Hungry?”
She nodded, so I took her up and into my cabin, laughing when she saw the pizza and wine picnic I had waiting in the center of the bed and started clapping as she did a little jig.
“Pizza? Yay!”
“I had a craving, and was hoping you’d feel the same.”
“Mmmm, I do, but how did you get it?”
“I have my ways.”
“Well,” she said moving toward the bed. “I don’t care how you did it, just that you did … and invited me.”
“Don’t tell Reardon, he’ll kill me,” I joked as I watched her sit cross-legged on the bed and get comfortable.
Zoey looked at me, eyes wide.
“Should we save him a piece?”
“Hell, no,” I replied
. “Dig in.”
She needed no further invitation, grabbing a slice and taking a bite. The moan that escaped her lips as the spicy sauce and gooey cheese hit her tongue was enough to have me grabbing my wine and taking a healthy sip.
I needed to keep my wits about me. We still had half a day of activities. Plus planning for tomorrow’s game, barbecue, and bonfire, then Saturday’s ropes course, not to mention Sunday’s closing ceremonies and banquet. It was hard to believe that the first week was almost over, but when you held a camp in the summer that brought in new kids each week and was packed with activities, the time tended to fly by.
It just sucked that the end of this week would mean the end of this time with Zoey for the next seven weeks. I didn’t know how I’d handle the long distance, when I’d gotten so used to being able to see her whenever I wanted.
Rather than dwell on the inevitable, I joined her and grabbed my first slice.
“I don’t know if it’s just been a while, or if this pizza was fired by the gods, but this tastes like heaven.”
I savored my bite before answering, “Actually, one of the cooks here makes them. She used to own a pizza shop, but passed it down to her kids when she retired. She liked to work with us in the summer, just to stay busy and be around her friends, and the kids. She’ll make more for the banquet.”
“She’s a genius,” Zoey said on another moan.
“You’re going to have to stop moaning,” I said huskily. “Or you aren’t going to get any more pizza and you’re going to be late to Chris’s next session.”
She cleared her throat and asked, “Um, what are your parents like?”
“Nice tactic,” I replied with a grin as I picked up another piece of pizza. “Have you heard of Ozzie and Harriet?” Zoey nodded. “Well, they’re nothing like that. My mother hates to cook and clean, that’s always been my dad’s forte. Which is funny considering he was kind of a biker, and now they run a bar. My mom’s a firecracker. Always ready to stand up and fight for what she believes in and those she loves. My dad’s more laid back.”
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