“Grand prize?”
“Yes. Every year we have a contest for the most attractive trailer. All the members vote. We actually have four categories. One prize for exterior only. One for interior only. Another prize for best overall campsite. And the grand prize is for the entire trailer.”
“That sounds like fun.” Fun she would most likely miss out on.
“Yeah, and it’s surprising how competitive it gets. Vivian takes it very seriously. She’s won the grand prize the past two years. I’ve actually won for exterior before, but everyone teased me about my Spartan interior.” He grinned. “Not this year. Thanks, Dillon. I really do love it.” He pointed to the curtains. “These are great!”
She explained how that idea had come to her and some of the other things, and Jordan just kept praising her work. “You can’t believe how good it is to hear that,” she confessed. “I was so worried.”
“Why would you be worried?”
“Well . . . Vivian mentioned that you had specific ideas for it.”
He laughed. “That’s because I didn’t want her to do it for me. She was chomping at the bit to do my trailer. But I didn’t want it to look professional, you know? Plus, I figured her prices would be outrageous. Speaking of that, how much do I owe you?”
She handed him the envelope with the receipts with the total written on top. “I tried to be fairly frugal, but—”
“No worries. I like it so much, I don’t really care.” He looked at the total. “Wow, this is way less than I expected. Are you sure?”
She reminded him that a lot of items came from his own store. “You’ll see that bill later.”
“No problem.” He looked around again. “You really could go into the rehab trailer business, Dillon. You have a natural gift.”
“Thanks.” She sighed.
“Speaking of trailers, why don’t I give Brent a call?”
“Would you? I’m not sure I can stand much more suspense about Rose.”
“I don’t blame you.” He got out his phone and she waited as he talked. “That’s great,” he finally said. “I’ll tell her.” He hung up and smiled. “As it turns out, my good buddy Brent is almost done. He said if you want, you can pick it up tonight. He thinks he’ll finish up in about an hour.”
“Really? Rose will be all done? And road worthy?”
“Sounds like it.” He repeated what Brent had just told him and the cost of the work. “How about you come with me? I’ll take my trailer home, we’ll snag a bite to eat, and then we’ll pick up your trailer and bring it back here. Sound good?”
“Yes—I’d love that! Let me grab my purse and I’m ready.”
As they dropped off Jordan’s trailer, Dillon tried to convince herself that this was not a date. It was only two good friends helping each other and getting something to eat. Still, she felt differently at heart. She felt certain that they were more than just friends . . . and she was eager for their relationship to take the next step.
While they ate burgers, Dillon quizzed Jordan about the upcoming weekend. She asked how many people belonged to the club, what sorts of things she should bring, and lots of other questions. “You know what,” Jordan finally said, “I’ll forward you all the stuff that Vivian put together several months ago. She’s the secretary. Her last newsletter should answer all your questions.”
“Thanks.” Dillon felt dismayed to remember that Vivian was so involved in the club. She might be imagining things, but she felt pretty sure that Vivian didn’t like her. And she suspected it was related to Jordan. “I tracked my awning,” she told him as they were finishing up. “It’s supposed to be delivered tomorrow morning.” She frowned. “Probably not soon enough for me to get it up before heading to the lake.”
“Just bring it along. I’ll put it up for you.”
“Great. Thanks!”
“I’m leaving for the lake around noon—just to make sure our spaces are ready and everything looks good. When do you think you can get away?”
“I plan to leave as soon as I finish my last lesson. Not long after that, I hope.” She cringed inwardly, trying to imagine how it would go towing her trailer all that way on her own. And what about when it was time to put her trailer into place? What if she had to back it up? “Can I make a little confession?” she asked meekly.
“Of course.” He set down his shake. “Something wrong?”
“Not exactly.” Now she explained her backing-up challenges. “It’s like I’m dyslexic or something. Grandpa tried to help me, but I just kept messing up. Do you think I’ll have to back up my trailer when I get to the campground?”
“Probably.” He grinned. “But don’t worry, I’ll be there to help. And I’ll teach you some tricks.”
By the time they reached Brent’s shop, the sun was going down, but it was still light enough to see Rose parked out in front. “Oh, she looks wonderful,” Dillon said. “And her new shoes are lovely.”
“New shoes?” Jordan parked the truck.
“Her tires, silly.” Dillon laughed as she hopped out. She ran over to Rose, resisting the urge to hug her as Jordan introduced her to Brent.
“You’re all set to go.” Brent went over all he’d repaired and replaced, and Dillon handed over her debit card.
“Thank you so much.” She patted her trailer. “Rose thanks you too.”
Brent laughed. “You trailer nuts. You really take this stuff seriously.”
“Of course.” Dillon nodded, watching as Jordan hooked Rose to his pickup.
“Well, I gotta admit that this is a cute one. Have fun with her.”
Dillon assured him she would. As Jordan drove her and Rose home, she felt her hopes rising even higher. The upcoming weekend promised to be her best birthday ever. She’d been trying to keep it under wraps that her birthday was Sunday. And despite the twins announcing it to everyone, she suspected that with camping preparations and all, they’d have forgotten it by now. Since she’d never been big on birthdays herself, she hoped this one would slip by unnoticed. Just being able to camp by the lake in her sweet trailer was more than enough to make her a truly happy camper!
CHAPTER
29
With Grandpa’s help, Dillon was able to hitch Rose up to Jack. “Looks good,” he said as he gave one of the new chrome chains a jerk to check the connection. “I’m glad you got it all checked out mechanically, Dillon.”
“Yes, I was silly to think it didn’t need some work. I’m just glad it got done in time for this camping trip.”
“You feel okay about driving up to the lake by yourself?” he asked.
“Sure.”
“And what about backing it up?” He rubbed his chin.
“Jordan promised to help.”
Grandpa smiled and nodded. “Like the sound of that.” He removed a large envelope from his pocket. “You should have this.”
“What is it?”
“The registration and temporary license stuff for the pickup and trailer. I got it all changed into your name. You better have it with you. Just in case you get stopped. And I went ahead and put you on my insurance too. The card’s in there. You’re covered for six months. After that, it’s up to you.” He grinned. “Happy birthday, sweetie.”