Dillon hugged him. “Thank you so much, Grandpa! This trailer and pickup, well, they’re absolutely the best birthday present ever.”
“Seems meant to be.”
Dillon checked her watch. “Well, I guess I should be heading out.”
“Your mom asked you to wait for her.” Grandpa peered toward the road. “She promised to be right back.”
“Okay. I guess I’ll just double-check to make sure everything’s good and snug in there.” She made her final inspection, then locked the door. Next she checked the back of her pickup where she’d packed all her outdoor camp gear, reminding herself to stop for ice in town. Grandpa had loaned her his old metal ice chest, which went nicely with her trailer, but she had enough ice for only an hour or two and didn’t want the salads she’d prepared for the camp potlucks to go bad—and her little fridge in the trailer was already full. This was all so exciting. She was about to close her tailgate when she heard Margot’s car coming up the driveway.
“Not so fast,” Margot called as she pulled up beside the pickup. “I have a birthday surprise for you.”
Curious as to what Margot—someone who almost always forgot Dillon’s birthday—might have up her sleeve, Dillon watched as Margot opened the back of her SUV, hefting out a large verdigris pot overflowing with gorgeous red geraniums, trailing ivy, and several other pretty blooms.
“This is heavy,” Margot huffed as she set the planter on Dillon’s tailgate.
“It’s absolutely beautiful!” Dillon was both surprised and impressed.
“Special order from the nursery.”
“It’s perfect.”
“Happy birthday, Dilly-Dilly.”
“Thank you—I love it.” Dillon made room for the heavy planter in the pickup bed.
“And that’s not all.” Margot went back to her car. “I got a matched pair.”
Dillon hopped down and went to help.
“You see, I was looking at one of those trailer books you’d left in the kitchen and I noticed that some of the trailers had pretty flowerpots outside. I thought you could put these on either side of your door.”
“These are so great, Margot.” Dillon carried the second pot to the tailgate, then admired it. “So thoughtful of you. Thanks!”
Margot looked uncertain. “Is it silly to take them camping with you?”
“Oh, I think it’ll be fun.” Dillon pushed it back, then closed the tailgate. “I bet I’ll have the prettiest campsite up there.” She hugged her mother. “It means so much that you remembered my birthday.”
“Well, you know as well as anyone that I’m not usually good with dates. Dad jogged my memory.”
“Well, I really do love my flowerpots.” Dillon fished her keys out of her shorts pocket.
“And guess what?” Margot beamed at her.
“What?”
“Don is taking me out to dinner tomorrow night.”
“And you’re going?”
She nodded. “He said he wants to court me.”
“Court you?”
“Yes, I know it sounds old-fashioned, but I sort of like it.”
“I think it sounds perfect. I hope you guys have a wonderful time.”
“Well, I won’t keep you here. I know you’re eager to hit the road. Be sure and drive safe and have a super weekend, Dilly-Dilly,” Margot said, and then she broke out with the happy birthday song.
Dillon hugged her and, feeling like life could hardly get any better, she got behind the wheel of her pickup and took off. Of course, she felt a bit nervous when she pulled out onto the main road, but she’d been doing a lot of research about towing trailers, and really, there wasn’t that much to it. The main rule was to give yourself more time and don’t forget how much room your rig and trailer take on the road.
Dillon stopped at the grocery store, parking on the perimeter to ensure she wouldn’t get blocked in and need to back up. She bought ice and a few other things, then came out to see a young couple standing beside her trailer.
“Is this yours?” the man asked.
“Yes.” Dillon waited, wondering if this was a problem.
“It’s very cool,” the woman said. “Do you mind if we take some photos?”
“Not at all.” Dillon smiled as she opened her tailgate, putting her ice and other items in the cooler.
“It’s so cute,” the woman said as Dillon closed the tailgate.
Dillon thanked her, and the man inquired if she ever planned on selling it.
“No, I don’t think so.” She patted the side of the trailer. “This is like my baby and I’ve worked pretty hard on her.” She didn’t admit that it was also her living quarters.
“Is it as cute inside as outside?” the woman asked.
“Take a look.” Dillon unlocked the door, waiting as the woman poked her head inside. “It’s cuter when everything is in its place, but I have to put stuff away for traveling.”
“It’s adorable!” They both thanked her, and Dillon locked it up. Feeling happy and excited, she started out again. This time on the highway. Going fast felt a bit challenging at first, but reminding herself that everything was road worthy, she managed to maintain the speed limit.
Her side mirrors revealed a trail of impatient drivers behind her. Naturally, they wanted to go above the speed limit. So when she got a chance to use a pull-out, she let them pass by. Then, curious as to how Rose was traveling behind her, she got out to check everything. But it all looked perfectly sound and secure, so feeling more confident, she took off again and managed to push herself a bit faster without getting overly nervous. With her window open and the pine-scented air wafting in, Dillon felt completely content. She was like a gypsy on the road, about to embrace a new adventure. What a way to live!
CHAPTER
30
By the time she reached Silver Lake Campground, she felt like an old pro at trailer hauling. Why had she been so worried? Of course, there was still that whole backing-up thing . . . but Jordan would help her. She even paused by the entrance to the campground and used her phone to take some pics of her truck and trailer in front of the camp sign and trees. Maybe she would make a Rose scrapbook.
She followed the directions that she’d gleaned from the newsletter Jordan had forwarded her and eventually found the section of spaces reserved for the Silverdale Vintage Camp Club. It felt good to think she was a member.
Jordan had texted her to meet him at camp space #34. As she slowly drove down the narrow, tree-lined road, she spotted two trailers already parked in place. One was obviously Jordan’s, with his pickup right next to it, and a few spaces away a silver Airstream trailer gleamed in the sunshine. Next to it was a cotton-candy-pink station wagon with woody sides. Dillon slowed down, hoping that Jordan would pop out from his space, but not seeing him, she continued along to space #34, which happened to be lakeside and right next to Jordan’s. Judging by the size and layout of the small campground, there was definitely no other option but to back into it.
Trying to suppress her anxiety, she pulled past the space far enough that she hoped she would be able to back into it—if she knew how to back. But worried she might smack straight into a tree on her own devices, she turned off the pickup, pulled on the emergency brake and got out to look around. Hoping that Jordan would show up to help her, she was surprised to see Vivian emerging from the shiny silver trailer. Of course, that was The Silver Slipper Vivian had told her about.