I grin at that. “I think you’re going to have fun.”
I take in her small smile. She might be a mathematician, all logic and order, but she’s also an adventurous spirit, whether she realizes it or not, and I kind of love that about her.
“Faith said there’s going to be a bonfire, so at least I won’t die of hypothermia.” She gestures with a nod to the back of the truck. “And with all the cold weather gear you packed for me, I’ll be just fine. I must say, though, you east coasters are a strange bunch. Camping in the winter is a little out there, but there will be s’mores, and that makes everything better.”
“Technically, it’s not winter or camping.”
She glares at me, as I take the turn around the corner and make the short trek to Albert’s place. “How is it not camping?” she asks, her chin lifted, indignant.
“You’re hardly going to be roughing it.”
“I’ll be in a tent, Nate. How is that not roughing it?”
I laugh at that. “You’re setting up in the woods twenty feet from the McMurtry’s house, twenty feet from indoor plumbing.”
“Indoor plumbing.” She sighs. “I really like indoor plumbing.”
“I’m partial to it myself.” I gesture with a nod. “We’re here.” I ease into the driveway and spot a group of girls, all waving their hands and talking animatedly and bouncing with exuberance. “Looks like they’re pretty excited.”
When Amber spots Kira, she comes running over and gives Kira a big hug.
“I’m so glad you are joining us, Kira,” she says. “I can’t believe this is your first camping trip.”
Faith comes over. “Albert is hauling the gear up the hill for us. He’s over there,” she says, and I pull Kira’s packs from the back. The sun is low on the horizon, and they need to hurry if they want to use the last rays of light to get set up and get a fire going.
I leave Kira with the young girls and the chaperones in the Pathfinder organization.
“Albert,” I say, and he drops the bag onto the small trailer hauled by a four-wheel ATV.
“Hey, boss.”
“…and we’re going to tell ghost stories,” I hear from behind as the girls and their chaperones make their way up the hill.
“Ghost stories?” Kira says. “I don’t believe in ghosts.”
The girls laugh and make spooky sounds, and Albert shakes his head. “She’s in for a night,” he says. “All the chatter has given me a headache. Grab a beer later?” he asks as he plops himself onto the ATV.
I nod as he starts it, and I follow behind as he takes the gear up the hill. We reach the small clearing, where they’ll be setting up, and I drop Kira’s packs.
Everyone goes about setting up their tents, and Kira stands there, sweet, vulnerable, and so goddamn adorable, it brings out the protector in me. “Need a hand?” I ask.
She lets loose a relieved breath. “I feel like I should know how to do this.”
I shrug. “It’s out of your wheelhouse. I can’t solve quantum problems, and you can’t set up a tent. But the good thing is, you can solve quantum problems, and I can set up a tent. What a team we make.”
She smiles at me. “Thanks, Nate.”
I unpack her small tent and hand her the poles. “It’s pretty simple, really.”
“Did you used to camp when you were a kid?”
“Robbie, my best friend growing up, loved to camp. I tagged along with him and his family a time or two.”
“Did you tell ghost stories around a fire?”
“No, but we would sneak out at night and scare the girls in their tents after they told ghost stories.”
Her mouth drops. “That’s terrible.”
I grin. “Yeah, I know.”
“Wait. Where is Sam tonight?” She narrows her eyes. “You don’t think he’ll try to scare me, do you?”
“Nah, he’s a lot of things, but he’d never do that.” I pause. “I don’t think.”
“Comforting, Nate. Real comforting,” she says.
“If he does, we can go buy a rubber mouse and put it in his bed.”
“Oh, I want to do that anyway,” she says, and I laugh.
“I really don’t want to get on your bad side.” I flatten the tent. “Okay, put the poles through here.” She gets everything lined up, and I use a hammer to pound the spikes into the ground, giving the tent stability.
She glances behind her, the last fingers of light doused by the black night. “What about wild animals?”
“You’ll be fine,” I say and put my hand on her back. “You have a fire, and they’re more afraid of you then you are of them.”
“Want to bet?” she blurts out.
“I’d never bet with a mathematician.” I chuckle. “Go set up inside.” I hand her other bag over, and she climbs inside to spread out her sleeping bag and organize herself.
By the time she comes back out, all the tents are set up and the girls are working on collecting wood for the fire. I glance at the dry pile off to the side and grin at Albert. He obviously dropped a load off earlier.
“You look like you miss this?” Kira says to me.
A strange sense of longing moves through me, and oddly enough, I can see myself around a big fire, with an even bigger family. I gave up thinking I could have that, but what if…
“Yeah, I guess I do.”
“You work too hard. You need more you time,” she says as she pokes me in the chest.
“You know I can say the same to you, right?”
“Maybe you could have a month ago. I’ve never had so much me time in my life.”
I’m reluctant to leave, wanting to be here with her, enjoying the fire, the night sky, the sleepover, but the girls are all settling and getting ready for their stories.
“Okay, go have fun. I’m grabbing a beer with Albert, and I’ll check in on Sam. If you need anything, you have your cell. Just call me.” It takes everything in me not to lean in and kiss her.
She walks away, and I stay back in the shadows for a few minutes. Chatter grows louder as the girls all take their place around the fire and drag Kira down with them. The smile on her face wraps around my heart and tugs. Her life might be in academia out West, but she fits here. She belongs here.
“Let’s grab that beer,” I say to Albert as he powers up his ATV, and I follow him back down the hill. We jump into my truck, and I drive to the Anchor. It’s Thursday night—tomorrow might be a school holiday, but Hooked is still open—so the busy parking lot is a surprise. I note the crowd gathered around Sam’s car.