Page 23 of Hammer and Hops

“Uh-uh. It’s about finding some zen, quieting everything else in the world, and just being in the moment.”

I watched my bobber float on the water, but nothing was happening. “I think I understand.” I breathed deeply, taking in the smell of sweet peas coming from the redbuds blooming around us. The sun slowly crept up into the sky. And Cameron was next to me, giving off a peaceful vibe. “I could get used to this.” I leaned back on one arm, holding the pole with the other. “Next time, can we bring chairs?”

“What’s the fun in that?”

“Saves my back so I can have more fun later.”

“Good point. Actually, I have chairs, but this felt like the old days, when I was a kid.”

“You really are a gremlin. I’m not a kid. Get the damn chairs, Cameron.”

“Gremlin? Really?”

I growled at him.

“Okay, okay.” He stood and moved to hand me his pole, but just then the bobber dunked down. “Shit. Shit. Shit.” He jerked his rod up and started reeling, like he’d told me to do earlier, instead of handing it to me, but the line was going out rather quickly, despite him wrestling with it.

Everything happened fast after that. He took a step toward the lake, still reeling and jerking the rod. A little way out in the water, the fish jumped. “Did you see that?” I asked.

“Yeah, yeah. Looked like a damned walleye. I should cut the line.” But he didn’t. He kept reeling, moving closer and closer to the water.

Then in the water.

“Ever! Grab that net and help me here.” He reeled and jerked, and I saw the olive-green fish shining silvery in the sun as it jumped around much closer than the last time.

I did grab the net, but I wasn’t excited about getting in the water with him. Cameron was up to his knees, but at least he had started moving back toward the shore. “What do I do?”

“Get ready. When I get him close, get that net under him.”

I crouched much like a baseball player in the field, keeping my knees bent and ready to launch myself at the fish. “I’m ready. Bring ‘er in, Cam!”

He grunted and reeled again, turning sideways to pull the fish closer to shore. Then it was splashing out of the water near the bank, and I rushed to get the net under it. “You got it. Move it to the grass.”

We worked together to get the fish to where we had been sitting. It flopped around, but it was caught in the net and on the hook, so it wasn’t going anywhere. Cameron squatted next to it. “Damn walleye. See what happens when you hit my line? Fool me once, mother fucker.”

“You’re chastising a caught fish.”

“Damn straight.”

I found my phone and took a series of pictures. How could I not? Cameron holding the shiny fish, wet to his knees. “I think you need a beer.”

“Let me get his guy unhooked so we can let him go.”

“Let him go?” He’d just worked very hard to bring it in.

“Yeah, don’t you think he deserves to live another day and give some other fisherman trouble?” Cameron had a soft heart that I was beginning to adore. “Besides, like I said, it’s not really about the fish.”

“It’s the experience. Right?”

“Right.”

“One more picture, Gremlin, then let old walleye go.”

“Gremlin…” he muttered my nickname for him under his breath. What a great day this was. “I need a beer after this.”

Chapter sixteen

He’s in love - Cameron