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ChapterTwenty
SPENCER
The rest of the week goes pretty much like this: I’m out the door the minute the library closes, trying to get to camp and see Tess, but by the time I arrive, she’s either in her office with the door shut, or out leading a night hike. I figure she closes the office door for a reason, so I don’t want to interrupt her if she’s working. And I’m not going to chase down a group of kids on a trail in the dark.
Only problem is, afterward, Tess and the girls always head straight to their cabins. And I can’t look like a creeper hanging around there either. So I do what I’ve been hired to. I go to the boys’ cabin, and I go to sleep. Lather. Rinse and repeat.
Every morning, no matter how early I rise, Tess is already long gone from the dining hall. Clive says when he does see her, she grabs a bagel or an apple and takes off. He says sometimes she’s gone even before he gets there. I like those mornings the best.
Less Clive-and-Tess contact works for me.
I go for a run, scarf down my own breakfast, shower. Study the daily schedule to find out where Tess issupposedto be. Emphasis on supposed to, because she’s never in the right place. Make that thewrongplace, since she flat-out told me that first morning to go where she isn’t.
I know. Don’t hate me for disobeying her. I’m not trying to be a jerk. I just like being around her.
So much.
It’s a wrench in my stomach now, right alongside the wrench caused by my brother. Whenever I think about our stupid bet, my whole gut fills with wrenches. Believe me, I’d pull out of the whole thing if I could. Even if bailing cost me the full down payment. Forget the car. I don’t want it anymore. Winning the baby is no longer the point. Not since Frank threatened to tell Tess about our little wager.
I can’t even imagine how he’d spin it. He’d probably tell her I bragged about being able to sweep her off her feet. For the record, anything I’ve ever said about my dating life was to rile up Frank. I never meant to humiliate Tess. But now that I know how she feels about relationships—the wholenever gonna happenphilosophy—I’m pretty much toast, either way.
So Saturday at the car wash is extra brutal. Not only does the sun-baked concrete make me feel like I’m on the surface of the sun, but my brain keeps replaying my last time alone with Tess. Over and over. I remember every detail. From the moment I arrived at the campsite, to the terror of her scream. The way she fit in my arms like a nesting doll. Like I was built to be wrapped around her.
I can still feel her face pressed to my chest, my heart banging against her cheek. I might as well have been a vacuum, hoovering up her cantaloupe scent, drawing all that sweetness into my lungs. It’s like I was hoping a piece of her could always live there. She must know the effect she has on me. How could she not?
I’m pretty sure I moaned. Like, actuallymoaned. So much for keeping my cards close to the vest. What kind of man does that when he’s supposed to be comforting a friend?
Man, I hate that we’re nothing more than that. Friends.
If Tess were mine, I would’ve dipped my head down while tipping her chin up to trace the line of her jaw with my lips. I’d taste the smooth skin just below her ear. Inch by inch.
Soaking up her warm sunshine.
But she told me, in no uncertain terms, she doesn’t want a relationship. Withanyman. In general. And she’s so disinterested in me,specifically, she’s trying to foist me off on Kayla now. Still I can’t help seeing the way Clive’s gaze lingers on Tess. It’s only a matter of time. Those British guys always get the girl. Colin Firth is going to steal her heart.
Just watch.
So yeah, I was probably harder on him than I needed to be. I’m sure the guy didn’t plan on scaring Tess. But shewasscared. I heard it in her voice. I felt it in her tremble. My only hope is that I made her feel safe afterward. That when she laid her head on her pillow that night, she slept soundly. And that every morning since, she wakes up believing someone will always show up to protect her.
Even if that someone is me.
“Hey, lover boy!” Frank calls out. “Quit dreaming about all those dates you haven’t scored yet and finish up that truck.” I don’t know why he’s bothering to shout at me, since he’s on his way over here anyway. I straighten and draw in a breath, squaring my chest.
I won’t let Frank win the battle of the brotherhood.
“This one’s done,” I tell him through gritted teeth. “I’m ready for the next car. Try to keep up.”
“Hey, bro. I was only kidding.” He’s got a rag draped over his shoulder and a big frown on his face. “Who peed in your coffee?”
“You,” I say, flatly, refusing to rise to his bait. But Frank’s not wrong about my mood. To get to the car wash when I was supposed to this morning, I had to leave camp early for the first time. From the get go, I knew I’d have almost no shot at seeing Tess. Until I did see her.
In the dining hall with Clive.
I came in to grab a blueberry muffin, and there they were, huddled together at one of the many cafeteria-sized tables. Turns out they were only meal-prepping for tomorrow’s barbecue. But the vision still rips a hole in my heart on its way to blasting my brain. So I choke the jealousy down and stay focused on my goals, one of which isnotto eat hamburgers made by the Colin Firthiest chef in America.
“Actually, I was hoping I could leave a few minutes early today,” I say, switching my tone from anger to civility. “If that’s all right with you, of course.” I almost forgot I’ve got to keep Frank on my side to get what I want. “I need a little extra time to shower and change before heading over to camp.” I sweep my hands down to indicate my sweat-soaked body. “Cleaning cars is dirty business, as you know.”
Frank squints. “Why areyougetting all dolled up?”
