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Piper nodded. “I’d love to.”
Cameron smiled as he followed his brother’s gaze. “I just spotted a couple of old friends. It’s been a long time since I saw Jack and Pete.”
“Should we go over?” asked Laura.
“I’d love to,” said Cameron. He turned to Piper wanting to be sure that she was okay with it. “What do you think?”
She nodded. “I’m always up for making new friends.”
As they made their way across the deck, Cameron wondered whether she’d be interested in having him as a friend. He pursed his lips. Was he interested in being her friend? Or was he just kidding himself? Was he as bad as Mary Ellen thought he was, and simply in denial about it?
~ ~ ~
The next morning Piper leaned on the railing of the deck over the water and watched as the sun peeked over the mountains. She loved to watch the sunrise whenever she got the chance. It helped her clear her mind—and it seemed her mind needed some clearing this morning. She’d had a great time last night. It was so good to be with her oldest friend again. She and Laura may not have seen each other for a few years, but it didn’t matter. Their friendship was like that. Time and distance didn’t affect it. Laura had given her a lot to think about. Could she really just pack up and leave the little town where she’d lived her whole life? She shrugged and took a sip of her coffee. She could. There was nothing to stop her. She’d have left the place years ago if it weren’t for her mom. Now her mom was gone, and there was no reason to stay. She was living in her mom’s house—the house she’d bought for her—but it didn’t feel like home. She could put the place up for sale and go anywhere she wanted. She smiled as she looked out at the lake. She did love it here. Where else would she find so much beauty, have a good friend close by, and have the possibility of a great career move? She’d flown for the same cargo airline for the last ten years, ever since she’d gotten her commercial pilot’s license. At first, she’d thought it was a stepping stone—that she’d stay until she had enough pilot-in-command time to start applying to the regional airlines. It hadn’t worked out that way, though. Well, she’d started applying as soon as she had the hours, but she’d never been hired on by any of the airlines. At first, it had dented her confidence, but over time she’d grown to understand that it was nothing to do with her. It was the system. The airlines wanted male pilots. She shrugged. She’d pretty much accepted her fate. But now Smoke had suggested that he might be able to offer her a job. He ran a flight school; he owned a couple of private jets that he used for corporate work, and he was setting up a charter operation. That could be her perfect gig. There’d be variety and opportunity. She blew out a sigh. Maybe it was all too good to be true.
“That was a big sigh.” She spun around to see Cameron standing there, a cup of coffee in his hand and an apologetic smile on his face. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
She smiled back. “That’s okay. You didn’t. I was just lost in my thoughts.”
“Good thoughts?”
She cocked her head to one side. She couldn’t remember the last time anyone had asked her what she was thinking about. “I guess.”
His smile was disarming. He came and leaned on the railing beside her and stared out at the lake. “You don’t know?”
She shrugged. “Neither good nor bad, I suppose. I was just assessing where I am, and how I got here.”
“And where you go next?”
“Yeah. That.”
“You don’t think coming here would be the right move for you? I thought you were going to talk to Cole about the possibility.”
“Actually, I was just thinking that it appears to be a great move.”
“But?”
“But that it almost seems too good to be true.”
Cameron shot her a sideways glance. “Why?”
“I don’t know. If I were to work for Smoke, I’d get to fly much more.” She smiled. “It’d be a promotion for me to fly real live passengers around instead of packages. If I were to move here, I’d get to live in this beautiful place and be near Laura and her mom and ….” She shrugged, feeling self-conscious. “It just all sounds so perfect, and I’m not sure that perfect exists.”
Cameron took a drink of his coffee and stared out at the lake long enough to make her wonder if he was going to say anything at all. Eventually, he nodded. “I’m not sure that perfect exists either. In fact, if I had to place a yes or no bet on it, I’d bet no. But that doesn’t mean that we don’t all hope to make things as perfect as we can.”
Piper nodded.
“As for it being too good to be true, it probably is.” She gave him a puzzled look, and he laughed. “It all sounds great, but if you were to make it a reality, there would be downsides, little things that niggle you. So, what I’m saying is, your idealized notion of what it sounds like probably is too good to be true. But would the reality still be good? I guess the important question is would the reality be better for you than what you have now?”
“Yes. It would. I like the way you put that. You’re right, of course. I know all the downsides of my current reality because I’ve lived it for years. If I were to move here, there will be downsides that I just don’t know about yet.”
Cameron nodded. “It’s better to try to be realistic about that.”
“I guess.” She smiled. “What downsides do you see to living in a beautiful little town, working a great job, and being near your oldest friend?”
He rubbed his chin, pretending to give it serious consideration. “There’s not much nightlife here.”
She laughed. “There’s more than I’m used to, and I don’t need much.”
