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At first, I wondered why she didn’t just ask me—I was standing closer—but then, she hadn’t really looked me in the eye since the party.
“I don’t mind,” I said. “I’d rather be up moving than sitting around getting eaten alive.”
Austin swatted another mosquito away from his face and walked over to help me with the tent. “Come on. Looks like glamping is out.”
The others fell into line after Kate’s instruction, and not only had she helped us design a pretty nice camp, but the canvas tents were actually nice and sturdy, and the cots weren’t terrible either. It wasn’t as nice as the air-conditioned inn, but they were private, and with a cabin and the bathhouse on each side of mine, I had the most privacy of all. Until it was shower time.
After we were settled, I had another meeting with Ben at craft services, who had prepared a hot meal from what we had brought from the states. Thankfully, we had allotted a lot of space for canned goods in our cargo. That and bottled water.
“We’ll start filming first thing in the morning,” Ben announced. “So I want you to get a good night’s sleep.”
He turned and addressed me personally. “And try to convince Tess she’s doing good, will you? I found her in a mess of tears earlier.”
Austin looked up from his plate, having heard what Ben said. He and Tess had decided to focus on the film a while. He let out a long breath. “I’m on it.” He got up and walked away, taking his food across the room to where Tess sat with Kate.
Ben looked across the cabin at her. “She’s really something, isn’t she?”
“Who? Kate?”
“Yeah, I think after today, seeing her take charge, I’m glad I hired her.” Ben didn’t often admit mistakes, but I could tell he felt as if he’d been too hard on her.
“I’m glad too.” Even if she never talked to me again, I had no regrets about seeing her again and getting to touch her, kiss her, and make love to her again. No matter what happened in this film, it would probably end up being my favorite because I was able to share it with her.
I decided to go and check on her and let her know what a good job she’d done. By the time I got up and walked over, she was on her way out of the cabin. I hurried out after her and called her name. “Hey, Kate.”
She turned and looked surprised to see me. “Yeah?”
I walked up and put my arm around her shoulders to walk with her, but she shrugged away. “Can I help you with something, Jake?”
I didn’t understand why she was being so cold toward me. “Sorry. I just wanted to tell you what a good job you did with the camp. You really got things together. I think we’d all be in the hospital by now if you hadn’t stepped in.”
“That’s my job. I was hired to consult, and I guess it finally came in handy. If you don’t mind, I’m on my way to the latrine.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” I backed off and watched her walk away. She didn’t look back.
I hated the way things were, but most of all, I hated that she didn’t even want to be friends. I didn’t know how to fix it, but I had to try.
After we ate, everyone decided to turn in, and I spent an hour alone in my tent, wishing I had someone to keep me company besides the gnats. Austin, who had decided to bunk with me, was probably somewhere with Tess. I couldn’t help but wonder if Kate was there too. Knowing her, she was hiding out somewhere, giving them some time alone.
I decided to go and see if I was missing out on all the fun, and as soon as I left my tent, I spotted Kate on her way out of the dining cabin.
“Is Austin with Tess?” I asked, trying to pretend that I hadn’t hoped to find her instead.
“They’re in the dining hall,” she said, barely looking me in the eyes.
“I guess you came out here to get away from them?” I didn’t think she had any business in the crafts services, which had been closed for the evening.
Kate shook her head. “When I left, they were playing cards with some of the other people from the stunt team.”
I frowned, not sure why I hadn’t been invited, but they probably thought I needed my rest for work. “I see. I guess I was right, and I’m missing out on all of the fun.”
“I’m sure you could join them.”
“I just came out to get some air. What about you? Late night snack? Or were you socializing?”
She rocked on her feet, looked down at her shoes, and looked everywhere, but at me. “I was just showing craft services how to dispose of the food waste in the sealable bio containers. We can’t leave it out back with all of the wild animals it could bring to camp. So we’re going to have to bury it each morning. Even some of the cutest, cuddliest little scavengers are deadly here, and we don’t want them roaming the camp, which reminds me, you really shouldn’t be roaming around in the jungle at night.”
