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Some men were kind. Some protected. Some were selfless. Some loved well.
As the power of that revelation surged through her veins, Hazel refocused on Nathan.Grow up to be the good kind, kid.
Maybe that was why Nathan and Gemma were there. To see something different, to experience something different. Not just the mountains and the quiet and the unbelievable night sky. But a whole different life. Perspective. So maybe they would be different people. They wouldn’t have to walk their parents’ paths.
Just like she didn’t have to walk the same way her Pops had gone.
Nathan leaned to set his mug on the ground. “Since there’s no one out here, can I take a leak in the woods?”
Hazel blinked. Then she chuckled. “Go for it. Just keep the firelight in sight.”
Nathan turned, his shoulders hunched and both hands tucked firmly in his pockets, and took himself into the woods. From the opposite direction, Gemma’s bubbly voice drifted in the darkness, followed by Bennett’s deep, soft chuckle.
For a minute or two, Hazel had a respite from being surrounded by people. She breathed in solitude. Strange . . . she felt the weariness that came with constant human interaction. But she also felt somehow a rightness and even a joy for having been withthesepeople. They hadn’t entirely drained her to the point that she needed at least a week by herself to recover.
A shuffling of rocks and dirt sounded moments before another vocal exchange between Bennett and Gemma. The pair neared and then stepped into the small ring of yellow light created by the bonfire, each carrying something for s’mores.
“And now for the main event,” Gemma said.
Bennett broke apart the four pack of long metal forks he’d purchased from Mama B, along with the rest of the goodies’ supplies.
Gemma ripped open the marshmallows and snagged a fork from her oldest brother. “I am an expert at toasting.”
“Like you were an expert at painting?” Bennett asked wryly. Gemma had proclaimed so down at the house. It was soon discovered, as she’d slopped paint randomly against the clean walls, allowing thick trails of dripping green to run down the length and onto the floorboard, that she most certainly wasnotan expert. Or even experienced at all.
A sheepish grin met Bennett’s raised-brow look. Then she shrugged. “No worries, bro. I’ve been doing this every summer since I was six.”
She’d been shipped off to a five-week summer camp since she was six? Hazel didn’t know much about growing up in anormalfamily, but that seemed off.
Bennett took Gemma’s comment without showing a sign of concern. Instead, he stabbed a mallow and passed the setup to Hazel, then repeated the process for his own.
They each had a gooey mess consumed and were licking sticky fingers when Bennett looked around, as if something was wrong. “Where’s Nathan?”
“He went into the forest to . . . um . . . you know . . .” Hazel would just spit it out like the backwoods girl that she was, but she wasn’t sure Bennett wanted her to bethatmountain woman in front of Gemma. Would it embarrass him? Irritate him?
Who knew. This being an adult-in-charge thing was whole new territory.
“How long ago?”
How long had it been? Couldn’t be too long.
“Zel.” Bennett’s tone took on a demanding quality. “How long has Nathan been gone?”
She shrugged as irritation collided with panic. She wasn’t actually responsible for these kids. But where was Nathan? How long had he been out in the dark woods alone?
Feeling small and stupid, Hazel peeked at Bennett across the fire. “He left shortly after you and Gemma went to get the s’mores.”
Bennett winced.
“Nathan goes off on his own all the time. No worries,” Gemma inserted.
“Goes off on his own where?” Bennett asked.
Gemma shrugged. “Sometimes to the arcade. Sometimes to grab some fast food. One time he even took Dad’s Miata down to the shoreline. Dad wasn’t very happy about that—mostly because Nathan had done some street racing and the tires were a little burned up.”
Bennett crammed a hand into his hair. “Gemma, has Nathan ever been on his own in a place like this?” His furrowed brow hooded over a wild look.
Panic strummed through Hazel. She should have known better. Nathan was a city kid, and a displaced one at that. The sun had gone down, and the moon hadn’t broken over the horizon yet. It was dark. Like pitch-black dark. There wasn’t a way for a kid like Nathan to get his bearings if he lost sight of the campfire. Ten steps in the wrong direction would render him lost in the forest. A half mile in the wrong direction could put him in serious danger.
