Page 58 of The Perfect Deal
Up bright and early the next day, I made the drive to the sports complex and headed through the doors to check on the registration packets and make sure everything got included. Whistling a song I’d heard on the radio yesterday when Liberty had driven me home, I went into my office and grabbed what I needed to before heading out to the parking lot to check with Sam on a few topics. Already, the kids were arriving and filing into the buses, their faces full of smiles as they waved hello to friends and goodbye to their parents.
“All right, don’t forget to check in with me!” Karrie’s tone made my brain swell in my skull and grated on my nerves, making half my cheerfulness immediately evaporate. Why did she insist on sounding like everyone’s least favorite substitute teacher?
In a perfect world, I might’ve found a way to skirt around her and get on the bus without even having to speak to her, but that failed me, and as I walked toward the steps, she spotted me. “Hi there, Josh,” she purred. “How are you today?”
At least her tone changed when she addressed me and she no longer sounded like she’d been gargling glass. “I’m good, Karrie. How are you?”
“I’d be better if these kids would listen to me.” She rolled her eyes. “I have no idea why they can’t just get on the bus. They’ll see their parents again soon.”
I cleared my throat and reminded her, “It’s hard to say goodbye to your family. We’ve got plenty of time. No need to rush them.”
“I guess.” She shrugged and then shouted again for the kids to hurry up, as if she hadn’t heard a single word I’d said.
Thankfully, once I got on the bus, I saw dozens of cheerful faces, and my disposition changed immediately.
“Hi, Coach Joshua!” Axel shouted. “Where’s your girlfriend?”
Everyone laughed, and I walked over and ruffled his hair. “Miss Liberty isn’t my girlfriend, but she’ll be here in a few minutes.” I wished I would’ve been able to give her a ride, but she said she was running behind and would meet me here.
After my discussion with Sam confirmed that everything was in order, I handed off the paperwork I’d picked up to Coach Marcy and then sank into a seat near where I’d been sitting the time before. My eyes were trained out the window as I patiently waited for Liberty to make an appearance.
It took her a while. She wasn’t kidding about running behind. Since she tried to be a punctual person, I had a feeling she would be a bit frazzled when she arrived, but when she climbed aboard the bus, she had a big smile on her face.
“Well, well, well,” Liberty began as she walked down the aisle toward me, her camera bag over her shoulder. “Funny seeing you here.”
We both laughed, and she took the seat next to me. “How’s it going? Did your alarm not go off?”
“Oh, it went off,” she said, stuffing her camera bag beneath the seat in front of her. “I just accidentally turned it off and went back to sleep for twenty minutes.” Liberty rolled her eyes, and I snickered at her. “If you hadn’t sent me that text, I might still be asleep.”
“I’m sorry.” I meant it. That was rough. “I think we’re all a little tired after the beach trip.”
“So true,” she agreed. “I really could’ve used a couple more days to recuperate. Oh, well. Camp will be fun. I’m excited to see all the kids again.”
“Yep, they were already asking about you,” I told her as Karrie climbed on the bus and told the driver everyone was here.
“Oh, yeah?” Liberty’s eyes bulged. “Dare I ask what they were saying?”
Chuckling, I said, “You might not want to know.” She continued to stare at me until I shrugged and said, “Axel wanted to know where my girlfriend was.”
“Good grief.” She shook her head and laughed before standing and looking back to where the teen was sitting. Liberty raised two fingers, pointed at her eyes and then at him a few times, saying that she had her eyes on him, and then she turned and sat down, still laughing. I wanted to reach over and grab her hand, I was so happy that she was here.
We chatted on the way to camp, and then we got out, and the kids headed off to their cabins. For the most part, everyone had the same assignments, though a few of the kids hadn’t made it back for the second session. We had several kids who wanted to come in their place, but I hadn’t had room for all of them. I thought the new website with Liberty’s pictures might’ve had something to do with the upturn in interest. We always had a lot of kiddos who wanted to take part, but most of them understood if they didn’t make it into the first camp, they likely wouldn’t make the second, so they didn’t bother to apply. We’d had an influx of new applicants this time, which made me think I needed to increase the slots for next year. I’d have to provide more cabins and coaches, but I’d make it happen.
Before I dismissed everyone to their cabins this time, I signaled for all the kids to gather around in the main open area near the cafeteria. With excitement bubbling off them, the kids hauled their bags over, chatting and laughing as they fell into place. I raised my hand to signal for them to quiet so I could speak.
“Hey, boys and girls,” I began, raising my voice so everyone could hear. “We are so glad to have you back at camp. For those of you who have never been here before, get ready. You are about to have the time of your life.” With that, a cheer rolled through the group. “Unlike our last session, this one is focused on fun. We’ll be fishing, canoeing, and learning camping skills, like how to pitch a tent and start a fire. Get ready because this session is going to be epic.”
Once again, I had to pause for the kids to cheer. Karrie, who was standing to my right amongst some of her girls, raised a fist in the air and circled it around like she was Arsenio Hall shouting, “Whoop! Whoop! Whoop!” The kids all arched their brows at her, probably not recognizing what she was doing. I shook my head and looked away so that I didn’t laugh in her face.
“You all have two hours to get to your cabins, unpack, get settled in, put on some comfortable clothes if you aren’t wearing them already, and then meet me over at the flagpole. We are going to kick this session off with a nature hike through the woods. Be sure to apply plenty of sunscreen and insect repellent. Now, let’s kick this thing off and have some fun!” I clapped my hands, and the others joined in as they dispersed, rushing to their various cabins. Not a single face in the crowd didn’t wear a smile as the kids hurried off with their friends.
With the welcome speech out of the way, I headed to my cabin to drop off my bags. The moment I walked through the door and spied the bed, warmth spread through my body. Liberty and I had made love here for the very first time, so this room would always be special to me. For a moment, I stared at the bed, wishing she was right here with me.
But she was likely taking her stuff to her cabin, getting reacquainted with her girls. All of them had come back for the second session, and I knew they’d be excited to see her. The kids had been upset when Liberty had gone home early. I had to make sure I didn’t do anything to push her away again.
I unpacked, sprayed myself with sunscreen and bug spray, and then headed out again. I planned to go by each of the cabins to make sure everything was going smoothly and no one needed my assistance.
I walked into the cabin that was the home of Fox House and caught Axel and Robby in the middle of some sort of dance they were teaching the other kids. “Just in time!” Sam said, shaking his head at me. “They’re trying to get me to learn it, but I told them I’m too old for that sort of thing.”