the late shift at the mill to see her much during the week anyway. Nothing will change except for my paycheck—or have you forgotten that part?”
I cross my arms and glare out the window. Of course I haven’t. I might not think it’s a good idea to go camp in the middle of the woods with dozens of gruff construction workers, but the money is too good to walk away from, not to mention I’ll have Jeremy there as a buffer between me and the guys.
“Well I don’t know if I can leave McKenna during the week like that. Who’s going to make sure she gets her homework done?”
“She’s a good kid. You worry about her more than you need to.”
“Who will cook dinner?”
“I think she’ll manage to make her own peanut butter and jelly sandwiches just fine.”
Wow. Okay. Harsh, but true.
“Still…I don’t think it’s a good idea. For other reasons…”
He shrugs. “Then don’t do it.”
Wait—he was supposed to convince me otherwise. I thought that was what we were doing here, a little routine where he goads me into this so I can blame him when it all goes up in flames.
I turn to face him, brows furrowed. “You don’t think I should?”
He shakes his head. “Eh, I’ve thought about it. The work will be hard, and it’ll be hot out there in a few weeks when summer hits. Better just keep working at the hotel. At least that’s air-conditioned.”
I know exactly what he’s trying to pull and yet my pride still rears its ugly head.
“So you don’t think I can do the work? That’s what you’re saying?”
He gives me a teasing smirk. “Wouldn’t want to get splinters in those dainty hands of yours.”
Of all the insufferable, misogynistic…
Right. Well, it should come as no surprise that when Jeremy drops me off a few minutes later, before I close the door and stomp into the trailer, I lean back into the truck and tell him very matter-of-factly to pick me up on his way to the jobsite on Sunday evening.
I guess I’m going camping.
My mom and sister cried a lot as I packed a duffle bag full of necessities. There I was in our tiny bathroom, trying to decide how many rolls of toilet paper I wanted to bring with me (just in case) when McKenna came up behind me, wrapped her skinny arms around my middle, and squeezed me so tight my dinner threatened a second showing.
“I’m going to miss you so much.”
I patted her hand, trying hard not to chuckle. “You know I’m not really moving away, right?”
Her little sniffles did the answering for her.
Meanwhile, my mom leaned against the doorframe doing a poor job of wiping at her cheeks to hide her tears. Between the two of them, I wouldn’t have been surprised to find a puddle at my feet.
“Jeremy will be coming back on the weekends to visit Khloe, so I’ll get a ride with him,” I assured them. “With school and work, weekdays go by so fast anyway. You won’t even notice I’m gone.”
McKenna shook her head back and forth against my shoulder blade. “Not true. I’ll notice.”
I try to push the memory of her sad voice out of my mind as Jeremy puts his truck in park. It’s Sunday evening and those of us who’ll be staying in the bunkhouses are arriving to get the lay of the land so we can hit the ground running tomorrow morning.
I’ve grown up in East Texas—a part of the state known for its logging industry—my whole life and still, pockets of deep forest like this amaze me. Outside the truck’s windshield, pine trees grow as far as the eye can see, soaring so tall and mighty they look like they’ve been here since the dawn of time. Underneath their branches, the forest floor is covered in dense green foliage. Any paths that might have wended their way through the trees while the camp was up and running are gone now, stolen back by nature.
Jeremy opens his door to jump out and I follow suit, grabbing my bag and making sure my hat is in place. We talked about it on the drive and both agreed it’s a good idea for me to continue wearing the hat and clothes he lent me for as long as possible. If everything goes as planned, I’ll find a position that doesn’t require too much brawn, keep my head down, and work. Sure, there’s a good chance the guys will start to notice