Last Chance Summer - Shannon Klare Page 0,44

me to help her out by being a manager. She claimed it was because I was trustworthy, but in hindsight it was because I couldn’t shoot, couldn’t dribble, and didn’t understand how the plays we learned in practice were actually important to the game. I kind of just passed the ball to the first person I saw, which totally explains why I was always being yelled at from the sideline. When I wasn’t on the bench. I think it was more of a pity move on her part. Either that, or she did it because of who my dad is.”

And that was before the crash, when the right side of my body still operated on an equal playing field as my left.

“She asked you to be a manager?” Grant said, grinning.

“It’s not funny!”

“Okay, okay. Not funny.” He set his fork down, his voice dropping as he leaned in closer. “I can be sympathetic and serious for a moment. I feel bad for your eighth-grade self, and your lack of basketball skills.”

“It feels like you’re making fun of me.”

“Only in my head.”

“Grant!”

He laughed out loud, holding his hands up as I grabbed my fork. “As your co-counselor and someone who actually wants to win the game, I’ll help you out. All right?”

“By getting me out of it?”

“By showing you a few things before you’re thrown to the wolves,” he said.

This close, the warmth of his skin made my heart speed. I shifted my attention to my coffee, ignoring my rapid pulse in favor of caffeine.

“Look,” he said. “I’m taking Linc’s duty shift tomorrow night, in exchange for him taking one of mine later on in the session. Talk to Kira and see if she’ll trade you too. It will get us some time at the pavilion. I can give you an actual lesson on how to shoot.”

“I need lessons on more than that,” I said. “We’re talking basketball 101. I need the basics, including dribbling and ball handling.”

“No problem,” he said, shrugging. He picked up his fork again, still eyeing me. “Just make sure you wear comfortable clothes. Once we’re out there, it’s basketball until you’re as good as LeBron.”

“That will take more than a night,” I said, cringing.

“Then pack a snack.”

I ate the rest of my food, contemplating the situation as campers filed in and out of the mess hall’s doors. No matter how skilled Grant was or wasn’t at basketball, he really was fighting a losing battle. Poor guy didn’t know the disappointment ahead of him.

I pushed my way out of breakfast a little later, splitting off from him as he headed for a chore shift with his cabin. My girls would either be prepping for a mandatory hike to the lake, or slumming it up on the porch. I crossed the dirt path, spotting them on the porch as I neared.

“Definitely slumming it up,” I said, turning as a pair of footsteps crunched loudly on the path behind me.

“Alex!” a woman said, her voice completely unrecognizable.

I spun, even more confused as my attention landed on a casually dressed female in tennis shoes and a faded AC/DC T-shirt. Her curly hair was pulled into a tight ponytail at the crown of her head, her eyes hidden behind large retro-style sunglasses. She tugged them off as she neared, her smile widening.

“I’m so glad I caught you! Madeline Briggs. Resident camp therapist and your morning meeting.”

My face paled. Loraine wouldn’t dare.

“Your aunt thought this would be a better time slot than anything this afternoon,” Madeline said, drumming her fingers against a notebook. “Would you prefer to do the session outdoors or inside?”

“I’d prefer not to do it at all,” I said, crossing my arms.

“Unfortunately, that’s not an option for either of us,” she said, still smiling. “But if you don’t have a preference, I’d love to stay outside. It hasn’t gotten hot yet and I’ll be confined indoors for the rest of the afternoon. Does the gazebo work for you?”

“Do I have a choice?”

“Life is a series of choices,” Madeline said, nodding for me to follow.

I glanced at my cabin again, shoulders slumped as I pivoted and trudged after Madeline. This was a waste of my time and would definitely be a waste of hers. She was better suited helping campers with their issues. They were the ones stuck in messy situations. I had a handle on mine. No problems here.

We reached the gazebo after a few minutes. The early morning breeze was cool as it wafted between the wooden pillars.