they slapped mosquitoes.
“Who. Had. Chocolate. In the tent?” Gabi ground the words out between clenched teeth.
No one raised a hand. Shocking.
She pointed to the tent. “Waverly and Eve, hold up the edges. Sam and Madison, go get the backpacks.”
“Are you going to search us?” Madison crossed her arms. “At two o’clock in the morning?”
“Are you concerned that I might?”
She tightened her arms. “No.”
“Then go get the backpacks.” Gabi pointed with the flashlight, then jumped when she saw another light appear on the pathway.
Great. This would be Luke.
“Everything all right down here?” He came closer, and in the flashlight-lit darkness, his hair looked rumpled, his eyes sleepy, his T-shirt just thrown on. Gabi swallowed hard, not wanting to like the sight even half as much as she did.
“We’re fine, thank you,” Gabi answered.
“Engineering flaw?” He raised his eyebrows as his flashlight swept the pile of canvas.
“No,” Madison growled. “The tent was fine until Eve knocked it over.”
“Waverly tripped me!” Eve shot back.
“I was trying to get away from the raccoons!” Waverly screeched. “I’m sorry!”
Gabi saw Luke smile as he turned to her. “Got a visit from the welcome wagon, did you?”
“Something like that.”
He turned back to the girls. “Somebody forget what I told you about coons and food?” Nobody answered, and Gabi could tell he expected just that. “Well, now you know I wasn’t joking. Gonna be tough putting this tent back up in the pitch-dark.” He clicked off his flashlight and turned toward the path. “Good night, then.”
“He’s not going to help us?” Madison glared at Luke’s retreating form.
“Obviously not,” Gabi answered. “Why should he? Is he the one who brought chocolate into the tent? Did you guys think he was kidding about that? Did you think I was?”
The girls were silent, Gabi was dead tired and sick of slapping mosquitoes, and there was no way she had the energy to supervise putting up this damn tent again right now.
“Get your bags, girls.” She sighed, wishing she had a voodoo doll of Priscilla Pritchard. Right now she’d poke it square in the eyes. “Looks like we’re sleeping in the van.”
Sam eyed Madison, glaring, and suddenly Gabi knew exactly who’d brought chocolate into the tent.
Maybe, in the light of morning, she’d have a remote clue what to do about it.
* * *
“I see you survived the night.” Luke smiled over his coffee mug as Gabi stumbled into the dining hall the next morning, four grumbling girls at her heels. He was leaning against the service counter in a soft gray T-shirt and dark charcoal khaki shorts, and Gabi fought not to compare him to the guy on that coffee commercial she loved. “How’d everybody sleep?”
She reached deep to pull out a fake smile. “Just fine, thank you.”
“Comfortable van?”
“Not a bit, but at least we were safe from the stinging hovercrafts you people call mosquitoes.”
“Yeah, they’re bad this year.”
“You think? How much blood does the average child lose here at Camp Echo?”
“They generally pack bug spray.”
“Ah.” She nodded, kicking herself for forgetting it. “Maybe you could give me back my battery today so I could go buy some?”
“Maybe.” He picked up his coffee mug and took a sip. Gabi found herself uncomfortably drawn to this early-morning version of Luke, all freshly showered and relaxed.
Showered.
He obviously had running water.
“Luke, seriously. You can’t hold the van hostage.”
He shrugged, smiling. “Can if I have orders from your boss, who is now—apparently—somehow also my boss. And you know her far better than I do, so I would imagine the orders don’t really surprise you, as much as they’re probably pissing you off.”
“It might be the glee with which you are holding the van that makes me more angry.”
“Oh, believe me, Gabi. There’s no glee here.” He handed her a mug. “Little grouchy before your morning coffee?”
She glared at him. “Yes. That’s what this is—a coffee issue.”
He handed her a jug of creamer, amusement making the edges of his eyes crinkle. They were like dark, sooty emeralds—a color he’d probably hated as a kid, but girls had probably loved.
Gabi tamped down her irritation. He’d made her coffee, for goodness’ sake. She could at least try to be civil.
“Thank you for the coffee.”
“Ladies?” Luke turned to Gabi’s charges, who were milling uncomfortably near the door. “Piper’s got pancakes and bacon ready. Juice and milk are here on the service counter. Grab a plate, fill ’er up, and eat. Kitchen’s only open for a half hour, then closed till noon.”
Sam and Eve came toward the counter, but Madison hung