Margaret, but the child’s expression didn’t change. “Well, everyone else is over in the girls’ bunkhouse—”
“Oh, dear! They’re not sleeping in bunks, are they?” The mother’s voice was filled with panic, the same look of fear Summer had seen in the child. “Because her father and I agreed to never have her sleep in an upper bunk. If she fell out, it could—”
“There are no upper bunks,” Summer assured her. “All twin beds on the floor. We just call it a bunkhouse because it sounds more rustic than dormitory. More campy.”
“Oh. All right, then.” The woman’s eyes cut nervously toward the bunkhouse, then down to her daughter.
“Well, as I was saying, you can get your stuff put away. Tara, the assistant counselor, is in there helping everybody get settled. We have our first activity planned for an hour from now.”
The woman drew a long breath and nodded. With Mary Margaret by one hand and the duffel in the other, she started toward the girls’ dorm. “Now, Mary Margaret, your father and I agree that this will be a good experience for you. ...” Her voice trailed off as they moved away.
Summer couldn’t keep from wondering what the trouble in that marriage had been since it seemed Mary Margaret’s mother and father agreed on everything.
She glanced toward the boys’ side of the camp. Rick Warren still had a couple of people to check in. He stood very straight with his very official clipboard, nodding at a camper and checking things off a list with what she was sure was a military-issue pencil. He didn’t seem to notice that the boy’s mother was standing closer than was necessary, touching his arm in a flirtatious manner. Obviously, the woman didn’t know what a pain in the ass Rick Warren could be.
Nobody seemed to pick up on that except her.
She was still seething about the staff meeting a few weeks ago when Rick’s body visibly stiffened at the announcement she’d been hired as the girls’ head counselor. And once her dad introduced him as head counselor and assistant director, General Warren just took over, laying out rules and regulations like he was running some kind of POW camp. The audacity of the guy! Seeing her dad pass the responsibility of the camp to a virtual stranger made her heart sink then and every time she’d thought about it since—including now.
She’d tried to show her assertion at the meeting. But when she’d brought up the subject of downtime, Rick had poo-pooed her ideas. To make matters worse, her dad had agreed with him.
Rick Warren put her on edge, made her feel as if he were hiding something. Snooping around her cabin that morning...hiding the file he held. She didn’t know what he was up to, but she didn’t like it. Or him.
Right at that moment, Rick’s face broke into a dazzling smile, directed at the mother who was standing too close, and a flare of anger shot through Summer. Tsk, tsk. Flirting with the parents. How inappropriate.
Inappropriate images of Rick Warren had come to her in her sleep the past couple of weeks. Remembering them now caused her cheeks to warm, along with a few other parts of her traitorous body.
“What a piece of work, huh?”
Summer jumped at the voice. She hadn’t heard the assistant counselor, Tara O’Malley, approach.
“He sure is,” Summer muttered. “We’ll just have to make the best of it.”
Tara’s eyes followed the direction Summer’s gaze had gone, and she laughed. “I wasn’t talking about Rick. I was talking about Mary Margaret Avery-Henson’s mom.”
“Oh.” Summer’s face burned. “Well, it’s easy to see why Mary Margaret’s so shy. I have a feeling the kid’s life is filled with adults telling her what to do and how to feel.” She handed Mary Margaret’s emergency contact list to Tara.
Tara glanced over it and let out a low whistle. “I think you may be right.”
Summer looked forward to getting to know Tara better. With her bright smile and infectious laugh, the redhead endeared herself to everyone who met her.
“And you’re right about him, too.” An appreciative gleam sparkled Tara’s green eyes. “He is one fine piece of work.”
“Yeah,” Summer agreed. “Rick’s a great-looking guy.” The rest of the staff didn’t know about her and Rick’s mutual dislike, and Summer decided it would be best to keep it that way. No use making everyone uncomfortable and giving them something to gossip about. And kids were very astute. They would pick up on animosity quickly. She wouldn’t allow anything