Summer's End (Wildflowers #5) - Jill Sanders Page 0,31

her on their date. It wasn’t as if there were a lot of choices in town, but Destin was only fifteen minutes away and had many restaurant choices.

How long had it been since she’d been out on a date? She’d tried dating a few times in school, but each time Harold had interfered, and she’d been left to pick up the pieces of her young heart. How could she explain to Aiden any of that? He wouldn’t be able to understand her pain or her fears.

Since she’d met him, he hadn’t feared anything really. She knew that his business could be fragile, just as hers was. All it took was the wrong sort of people speaking out and the phones would stop ringing and the money would stop coming in. Could he survive that? Would he want to?

She didn’t want to give him a chance to decide. She couldn’t afford to.

“What are the chances of you helping out tonight?” Elle asked her during lunch. “I know it’s your night off…”

“Can’t,” she said between bites. Looking around the room of friends, she swallowed and figured there was no use hiding it any longer since it was common knowledge that they’d been together. Even if the relationship didn’t go any further, she at least wanted a chance to explore it. For his sake. Who knew, maybe once they started dating, they’d figure out they didn’t have anything really in common. “I’ve got a date.”

Everyone sitting around the table stopped and stared at her. “A date?” Elle asked.

“Aiden?” Scarlett asked.

“Of course.” Aubrey rolled her eyes. “Who else would it be with?”

“I can’t believe you kept that from us all this time,” Hannah said.

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell everyone you were a virgin before Owen,” Aubrey countered.

Hannah sighed. “Fine, I guess we’re all entitled to our own little secrets.”

Aubrey smiled. “I promise, this is one of the last I’ve been keeping from you.”

“One of the last?” Elle asked. “Meaning there are others.”

Aubrey laughed. “That’s for me to know.” She finished her sandwich and stood up. “But not now. Now I have to show a bunch of people how to kick butt.” She tossed her trash into the can and left her friends.

Being a black belt in both tai chi and judo had its perks. The movements were like second nature to her now. She didn’t even have to think as she moved around the mats. Today there were only four others in her class, which meant she got plenty of time to show them the basics firsthand. She helped them get into each position correctly and even showed them a few fun theatrical flips and tosses for show. Actually, she’d gotten the hint that most of the people who signed up for her classes did so just to see what she could do. Word of mouth had passed around the camp about her skills. She’d even created a few online videos for fun one night and had more than a hundred thousand views. Thankfully, she’d remembered to mention the campgrounds in it. She’d like to think that she had done her part to bring more customers to River Camps.

After her last class of the day, she decided she had time for a quick swim before heading back to shower and dress for her date. Stripping off her sweaty clothes, she showered off quickly at the outdoor shower area before jumping into the cool water. On her fourth lap, she noticed Aiden standing along the edge of the pool.

Damn, he looked so sexy in his work clothes, which entailed worn jeans, work boots, and a T-shirt that stretched over his muscles.

When she stopped at the edge of the water and looked up at him, he knelt closer and smiled down at her.

“Cooling off?” he asked her, his eyes running over her and causing her to heat again.

“Working here does have its perks.” She laughed and moved over to sit on the long underwater bench less than a foot away.

“I was on my way to talk to Elle about the new cabins.” He glanced up towards the main building.

“I’m sure she’s in her office.” She relaxed back.

“Now all I want to do is join you in there.” He sighed.

She glanced up at him again and noticed that he was sweaty and covered in a layer of sawdust.

“Why don’t you? You can meet with Elle later.” She motioned towards the water.

He glanced back down at her and shook his head. “Work first, play later,” he said