“Good. Dorie will appreciate the extra hands.”
“It’ll be nice to see the O’Tooles again. I remember them as a very nice couple who really enjoyed having all of us around.”
“Dorie remembers you, too,” he admitted but omitted in what context.
“Don’t you remember the picnic box Dorie fixed for us the day we decided to hike up to the top of Redridge?”
“I remember,” he answered flatly. “See you in a couple of days.”
Such enthusiasm, she thought as she hung up. He obviously didn’t intend to engage in any watercolor memories of “the way we were.” Fine. He could chill out all he wanted, she decided with a spurt of pride—or was it disappointment? All she cared about was making sure the kids had a wonderful outing. Anyway, she doubted that Scott would stick around for the whole time, unless making arrangements for selling the property kept him at the camp.
“I can hardly wait to meet this ogre,” Trudy confessed as they drove into the camp. “He sounds like a real loser.”
“Oh, Scott’s not really all that bad,” Allie said quickly, surprised that she was so ready to defend him. “I told you what happened to his brother. Scott’s carrying around a heavy load of guilt, and I suspect his mother isn’t helping much.”
“Uh-huh.” Trudy’s tone was noncommittal. She’d lost a young husband in a car accident when a drunk driver plowed into them one evening after church services. Instead of blaming God and giving up, Trudy had used her anger to help in the campaign against drinking and driving.
“Don’t rock the boat, Trudy,” Allie warned as she stopped the car in front of the old house. “Scott agreed to let us have our camp, and that’s all that matters. Don’t be attacking him. We really don’t know what happened and what kind of wounds need healing under that crisp veneer of his.”
Trudy studied her friend’s flushed face, and let out a slow whistle. “Are you still carrying something around for this fellow?”
“Of course not,” Allie said quickly. Maybe too quickly, she told herself, wondering why the question made her feel defensive. Why was she letting Trudy bait her? “We haven’t seen each other for years. And the last time we were together we were just teenagers.”
“Some first loves are deep enough to last a lifetime,” Trudy warned.
“I wouldn’t think a little hand-holding, and one adolescent kiss in the moonlight could be called a deep first love.”
“But you haven’t forgotten him.”
“No, I suppose I haven’t. But at the time, I was naive enough to believe that Scott and I were soul mates. I guess that’s why I felt differently about him from all of the other fellows I’d dated at that time.”
“Okay, a word of warning from an older and wiser woman—”
“You’re a year older than I am,” laughed Allie.
“Right. Heed your elders. Don’t tear yourself up because the young boy who kissed you in the moonlight is now a man who has turned against himself and God. Just remember, Allie, life has a way of giving us lessons that we need, and Scott Davidson may be in for more than his share.”
“It’s so sad that he’s lost his dad and his brother. The place must be filled with painful memories for him,” Allie lamented as they got out of the car and walked up the steps of the house. In spite of herself, she felt a faint flicker of apprehension as they waited for him to answer their knock.
No sign of life at the windows. Allie tried to deny a wave of disappointment when it was obvious that he wasn’t there and wasn’t going to open the door. Maybe he’d already locked up the house, turned the camp over to the O’Tooles and gone back to California.
“Let’s check in at the dining hall. I bet Dorie has a bunch of chores lined up for us to tackle.”
A row of cabins stretched along the river, and an L-shaped dormitory stood next to a large building that was divided into the dining hall and activity room. Allie could see that even though Sam had tried to keep up with needed repairs, all of the buildings were showing the effects of time.
“See that stand of huge spruce trees?” Allie pointed ahead. “Right in the middle of them, there’s a natural grouping of rocks around an open space that makes a wonderful setting for early-morning worship services. It’s great for private meditation too, although my favorite spot is a large boulder just around the bend of the river.”
She drew in a deep breath of pine-scented air, and time sped backward to the wonderful hours she’d spent walking through the trees and listening to the musical roar of the rushing stream.
“You love this place, don’t you?” Trudy said with a smile.
Allie nodded, “I didn’t realize how much I really do. I can hardly wait to walk some of the old trails and check out some of my favorite spots along the river.”
“Well, I’m glad we’ve got a good cook,” Trudy said. “The outdoors always makes me ravenous.” She stuck her hands in her ample overalls. It was clear that having lots of good food for a healthy appetite was the most important thing as far as Trudy was concerned.
“Hiking over some of these hills will give you an appetite, all right.”
“Hiking?” Trudy mimicked. “Who said anything about hiking?”
Allie laughed as they mounted the steps to the dining room, and then sobered as the door flew open and Scott came out.
“Oh,” she said with a start of surprise. “I thought you weren’t here. I mean, we stopped at the house and I was thinking that you might have left the O’Tooles in charge, and locked up the house, and—” she caught herself. Quit babbling. What was there about him that flustered her so much that she sounded like a ninny?
“I’m still here, obviously.”
“Yes, obviously,” she said collecting herself. “This is my friend, Trudy Daniels.”
“Nice to meet you, Trudy,” Scott said politely.
“And you,” Trudy responded with a smug smile. Allie could tell that Scott didn’t look like anything Trudy had imagined. He wore jeans and a tight knit shirt that molded his well-conditioned muscles, and a deep tan testified to hours on the beach or on the water, and skiing. The veiled look she sent Allie, said, “Wow!”
“Wouldn’t have missed it, Mr. Davidson.”
“Scott,” he corrected.
Trudy cocked her head and studied him with her large guileless eyes. “I have a feeling this will turn out to be the best outing our church kids ever had.”
Allie hid a smile. Leave it to Trudy to put a positive spin on his reluctance to have them here.
“I hope that’s the case, but we’re playing catch-up,” Scott answered honestly. “I’m really depending upon Pat and Dorie to run things.” At that moment a sleek Mercedes came into view on the river bridge. Scott frowned as he looked at his watch. “I guess hauling in that load of firewood took me longer than I imagined. I’ve got some business appointments that will keep me busy. Why don’t you check with the O’Tooles and see what needs to be done? Please excuse me.”
With a thin smile, he brushed by them, and strode quickly toward the house where two men in business suits were getting out of their car.
“So that’s the heartthrob,” mused Trudy. “He’s got a way about him, all right. No wonder you’re having trouble closing the book on young love.”
“I told you, we enjoyed an adolescent friendship