And now I was being totally distracted. What ironic timing.
“Yeah, it was nice. Quick trip. I might come back early.”
Talos chuckled. “You that out of shape?”
I rolled my eyes. “Funny. You need anything?”
“We’re all good here. Take your time, Blake. Enjoy the fresh air for once. You’re getting a little pale.”
I looked down at my bare arm.
Was I?
“I’ll see you at dinner.”
“Call me if something happens.”
“Yes, you worry wart. I will.”
Switching back to the default channel, I let the walkie drop to my side to rub a hand over my face. Maybe Talos was right. Hell, Lydia too. I was cooping myself up too much in my office when what I really should’ve been doing was getting out and getting my hands dirty like the rest of my staff.
Paperwork could wait. We only had so much good weather before the bitterness of autumn hit and we were all forced indoors for a few agonizing months.
Why not get out and enjoy the good weather while I still could?
A nagging worry tickled at the back of my mind.
Sure, the paperwork wasn’t going anywhere, but within six days, I’d have fifty teenagers showing up at the camp’s drop-off zone, eager to be competing for this year’s scholarship prize.
This was the first, of hopefully many more to come after this, annual event that was completely mine. From conception to the eventual execution. And I was definitely freaking out about it internally.
Not that I let anyone know that. If anything, they probably thought I was being way too lax about it—coming out here on ahike when I should be holed up in my office figuring out where the fuck to put all the kids and keep the adults that were already staying here out of their business.
Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the money that we brought in from the buses full of outdoor enthusiasts, but my real passion was the youth groups. If I could somehow convertAustin Adventuresinto a strictly Youth Only destination without losing a fuckton of money, I’d do it in a heartbeat.
Those kids deserved their own spaces. Ones where they couldactuallyexplore the independent freedom that came with outdoor adventuring and not be bogged down by adults crushing them with their never-ending rules.
I hated that. I hated seeing such brilliant lights be sucked dry by society. Especially when they were LGBTQ. The world was a cruel place at times and ifAustin Adventureswas the only soft place for their poor heads to land, then I’d do whatever it took to make sure they were kept safe and happy.
“Everything all good?” Lydia asked, coming back over to me.
I tossed her walkie back to her. “Yeah, I’m going to head back. Just realized I’ve got a mountain of paperwork to go through.”
She shook her head at me in a familiar way, reminding me a lot of my granddad. “Oh, Blake. Don’t you get tired of pushing papers all day?”
Yup. But that’s what came with the territory when you decided to take on a giant million dollar family business like this one.
I was damn proud of it, though. If paperwork was the price I had to pay to keep our doors open, then so be it. I’d welcome being the sacrificial lamb.
“Can you make sure Knight gets back down okay? He wasn’t struggling coming up or anything, but I have a feeling he’s the type to wander off and get himself lost.”
Lydia turned to look over her shoulder at the same time that my gaze darted back to him. He was sitting on one of the logs where an old fire pit used to be, deeply engaged in some kind of animated conversation with a couple that was sitting on the logs opposite of him.
Marlow said something to the couple, causing them both to throw their heads back and laugh in unison. He was then offered half of their sandwich, a flourishing wave following as a thank you.
I truly was fascinated by him. Almost like he was an exotic fish exhibit that I couldn’t bear to tear my eyes from no matter how distorted my vision got from the warped glass.
“Yeah,” Lydia drawled. “I’ll keep him next to me. I’m sure he’ll be more than happy to chat my ear off.”
