“I totally will,” Steph said, and then she held up a hand. “Wait. I wanted to ask you how we can make a solid aisle so I can wear heels with my dress without the heel getting stuck in the grass and pulling my shoe off in the middle of my grand entrance.”
Danny groaned, and Rob scrubbed his hand over his face. “There are going to be at least a hundred text messages about this, aren’t there?”
Steph grinned. “At least.”
Even though she was so full she could barely move, Hannah walked up to the top of the campground, where the overflow parking was. It was mostly for parking trailers or guests’ vehicles, but she’d discovered that the upper part of the lot had great cell reception. It also had a few fallen trees that made for reasonably comfortable seats, so she was able to video chat without being down in the busy part of the campground.
At some point she’d reply to the missed calls from Erika, or at least shoot her a text message, but right now she wanted to talk to her parents. It was probably seeing Rob interacting with his family, but suddenly she was very aware of the distance between herself and home.
Her mother answered on the second ring, her warm smile filling Hannah’s screen. “Hannah! How was the barbecue? Did the fruit salad turn out okay?”
“Everybody loved it,” she said, blinking twice to clear away the moisture that filled her eyes when she heard her mom’s voice. “And I got a recipe from Rob’s grandmother I can’t wait to try. Blond brownies, but unlike any blond brownie you’ve ever tried before.”
“You’ll have to make them for us when you get home. Your father went to help his friend John hang some drywall, and then next weekend, John’s going to come over and help your dad fix that leaky spot on the garage roof. You know how they love their beer and power tools but, assuming he comes home instead of to the emergency room, I’ll tell him about them.”
Hannah laughed, and it eased the ache of missing them. “He does love his power tools. I’m sorry I missed him, though.”
“So tell me about the people you met today. Did you make some friends?”
It was such an elementary school question to ask, but it opened the door and that was how Hannah spent the next twenty minutes telling her mother about Rob Kowalski.
“He sounds wonderful, honey,” her mom said, but Hannah could hear an undercurrent of concern. “But you don’t really know him. Did you tell him who you are? Does he listen to the podcast?”
“I haven’t told him about the podcast, and I doubt he listens to it.”
“But you don’tknow.”
They’d all reacted differently whenImprobable Causeswent viral. Her dad and Jenn were proud and happy, though they didn’t totally understand the podcasting business model. Erika had focused on the potential dollar signs. Hannah’s guilt over causing the victim’s loved ones fresh pain had colored everything.
And her mom had run on pure anxiety. As the harassment increased, so had her fear for Hannah, and the decision to travel to New Hampshire for three months alone hadn’t helped.
But it was what Hannah needed—time away from how everybody else had felt so she could focus on her own feelings. She wanted to be away from the pressure of what more money could mean for the people in her life and the chaos of heightened emotions. She needed to figure out whatshewanted.
“He’s not allowed to have personal relationships with the campers anyway, Mom,” she said, hoping to put her mother’s mind at ease. “I don’t want to get him in trouble with his brothers.”
“That’s for the best, since you livehere.”
“I know.” Of course she had to go back to California. She had their truck and camper, for one thing. Her family was there. Erika was there. Her apartment and their office were there.
“Have you talked to Erika lately?” her mom asked in an overly bright voice. Clearly she also wanted to change the subject away from Rob, which was perfectly fine with Hannah.
“I’ve talked to her a couple of times, but nothing in depth. I haven’t decided what I want to do yet, which frustrates her.”
“Understandably. What you do affects her.”
“I know. But I also know if I get pushed into doing something I’m not comfortable with for her sake, it’ll come between us—both professionallyandpersonally. I want to be sure before I make a decision.”
“That’s one of the reasons you’re such a good team. Erika would just dive off a cliff, but she has you to check the depth of the water first.”
Hannah laughed because that was a pretty good description of their relationship. “But sometimes, after I’ve checked the depth of the water and know it’s safe, I still need Erika to give me a shove off the edge.”
“You’ll know when the right answer comes to you. You’ll feel it.”
The certainty in her mom’s voice comforted Hannah because she was right. Hannah liked to think things through, but she put a lot of stock in her intuition and when the right course presented itself to her, she’d know.
“Thanks, Mom.” She shifted on the log because fallen trees weren’t actually that comfortable to sit on for very long. “I should go. I ate so much I’m going to fall asleep on the phone, and this log is probably a worse bed than it is a chair.”
Her mom laughed and blew her a kiss. Once they’d disconnected, Hannah stood with a groan and slid her phone back into her pocket. Next time she came up here for a chat, she’d bring a pillow with her. Or just drag her camp chair up the hill.
