The children, understandably, looked at her as though fireweed had sprouted out of her ears. “How do you know all that?” Estelle asked.
“Oh.” Paige felt oddly embarrassed, like she’d been caught playing with dolls. “I used to read a lot of nature guides, back when I was a kid. I guess some of it stuck.”
Hetta let out a shriek, flapping at the air. “Something buzzed past my ear! Is it a bee? Are there bees here?”
“Oh wow, yeah!” Archie’s face lit up. “And they’remassive!”
Conleth hastily shielded Hetta. “On second thoughts, perhaps this was a bad plan.”
“There’s no need to be frightened, Hetta. Bees won’t sting you unless you disturb them.” Paige gently tipped a flower to study the oblivious insect inside, more memories resurfacing. “In fact, this onecan’tsting you. See the black body? It’s a male carpenter bee. They don’t even have stingers.”
Hetta peered cautiously around Conleth. “What about the girl bees?”
“They do have stingers, but they’ll only attack you if you disturb their nests. They chew burrows in wood, that’s why they’re called carpenter bees. Just don’t poke your finger into any holes.”
“Good advice in general,” Conleth said, peeling Hetta off his waist. “It’s all right, Hetta. If any insect starts coming toward you in a menacing fashion, I promise to intercept it.”
“I didn’t know you liked bugs and plants and stuff, Paige.” Archie looked rather put out, as if she’d been hoarding snacks rather than nature facts. “How come you never said?”
“Well, it doesn’t really come up, back home.” She took off her backpack, rolling her shoulders. “Why don’t we have a look around and see what else we can find?”
Most of the kids were eager for a chance to poke around the glade. Hetta stuck close to Conleth for a while, but evenshe couldn’t resist when Beth found a couple of hummingbirds, flashing like living jewels as they darted from flower to flower. Paige did her best to identify everything, surprising herself with how much she could recall.
Eventually, she needed a break from the constant stream of questions. Leaving the kids to entertain themselves for a bit, she rejoined Conleth, who’d been busying himself setting out snacks and drinks on a picnic blanket at the other end of the glade.
“I suspected you’d enjoy a nature walk,” he murmured, handing her a water bottle. “I had no idea how much. Did you really remember all that from a few guides you read as a child?”
“Well, it was more than a few. We couldn’t afford to buy many books when I was a kid, so I used to spend almost every weekend in the public library.” She smiled, thinking of her old reading nook, and the indulgent librarians who’d sneaked her endless notepads and pens. “I must have hand-copied every field guide they had. For a long time, I wanted to be an ecologist or a park ranger. Or any job that was outdoors in the wild, really.”
“That doesn’t match your job history, from what I recall of your CV. Why didn’t you pursue a career that matched your interests?”
“It just wasn’t practical.” She found her gaze resting on Archie, who was now poking under a fallen log with a stick at the far side of the glade. She quickly looked away again, taking a drink of water. “You need a college degree for most conservation jobs. Or to be able to spend months living in remote locations, for not much pay.”
Conleth glanced at Archie too, understanding flickering across his face. “Ah. I see. Sometimes circumstances change.”
That was far too close to topics she didn’t want to discuss. Time to steer the conversation back to less dangerous waters.
“I would have loved to explore a place like this when I was a kid,” she said. “I’m glad the campers seem to be enjoying it now. Even Hetta.”
“I thought she might, despite her fears,” he replied. “Most shifters like to spend as much time as possible outside. Our animals are more relaxed in a natural environment.”
He looked more relaxed himself, she realized. He still had that sense of constant, boundless energy, but he seemed less twitchy out here in the woods.
“I thought you used to spend all your time in the office,” she said. “And that you were some kind of high-flying corporate executive before that.”
“I was.” He shot her a curious look. “Why?”
“Just struck me as odd. It doesn’t sound like you would have had much time to get out in nature.”
“Indeed,” Conleth said dryly. “Which is why I appreciate how uncomfortable that can be for a shifter. Though that wasn’t the only reason I was so keen to get Hetta out on this nature walk. I was hoping it would also provide an opportunity for Estelle to demonstrate her talent.”
“You think she could calm Hetta’s nervousness?”
Conleth see-sawed one hand in a ‘maybe’ gesture. “It might help in some circumstances, but Estelle has to concentrate to use her talent, and she can’t keep it up for long. But that’s not the main reason I wanted Hetta to see it. I think those two could be good friends. They have a lot in common.”
“Estelle and Hetta?” Paige found Hetta, quietly examining flowers with Rufus and Finley. Estelle, in contrast, seemed to be trying to sneak up on Ignatius with a double handful of dirt. “You’re kidding.”
“Sometimes people who appear to be complete opposites are more alike than it might seem,” Conleth replied, watching the campers as well. “Estelle’s embarrassed by her talent, becauseshe thinks it isn’t as powerful or useful as those of other unicorn shifters. And Hetta, for whatever reason, seems to feel the same way about her shift form. Not the same problem, but similar emotions. Though I don’t think either of them have realized that yet. I’ve been looking for opportunities to nudge them together.”
