Now I have to show off any skill I learned from the videos I watched the day before and this morning, prepping for this specific excursion. Luciano can’t see me as a liar. I mean, any more than I already have been to everyone here. Valentina looks over at me and raises an eyebrow.Crap.She definitely knows I can’t paddleboard.
“I’m not very good, though,” I blurt, trying to save myself.
Sofia grins. “I’m sure you’re great.”
“Yeah, Isa. I bet you’re practically an expert,” Valentina adds, grinning mischievously at me.
She is thoroughly enjoying this train wreck.
“Well, maybe you can teach Luciano and me a few things?” Sofia insists.
“She already promised to teach me,” Valentina chimes in and winks at Sofia.
“Oh. I see! Well, I’d still like to join. It’s been a while since I’ve had some cousin time with Isa.”
She was right. It has been years. The last time I was in the same place as these two was at our quinceañera, and, well, we all know what happened. Ever since our moms had that falling-out, we’ve kept our distance, whether we wanted to or not. Being back here now, with both of them, feels like stepping into a past I thought was long gone.
Since I arrived at camp, I felt as if I was invited out of pity, thanks to Maria. It didn’t even occur to me that Sofia might actually want to spend some time with me. I feel the pressure to impress her, but there’s also this nagging desire to just have fun, like we did when we were kids—staying up all night, watching movies, and eating way too much pizza.
After Daniel gives us thorough instructions, we rush toward the lake with our boards, our toes digging into the sand the camp placed at the edge of the shoreline to mimic a beach. The water is freezing. The sensation shoots through my spine like a jolt of electricity, and my stomach immediately sucks in. I try not to show it. We place our boards on the top of the water and climb on. Daniel instructed us that we could stay on our knees or stand up and use the boards traditionally, but I start on my knees since I am still unbelievably terrified. I hope I am doing a good job of hiding that fact.
Valentina gets on her board almost effortlessly, stands up, and begins paddling around. I roll my eyes. Of course, she can paddleboard. Valentina can do anything.
“Are you ready?” Sofia asks excitedly.
“Let’s do it, prima!” I cheer like a war cry, waving my paddle in the air.
Paddleboarding is relatively easy while on your knees. You have a lot more stability. It almost feels too easy. For the next hour, I build the courage to stand up on the board like Valentina. Now is my time to shine. I hold my breath and put one foot on the board. I use it to push my body upward and immediately feel unstable. I pause for a moment, catching my balance. Finally, I get both of my feet on the board, and I’m standing upright. I can’t fucking believe it.
“Whoa, impressive.” Sofia claps. “Should I do it too?”
“Definitely. The view is way cooler up here. Do you need help?”
I hope to the heavens themselves she does not ask me for help. I wouldn’t even know the first thing on helping someone stand up on their unstable board while mine is bopping around like one of those rusty metal horse rides in the front of supermarkets.
Luciano paddles to her side and helps her up, and I couldn’t be any more grateful. Valentina snickers as she floats by me.
“You’re so funny, Isa,” she whispers. “Don’t forget the hair.”
“Shut up. And I won’t,” I whisper back.
Valentina, Sofia, and I start to paddle around the shoreline. Most guests have paddled on ahead or skipped out from the activity entirely. Probably because who the hell wants to swim in a New England lake in September? I can still see a few of them sitting on the Adirondack chairs by the sand. I wave humorously at them and get a few thumbs-ups.
The lake stretches out in all directions, a vast and shimmering expanse of dark blue. The sun is high in the sky, casting a warm golden light over the calm waters. The air is fresh and clean, carrying the scent of pine on a gentle breeze.
“So, when did you learn how to paddleboard? I thought you never left the restaurant! Well, that’s the chisme from Maria,” Sofia says.
Shit. I didn’t even consider that she might want to know where in the world I may have learned how to do something in a body of water, since it’s not as if I was paddleboarding in the Hudson River. The thought alone makes me shudder.
“Oh, I went on a little beach trip with… Faye. My assistant. It was like a work thing,” I fib.
Valentina and Sofia look at each other for a moment before breaking out into roaring laughter.
“What’s so funny?” I yell.
“Isa, I know you don’t know how to paddleboard. You practically live inside La Mariposa. There’s no way you found time to do anything but work,” Sofia says gently.
“Hey, I resent that. I could have gone in college or something,” I grumble.
