I took a drag, feeling the stress of the day melt as I exhaled. “Thank you, Teddy, I’m happy our covert operation is in full force tonight.”
He froze, his cigarette glowing between his fingers in midair. “You called me Teddy.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, is that not okay? You’re Teddy in my mind, really, from the first time I met you. But if you don’t like it . . .”
His mouth opened and closed. He took a drag. “No one has called me that in a very long time.”
“Was it your ex?” I asked.
“No,shecalled me Theodore, I think mostly because it irked me so much. My nan called me Teddy. She was a special person in my life and the only one I’d allow to do it.”
“Then I’ll stop.”
“No, don’t, somehow it seems right when you say it, but only here, when we’re alone.”
“That’s fair. I’d like to hear about your nan . . . Teddy.”
“I haven’t spoken about her in ages. I don’t think I’ve ever told Max anything about her.” He looked pensive, taking another drag. “She was the one person who loved me for me, a silly, hard-headed, gangly boy. I’d even say that I was her favorite.” He smiled.
“Because you were named for her husband and son?”
“Maybe. I was always falling and knocking things over. I’d go through these spurts where my feet would grow before the rest of my body caught up, which put me off kilter. But it didn’t matter to Nan. My parents would yell at me for being so clumsy. But she’d take me aside and sit me down and tell me stories about how the same thing happened to my father.”
“That’s so sweet.”
“There were always my favorite biscuits and sugar milk with a little bit of tea that she made just for me.”
“I know that feeling; it’s a gift to have the pure love of a grandmother. Zelda’s named for mine. She was my favorite person.”
He had a faraway look in his eyes.
“Where are you right now?”
He smiled at me. “Sitting at the kitchen table with my nan. Thank you for bringing her back to me.”
I hesitated, trying to think of something witty to say but what came out was, “You’re welcome.”
I squished the butt and tossed it into the sand bucket, under the fire extinguisher adjacent to the wooden laundry shack.
“It’s getting late. Shall we meet again tomorrow?”
“I’d like that, Teddy,” I said.
12Fireworks
“Roger and I are assigned to hang out with the kids who are afraid of fireworks,” Maggie said.
“Yeah, we’re going to watch a movie turned up extra loud and eat candy in the staff lounge. Happy Independence Day.” Roger held up his dirty-water coffee.
As a Fourth of July activity, each cabin picked one counselor to dress up to compete for the title of Miss Ugly USA. Cubs cabin one was the winner—they had a secret weapon—Genie. Not only did she understand the assignment, she had an arsenal of makeup and costumes as the head of theater. The girls helped her dress. She had curlers rolled in her hair, her two front teeth blackened out, and a ragged blue dress with a red sash and her white bra on the outside. I was one proud momma bear when Genie’s cabin won.
Later that night, the entirety of Woodlands sat around the baseball diamond, scattered between first, home, and third bases.Girls Camp wore their red-white-and-blue finest, their hair tied with bandanas, a gift from Marilyn and Jack.
The local fire company and their families were invited—they brought a fire truck—a treat for the kids as well as a precaution. The pyrotechnics were set off in the outfield by Mike and Jack. We were directly under the rockets bursting in the air and in our eardrums. Watching the sparkly array of colors as they bloomed in the sky was thrilling. When the sky was lit, I glimpsed Zelda’s and Hazel’s awestruck faces.
The usual suspects were already in Mindy’s room by the time I finished tucking in the campers. I handed the bunk reports to Bethany, then went to the minifridge and took out an ice tray and a lime.
“Gilda brought us a present—you’ve got to try this stuff. It has a real kick to it,” Mindy said.
