He smiled, getting to his feet and holding out his hand to help me up. ‘Twenty-three different kinds of birds? I’m impressed.’
‘Don’t be. There’s something like two thousand species in North America alone. Twenty-three is a tiny drop in the bucket.’
‘It’s probably sixteen more than I could identify.’
‘Girl Scouts is actually what made me decide I wanted to be a nurse,’ I told him. ‘We had to do first-aid badges. I remember watching this paramedic who came to teach us basic skills and thinking,I want to do that. I want to help people.’
‘Thank God for the Girl Scouts then.’
I held my skewer over a small flame, turning it slowly. ‘What about you? Former Boy Scout?’
‘Nah, that never appealed to me. I spent most of my time outside in nature anyway, exploring the island.’ He cleared his throat. ‘This might come as a surprise to you, but I have some issues with authority.’
‘Someissues?’
‘Yeah. I don’t like being told what to do.’
I mock-gaped at him. ‘No. Seriously? I’d never had guessed.’
‘Why do I sense you’re being sarcastic.’
‘Because I’m not exactly being subtle.’
‘Rude.’ He lifted his marshmallow skewer to his mouth and gently blew on it. ‘I just prefer to do things my own way in my own time.’
‘There’s nothing wrong with that.’
He pulled a face. ‘Tell that to my parents, or my teachers.’
‘I would, but your mother is kind of terrifying.’
‘She wasn’t always like that, you know. You’ll probably find this hard to believe, but when we were kids she was even kind of fun.’
‘You’re right. I do find that hard to believe.’
He chuckled. ‘It was like the older she got, the more obsessed she became with keeping up appearances. What people think is important to her. Whereas I couldn’t give a stuff.’ He stared at me, his gaze curious. ‘I think that’s why you intrigue me so much. You’re the first woman I’ve met who doesn’t seem to worry about all the superficial stuff.’
I swallowed hard, feeling my heart quicken. ‘Is that your way of saying I look a mess half the time?’
It was a feeble attempt at a joke, but he didn’t laugh or take the bait. Instead he took a step closer. ‘On the contrary,’ he said. ‘You’re beautiful, even when you’re wearing a reindeer onesie.’
‘I don’t think you know me well enough to make broad, sweeping assumptions,’ I said, wary that his expectations might not match the reality. ‘I like getting glammed up on occasion as much as the next woman.’
‘Do you care what label is sewn into the back of your dress?’
‘No,’ I admitted. ‘That doesn’t bother me at all. In fact, I buy a lot of clothes from thrift stores. Trying to do my bit for the planet. Sustainability and all that.’
‘Jessica wouldn’t be caught dead in anything secondhand,’ he said bitterly. ‘Or last season, for that matter.’
‘I’m sure there are plenty of good things about her too though. You wouldn’t have been friends with her for as long as you have, otherwise.’
He shrugged. ‘It’s like with my mother. She was normal when we were younger. It’s only as she grew up that things like fashion labels, driving the latest model car, and holidaying somewhere fashionable became important to her. It was all about being seen wearing the right things, at the right places and standing next to the right people. My surname made me the right person, but in the end, I felt like that was all I was to her. I got frustrated. Wanted someone who would be happy spending Friday nights on the beach, drinking beer around a bonfire and listening to music.’
‘That sounds like bliss to me.’
‘I know,’ he said quietly. ‘That’s why I think I’m falling for you.’
24
