Page 96

Drew

Itfeelsgreatto be out in nature. I forgot how clear my mind feels out here. No traffic, no street lights, no noise. Just peace and quiet.

“So, your sister’s pretty cute, huh?”

Oh, and Conner and James. Only Conner would be brave enough to make a comment about my sister.

“Seriously, Conner?” I pick up a sleeping bag that’s still rolled up and throw it at his head.

He blocks it with the back of his arm. “What?” He shrugs. “It’s true.”

James hammers the last tent peg in the ground and then glares at Conner. “Leave Drew alone. The whole point of this camping trip is so he can relax and get away from his woman problems.”

I roll my eyes. “That is not why we’re camping. We’re camping because we love it and we haven’t done it in forever.”

“Right.” Conner raises his eyebrows and gives James a knowing glance.

James stands to his feet and brushes the dirt from his hands onto his worn jeans. “Alright, the tent is up. Now we can make a campfire and relax with some beers.”

Conner has the kindling and logs placed in the firepit that James built out here when he first bought the place. His country house and sixty acres of land are way too much for a single man, but James likes his space. And he likes being out here where it’s quiet.

And I’m more than happy to take advantage of the peace whenever he invites us out to his place.

I throw the sleeping bags and our pillows into the tent along with the flashlights we packed. It’s a four-person tent, so plenty of room for the three of us.

When I look back over my shoulder at James and Conner, I see they have the fire going. We packed plenty of beer, s'mores supplies, and hot dogs to feed us for the night.

It’s barely noon now, but it’s a perfect day for camping. There’s just enough cloud cover to keep us shaded, a cool breeze that tells us fall is creeping in on us, and a large pond that reflects the sky. I’m sure we’ll go fishing in the pond later.

The three of us sink back into the Adirondack chairs surrounding the fire pit, and I breathe out a long sigh. “This is the life.”

Using the edge of my chair, I pop the cap off of my beer and take a drink from it.

“It really is.” James agrees. His eyes are closed, and his ball cap is pulled down over his forehead.

We sit in silence, enjoying the sound of the crackling fire as we sip our beers.

And then I feel two drops of water land on my arm. I whip my head over to look at Conner, thinking he flicked water on me or something.

Conner is looking up at the sky. Even James is alert now, sitting forward in his chair.

“We should’ve listened to Emily.” Conner grimaces.

“Would you quit talking about my sister?”

He rolls his eyes. “I’m serious! She warned us there was a chance of storms today.”

“Only a twenty percent chance!” James says, throwing his hands up.

Conner shrugs. “You never know what Kansas weather is going to do, man.”

The rain picks up from a few drops here and there to a steady sprinkling.

James stands from his seat. “Alright, let’s turn on the radio in the truck and see what they’re saying about the weather.”

Conner and I follow James to his large pickup. I hop in the front seat and Conner gets in the back. James walks around and gets in the driver’s seat, then turns the key in the ignition and flips to a local radio station.

We all listen intently as the meteorologist tells us the chance of storms today has escalated dramatically in the last hour. He also mentions that we’re now in a severe thunderstorm warning, and a flash flood warning.