Chapter 2

Jackson turned his attention to the right. “Drew?”

“Bob broke into the Dumpster again.”

That made everyone groan. The black bear had a den about five miles into the McKenzie Wilderness Area, but he was fairly desensitized to people and liked coming onto our property and rummaging through the garbage. We always gave him a wide berth, but that didn’t mean Bob afforded us the same courtesy.

“You’ll get a new lock?”

Drew nodded, leaned back, and rested his arm on the back of Everett’s chair. “Yep. I’m heading into town when we’re done. I’ll get it fixed today.”

“I’ll make sure to warn the campers that Bob’s about,” Everett chimed in.

“Thanks. Anything else?”

Drew chewed his lip for a minute, thinking. “One of the showers in the men’s bathroom is leaking. I’m going to try to fix it, but we might have to call a plumber.”

We all looked at Everett, who swallowed the last of his eclair. He reached into the box for another pastry, pulled out a thick cinnamon roll, and set it on the plate in front of Drew. Sliding it a little closer to Drew, he nodded. “That should be fine. We’ve had a really good month, and still plenty in the emergency fund. Still solidly in the black.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. We did a pretty good business—especially with the campgrounds—but money was always a bit of a worry. We were careful. With Everett at the helm of our finances, we had no choice. But his frugality had served us well. The business had been breaking even at least since our sixth month in operation, and our profits had gone up in the past year.

The idea for the business had been Jackson’s, and he’d brought us here to his hometown of Okwaho Lake. The winters were brutal, and the summers hot and humid. But we were together, all five of us, working to make something great. I’d never regretted our decision for a minute. Being with these guys, and getting to do what I loved, was a dream come true.

“And I’ve got some work to do around here, since we have the Carter family reunion booked for this weekend. We’ve got enough spaces for their tents, right?” Jackson glanced at Everett, and the man once again nodded in confirmation. “All right, I think that’s about it. Unless anyone has something else to add.”

Jackson shuffled his papers together, then looked each one of us in the eye. He liked to check, to make sure we were all doing okay. I swore sometimes he could read minds with that dark, penetrating stare of his.

When no one had anything else to say, I stood and stretched. I’d slept like crap the night before—I really needed a new bed—but it was nothing that another cup of coffee and a good hike couldn’t cure. I was looking forward to getting out there. It had been a couple of days since I’d really stretched my legs. We hadn’t had any groups or individuals looking for a guided hike, and when I didn’t have one to lead, I stuck close to the office, messing with Everett and helping out where I could.

“Liam?”

I turned to Jackson, then scowled at his smirk. “What?”

“Make sure you take the big first aid kit.”

“Ha-ha.”

Jackson shook his head. “I’m serious.”

I sighed. “Yeah. I know. But I haven’t had a…mishap in weeks.” I thought for a moment. “It’s been at least three months.”

Everett gasped and whirled around. “Knock on wood. Do it right now!”

I immediately complied, rapping my knuckles on the oak table at which we’d just been sitting. Everett still frowned at me, and I tried hard not to smile back. His superstitions were funny

“You jinxed yourself, you know that?”

“It’ll be fine, Evie. I promise.” I reached to ruffle his hair, but he swatted away my hand as he ducked.

He pointed an accusatory finger at me. “Do nottouch the hair.”

I held up my hands in surrender. “Sorry, princess. I know better.”

He sniffed and turned up his nose. “I really should have a tiara.” Then he put on a show, prancing out of the room. I laughed at his retreating back. I adored him, and I loved teasing him. Fortunately, he never took it seriously, and gave as good as he got.

“He’s probably going to punch you in the face one day,” Drew said.

I nodded. “Well, if he does, I probably deserve it.”

I clapped Drew on the shoulder, then headed to the storeroom where we kept the supplies. After pulling my favorite pack off the shelf, I added water, granola and trail mix, and the big first aid kit. The route I planned would take only about two hours, but I had to be prepared. Low blood sugar and dehydration could happen quickly, even on a less-than-strenuous hike. I tested the weight, rearranged the contents, then tried again. With everything finally well balanced, I carried it into the front room.