I lifted my head to see Re
ardon and Dillon sitting in the rockers on my cabin’s front porch, each of them rocking slightly, giant cups of coffee in their hands.
“Jealous?” I asked Reardon with a grin as I made my way up the steps.
“Bet your ass,” he admitted, causing me to chuckle.
“Let me grab a quick shower and one of those,” I said, indicating his coffee.
“Take your time,” Dillon said, closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the chair. “I’m happy right here.”
True to my word, I was back out on deck seven minutes later with my hair still damp and a steaming mug of java in my hand.
“Ready?” I asked, already walking down the steps.
I heard Dillon groan, but knew they were following me when I heard the creak of the wood porch.
“So, did you have a nice evening?” Reardon asked as he matched his steps to mine.
“Yeah,” I replied vaguely.
“Was everything okay? With Zoey, I mean…” Dillon asked, falling in on my other side. “The girls said she wasn’t mad or anything.”
“No, she wasn’t mad, just got some inspiration for her writing and had to go get it down on paper,” I replied, smiling at the memory of Zoey’s abrupt exit.
“She’s a little nutty,” Reardon said, but just as I was about to reply he added, “I like that about her.”
Rather than taking offense, I agreed, “Yeah, me too.”
“She’s pretty cool,” Dillon put in. “I’m kind of pissed I didn’t arrive sooner.”
I turned to my cousin, one eyebrow raised, and asked, “You think that would have made a difference?”
He looked me up and down, face expressionless, before he grinned and shrugged. “No, probably not. You two seemed to hit it off straight away. I’m happy for you, man.”
“Whoa,” Reardon said, stopping in his tracks. “Happy for him about what? They just met for crying out loud, I wouldn’t be congratulating him just yet.”
“I don’t know,” Dillon responded, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’ve never seen him act like this around other women. I think Zoey’s something special.”
They both turned their eyes to me.
“Oh, are you done talking about me like I’m not here?” I asked sardonically.
Neither of them answered.
I took a deep breath and shrugged.
“I’m not about to go out ring shopping,” I replied, looking the men I trusted most in the eyes. “But Dillon’s right, there’s something different about Zoey. I really like her, and I’d like to get to know her better.”
“So, you think you will see her after she and her nephew leave camp?” Reardon asked. I knew he was only looking out for my best interest, but his disbelief that Zoey and I could have something real was grating my nerves.
“I don’t know, Rear, we haven’t discussed it yet, but … yeah, I’d like to see what we’d be like outside of camp. In the real world.”
“I hope it happens then, Gabe,” Reardon said. “You know I want what you want.”
“I know, man,” I replied, then asked, “Are we done with the heart to heart now?” When they both nodded and we resumed walking I added, “Then let’s get some work done, I have a date this afternoon.”
Chapter Fourteen ~ Zoey