When Mom Meets Dad (11 page)

On the ladder, her arms stretched as she smoothed out Heather's bedroll, Amanda felt self-conscious, and she straightened.  She couldn't ignore Alex's gaze passing from her feet, up her legs, over her knit top, to her face.  And she felt herself blushing.  Damn the man.  You're on your way to forgetting him, remember, she chided herself.

Kristy tossed her state-of-the-art sleeping bag onto the bottom bunk and sat down beside it.  "Isn't this just too cool, Dad?"

He ran his hand across his brow.  "Actually, it's pretty hot.  Are you sure you're going to be able to sleep at night without air conditioning?"

"I'll be fine, Dad," Kristy told him patiently as if she'd been doing it longer than just today.

Awkwardness filled the cabin as no one spoke.  "Hello, Amanda," Alex said.

Finished with fixing the bedroll, she climbed down the ladder carefully.  All she needed was to fall on her face in front of him.  "Hello, Alex."  She didn't have anything else to say, and it was obvious neither did he.

Heather filled the gap.  "We'd better get over to the dining hall, don't you think?"

Crossing to the door, Kristy agreed.  "Yeah, we don't want to be late."

Amanda picked up the purse she'd laid on Kristy's bunk and followed the two girls out the door.  Although Kristy and Heather jabbered about all the things they were going to do for the next week, Amanda and Alex were silent.  When they reached the dining hall, she saw that folding chairs had been set up in the empty area in the back of the room.  Parents and their children had filled in the rows.  Kristy and Heather went ahead and found four chairs.  To Amanda's dismay, the girls sat on either end, which left her in the middle with Alex.  Both of them made sure no part of their bodies touched.

She had never felt more awkward.

Not a bit of breeze stirred through the long screens, and Amanda's shirt stuck to her back.  Feeling perspiration at her temples, she pulled a hair band from her purse, and gathered her hair into a ponytail.  With it off of her neck, she felt a little cooler.  That helped her composure as her arm accidentally brushed Alex's.  Her gaze smacked into his, and her throat suddenly got tight.  What had she done wrong?  Why was he acting so distant?  But those were questions her pride kept her from asking.  She looked away, trying to concentrate on bits of conversation floating around her or just the chatter of the children.  She wished they'd get the orientation under way.  She wasn't anxious to leave Heather, but she would be glad to get this over with and escape Alex's presence.

"We saw you at the fireworks," he suddenly said.

She supposed making small talk would be easier than sitting there in the tension.  "Did you?  The next day, Heather told me that Kristy was there, but I didn't see you."

"You were busy.  With Livingston."

The tone of Alex's voice puzzled her.  Certainly, he couldn't be jealous.  Yet, if there was the slightest possibility...  "We enjoyed the fireworks together."

"I see."

"With Heather gone this week, he thought I'd enjoy going to a movie on Friday.  I'm looking forward to it."

Alex gave her a long look, then crossed his arms over his chest and stared straight ahead.

So much for small talk being better than tension!

Finally the activities coordinator stepped up to the microphone.  After explaining the daily schedule, rules and regulations, she talked about Parents' Day next Saturday, encouraging all the parents to join in the activities with their children.  After asking the parents to take their children back to their respective cabins where they could say good bye, she closed the session.

Back at the cabin, Kristy and Heather met their counselor for the week, and Amanda felt tears prick in her eyes.  It was so hard to leave Heather here.  But she knew it was good for both of them.  Finally when it was time to go, she said, "Use the phone card and call me whenever you want."

"Mom, I'm gonna be busy.  Is it okay if I don't call?"

Amanda smiled.  "Yes, it's fine."

Amanda saw Alex slipping Kristy some money to tuck away safely.  She had already done that.  After giving their daughters hugs, she and Alex headed for the parking lot.

She wanted to talk to Alex as she had before.  She wanted to tell him how much she was going to miss her daughter.  But he didn't seem open to conversation.  Still, they weren't strangers, either.

As she motioned to her car, she said, "I'm over there."

He stopped beside her for a moment.  "I'm parked at the other end.  I guess I'll see you on Parents' Day."

"I guess so."  There was nothing else to say, so she walked toward her car until she heard his voice over her shoulder.  "Good bye, Amanda."

Facing him, she responded, "Good bye, Alex."

As she opened her car door, she felt very sad.  Something had ended, and she didn't know why.

***

Parents' Day at Camp Rocky Top looked like chaos.  But Alex realized it was organized chaos.  When he arrived a little after noon and received his schedule of events, he realized he'd be paired with his daughter most of the day.  That was fine with him.  He hoped they didn't run into Amanda too often.  Thinking about her dating Ted Livingston made his blood boil.  Most of the day while he kept busy, he could forget about her.  Yet at night when he lay in the dark staring at the ceiling, all he could think about was her smile, the softness of her skin, the silkiness of her hair, and the sensual pleasure of her kisses.

But he just wasn't sure he was ready to open himself and Kristy up to the possibility of getting hurt again.  What if it didn't work out with him and Amanda?  What if she walked away like Kristy's mother had?  The price of having a woman in bed beside him every night was just too high to pay.

Kristy led Alex to the field where the relay races were going to take place, and that's when he realized trying to forget about Amanda would be impossible.  Apparently the teams were arranged according to the girls' cabins; therefore, he, Kristy, Amanda and Heather were on the same team.  He couldn't help glancing at Amanda often.  She wore a pink tank top and white shorts that left bare enough leg to more than whet his appetite.  She wore her hair in a ponytail again, and the style made her look younger and very desirable.  But she didn't look his way whenever he looked in her direction.  She was ignoring him, and it annoyed him.  Had Livingston kissed her after the fireworks?  What about after their date last night?  And had she responded with as much fire as with--

That train of thought would drive him crazy.  So as best he could, he concentrated on the relay races--first a sprint with a baton, then a three-legged race with a burlap sack.  When it came time to toss water balloons, he almost looked forward to getting wet in the afternoon heat.  But after a few tosses, the balloon landed at Kristy's feet and neither of them got the benefit of a water splash.

The parents and children had a choice on the next activity.  They could either join a group for a nature walk or explore caverns on the west boundary of the property.  Kristy wanted Alex to see the caves she'd toured earlier in the week.  And as they began their trek across the softball field, Amanda and Heather joined their group.  Three counselors led them at an easy pace.

As they walked, Kristy gave Alex a play-by-play of everything she had seen and done that week.  When he glanced at Heather talking animatedly to Amanda, not far behind them, he guessed that she was doing the same.  It was obvious the girls had had a terrific time.  This camp had been a good choice, and he owed Kristy's successful week to Amanda's persistent avowal that lots of money didn't always buy the best.

They hiked into a hilly area, and Alex could see mountains rising up ahead of them.  Soon he saw the counselors stop at the cave's entrance.  Less than half of the campers and their parents had joined this group, most preferring the nature hike.  He watched Amanda as she approached the cave, and he saw her hesitate.  Some sixth sense that kicked in where she was concerned told him she'd rather not go inside.  But then she gazed down at her daughter, and a look of determination came over her pretty face.  He guessed she'd do anything in her power for Heather, just as he would do anything for Kristy.   When they stepped inside the cave, the counselors handed each one of them a flashlight from a box on the cave floor.  Alex noticed the cooler temperature immediately as one of the counselors who served as a guide explained that the caverns were a constant fifty-two degrees.  It felt good to get in out of the hot sun.  Their flashlights created both light and shadows as the children played them up and down the walls, and they entered a series of "rooms."  When he looked back at Amanda, she was standing quite still, and he could swear she closed her eyes.  But they soon moved on, and she laid her hand on Heather's shoulder.

In one chamber, damp drops from above deposited calcite, one grain at a time, onto stalagmites on the floor.  Flowstone slipped down the walls, creating formations that almost looked like pictures.  The children pointed out imagined shapes of birds and animals they'd found earlier in the week.  Kristy told him they weren't supposed to touch the formations on the walls because the oil from skin formed a barrier that prevented the flowstone from making further pictures.

When the group moved into a larger room that had been dubbed "Community Hall," Amanda and Heather somehow ended up beside him.  As he glanced at Amanda, she nervously fiddled with her flashlight.  He let her and Heather precede him through a stone hall that led to a smaller chamber.  Before them, was a pool of pure crystal water.  Stalactites above reflected in its surface, making it seem deep and mysterious.  But Kristy told him there was only about three inches of water there.  He was amazed at the amount of information she'd absorbed about the different types of minerals and rocks that she could now identify.  Though he listened, he was all too aware of Amanda in front of him.  He saw her rub her arms, and he wondered if she was cold.

Nothing about the caves had seemed dangerous or daunting up to this point, but he sensed a jitteriness about Amanda that was uncharacteristic.  The counselor stopped them before they entered another hallway, explaining that the floor was sandy, and there were ropes along the sides.  They should be careful and walk single file so they would all stay safe.  Alex realized the inside of the cave would be blacker than the deepest night if they didn't have their flashlights.  Everyone shone their beams straight ahead so they could see exactly where they were going.  Kristy was ahead of him, and Amanda was ahead of her.  The group thinned out as the hallway led into four separate chambers.

Heather headed for the left, and said, "Wait until you see this, Mom.  It's so cool.  But you have to duck your head--"

Suddenly Amanda stopped at the entrance to the small chamber, and as Alex lifted his flashlight to see what had halted her, he saw her face.

"I can't, Heather.  I can't go in there."

"But, Mom..."

Amanda looked stricken, and Alex immediately knew what was going on.  He said to Kristy, "Take Heather and go over to the counselor.  We'll meet you outside."

"But, Dad..."

"Do what I said Kristy.  Amanda doesn't feel well.  I'm going to take her outside."

Heather looked up at Amanda.  "Mom?"

"Go with Kristy over to the counselor, Heather.  I'll be fine.  Really.  I'll be fine."  Her words were rushed, and she didn't look fine.

Alex nudged Heather and Kristy to the other chamber and saw Amanda make a mad dash ahead of him back the way they had come, through children and the other parents.

"Amanda," he called, but she kept going.

Determined to keep up with her, he wove in and out of the group until finally she was running a few feet in front of him.

"Amanda, be careful," he warned.  But almost as soon as the words came out of his mouth, she tripped and fell hard, her flashlight flying away from her.  When she tried to get up she winced, and she would have kept hobbling forward except Alex stopped her.

"Alex, I have to get out of here," she said with tears in her voice.

"I know," he murmured, sweeping her up into his arms and carrying her swiftly through the caverns, his flashlight guiding his way.

Adrenaline pumped.  Alex's heart pounded, and he couldn't bear the thought of Amanda being afraid or hurt.  He could feel the tension and panic in her body and suspected she was holding her breath and trying not to cry.  Holding her protectively against him, he could feel the beat of her heart.

Finally he burst through the cave's entrance into the startlingly bright sunshine.  Stopping a few feet away from it, he didn't put Amanda down.  He felt her take a few deep breaths.  Finally, her blue eyes found his, her face turned red, and she pushed against him so he'd let her down.

But he decided he wasn't about to let her go.  Not yet.  His head dipped to hers, his lips covered hers, and he kissed her fervently.  The kiss was filled with everything he couldn't say, everything he needed to say, everything he didn't want to say.

This time she broke away and pushed at his shoulders again.  Instead of looking panicked, she looked very indignant and confused.  "You don't call, you don't come around for two weeks and then you kiss me as if--"

"As if that's all I've been thinking about for two weeks?" he finished.

One of the counselors emerged from the cave with Kristy and Heather, all of them looking worried until they saw Amanda in Alex's arms.  Then the two girls grinned.

Heather asked, "Are you okay, Mom?"

"I'll be fine if Alex puts me down," she mumbled.

But Heather noticed her mom's leg.  "You're all scraped up."

"I tripped as I was hurrying to get out.  I'm sorry, Heather.  I just got...claustrophobic in there.  It just hit me."

"It's okay, Mom.  We saw most of the cave.  And besides--"  She looked up at Alex.  "It's neat that Mr. Woodsides saved you."

Alex chuckled at Amanda's expression of dismay, but then seriously in a low voice he said, "We have to talk, Amanda.  But I think it would be better if we did it later, somewhere quiet when everybody isn't watching."