Page 6 of Aim for Love

I agreed to come on what Nora said would be “the most memorable girls trip ever” because I miss my friends. I justdidn’t realize this trip was going to be memorable for the wrong reasons.

three

HUNTER

My boss,Tom, is juggling a box of pastries and a folder of waivers for the tour. I’m not sure why he thought the two of us could handle pick-up alone. As usual, I volunteered before I thought twice. I’m Tom’s go-to guy and I want it to stay that way. One of these days, maybe he’ll notice and…what? Pat me on the back and offer me more money plus benefits? Any of that would be nice.

Tom’s attitude, I guess, has something to do with the overly macho attitude of most of the guys I work with. Never ask one of these dudes “can you do it?” The answer is always yes. Even when it isn’t.

“Can you hold these?” Tom passes over the folder. I smooth it out.

“Roger added some tiny line in there, I don’t even know what, but said they looked good. Ironclad.”

Roger Smith, the only lawyer in town, is over 70 and started practicing law in Telluride after retiring from some firm in Denver. I doubt how on top of things he remains, but I don’t say anything. Both because he’s sitting in the corner of this coffeeshop and I don’t particularly want to drive upstate to some expensive lawyer who might produce the same thing. If people get hurt on our trips, we’ve got bigger problems.

“You two got all that?” Even Dorothy, the coffee shop owner, looks skeptical. She’s passing over the coffee thermos box and a bag of cups, sugar packets, and stirring sticks.

“We’ve got it, right, Hunter?” says my boss, who will never ask for help. I nod in loyal agreement, but give Dorothy a doubtful look.

“Do you want me to carry something? I’m going that way, anyway.”

We turn and there’s Mollie, the woman who struggled the most with axe throwing last night. We deliberately set up this morning’s activities to start late because we knew most people would be out late celebrating the start of their tour-slash-vacation, but Mollie looks awake and clear-eyed. She’s wearing some kind of lip gloss that shines under the coffee shop lights.

When I meet her eyes, her cheeks fill with color and she looks away.

“Don’t worry about us!” Tom says cheerfully, as he balances a paper bag on top of a pastry box and the folder of important papers. He nods at me to get the two thermos boxes of coffee. “We’re actually bringing this to the group. Figured everyone would need a little wake ‘em up before we get started today.”

“Do you want something to drink, dear?” Dorothy asks Mollie. There’s a line out the door, but Dorothy will never let a customer leave thirsty.

“Oh, I’ll just have some of what they’re bringing to the group,” Mollie demurs.

“Well, take one of these at least!” Dorothy pulls a mini muffin out of the case and hands it to Mollie in a napkin. Mollie reaches for her purse. Dorothy waves her off. “You’ll come back after you try that, I’m not worried!”

Mollie turns to walk with us. “That was so nice,” she says when we get out to the sidewalk, looking stunned. She lifts the muffin to her mouth and I watch her take a bite. She’s like a magnet for my eyes.

“Dorothy’s a savvy lady,” Tom says. “First bite’s free, then you’ll be hooked for life!”

“Thisisreally good,” Molly agrees, covering her mouth with one hand as she chews. We start down the side of the street in the direction of the adventure center.

“That’ll have you ready for action!” Tom says cheerfully. Tom is a man who speaks in exclamation points, a very real stereotype of an outdoorsy man who’s used to working with his hands and shouting over great distances. Every time he catches me reading in the main room at the house where we all live—we’re his renters as well as his employees—he gives me a look like I’m masturbating in public. Maybe that’s because, the last time I showed him an interesting line in a book I was reading, he protested that it was all blurry. I’ve been trying to convince him to get reading glasses ever since. I guess they’re not manly enough for him.

“The agenda said today is a prep day?” Mollie looks worried.

“That’s right,” Tom agrees. “Rather than have everybody buy their own gear, we’re loaning you used stuff. That means everyone needs to get fitted. And then…well, I’ll let Hunter tell you about it. This whole tour is his idea.”

“Really?” Mollie turns her focus on me. Her eyes tell me she’s tuned in to my answer, not the distractions of blue sky and fresh air or all the people we’re passing as we walk down the street toward the adventure center on the edge of town.

Since she actually looks interested, I give her a real answer. “I read a book about the subscription model that included a lot about packaging products together. I thought, why wouldn’t that work for experiences, too?”

“He’s on me to launch a membership model, too,” Tom adds, chuckling. To his credit, Tom listens to my ideas—sure, he laughs at them, calling them “modern,” then eventually tries them and they work.

This morning, I’d suggested upgrading our bookkeeping method to a program that tracks all the accounts in one place. He’d shuddered dramatically and said he didn’t want any outside company to have all his information. Last year, I’d convinced Tom to move from paper to a computer spreadsheet, so I figured it was time to make another recommendation. Baby steps.

“I think that’s really smart,” Mollie says softly. She has a voice that makes me lean in to hear her, like she’s not used to people listening.

“So what brought you to the adventure tour?” I ask.

She laughs softly, almost under her breath. “I wanted to be more adventurous, I guess.”

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