Page 40 of Camping with the Boss

“Fuck, Can.” He groans and then shakes his head. “Who the hell needs sleep anyway?”

“Not me,” I say with a grin.

“Okay, baby. Are you ready to accept your reward?”

Wednesday, June 11th, 8:30 a.m.

I sleep better than I have in a while. The only negative is that Wade is already up and gone when I wake up. The doubts creep in, but I don’t let them get to me. Mostly because I barely have time to get up and ready before the day begins. It’s already Wednesday. I can’t believe the time is going by so fast. What happens after the retreat? When I return to my safe but utterly boring life?

No time for that either. After a shower, I drag clothes on and run my fingers through my short hair. Good enough.

“Canyon?” Ander’s voice is accompanied by a knock on the door. “Are you up? We’re going down to breakfast.”

Checking that I have my phone—the service is spotty, but I’ve been using the timer—I open the door. “I’m ready. Slept in.”

He nods, and I wonder if they heard us last night. Heard me until Wade put his hand over my mouth to muffle my moans.

I follow them out, trying not to be weird and, yup, making it weird. But Ander and Jared seem to be stuck in some weirdness of their own as they ignore each other. The result is no one is talking.

I’m not in the mood to talk to anyone, so it suits me fine. I glance at my phone. My message to River popped up at some point with a prompt:

This message was sent two daysago.Follow up or dismiss?

Thanks, phone, for pointing out that my brother is still not responding to me. No problem. Just another thing for me to ignore.

The mood in the breakfast hall this morning can only be described as subdued. How late did they all stay up drinking around the campfire?

My eyes search for Wade without my permission. And my heart jumps when I can’t find him. The thoughts bombarding me don’t make sense.He left because of last night.Because of me. But Wade wouldn’t leave. If anything, he’d make me leave. Not that he would do that.

Last night was amazing. And Wade seemed to enjoy it. He enjoyed torturing me, at least.

I focus on my coffee and the bacon on my plate. Sheila shakes her head at my choices, but I need bacon right now. Everyone else seems to be struggling, and then it hits me. Wade usually gives a pep talk in the morning. I catch Jared’s eyes.

“Do you want to um…?” I nod toward the front of the room.

“Me? I’m just a participant. Go for it.”

Great. “Thanks.” I stand and realize I have no idea what to tell them. “Do you know where he is? In case anyone asks?” I laugh and then chastise myself for being so uncool they probably don’t have a name for it.

“Oh yeah. Didn’t we mention it on the way over?”

“No. You and Ander glared at each other on the way over.”

He turns away, rubbing the back of his neck. “Sorry. Wade had to run to Plevna.”

“What?”

“It’s the closest town. He had to get something, I think. He really didn’t say. He left pretty early.” And for some reason, his cheeks get a tinge of pink in them. He darts a look at Ander. But Ander is staring at the front.

“I’ll do it.” Ander stands and is in the front of the room before I can process what’s going on. “Hey, everyone. This is day three of our retreat. I hope you’re enjoying yourselves and getting something useful you can take back to your teams. Wade had to run an errand this morning in town, but he should be back shortly. I’ll lead the goal-setting and brainstorming sessions this morning until he returns, and Canyon will lead our team-building activities. Any questions?”

Lydia’s and Carol’s hands shoot up. Ander doesn’t sigh, but I can tell he wants to. Lydia wants to know if Wade is bringing in other dessert choices. Specifically cherry pie. “Sorry, Lydia. I don’t know.”

Carol waves her hand higher. “Yes, Carol?”

“Are we actually fishing in the mornings?” she asks, her voice starting out soft but then getting louder as she gains confidence. “I was up at five this morning, and no one was there.”

Crap.

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