Between Sisters

Behind them, the screen door screeched open. A group of children burst through the door laughing, followed by six adults.

Happy slid a key across the desk. “You can fill out the paperwork later. I have a feeling this is a group of site hunters. They’ll want a photo tour of each site before they commit. ”

Claire understood. The River’s Edge Resort had only a minimum number of campsites—nineteen—and she doled out the good ones carefully. If she liked the guest, she put them near the restrooms and the river. If not . . . well, it could be a long walk to the toilets on a rainy night. She slapped the worn pine counter. “Come over for drinks one night. ”

“With you crazy girls?” Happy grinned. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world. ”

Claire handed Alison the key. “Here you go, Ali Kat. You’re in charge. Show us the way. ”

With a yelp, Ali was off. She zigzagged through the now-crowded lobby and burst outside. This time her feet slapped the porch steps.

Claire hurried along behind her. As soon as they’d gotten their luggage from the car, they raced across the expanse of lawn, past the boat-rental shed, and plunged into the trees. The ground here was hard-packed dirt, carpeted with a hundred years’ worth of pine needles.

Finally, they came to the clearing. A silvery wooden dock floated on the wavy blue water, tilting from side to side in a gentle rocking motion. Far out, across the lake, a white condo grouping sat amid the golden humps of the distant foothills.

“Clara Bella!”

Claire tented a hand over her eyes and looked around.

Gina stood at the shoreline, waving.

Even from here, Claire could see the size of the drink in her friend’s hand.

This would be Gina’s intervention week. Usually Gina was the conservative one, the buoy that held everyone up, but she’d finalized her divorce a few months ago and she was adrift. A single woman in a paired-up world. Last week, her ex-husband had moved in with a younger woman.

“Hurry up, Ali!” That was Gina’s six-year-old daughter, Bonnie.

Alison dropped her Winnie-the-Pooh backpack and peeled off her clothes.

“Alison—”

She proudly showed off her yellow bathing suit. “I’m ready, Mommy. ”

“Come here, honey,” Gina said, pulling out an industrial-size plastic tube of sunscreen. Within moments, she’d slathered Alison all over and released her.

“Don’t go in past your belly button,” Claire said, dropping their suitcases right there, in the sand.

Alison grimaced. “Aw, Mommy,” she whined, then ran for the water, splashing in to join Bonnie.

Claire sat down beside Gina in the golden sand. “What time did you get here?”

Gina laughed. “On time, of course. That’s one thing I’ve learned this year. Your life can fall apart, frigging explode, but you’re still who you are. Maybe even more so. I’m the kind of woman who gets someplace on time. ”

“There’s nothing wrong with that. ”

“Rex would disagree. He always said I wasn’t spontaneous enough. I thought it meant he wanted sex in the afternoon. Turns out he wanted to skydive. ” She shook her head, gave Claire a wry smile. “I’d be happy to shove him out of the plane now. ”

“I’d rig his parachute for him. ”

They laughed, though it wasn’t funny. “How’s Bonnie doing?”

“That’s the saddest part of all. She barely seems to notice. Rex was never home anyway. I haven’t told her that he moved in with another woman, though. How do you tell your kid something like that?” Gina leaned against Claire, who slipped an arm around her friend’s ample body. “God, I needed this week. ”

They were silent for a long moment. The only sound between them was the slapping of the water against the dock and the girls’ high-pitched laughter.

Gina turned to her. “How have you done it all these years? Been alone, I mean?”

Claire hadn’t thought much about her solitude since Alison’s birth. Yes, she’d been alone—in the sense that she’d never been married or lived with a man, but she rarely felt lonely. Oh, she noticed it, ached sometimes for someone to share her life, but she’d made that choice a long time ago. She wouldn’t be like her mother. “The upside is, you can always find the TV remote and no one bitches at you to wash the car or park in the perfect spot. ”