Married in the Mountains (Camp Hardwood 1)

“Not much to tell.” He pushes off the front counter answering my unspoken question.

“Coffee.” I point to the pot sitting next to him and he shakes his head. I know he doesn’t drink it but it feels weird not offering it.

“She’s got a little bit of a past like yours.” That makes my heart hurt more for her. I grew up in the system and bounced from one foster home to the next. The one thing that was always consistent for me was Camp Hardwood. It’s where I met my husband as a young girl. Even though we came from two different worlds, here we were the same.

He had a family and a name for himself. His mom Betty sent him to Camp Hardwood because in her words, he was being a little prick and needed to be humbled. He claimed after he found me I took care of bringing him down a few pegs.

He was my first everything and I was his up until they pulled me out of the system. I still went to camp every year because it became a part of Ford and me, and then about ten years ago Ford went and bought it. He heard it was going to be closed and he called it our retirement plan. But we had no idea how much work went into running a camp. Sure, we could hire people to handle some of the things we do around here, but we are hands-on and we do this together. We work side by side every day and my heart always hopes we are helping others find their soulmates like we did.

“She’s drifting, but from what I found it’s in her blood to do it. I tracked her parents to a traveling circus. Sometimes she would travel with them, but when it was time for school or they grew tired of her she’d end up back in the system. It’s all a clusterfuck.” Moose shakes his head in disgust.

Who does that to their child? I think it might have been more painful to have known my parents and to actually see them come and go from my life. I can’t imagine what it was like for that poor girl each time they left. She probably doesn’t know what love is. Everyone should know that, and now she has a baby on the way.

“She seems sweet.” I let out a sigh. It says a lot about someone who can go through those things and still have an innocence to them. Moose nods again in agreement. He’s not a man of many words. “Have you seen my husband?”

He points out back and I know without seeing him he’s drinking his coffee sitting on the porch. He hung a swing on it just for us and he always sits there when he’s waiting for me to come out of my office. I’m sure he and Moose already had a talk about the new girl. I told Ford I was going to hire her since I had a feeling. I know it’s silly but when I get a feeling it’s always right.

I tell Moose goodbye before I walk on the porch and find Ford. He opens his arms for me to come and sit next to him and I go.

“Hey, Mrs. Honey,” one of the new kids yells from across the way.

Ford tenses and I roll my eyes, knowing what’s coming. Some things never change.

“Mrs. Cyprus!” he yells back at the boy, who takes off, muttering a half-assed apology behind him.

I don’t know if they do it to poke at my husband or because they truly forget. My name is Honey after all, but my caveman of a husband doesn’t like hearing anyone else call me that. I’m only his Honey, and he makes sure they know it.

Chapter Two

Ford

Honey and I spend our normal few moments of quiet on the porch before I have to go meet with Moose. He’s the ranger at Camp Hardwood and he wants to talk about the outdoor activities we’ve got set up.

This year we’ve hired a couple of new guys to run a zipline course through the trees and a cable bridge over the river. It’s nothing too high or too dangerous, but Moose likes to be extra thorough. I can’t say I don’t agree with his methods, but I trust him to do it on his own. He’s a man of few words, but he wants me to see it with my own eyes before we give it the green light for our campers.

When we get to the edge of the woods we meet up with the adventure crew. They’re the best at what they do, which is why we put them in charge. Moose asks a few questions about the perimeter and security so campers can’t just wander off. After that we test the equipment ourselves and are satisfied to go ahead.