He went on. “He wasn’t a Campbell, but damn, we wanted him in with us. Nick was reckless, a tough fighter, but also loyal. He died not long after he dropped out of high school, getting tangled up with some local drug kingpins. It drew the rest of us tighter together.” He cleared his throat. “So, you know, a bunch of us stayed local. Still get together for Saturday basketball, regular cookouts. Some of them coach in the Police Athletic League to mentor the younger kids.”
His words of a tight brotherhood weren’t matching the feeling radiating off him, which was longing and sadness.
“You okay?” she asked.
“Yeah.” He flashed a smile that didn’t fool her for a minute, but she didn’t know him well enough to pry.
“Hailey says there’s cake,” she informed him brightly.
“Nice. I didn’t even look in the cooler. What kind?”
“No idea.”
“Hey, any kind is good. She sure knows how to make a good blind date.”
She couldn’t disagree. They turned deeper into the woods. Josh asked her questions about her family, and she didn’t have to lie. Her background was humble enough, moving from army base to army base every two to three years around the world. Turned out his family had a history of army service too. His dad got out while Josh was still young, so he didn’t move around a lot like she did. She and her older brother by four years, Rich, had to work hard to find their way in each new place. Her brother had sports. She had acting, though she left that part out. Her time spent trying to fit in as a kid was in many ways the key to her acting. Her mom had encouraged her, signing her up for acting classes whenever possible. She shared the part of her she could share, telling him of her love for books.
He smiled and nodded. “Figured you were into books since you’re in a book club.”
They reached the end of the trail a short while later and stood in a grassy clearing overlooking a bubbling brook. A couple of dark green metal picnic tables and a well-used grill caked with black charcoal stood to one side. The grill was kind of gross; hopefully they didn’t need to cook anything. They had the place all to themselves. It seemed a Monday date was great for avoiding being seen. She’d have to remember that.
Josh headed for the picnic table with the most shade and set the cooler on top. She set the blanket on the bench, figuring they didn’t need it with the table. She peeked in the cooler as Josh started unpacking it. Hailey had outdone herself. Two bottles of white wine, three kinds of cheese, grapes, a baguette, and a huge slice of chocolate cake. No cooking, thank goodness. There were also plates, plastic wineglasses, napkins, plastic forks and knives, a corkscrew, and some bottled waters. The woman had gone above and beyond and Claire couldn’t thank her enough. What a thoughtful gesture.
She took out a couple of bottled waters and then the wine. “I didn’t want to come at first, but I’m glad I did.”
He smiled, making crinkles form at the corners of his eyes. She liked that, like he probably laughed a lot. “Me too,” he said warmly.
Her heart thumped a little harder. She dipped her head shyly the way Jenny would, but mostly because she wanted to hide the flush she could feel on her cheeks. She felt almost buzzed, though they hadn’t opened the wine, every nerve ending alert and tingling. Was it the freedom of moving around without the crush of people? Or was it the magic of a date with Josh?
She took a sip of water. Then she uncorked the chilled white wine and poured them both a glass. She sat at the table as Josh set all the food out and tucked the cooler away. He sat across from her and lifted his wineglass to hers.
“To Hailey,” he said.
She clinked his glass and accidentally knocked it too hard, making it slosh over his hand. “Oops!”
“Don’t worry about it,” he said with a laugh. He sucked wine off his hand and she suddenly wished she was the one lapping it up.
“To Hailey,” she said.
They drank.
She was starving after their workout and snagged a hunk of havarti cheese, taking a bite.
He held up his glass again.
Her mouth was full of cheese. She chewed quickly. “Another toast?”
“Yeah.”
She grabbed her glass and held it up.
“To you, Jenny. Just the sweetness I needed today.”
“Aww,” she said around the cheese. She couldn’t afford to be sweet most days or people would take advantage. It was nice to play sweet Jenny. She chewed some more and swallowed. “Thank you. You’re sweet too. I’ve never had the gentleman treatment before.”
“Well, you should.”