Second Chance Summer

Chapter 1-1

Chapter 1

“I’VE NEVER SEEN ANYBODY so excited to ride a bus before.”

Audrey Graham gave a little bounce on the vinyl-covered bench seat, strangely delighted with the squeak of springs. “I’ve never been on one. I mean, not a school bus. Just the public transit kind.”

Beside her, Samantha Ferguson, her partner in this adventure, chuckled and grabbed hold of the seat in front of them for balance as the bus lurched through a pot hole. “Whatever floats your boat, sugar.”

“If you’re looking for an authentic school bus ride, I can always start a spitball fight.” This came from the guy who’d twisted around from the next seat up. The mop of sandy hair and smattering of freckles across his cheeks made him look several years younger than he probably was. He stuck out a hand. “Charlie.”

Was this what camp was like? All first names all the time? It was so different from the formality and pretentiousness of academia.

“Audrey. And this is Sam.” They all shook hands.

“Where are you from?” Charlie asked.

“Little bitty town in northeast Tennessee called Eden’s Ridge,” Sam replied. “Though most recently Chattanooga. I teach at a small, private college there. So does Audrey.”

For now. “I’m originally from Kansas City, though.”

“Long Island. I work in Manhattan these days.”

“Yeah? What do you do?” Audrey asked, unable to imagine this golden retriever of a man amid the stiff suits and stuffed shirts.

“I’m an assistant editor at Macmillan.”

Sam brightened. “Yeah? What genre?”

“Don’t laugh. Romance.”

“Now you’ve done it,” Audrey warned. “The book monster has awoken. Sam’s an English Lit professor and romance aficionado.”

“Really? I’d have thought you’d turn your nose up at romance.”

“No way. I love it. I even teach a class on the development of the genre and its relation to feminist theory.”

Audrey hid a smile as the two launched into an animated discussion of favorite authors. She had no idea if there were any prospective sparks there, but at least Sam had found a kindred spirit.

“Are you two returning campers to Camp Firefly Falls?” Charlie’s question pulled her attention back to the conversation.

“First timers,” Sam told him. “Audrey here is a summer camp virgin.”

Audrey felt her cheeks heat with a blush and had no idea why. It wasn’t like she was that kind of virgin.

Not exactly far off… her brain reminded her.

Shut up.

“No s**t? Well, the Retro Session is definitely the way to go to get the experience,” Charlie said. “I came here every summer, when I was a kid. Got super pumped when I found out it’d been turned into a camp for grown-ups.”

“Me too I’m tackling some entries on my bucket list lately, and when I heard about Camp Firefly Falls, it seemed like an opportunity to knock a few out in one fell swoop.” Which was the most understated way Audrey could possibly explain her reasons for being here. But spilling her guts to a complete stranger on the camp bus as they drove up from New York was not one of those bucket list items.

“So you’ve never been to camp, and you went to camp somewhere else?” Charlie asked, looking from Audrey to Sam.

“Hale River Camp and Farm, in North Alabama,” Sam replied.

“That’s a long way from the Berkshires. How’d you hear about Camp Firefly Falls?”

The flash of phantom pain in her legs kept Audrey from answering immediately. Riding the wave, she forced a smile. “Oh, someone I met once mentioned coming here as a kid. I guess the name stuck in my head.”

“I’m just along for the ride and to get my nostalgia on,” Sam put in. “I loved camp. Went every year, from the time I was seven—camper through counselor.”

She and Charlie fell back into easy conversation, and Audrey let them, focusing instead on breathing through the ache. The novelty of the bus ride was wearing thin. She’d been sitting too long and her legs were beginning to cramp up. A walk would be in order as soon as they got their stuff dumped at the cabin. Maybe a stroll along Lake Waawaatesi. It had looked so picturesque in the promo photos online.

From the back of the bus, someone began to sing “She’ll Be Comin’ Round The Mountain” as they turned onto the long, winding road that would, according to the map Audrey had studied, lead up to Camp Firefly Falls. They were nearly there. Then she’d have two, long, glorious weeks with no cell phone, no email, no reminders of the career decisions she still needed to make. Two weeks to relax. Two weeks to take life by the horns and really live it. Which meant pushing herself out of her comfort zone. She’d become an expert at pushing herself the last two years. More than she ought to, according to her parents, but what did they know? If she’d listened to them, she wouldn’t have anything resembling a life anymore.

Well, okay, that wasn’t entirely fair. They meant well. They’d always meant well. But it was her life, and she was finally going to live it. Going to camp was just the latest in a long line of small rebellions. Who knew that she, of all people, would develop a taste for defiance at the ripe old age of twenty-seven? But was it enough to change her life over? That was part of what she was here to figure out. Maybe, by the end of session, she’d finally know what she wanted.

Abruptly, the lush green trees opened up and the bus turned beneath an arched sign that read Camp Firefly Falls.

“We’re here!” Audrey couldn’t keep the excitement from her voice.

A cheer swept the bus as they pulled into a gravel parking lot, where a blonde woman with a pony tail stood behind a folding card table, surrounded by a handful of staff members in Camp Firefly Falls t-shirts. Audrey was on her feet the moment they rolled to a stop. Her legs protested the rapid movement, and she had to grab Charlie’s seat to catch her balance.

Sam slipped an arm around Audrey’s waist to steady her. “Okay?”

“Just stiff. Let’s get out.”

They edged into the aisle and filed off the bus with the other campers. A couple of other staff members circled around to the back and began offloading luggage as Audrey, Sam, and the others got in a loose line at the table to register and pick up their cabin assignments.

“Hi!” The blonde offered up a wide smile. “I’m Heather Tully. My husband and I own the camp. Welcome!”

“We’re so excited to be here. I’m Audrey Graham, and this is Samantha Ferguson.”

“Excellent. You’re in Cabin 7.”

“Lucky number,” Sam pronounced.

If this were one of the camp movies Audrey had binge watched before coming, some guy would make a crude joke about getting lucky in Cabin 7. Apparently, the Camp Firefly Falls alums were a little more discreet. Or maybe real life was less salacious than the movies.

“Now, if you’ll just turn in your cell phones. We’ll keep them locked up at the lodge, so no worries something might happen to them.” Heather held out zip top bags with their names scrawled out in marker.

“No cell phones?” Sam asked, digging in her purse.

“It’s a new rule we’re trying out for the Retro Session. Cell phones weren’t a thing back when we were kids at camp, and we’re trying to get back to that feel as much as we can.”

“Sign me up. I can’t remember the last time I went a day without hearing a phone ring.” Sam slipped her phone into the bag.

Audrey sent one last text off to her mom. Arrived at camp safely. No phones allowed. I’ll talk to you in two weeks. Then she powered down and slid her phone into the other bag. Two whole weeks where her parents couldn’t pressure her about Berkeley. That sounded like heaven.

Heather pulled out a map for each of them and circled Cabin 7. “If you head just up that trail and take the left fork, past the dining hall, you’ll find your cabin ready and waiting. Dinner’s going to be served at six, and we’re having a little opening night mixer at the boat house starting at seven-thirty. Come ready to dance!”

Audrey took her map. “We’ll be there with bells on.”