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If Cisco had simply said he wouldn’t go there, Hilly might have called him on it. But the man had said he was skeeved, which meant he felt the wrongness of it in the right kind of way.
Hilly knew it was time to give up her over-the-top cranky attitude, and offered him a tentative, tepid smile. “I’m sorry if I implied that you’d take advantage. I wasn’t questioning you. I was simply worried about the dynamics of some uncontrollable teens fixating on you, your uniform, your bike…”
Shit. She was talking too much.
Cisco tilted his head and gave a wry twist of his lips as he studied her. “Then why do I still feel like you’ve got me on probation?”
“I’m…” How much did Hilly want to share without cluing him in to who she really was? Not that she thought her identity would remain a secret forever. Her parents loved to visit the camp, and at some point, they might run into Cisco. Even though he’d never laid eyes on them, it was possible Cisco and her mother might get talking and blow everything up.
Thinking it through, however, it was more likely it would be her new chef, Ellen Sothard who would inadvertently spill the beans. Ellen’s sons worked alongside Cisco, not only on the police department, but on their SWAT team.
Yeah. Guilty as charged. She’d kept track of him.
Ellen would, no doubt at some point, make some innocent comment like, “didn’t you two go to school together?”, then Hilly’s entire cloak of anonymity would be yanked off.
Maybe she could nip the potential problem in the bud by swearing Ellen to secrecy. She’d have to share some of her story—which she hated to do—but it probably would be the only way to see if Ellen would be amenable to keeping her secret.
Cisco was watching her closely as she thought things through, and she finally answered his question with a partial truth.
“I’ve had more than my share of run-ins with bossy men,” Hilly began, remembering that just this morning she’d had another dust-up with that pesky developer. “And this being my camp, I don’t have any wish to be mansplained to, or micromanaged on my own turf. And no offense, but you seem like a man who likes to be in charge.”
Cisco held up both hands as if in surrender. “Not a problem. I promise I won’t try to take over, nor will I go outside any boundaries you set up regarding my participation here. I’m completely at your mercy when I’m on site.”
Hilly quickly dismissed the erotic picture that conjured, but concentrated on the real meaning behind his declaration. And really? What more could Hilly ask for?
Ummm. One thing. A middle-school do-over. But that obviously couldn’t happen, and any current awkwardness between them now was all on her. Try as she might to dismiss it, Cisco’s presence reminded her of the pudgy, graceless kid she’d once been; worshipping him from afar and dreaming he’d be the knight in shining armor who’d one day keep her bullies at bay.
That hadn’t happened…except for a time or two that had seemed random.
Still, she’d survived.
Now she had to remember the confident woman she’d become, let the past go, and accept Cisco onto her camp team.
She sucked up a breath. “I owe you an apology,” she managed. “I’ve been judging you…unfairly. If it’s okay, I’d like to start over.”
She put on her brightest smile. Even though it was somewhat forced, there was part of it, down deep, that felt sincere, and maybe he’d recognize that. “Hi Cisco. I’m Hilly. I’m so glad you could help out this year at Camp Venture. I just know you’re going to be a wonderful addition to our curriculum.” She stuck out her hand.
Was that appreciation in Cisco’s eyes as he returned her smile and took her offered palm in a warm shake?
“Pleased to meet you, Hilly. I’m Cisco, and I look forward to spending time here and helping in any way I can to make a positive impact on your campers’ lives.”
He said it so sincerely, Hilly could do nothing but believe him. Even though, as a clueless young teen, he hadn’t saved her from all the bullies, it looked like he’d grown up with his heart and his head in the right place, ready to champion her fearful campers.
Hilly’s gut, however, was screaming “danger, danger”; that the man looking oh-so-fine in front of her, would upend all her hard-won nonchalance where the opposite sex was concerned. But that same roiling region of her belly was also doing excited flip-flops, knowing that she’d be seeing a lot of Cisco and his lusciousness over the next two months.
He interrupted her semi-inappropriate musings, which was a good thing.
“Now that I’m here, can I help you with anything? More set-up of any kind?” Cisco asked, looking around, and thank God, clueless to what she’d been thinking.
Nope. Not happening. Hilly needed at least a few days to come up with the bland face she’d have to don around Cisco. Having him up close and in her space this very afternoon wouldn’t give her any time to conjure a calm visage
“Thanks, but I?—”
A scrabbling noise and a fast-approaching blur brought her up short before she squealed and knelt down.
“Nel!” She opened her arms wide, and forty pounds of fur jumped into them, flattening her to her back while she laughed and hugged. “Hi, baby. Hi,” she repeated, rolling on the ground and scruffing her pup like it had been far more that two days since she’d last seen her. “Who’s a good girl? Mama missed you,” she crooned.
Once the licking and wagging had settled down, Hilly blinked up at her audience which had increased by one. “Papa-J. What are you doing here? I didn’t expect you until tomorrow.”