Page 4

CHAPTER 4

JACE

Camp had been in session for almost a week when I finally got the balls to stop by and check in on things. I hadn’t exactly been avoiding Delaney, but I’d intentionally spent most days stopping in at the other park offices in my district to give us a little space. I got the sense she’d be more than willing to go toe to toe with me if it came down to it, and with my ex’s parents pestering me about our upcoming visit to Texas, I didn’t have the energy to take her on.

The kids were seated in a circle when I arrived. Week one was supposed to be all about going over the rules of camp and teaching basic first aid, but Delaney was talking about miniature ecosystems when I stepped into the clearing.

“District Ranger Ramsey, we weren’t expecting you.” She looked up from the log where she was sitting and smiled at me from under the wide brim of her hat. Her tank top left her shoulders and arms exposed. Looked like she’d gotten some sun since she’d been in Tennessee.

My chest warmed. I scowled and clamped my hands to my hips, willing the feeling away. “I was in the area and thought I’d stop by. You’re not working on first aid this week?”

Her smile widened and it felt like a shot of direct sunlight hit me in the gut. “We covered that by the end of day two. Now we’re talking about miniature ecosystems.”

I found it hard to believe she’d covered a week’s worth of first aid info in just two days, especially with a group of kids ranging in age from five to twelve. “Who can tell me what to do if you touch poison ivy?”

A girl younger than Wren raised her hand.

“Go ahead,” Delaney prompted.

“First, don’t freak out,” the girl said. The other kids laughed, but her expression stayed serious. “You’re supposed to wash your hands with soap and water. Cold water,” she clarified.

“What happens if you don’t have soap and water?” I asked.

“Get a wipe from the first aid kit,” she said.

That was an easy one. We’d been drilling that information into their heads since they were old enough to run around the trails. “How about what to do if someone twists their ankle and there’s no adult around?”

Wren rolled her eyes like she knew it was a test, but Eli raised his hand. I ignored him and called on a kid I didn’t recognize.

The kid glanced at Delaney. I expected her to give him a hint, but she just smiled and nodded.

He stood up and ticked the steps off on his fingers. “First, we make them sit down. Miss Delaney said to follow the rice list. R is for rest. I is for ice. C is for,”—his lips screwed up as he tried to remember—“compression. And E is for lifting up their leg.”

“Elevation,” Eli said.

“Right. Elevation.” The boy nodded. “Then we send two people back to find an adult.”

“What do you do if that means leaving the injured person behind?” Delaney prompted.

“You never leave a camper alone,” the kid said. “Then you’d blow a whistle and wait until someone comes to you.”

Well, damn. That was exactly what I would have told them to do, but it didn’t seem possible that she’d managed to cover all the first aid info in just two days.

“Do you have any other questions, or should we get back to talking about miniature ecosystems?” She crossed her arms over her chest and gave me a look like she knew I’d been testing her.

“By all means, go ahead.” I took a seat on a nearby log, both impressed that she’d covered so much and curious about what else she was telling the kids.

Her eyes went wide like she hadn’t expected me to stick around, but she quickly recovered. “Like I was saying, even the tiniest patch of forest can hold its own little world. Everyone come close, I want to show you something.”

The kids got up and crowded around her. I had to stand to see over their heads.

Delaney waited until everyone got settled, then she lifted a medium-sized rock. “Tell me, what do you see?”

“Dirt,” Eli said, making the other kids laugh.

“Look harder,” Delaney said.

Wren studied the exposed earth. “I see moss. Some ants too. They’re carrying little pieces of something.”

Delaney nodded. “Moss holds moisture like a sponge, and the ants might be cleaning up and carrying things away that don’t belong there. What else?”

“A worm,” a boy shouted as he reached for a wriggly earthworm trying to dig back down into the dirt.

“Look, but don’t touch. The worm is like a construction worker who’s turning dead leaves into rich, new soil. Everything you see plays a part in the ecosystem and keeps things running smoothly, just like in a town. Some are helpers, some are builders, but every single one of them is important.”

“Which one of them is like the mailman?” one of the kids asked.

Delaney’s grin widened. She had a way with the kids that made them curious and eager to learn more. Hell, she even had me peering into the spot of darkened earth to see what I could discover. “See those roots there? They carry messages to the plants and trees.”

The forest was quiet with the kids absorbed in nature.

“Everything works together,” Delaney said. “The moss holds in moisture, the bugs break down old leaves, and the fungi feed the trees. Take one part away, and the rest feel it. It’s the same with people. We all keep the system running, even if we don’t always see it.”

Wren rocked back on her heels while the ghost of a smile played over her lips. She flipped open her sketchbook and her pencil flew over the page.

“Why don’t we take a break for lunch then we’ll cool off in the creek after?” Delaney said. “Eli, can you grab the wagon and pass out everyone’s lunch bags?”

I hung back while the kids retrieved their lunches and found a place to sit. My attention was still focused on Wren. She hadn’t moved from the spot where Delaney had lifted that rock. It was like she’d disappeared into another world where I couldn’t reach her. She was so focused on drawing that she didn’t even budge when Delaney crouched down next to her.

Wren never showed her sketches to anyone, but she smiled as Delaney pointed to the page. The two of them stayed bent over like that, their heads practically touching. Every second that passed felt like a hammer strike to my chest. My little girl glowed under Delaney’s attention. As much as it filled my heart to see her smiling, I felt like a fucking failure. Clearly, she needed something I hadn’t been giving her. Something a stranger could see so easily that was lacking.

At one point, Delaney lifted her head and found me still standing next to the trunk of a rigid old pine. Her eyes softened at the edges like she could read my fucking mind.

Then Eli stopped by to hand his sister her lunch and the connection was broken. I shook myself out of whatever the hell happened between us, vowing that I’d find a way to forge my own bond with Wren. She didn’t need to rely on a woman who barely knew her, who’d be gone by the end of the summer.

I pushed away from the tree and stepped closer to where Eli and Wren had settled to eat their lunches. Wren’s sketchbook was closed next to her, and Eli was trying to barter his baby carrots for his sister’s chocolate chip cookie.

“Are you having a good time at camp?” I asked.

Wren looked up and smiled. “Miss Delaney said we’re going to start field journaling next week. She asked me if I wanted to teach some of the other kids how to draw.”

“That’s great, sweetie. Maybe you can show me some of your drawings when we get home tonight.” I didn’t want to push her too far too fast, but if she’d been willing to open up to a stranger, hopefully she’d be able to share with her own dad.

Her smile faded a bit. “They’re not really ready yet, Dad.”

“Hey, do they have fly fishing in Texas?” Eli interrupted.

“Yeah, they’ve got plenty of rivers down there.” I tried to keep my voice light, but my stomach twisted with the reminder that we’d be headed to Texas later this summer. I’d been back with the kids a few times since their mom and I split to visit my foster mother, but this would be the first time their grandparents wanted them to stay at their ranch. I’d tried not to let my concern show. Even though their mother had walked out on them, Eli and Wren deserved to know her side of the family. I just didn’t know what might come from it. That door had been closed for so long, I was afraid to crack it open.

“Oh, are you going to Texas soon?” Delaney stopped by with a bottle of sunscreen and squirted a little bit in the kids’ hands.

“At the end of the summer,” Eli said as he smeared the white lotion all over his face. “We’re going to visit our Grandma and Grandpa Rivers.”

It wasn’t exactly a secret, but I didn’t need my personal business spread all over town. “It’ll be a quick trip,” I added, hoping that would be the end of the conversation.

“If you’ll be anywhere near Big Bend, you should check it out. I haven’t had a chance to visit yet, but it’s like three parks in one,” Delaney said.

“What do you mean?” That caught Eli’s attention. He was always interested in the next big adventure.

“You’ve got access to the desert, forest, and the river right there. Plus, it’s so dark at night that you’re guaranteed to see more stars than you could count in an entire lifetime.” Her eyes lit up as she talked about it. We might have a different approach to our jobs, but deep down she was just as much of an outdoor enthusiast as I was.

“Can we go, Dad?” Eli bounced onto his toes.

“We’ll have to see. It’s half a state away from where your grandparents are.” Maybe I’d head out to Big Bend while they visited with their grandparents. It might be enough to distract me from worrying about things.

“You’d love it there,” Delaney said to Wren. “The rock formations have so many different colors and layers. You could probably spend days getting the right color combinations in your sketchbook.”

That was enough. I didn’t need the summer camp counselor filling my kids’ heads with ideas that I wouldn’t be able to follow through on.

“Do you think we could go?” Wren turned toward me, her entire face filled with hope.

I silently cursed Delaney as I crouched down in front of my daughter. “I’m not sure about this summer, but I promise I’ll take you there someday. How’s that?”

She tugged her bottom lip into her mouth and the hope faded away. “Sure, Dad.”

I felt the need to say something, but I couldn’t find the right words. So instead of reaching out and trying to forge a stronger connection, I straightened up and cleared my throat.

“Guess I’ll see the two of you later. Be careful in the creek. Watch your step because?—”

“The rocks are slippery,” Eli finished for me. “We know.”

“I’ll keep an eye on everyone,” Delaney reassured me.

No doubt she would. And wedge her way between me and my daughter in the process. I was being ridiculous, but I couldn’t help it. Seemed like the canyon between me and Wren had widened even further in the past half hour.

I’d always done what I thought was best for my kids. Even before their mom walked out, I put them first and made sure they never wanted for anything. Somehow, after watching a stranger interact with my daughter for less than an hour, that no longer seemed like enough.