Page 18 of Roughing It

Her tiny fist bumps against my bicep. “Ha ha, you’re hilarious.”

Thirty seconds of glorious silence pass. Hopefully we’re done with the Q&A portion of the night.

“What about you?”

Nope. More questions. Sighing, I ask, “What about me?”

“Does your wife or girlfriend follow me?”

My laugh is harsh. “I’m single. Have been for a long ass time.”

“I’d love to say that’s surprising, but having met you…” Her laughter takes the sting out of her words.

The bright light of her screen pierces the growing dark around us. “I’m starting to think Kirk didn’t vet you at all. Have you read your reviews?”

“What reviews?”

“On your socials and the regular places likeYelp. Here’s one. ‘Peak Adventures is amazing! Will book with them for summers to come!’”

“That’s a great review.”

“Yeah, but that’s only part of it. Here’s the rest. ‘Everything except Hudson Brooks was top tier. While the man clearly knows his stuff, he’s abrasive.’”

“Who said that?”

A little wrinkle forms between Blakely’s eyebrows. “What? I don’t know. It’s an anonymous review.”

“Then it’s irrelevant.”

“No, it’s not! These reviews impact people’s perceptions of you. Don’t you care?”

I consider her words. Do I care what people, strangers on the internet, think of me? “Nope. Not one bit.”

Her incredulous expression tells me she can’t relate. She goes back to reading reviews, laughing now and then at the ones calling me rude or harsh.

“Enjoying telling me how much people hate me?”

The giggles vanish. “No. Shit, Hudson, I’m sorry. I didn’t… I’m out of line.”

The serious tone of her voice has me reaching over the console to squeeze her thigh. “Hey, I’m teasing. Seriously, that shit doesn’t bother me. I ignore it. Some fuckhead on the internet who has enough time to write about me being a hardass is no one who matters.”

Blakely tilts her head. “That’s a healthy outlook on it. Mytherapist would approve.” Her shoulders droop. “I struggle with not reading what’s written about me. Not buying into the hate.”

“Who could hate you? You’re so charming.” I lay on the sarcasm but shoot her a wink.

When she doesn’t answer, I let out a sigh and try to get her to talk the only way I know how. “Any of those reviews say I’m not good at what I do?”

“Not a single one. In fact, for every person who mentions you being… difficult, there are two more shouting your praises. And even the ones who seem annoyed by you have to admit you’re excellent at what you do.”

“See. Even if they don’t like me, they can’t deny my expertise. Their shitty opinion doesn’t matter. All I’m taking from these reviews is that I’m the best.”

“That’s what you got from them?”

“Hell yeah, and don’t you feel safe knowing you’re in such experienced hands?”

Blakely’s brilliant smile shows her straight white teeth. “Experienced hands, huh? I teased you about that earlier. That firm grip of yours.”

I groan but play along. “I spend a fair amount of time alone. It’s important to have a strong grip.”

---