Page 322 of Well Played

“I was trying to get a picture of the dragonflies. I’ve never seen so many colors,” Grace continued to tell her in minute detail how she’d stumbled and scraped her knee.

After she was done, Kay asked Grace if she could manage the rest of the hike. “We’re about halfway, so it’s about the same distance either way.” She repacked her kit and put it andthe trash in her backpack. “Has everyone had some water? It’s important to stay hydrated.”

“I’ll keep going,” Grace said. “It’s not too bad now that you bandaged it.”

“It’s my fault,” Jimmy said and looked as if he might cry. “I wasn’t paying attention and backed into Grace. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” Grace rushed to reassure him.

Walker put his arm around Jimmy. “Whether it was your mistake or Grace’s, it was an accident. We will make more mistakes before we die. The trick is to not make the same mistakes over again.”

Jimmy sniffled. “I didn’t mean to hurt Gracie. She’s my best friend.” He shook his head. “She’s not my girlfriend. We don’t like the kissing part.”

Walker didn’t know what to say about this information. He looked to Kay for help.

Kay widened her eyes, and it was obvious she was trying not to laugh.

“Well, Grace knows you are her best friend, and you wouldn’t hurt her on purpose. You both just need to be aware of your surroundings. Like the coach said at the beginning of our hike, the forest is a dangerous place. We need to be aware of where we are walking and what we are doing. We need to look out for each other.” Walker suggested, “So, before we return to our hike, does anyone want to take a picture? Let’s take a few minutes and take a few photos. Teammates, one takes a photo while the other keeps watch and then you can trade places. Okay?”

Kay smiled in agreement.

They completed the rest of the hike with no more accidents. They rushed into the campsite, excited to be finished. The smell of grilled hamburgers and hotdogs even had Walker’s stomach growling. Since he was in training, he had to choose his foodcarefully. He regretted not being able to eat the burgers and dogs.

“I made a few veggie burgers. I told dad to put them aside for you. And the buns are whole grain with extra protein.”

“And what about the bacon and tomato tart Gracie told me about?”

She grinned. “I have a few with turkey bacon, but you really need to try the real bacon ones. They are worth breaking training for.”

Eating, talking, and playing games filled up the rest of the day.

Like Grace, Walker hated the day to end. They said their goodbyes.

Grace dozed off on the way home.

“Hey Gracie, we’re home,” he said as he shook her awake.

“Did you kiss her?” she asked sleepily.

“Kiss who?” Walker knew who she was talking about, but wondered what his sweet young niece was up to. He had a feeling he would find out soon enough.

Walker was back on the road, but it would be a shorter trip, so Grace went with him. While waiting to go to dinner, Grace realized Walker had left his phone unlocked. She quickly sent off a message to Kay, pretending to be Walker. “Hey, we’re getting ready to go to dinner. I was just thinking about you.”

Kay replied. “Yeah, I come to mind when you think of food. I’m not sure how to take that.”

Grace did not know what to say. Picking up her own phone, she texted Jimmy. “What do I say?” she asked, explaining what was said.

Jimmy texted back. “How am I supposed to know? Hold on, I’ll ask the guys.” Jimmy was friends with some guys at the coffee shop. They were all flirts, but mostly nice guys. Grace wasn’t sure about the reply Jimmy sent, but gave it a try.

She texted Kay. “I think of you any time I’m having something sweet.”

“Sweet? Hardly. Spicy, maybe,” she texted back.

Grace heard her uncle getting dressed and knew she had to hurry. She quickly typed. “Sweet and spicy.” Before Walker came out of his room, she deleted the texts. She hoped her plan worked.

Another text came in, but Grace didn’t dare look. Walker strode into the suite’s common room, picked up his phone, and smiled. Walking away, he tapped out a message and called, “Hey, you ready?”

Grace scrambled off the couch and followed him to the elevator. “Did you get a text?”

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