Page 3 of Don't Let Your Mind Go There

“Uh, no. But the shower is big,” Ronan told her.

I walked over to the room that I would be sleeping in with Ronan, and I sighed as I caught a glimpse of the bed. “I don’t mind sharing a bed with you, Ro, but please don’t kick me in your sleep.”

“Why would I do that?”

“You always did that when we were younger.”

“When we were younger, you always wanted to sleep in bed with me because you were scared to sleep alone. I didn’t have much space with you next to me in that small bed.”

He had a point. Still, as safe and protected as I felt with him next to me, I always had issues staying asleep when I felt his feet kick my legs every time he moved. And he moved a lot.

“If you can’t sleep because of me, you can sleep on the couch,” he told me, and I already considered it.

I brought my bag into the bedroom and started to unpack. I didn’t bring too many things because Dad said there was a cabin with several washing machines on this campground. That was practical.

“Did Dad say anything about dinner?” Ronan asked as he came into the room.

“Yes. We’ll eat at the camp’s restaurant.”

“Perfect. I read there’s a tennis court around here too. Wanna go check it out after dinner?”

I looked at him and shrugged. “Why not?”

“And if you want, we can play tomorrow. I’m sure they have rackets and balls we can borrow.”

“Sounds fun. Just prepare to get your ass kicked,” I said jokingly.

“You wish.”

Ronan and I were competitive, like all siblings were. But at the end of the day, we were proud of each other.

After spending some time in the cabin and settling in, Dad made us all gather in the living room before heading over to the restaurant. It was located closer to the entrance of the campground, and while there were tables outside with a couple of lampposts and lanterns hanging over them, we decided to go sit inside.

None of us wanted to get bit by mosquitos while enjoying our food.

“Any booth you’d like,” the waitress said, greeting us with a friendly smile.

“How about that one?” Mom asked, pointing to one of the booths by a window.

We followed her there and sat down. Ronan moved quick, sliding over to get the window seat, and Mom sat down next to him. I looked at Dad, wondering if he wanted to sit by the window, but he placed a hand on my back, gently nudging me to go in first.

I moved over and looked outside. There was a couple sitting at one table, and a family of five at another, and while it looked like they were having a great time out there, they kept waving their hands to get rid of the insects flying around.

“See, that’s another thing we won’t have to deal with here. We can eat in peace in the cabin,” Dad stated.

“Sounds like you’re done with camping in tents for good,” Mom said with a raised brow.

Dad shrugged. “I just think we’ve done enough camping in tents. We’re not getting younger either, Ainsley. We need a good bed for our backs.”

Mom and Dad weren’t old. They were forty-seven and forty-eight, and for that age, they were both very active and fit.

Mom liked to do Pilates and she occasionally went jogging. Dad and Ronan often joined her, but they were more interested in the gym, so that’s where they spent most their weekends at.

I wasn’t lazy either. I loved to swim, and when I was in high school, I was on the soccer team. Now, though, whenever I had the choice to work out with them or stay home, I usually did the latter. I read a lot, and I loved to write, so that’s what I did in my free time.

“Can I get you something to drink?” The waitress stood next to our table with a pen and notepad in her hands. I wondered why they were still so old-fashioned here, when all the restaurants back home used iPads or phones for take orders. Then I figured that there was barely any internet connection up here, and that a pen and a small piece of paper was definitely enough to take an order.

We told her our drinks, and Dad added two appetizers to the order. The jalapeño poppers and mozzarella sticks were for us to share.

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