Page 94 of Keep My Heart
Jason smiles at Nick. ‘I can’t believe you’re actually going. You said you never would.’
‘Yeah, well, it was the only way to get Matt to shut up about it.’ He looks at the girl next to Jason. ‘Hi, I’m Nick and this is Lyndsay.’
‘Oh, shit, sorry,’ Jason says. ‘I should’ve done introductions. Nick is my older brother,’ he tells the girl. ‘He’s a lawyer in New York. And Lyndsay lives in LA, but she grew up here.’
‘Nice to meet you,’ the girl says. ‘I’m Beth.’
‘And I’m Ainsley,’ the girl beside me says.
‘They’re just here for the summer,’ Brody explains. ‘They work at the camp.’
‘The one Sawyer went to?’ Nick asks. ‘I didn’t think that was still around.’
‘It’s not the same one,’ Beth says. ‘It’s at the same location, but it’s run by a different company. They have them all over.’
Nick turns to me. ‘Sawyer begged my parents to let him go to camp when he was seven, but then he got there and hated it and begged them to let him come home.’
‘Why didn’t he like it?’ Ainsley asks. ‘Kids usually love camp.’
‘He liked all the activities,’ Jason says. ‘But there was this girl there that kept beating him at all the competitions. Fishing. Canoe races. Archery. He wanted to get out of there before his reputation was destroyed.’
‘Sawyer isn’t used to losing,’ Nick explains. ‘He told his camp counselor he was allergic to his tent so he’d be sent home, but theyknew it was a lie and told him he had to stay unless Mom and Dad came to get him.’
‘Which they didn’t,’ Brody says, laughing. ‘I think he’s still mad at them for that.’
‘He must be really competitive,’ Beth says. ‘We try to make it so the kids just have fun without worrying about winning.’
‘For Sawyer, it’s always about winning,’ Nick says. ‘He’s extremely competitive.’
‘You want a drink?’ Brody asks, pointing to a pitcher of beer on the table. ‘It’s pale ale. It’s pretty good.’
‘I think I’ll get something darker,’ Nick says, getting up. ‘Lyndsay, what can I get you?’
‘I’ll just have the pale ale,’ I say, grabbing one of the extra glasses sitting on the table.
Nick reaches across me for the pitcher and pours some beer in my glass. ‘I’ll be right back.’
When he’s gone, Ainsley turns to me. ‘So how does that work? With you in LA and Nick living in New York?’
‘I’m not sure what you mean.’
‘How do you guys date living in different cities?’ Beth asks.
‘Oh, we’re not dating. We’re just friends.’
‘Really?’ Beth says like she doesn’t believe me. ‘You guys seem like a couple. I just assumed you were together.’
‘Me too,’ Ainsley says.
Nick and I seem like a couple? Why? It’s not like we’re holding hands or kissing.
‘Have you guys been talking since he left?’ Jason asks.
‘Not really. Nick’s been busy with work.’
‘Are you going to the reunion with him?’ Brody asks.
‘Yeah, but only as friends.’
