Chapter 18

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Hilly was furious.

At herself.

For letting Cisco kiss her again without coming clean about who she was. She'd pretty much promised herself she wouldn't let things progress without giving over that info, because she had no doubt he'd be disgusted once he found out. Would he hate her even more for letting him proceed with that second kiss? Hilly felt like the longer she kept things to herself, the more that sword of Damocles hung, sharp and waiting, above her head.

Why couldn't she just spit it out? Get it over with? Cisco had been very open with her; brave even, to talk about his early years, his adoption, and his OCD. She was chicken-shit. Hilly wished she'd just told him while they were walking, but she'd been enjoying herself too much. Then she'd had every intention of filling him in when they reached the platform, but that epic kiss had happened, and… Lance.

Right. Lance .

What the hell was going on with her normally staunch counselor? It sounded like he'd developed a crush on Bailey—a flirtation perhaps, like the ones that often happened between counselors over the summer—but instead of Bailey rolling with it or telling Lance outright that she wasn't interested, she was…what? Stringing him along for jollies? Keeping him on the hook to bolster her own ego…?

Crap . That sounded a lot like what Hilly was doing with Cisco.

She cut herself some slack. It wasn't the same. She really liked Cisco. In all ways. And she wasn't stringing him along. She simply wanted the smallest taste of him before he discovered who she was and backed off.

As for, perhaps, using Cisco to build up her ego? Hilly didn't think that was the case, but…maybe? It certainly felt good to have the admiration and attention of someone like him; a male she'd once upon a time drooled over.

Hilly shook off her doubts. The Bailey/Lance situation was an entirely different scenario. It seemed like Bailey had been baiting Lance, only to shoot him down. Hilly certainly wasn't doing that to Cisco.

"Hey. Are you okay?"

Hilly snapped out of her stupor to find Cisco's eyes, filled with concern, focused solely on her.

"Yeah. Sure," she heaved. "It's just… How am I supposed to keep my young campers safe from bullying, when it seems my counselors might be guilty of it?"

" One counselor," Cisco corrected her. " One , Hilly. And we're not even sure that's what's happening yet. Don't let this incident blow up in your head."

Hilly worried her bottom lip, floundering in this unknown territory. She'd never had an issue with any of her employees before. Now there'd been Nurse Tipsy, and a possible rift in her lower ranks. "What would you do if you were me?"

Cisco didn't hesitate. "I'd have a talk with Lance and find out what's going on. If he confirms the fucked up stuff we think we overheard, then you sit down with Bailey and read her the riot act. We can hope that she actually likes Lance, but is just showing it in an inappropriate way."

"You mean like in grade school, when one kid pulls another's hair? Not because they hate each other, but just to get attention?"

"Exactly," Cisco chuckled. "One would think your teens would have outgrown that behavior by now, but sometimes things learned at an impressionable age are hard to dismiss."

Damn . Once again, Cisco could have been talking about her. Why couldn't Hilly get out of her own head and move on with her life, confidently?

She shook off her self-absorption—a state she found herself more and more emersed in as she hung out with Cisco—because this was not about her. This was about her camp, her kids, and her counselors. And unlike when she was young—trying to deal with things pretty much on her own—Hilly now had charge. She was there to advocate for her kids and employees, and had a network in place; people whom she could tap into to approach problems such as these. Buffy was a huge part of that equation.

"You're right. I need to at least talk to Lance first and find out what's going on. If he's conflicted as to exactly how Bailey's treating him, I'll enlist Buffy's help to get to the bottom of it with the girl."

"That's a good plan," Cisco agreed, then looked at his watch. "And as much as I hate not to get back to what we were doing before we were interrupted, I'll sadly inform you it's time to head down. But Hilly, don't think that at the first opportunity, I won't want to revisit what we were doing here."

Hilly knew her terrible red-headed-blush was making an appearance again. She could feel it. But Cisco, rather than look at her askance, actually ran a gentle finger over one crimson cheek and smiled, as if he thought her reaction was…cute.

"I'll take this lovely color as a yes," he gloated, dropping a tender kiss to her nose, but not in an arrogant way that Hilly could have called him on.

No. The damn man was so sweet, she wanted to turn and suck that tracing digit into her mouth. Instead, to preserve what was left of her dignity, she headed for the ladder.

"You're, um, right. You don't want to be late for your class," she told him, making sure her feet were well-planted on the rungs before she descended. The last thing she needed was to take a header so Cisco could add "clumsy" to the list of the negative attributes he'd assign to her after he found out who she really was.

As her sneakers hit the ground—and Cisco deftly reached terra-firma behind her—she changed the subject away from anything personal. "When did you say your friend Alvero would be here?"

Cisco grinned—as if knowing what she was doing—but went with it. "He was all ready to drop everything and come tonight, but I told him tomorrow morning would be fine. Your friend Buffy mentioned she has some basic first-aid skills, so she's good covering until Alvi gets here. He knows that reveille is at seven-thirty, so expect him by then."

With personal and business stuff out of the way, Hilly and Cisco chatted amicably about the camp and its history on their way back to the main campus where they parted ways at the pavilion so Cisco could get ready for his five o'clock class.

A gentle hand-squeeze and a wink were his parting gestures.

Hilly sighed deep within her chest, and walked giddily to the dining hall; Nel suddenly appearing at her heels.

"Hey sweetie. Where have you been?" Hilly asked as she bent down to give her best pup a long scruff.

Nel's tongue lolled out of her mouth in ecstasy from the scratches, but of course didn't answer. Although with how bright the dog was, Hilly sometimes thought she might.

"Come on, let's ignore the man in the pavilion and go do our job."

Nel trotted after Hilly into the busy dining hall.

Hilly gave a loud, piercing whistle. "Attention everyone. It's time to clean up," she announced after getting all the occupants' eyes on her, although she could have saved her breath. Franny, a second-year counselor who'd been running the crafts session today along with five other counselors, already had things well along toward being packed away.

"Great job, Fran," Hilly praised. "And I love the projects so far."

She sent her gaze to a table on the periphery of the room that had been set up to hold crafts-in-the-works. There were popsicle stick structures, rocks being painted, and of course, gimp bracelets still dangling their loose ends. By the end of the summer, with artistic confidence boosted, the campers would progress to clay pots and wooden bird houses.

"Listen up for a second, please." Hilly once again called out to get everyone's eyes on her. "Take note of where you'll be headed next." She laid it out. "Group B, you'll be with Officer Andera for self-defense. Group A, you'll work on the ropes course. Group C, you'll head to the archery range, and Group D, you'll be tackling the climbing wall."

The five counselors who weren't spearheading crafts, would already be setting up those venues, using all the safety protocols Hilly had gone over with them, again and again. "Once those sessions are over, we'll reconvene here for dinner. It's my understanding that Mrs. S might have made lasagna."

A cheer went up, as Hilly had expected. There weren't many people who didn't love lasagna. And the savvy woman made both meaty and vegetarian options.

"Okay. Looks like everyone's ready to leave. Are there any questions for me before we move on?"

A girl by the door, looking slightly troubled, raised her hand.

"Yes, Ginny?" Hilly encouraged.

Sure, the kids all wore nametags for their first few days at camp, but Hilly had made a point to learn each and every one of her hundred campers' names beforehand. It had taken days to flashcard her way through the entire group correctly, even with some returning kids on the roster. But she'd deemed it a necessary task; knowing that recognition went a long way toward building these kids' self-esteem.

"I… Is Nurse Gorner gone?" The timid Ginny bit her bottom lip. "I was headed to the girls' room, and I heard her call you…a bad name. She sounded mean."

Dammit. It would have been too easy to have gotten away with sending the woman packing without anyone being the wiser.

Hilly gave the girl immediate, comforting assurance. "I'm so sorry you had to hear that, Ginny, but yes. Nurse Gorner's employment here has been terminated. She…broke a rule, and I couldn't allow her on the grounds any longer." She gave the girl, and the rest of the room her best, brilliant smile. "Tomorrow, however, when you wake up, we'll have a new medic on staff. During breakfast, I'll introduce you all to a friend of Officer Andera's who's going to take over here for a few weeks until we can find a replacement who can stay for the rest of the summer. His name is Officer Deluthe, and he's not only a certified paramedic, he was a camper here when he was your age, so he knows the property extremely well. I wouldn't be surprised if he's eager to join in with a lot of our activities."

That bit of information, which Hilly had purposely let slip, had the desired effect of getting the kids' minds off the nasty nurse who'd been given the heave-ho. They began excitedly chatting amongst themselves while heading out the door to their next lesson.

Hilly's task now, was to find Buffy, and there was no better way to track her down than to ask Nel. "Nel, baby, where's Buffy?" she prompted. "Go find Buff."

Hilly had expected Nel to join the line of campers leaving the building, but instead she turned around and pranced toward the doors into the kitchen.

"I see," Hilly laughed. "Buffy's helping Mrs. S with some taste-testing?"

Nel's bright yip was answer enough to that question, which really hadn't been a question at all. Buffy loved to eat. Almost as much as Cisco. It really wasn't fair that the two of them—despite the amount of calories they ingested—maintained trim physiques. All Hilly had to do was look at food to blow up. She had to remain vigilant and work hard to balance her diet and exercise in order to keep to her target weight.

Hilly pushed open the swinging kitchen doors and was hit with the most delicious odor of sauce and bread. She breathed in, deeply. Thank God smells didn't have calories.

"Hey, Hilly-billy," Buffy greeted her, licking what looked like vanilla pudding from a wooden spoon. "Mrs. S is making mini-Boston cream pies for dessert. They're to die for." She took another long swipe before setting the now clean utensil aside.

Hilly snorted. "If she's bugging you, Mrs. S, feel free to kick her out," Hilly teased.

"And lose my best taste-tester?" Ellen joked back. "I don't think so."

Hilly chuckled at the expected response. Mrs. S was one of the most even-keeled people she knew. "I actually do need to steal her away for a few minutes, if that's okay."

"Duty calls, huh?" Buffy tuned in astutely.

"Yeah. But I hope it's quick and easy."

"Lead on," Buffy said, walking over to link arms with Hilly. "Nel can take my spot as Ellen's number one food-guinea-pig."

"She's no help," Ellen called out when Nel sat expectantly by the woman's side, giving her adoring eyes as Hilly and Buffy walked away. "She likes everything."

"Then she's good for your ego," Buffy assured her before taking pity. "Don't worry. I'll be back, soon."

They left the building, and Hilly steered her toward a picnic table where they could perch while having a remote, but unobstructed view of the pavilion where Cisco's class was just beginning.

"So, what's up?" Buffy asked curiously.

Hilly sighed. "We might have a problem with one of our counselors."

Buffy's brows went up. "I've made a point to talk to each one of them, and they seem like a pretty good group. Which one is causing trouble?"

"I'm not quite sure if it's even trouble," Hilly admitted, her mouth twisting uncertainly. "But while Cisco and I were out for a walk…" Crap . She felt her face flush as her eyes followed him all around the mats where he gave instruction to the kids.

"A walk, huh?" Buffy caught the blush immediately, and chortled. "This jaunt didn't happen to include a kiss or two, did it?"

Hilly knew there was no use prevaricating. "It might have, but that's not what we need to discuss."

"Fine," Buffy giggled. "Business, now, dirty-deets later. How about you spill after light's out?"

Hilly knew Buff would pursue it relentlessly unless she gave in. "Fine. Details later tonight." She stole another peak toward Cisco, who moved with amazing confidence, despite his injury.

"Okay. Now what's going on."

Hilly refocused, and told Buffy what she'd heard from high above on the platform, then waited for her friend's opinion.

"Okay. You and Cisco are correct. We—or you—need to talk to Lance, to find out if Carter's concerns are real or imagined. From what you've told me, a lot of your counselors—like your campers—come from a background of being bullied. This could just be Carter perceiving an injustice where there is none."

"That's smart thinking," Hilly concurred. "But… What if Lance admits that there might be a problem?"

"Then we have a chat with Bailey, and I mean we will have that chat. There's no need for you to confront her alone and have her go all righteous or offended on your ass. We'll keep it professional, and assure her she's not in trouble, but that she needs to be more careful doing or saying anything to give people the wrong impression."

"See? I knew you'd have the answers." Hilly felt better already while still gazing in Cisco's direction. "I'll talk to Lance after supper, then depending on what he tells us, we can schedule a meeting with Bailey tomorrow during free-time after lunch."

"Sounds like a plan," Buffy agreed. "And in the meantime, don't let it eat at you. It's probably nothing."

Hadn't Cisco said close to the same thing?

"Thanks Buff," Hilly said, giving her bestie a spontaneous hug.

Buffy grinned. "Just remember, you owe me dirt on what you and that fine specimen of a man you can't seem to keep your eyes off of, were up to earlier."

Caught .

Hilly cleared her throat and grinned. "I might have, uh, more to tell you, depending on what happens later."

"Really? What's later?" Buff leaned forward.

"He's going to go with me and Nel on our nightly run."

"Ooh," Buffy rolled her eyes and gave a yummy moan. "Alone. In the dark. Needing a big, strong man to protect you from marauding bears…"

Hilly gave her a playful punch. "They don't maraud, and I have spray for that."

"Then what about if you, oops , accidentally trip, and he has to scoop you up in his arms and carry you back to the empty infirmary to bandage you up, but instead rips off your clothes and has his way with you?" Buffy sighed, her eyes growing dreamy.

Hilly snorted. "Right. Has anybody ever told you you'd make a very lousy romance writer?"