Fallling for the Prodigal Son (19 page)

Douglas came over to her. "I was beginning to think you were going to stand us up."

"I'm a woman of my word." She looked at the crowd of people filing in through the park gate. "Looks like everyone in St. Caroline under the age of fifty is here."

An usher arrived to lead the campers into the concert area. Lucy followed at the end to make sure no one got separated from the group. Workers had been busy all day setting up the stage. Metal bleachers had been erected along one side, but most people were laying out blankets and unfolding lawn chairs on the grass in the center. Lucy expected that they would huddle with everyone in the middle but, instead, the usher kept leading them forward. A buzz arose from the campers as it dawned on them where they were going.

"They're taking us to the front!"

"No freaking way!"

"Yes freaking way!"

Lucy craned her neck to see Douglas at the head of the group. He was grinning from ear to ear. When they reached the area in front of the stage, the usher stopped.

"Enjoy the show."

Lucy and Douglas let the kids jostle for position on the grass. Sit or stand? There seemed to be no lasting consensus on that. Lucy guessed that when the music started, everyone would be standing. The college-aged counselors looked as excited as the campers, furiously texting on their phones.

Lucy and Douglas shook out a blanket and sat down.

"Who pulled this off?" she asked.

"It was Simone's idea."

"We'll never be able to repay her."

"I think her feeling is that the camp paid her in advance, years ago," Douglas said softly.

"What are you going to do if this doesn't work?" Lucy asked.

"I might go back to school, get my teaching certification." He stared at the stagehands scurrying around the stage, making last minute adjustments to equipment and instruments. "This isn't going to make any difference, is it?
" He sighed. "At least St. Caroline is getting a good concert out of it."

Lucy said nothing. She didn't believe Sterling's mind could be changed anymore.
Give it a rest, Lucy.
His words still rang in Lucy's head. Everyone seemed to think she'd made some grand, selfless gesture by getting herself fired. But what if getting herself fired had only sealed the camp's fate? Her departure had left only Douglas to advocate for the camp but after Sunday's dust up with Sterling, even that option was gone.

"Well, I don't even need to say that you'd be a great teacher," Lucy said and leaned into Douglas' body. She was going to miss Douglas and Gina and everyone at the Inn.

Lucy and Douglas sat quietly on the grass for awhile. The excited chatter of the campers swirled around their heads. At 6:45, Derrick Jones strode out onto the stage. He tapped the microphone a few times to make sure it was on.

"Good evening, everyone," he started. "I want to thank you all for coming tonight. We've got a great turnout and we've got a great show coming up. Can you believe The Hiptones
and
Simone Adkins in St. Caroline?"

The crowd cheered. Lucy clapped her hands over her ears when Douglas stuck his fingers between his lips and let loose a shrill whistle.

Derrick Jones gestured for the audience to quiet down. "But first, I want to say a few words about why we're here. The Chesapeake Inn Kids Kamp has been a part of St. Caroline for decades. It has changed the lives of countless kids, mine included. But this summer will be the last unless we can change the hearts and minds of the Inn's new management. Keep letting them know that you support the camp." Derrick fell silent and glanced down at his feet. Lucy could tell he was struggling with his emotions. Then he looked back up, his eyes shining.

"I'm about to get hooked off this stage but there are a few people I need to thank first. Many many thanks to the late John Matthew—" At the mention of John's name, the crowd began to applaud. "Also thanks are due to Shawn and Nahla Whitney for helping to pull this event together and to long-time camp director Douglas Burns."

Derrick shaded his eyes against the setting sun over the bay, until he spotted Lucy. "And thanks to Lucy Wyndham, as well. Lucy, my apologies." He made a small bow in her direction and Lucy smiled at him through watery eyes.

Derrick exited stage left as The Hiptones ran onto the stage and took their places. Twenty seconds into their first song, the crowd was on its feet and dancing. Douglas pulled Lucy to her feet.

"Come on. We're going to have fun tonight. No more moping and wallowing," Douglas said.

"I was just getting good at wallowing," Lucy replied with a big smile.

It was hard to feel blue while listening to The Hiptones' brand of swingy, jazzy pop. Lucy's mood began to lift and when Douglas grabbed her hands and began doing something that vaguely resembled the jitterbug, Lucy went along with it.

By the time The Hiptones finished playing, thirty minutes later, Lucy was out of breath and breaking a sweat. Her ponytail was barely still holding. She pulled the band out of her hair and looked around at the happy crowd while she scooped her hair back into a neat ponytail again. That was when she spotted Sterling, sitting by himself on the very top row of the bleachers. He was wearing shorts and a tee shirt, like half the men in the audience. He was looking straight at her but it wasn't until he smiled that Lucy knew for sure he had seen her.

She gave him a quick, uncertain smile back. She was a little surprised to see him at the concert. It hadn't occurred to her that he would come. He didn't look angry or upset. He was leaning casually against the back railing of the bleacher frame, taking in the goings on below. 

"Who invited him?" Douglas asked.

"I guess he bought a ticket."

"That's kind of weird, him buying a ticket to a concert that's raising money to save the camp he wants to kill," Douglas said.

"Maybe Simone comped him a ticket."

Douglas gave her a doubtful look.

"Or maybe he just likes The Hiptones and Simone Adkins. It's not everyday that you get to see a concert in St. Caroline."

"He's lurking. Like he always used to do." 

"He wasn't lurking. He was lonely."

The expression on Douglas' face turned from doubt into annoyance. "You're defending him."

"I'm not defending anyone. We made assumptions about him that weren't true."

"Are you in love with him?" Douglas said. "Or is he really just that good in bed?"

Lucy widened her eyes in warning and looked around at the campers. Fortunately, no one appeared to be listening to them. The kids were absorbed in their own teenage conversations. And they were behaving. Douglas didn't really need her as a chaperone here.

"I'm going to go sit with him," she said.

Douglas shook his head slowly, then shrugged. "So which is it?" His words were chased out of his mouth by a long sigh.

"Both?"

Douglas rolled his eyes. "Go. Go sit with pretty boy."

Lucy threaded her way through the crowd and climbed the metal bleachers to the top. She could feel Sterling's eyes on her the entire way. When she got to the last step, he stretched out a hand and pulled her up.

"Are you coming to tip me off to my imminent tarring and feathering?" An amused smile played around his lips.

Lucy sat down next to him and rested her feet on the bleacher in front of her. "You looked like you could use some company."
You looked lonely, sitting up here by yourself.

"Your friend is watching us," Sterling observed.

Lucy waved to Douglas and he turned back to the stage.

"He's not going to punch me later for stealing you away?"

Lucy shrugged and smiled at him. "I can't make any promises about that. Where's Elle?"

"She went home. She's done here."

"So you're on your own now."

"That I am."

Lucy had always considered herself to be a lonely kid, always just a little bit different from the other kids in school. Going to the Kids Kamp had made that even worse for her, for awhile. It was rough going back home after getting a glimpse of the rest of the world. Her little corner of southwestern Virginia was an awful lot smaller after that.

But for all the money and advantages Sterling had, his life appeared so much lonelier than hers had ever been. He had Elle, of course, and she imagined he had friends in Europe and probably school friends scattered around. But here in his hometown, he seemed to have few connections with people outside his parents and Inn staff.

They sat in an uncomfortable silence while the stage was prepared for Simone Adkins. Lucy wondered whether it had been a mistake to come up here. It wasn't clear whether Sterling minded her presence or not. He was impossible to read. But she couldn't very well return to Douglas, either. She would have to stay.

When Simone Adkins made her appearance, the crowd roared its approval. Lucy sat back and watched Sterling's reaction in her peripheral vision. Poker face. She gave a mental shrug and tried to focus on the show. Simone Adkins was definitely amazing live. No lip-syncing going on here. With her flowing white skirt and loose gauzy top—and a voice that could sink into a gravelly rasp—she was channeling a young Stevie Nicks.

Her body was humming, and not from the bass. Sterling was close enough to touch. And how she wanted to touch him right now.
Lucy! He fired you. You're unemployed now because of him.
Evidently, that made no difference to her body.

Sterling leaned into her shoulder and Lucy's breath caught in her throat. His face was inches from hers, so close she could feel the warmth of his skin.  

"Do you know her music?" he asked.

Lucy nodded. If she were to shift on the bleacher just an inch, her cheek would graze his. Oh, to give in to temptation, she thought.

"Never heard of her," he said.             

"Then why did you come?"

"What else is there to do in St. Caroline tonight? What would you be doing tonight if this weren't going on?"

Lucy struggled to keep her attention focused on Simone Adkins, who was writhing and singing as if the words were being ripped from her mouth. The sun was going down behind them, casting a rosy glow over the stage.

"People are going to think this is weird, the two of us sitting together," Lucy said, finally.
But I don't regret coming up here.

She turned to glance at him and her chin brushed against his jawline. It was rough with stubble. Sterling looked at her, his eyes serious and dark.

"I don't think anyone is paying any attention to us right now, Lucy."             

Lucy lifted an eyebrow, skeptical. Before she knew what was happening, Sterling leaned in, lightly rested his forehead on hers for a moment, then sought out her lips. The kiss was gentle, and brief.

"I'm sorry about last weekend," he murmured.

There was a devilish glint in his eyes.

"You don't look sorry," Lucy said.
Kiss me again.

"Well, maybe I'm only half sorry. But I'm not going to tell you which half."

Chapter 21

Sterling parked his car in front of Lucy's cottage and got out. He offered up a quick prayer that Douglas was not here—or on his way. The CEO shouldn't be duking it out with his employees. At least he was certain now that Lucy and Douglas were not an item. She wouldn't have left Douglas to come sit with him last night if they were.

He walked around the side of the house to check whether the kayaks were under the porch. Both were. Good. The last thing he needed was a repeat of last week. And he needed to keep his clothes on this time.
Not that he minded taking his clothes off around Lucy.
 

He walked up the steps to her porch. He stood there, hesitating, his palms sweating a little. He wouldn't be here if she hadn't come and sat with him last night at the concert. She'd been pretty angry the last time he was here.
Correction,
really angry.
It had occurred to him that she might never speak to him again after that. Even when she was climbing up the bleachers toward him, he hadn't been sure it would be a friendly visit.