Page 16 of Summer Affair

Dean was back at River Camps the next morning, returning to his regular duties for the next few days. He instantly missed being around Andrea and the slower pace of the pool house.

After enjoying a few moments of heated kisses the night before, he’d jumped up and made some lame excuse about having to work the early shift the following morning and left.

Today, the camp was alive with the hustle and bustle of vacationers enjoying their escape, and he fell into the routine of serving meals and interacting with the guests. But his mind refused to stop thinking about how wonderful Andrea’s lips had felt against his own.

He knew that she had the day off and kept thinking about calling her or sending her a text to see how she was doing or to just say hi. Then he felt stupid and went back to work.

Early the following morning, day two after the kiss, he was scheduled to help guests get to their cabins. His first assignment was to help an older couple with their luggage and escort them to their cabin.

It was one of the jobs at the camp he really enjoyed. Every employee shifted between playing camp counselor with fun activities and handling the comings and goings of guests. Thankfully, there were now more than two dozen golf carts available that employees could use to shuttle guests out to the cabins.

As he pulled up to the main building in one of the golf carts, he saw an older couple waiting at the main building, looking a bit lost.

“Good morning!” Dean called out with a friendly smile. “Mr. and Mrs. Harrison, right? I’m Dean, and I’ll be taking you to your cabin.”

“Yes, that’s us,” Mrs. Harrison said, returning his smile. She straightened her hair and purred, “Thank you so much.”

He knew that flirting with the women, no matter their age, always won him bigger tips. Most of the husbands loved that their wives got the extra attention.

“No problem at all,” Dean replied, loading their bags onto the back of the cart. “Hop on, and I’ll get you to where you need to be in no time.”

As they weaved their way slowly through the campgrounds, he pointed out various amenities and activities the camp had to offer. “Over there is the main dining hall, where we serve all our meals. You may have heard that celebrity chef Issac Andrews runs the kitchens at River Camps.”

“We can’t wait to taste his famous eggplant parmesan,” Mrs. Harrison said.

“You’ll love it. That building over there is our new activity center, where you can sign up for everything from archery to yoga. A list of all activities will be in your cabin for your reference. You can also sign up for the events on the computer screen in your cabin as well.”

“You know, we’ve heard so much about this place,” Mr. Harrison said. “It’s our first time here, and we’re really looking forward to it. But something tells me it won’t be our last time here. I mean, just look at the views. Plus, all of the cabins look so inviting.”

“You’ll love it here,” Dean assured them. “There’s something for everyone. Even if you just come and lay by the pools—we have three of them—or spend all your time down at our private beach. Whatever you want, everyone here will make sure your time here is enjoyed.”

He stopped directly on the pathway in front of their cabin, aptly named the Love Shack. While he helped them with their bags, he finished talking about all the fun things there were to do there. Once they were settled in the cabin, he got a large tip from Mr. Harrison.

“One more thing,” Dean said as they were about to part ways. “Tonight, we’re having a fifties-themed dinner. It’s a lot of fun—great food, music, and some guests and employees even dress up. You should definitely check it out.”

“Oh, that sounds wonderful!” Mrs. Harrison exclaimed. “We’ll be there for sure.”

Dean waved goodbye and drove off, heading back to the main building. As he passed the beach area, he spotted Andrea, her blond hair still wet from an early swim. She was strolling along the pathway heading towards her building.

He slowed down and called out to her. “Need a ride?”

She looked up as if lost in her thoughts, but when she spotted him, she smiled back. “Sure, thanks.” She climbed into the golf cart, and they headed towards the pool house.

The morning sun was starting to warm the air, and the day promised to be another beautiful one.

“So, how’s your morning going?” he asked after an awkward moment of silence.

“Pretty good,” she replied. “I caught the early-morning yoga class and then went for a swim. I was going to check in and see if Kara needed my help.”

“On your day off?”

She shrugged. “Tell me you don’t come in on your days off.”

He chuckled. “Right.”

“How about you?” she asked. “What are you doing out and about his early? Delivering to the cabins?”

He could feel the awkwardness between them and instantly hated it. Was it because of the kiss? Did she regret it? Shit. He should have just…what? Kept his desires to himself?