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“I’ll see you in a bit,” Nic said as I left.
“Hey, Ember,” Casey, my friend from the performance contract in the spring, called as I hurried to the house. She’d taken me up on my offer for a summer position teaching at my parents’ camp.
“Yeah?” I waited for her to catch up.
“I was just heading to the kitchen. You?”
I nodded and waited, despite the heat, until she reached my side. We walked together without talking and I got the impression Casey was working up toward asking me what she thought might be an awkward question. If so, it likely either had to do with my recent issues with the silks, or Nic. Neither of which I had a suitable answer for. I was seriously tempted to tell her the truth and see what she made of it.
“Have you seen Robby recently?” she finally asked.
That was not what I’d expected, and it took me a moment to reply. “He’s been looking into some things, but I think he’ll be back soon.”
“He’s single, right?”
Oh. I almost warned her off, but then reconsidered. The Dream court jester drove me nuts, but he was considerate, and would understand her obsession with her lyra.
“Yes, Casey, he’s single. He’s been single as long as I’ve known him.”
“Great. Put in a good word for me?” She widened her eyes and shot me a hopeful expression.
Laughing, I nodded. “Okay, Casey. Did you ever get in touch with him about that winter gig?”
“Oh, yeah, I sent him an email about it. He said you all were interested, and he’d look into it.”
“Perfect.” I had no idea if we’d be able to commit to anything this winter, but I didn’t want to give up my career completely if I could avoid it.
“So who’s Nic?”
That was the question I was expecting. “Childhood friend.”
“You two seem awfully close whenever I actually see him. What’s he doing here?”
“Hanging out for the summer. He’s a friend of Robby’s and Geraint’s, too. And yes, we’re close.”
“Geraint—”
“Nic and I were close before Geraint and I were close. We both thought Nic was gone for good, through no fault of his own. Now that Nic is back, we’re reworking our relationship to include Nic. It’s best for everyone that way.” It wasn’t necessarily any of her business, but it was also easier just to tell her.
“You sure?” She shook her head. “I’m sorry. It’s probably not my business. Non-traditional relationships work out all the time. I just know how crazy Geraint is about you and—”
“Yeah. We’re sure.” I opened the door to the house and hurried into the cool air.
“Well, damn then, two men who are crazy about you. Lucky you. Does Nic perform too?”
“No. But he’ll be fantastic stage crew.”
We went through the den with the big mirror that I’d once crashed through with Nic in tow, escaping Nightmare. A couple of our campers were watching TV when we went through to the kitchen.
Our summer chef, Larry, was cutting food for dinner in the industrial-sized kitchen. He paused long enough to point at the refrigerator. “Sandwiches inside, ladies.”
Larry had a thick Appalachian accent that evoked fond memories of my childhood. Growing up here in the foothills of the Allegheny mountains brought us a whole mix of people, and some of the folks who lived in the mountains brought their kids down to the summer camp.
“Thanks!” We helped ourselves and went out onto the screened back porch.
Fans circulated the air, making the heat a bit more tolerable. I downed some water and scarfed my sandwich.
“Speaking of,” Casey said, looking over my shoulder back toward the house.
