“That’s my girl.”
I almost shivered with satisfaction. Manning’s girl—I hoped someday I would be. In his presence, my body loosened. I’d been anxious about this trip. I’d seen Manning four times in two weeks during the counselors training sessions, but between Tiffany, Gary, and everyone else, we hadn’t had more than a couple minutes alone. Did he notice? Did he care? He never gave any sign that he did, but I’d caught him staring at me during a meeting once . . . I’d tried to convince myself the longing in his face was my imagination, or that he was looking at Tiffany, who’d been next to me, but I didn’t really believe that. Some invisible tether existed between us. Nobody could see it, not even us, but I felt it. I was sure Manning did, too. As long as we both knew it, that was enough for me. For now, at least.
Manning got a clipboard from Gary and flipped through the pages. “You’re paired with Hannah Burke,” he told me. “Do you know her?”
“She’s new this year, but we talked a little at the meetings.” I pointed to a short brunette in a polo shirt and knee-length shorts. Hannah’s brown hair brushed as far down as her elbows as she gathered our girls and fielded questions from their parents. “I better get to work.”
“I’ll come with you,” Manning said, tucking the clipboard under his arm and falling into step beside me.
“Why?”
“Make sure it’s a good match.”
“She seems pretty nice,” I said, unsure what he was looking for.
He didn’t respond.
Hannah had one hand on a girl’s head as she spoke to a parent. She glanced over as we approached and smiled. “There’s Lake now. She’ll be my co-counselor for the week.”
I recognized some girls who’d attended last year. They squealed, some jumping up and down and some running over to hug me. I had hoped to get this age group. Everyone knew the nine-year-old girls’ cabin was easiest. They were old enough to know better and young enough that they still listened. Around age ten, one or two girls’ priorities began to change. They’d talk back or sneak around, which the others in the cabin picked up on quickly. At sixteen, it wasn’t as if I could really be in charge of twelve-year-olds like Tiffany could.
Katie, one of my girls from the year before, ran and hugged me, catapulting me backward into Manning.
He caught me by my upper arms. “Whoa there.”
The warmth of his hands hit me first, then the firmness of his grip, his large body at my back. He was solid, his hold on me protective while I caught my footing and then for a couple seconds after. I could run at him full force, and I doubt he’d stumble when we collided.
As Hannah pulled Katie away, I caught her wide-eyed glance at Manning. I thought I noticed her blush before she turned around.
“I have to get back,” he said, releasing me. “Will you be all right with Hannah?”
I looked up over my shoulder at him. “I’m pretty sure. Why?”
“I just want to make sure you’re okay. She seems nice, though.”
She was around Tiffany’s age, but I’d found her easy to talk to so far. “She is.”
“Okay, then. Just know you can come to me with anything you need, all right? Gary and I are cool.”
“You like him?”
Manning nodded. “I like him.”
Coming from Manning, that meant a lot. He didn’t seem easy to please in the people department, but I’d introduced him to a new friend.
“So you’ll come to me?” he asked, tapping the clipboard against his palm. “If something’s not right?”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. But we’ll be away from home. From your parents. So you can come to me. Everyone should have someone looking out for them, and I am. For you.”
“Who do you have?” I asked.
He swallowed audibly, his long neck rippling. “I said everyone should—not everyone does.”
“I’ll be that someone, Manning,” I said.
He put his large hand on my head, making me feel about half his size. “You’re going to protect me?”
I always wanted him to be safe. Cared for, fed, happy. Maybe it was na?ve, but I felt I could do that for him, even if it had to be from afar for a while. “Maybe not physically. Protection comes in different forms.”
“That means a lot to me,” he said. “I’d rather you worry about yourself, though. And I’ll worry about you, too.” He took his hand back, and some of my hair went with it, falling over my face. He started to fix it but stopped himself. “Don’t worry about your stuff. I’ll get it on the bus.”
I watched him return to Gary’s side. He had no reason to worry about me. To keep me safe or happy. I didn’t owe him that either, but I’d do my best to give it to him.
Hannah and I sat together on the way to Big Bear. I tried to listen to the conversation happening between Manning and Tiffany across the aisle, but Tiffany, turned inward toward Manning, did most of the talking and anyway, Hannah had other ideas.