Almost Perfect

Maddy cocked her head, intrigued by the ease with which he spoke, considering the personal nature of his words. He'd certainly matured from the boy who sat in the back of the classroom, slumped in his chair with a practiced look of disinterest.

'Camp Enchantment is more than just a place for kids to come to spend a few weeks in the out-of-doors,' he continued. 'It's a place steeped in tradition. Since it was founded in the early nineteen hundreds, the Bobcats and the Foxes have been racing canoes and competing on the archery range.'

'Go, Bobcats!' Dana punched the air with her fist.

'Go, Foxes!' Sandy answered in kind.

This time Joe's smile made it to his eyes, a rarity that turned Maddy's insides to pure jelly. 'Through teamwork and healthy competition we have helped kids gain the confidence to achieve their personal best. The Rangers taught me the importance of teamwork. In this case, the objective isn't to cap-ture a spit of land or defeat an enemy, but to live up to our motto.'

' 'Building character and memories to last a lifetime,' ' Mama quoted.

'Exactly.' Joe nodded. 'As we're working together over the next week, preparing for the annual invasion of five hundred campers, I'd like all of us to keep that objective in mind and look for ways to make this summer a positive experience for everyone.

'Knowing all of you, I'm sure you've been thinking about the summer as well, and what projects you'd like to do. So, I'd like to go around the table and have each of you share your goals. Carol, since you're always the queen of organization, we'll start with you.'

'Okay.' Carol opened a folder and started handing out papers. 'I've made a schedule-'

Bobbi burst out laughing. 'What?' Carol frowned.

'Nothing.' Joe smoothed the smile from his face. 'We all live for your schedules.'

'As well you should.' Carol nodded smartly and launched into what needed to be done by what day in order to ensure the efficient running of the camp office.

The others followed with their ideas for the summer and the plans they'd been working on. Listening to them, Joe found himself as impressed this year as he had been last with their ideas. Too bad their enthusiasm wasn't enough to distract him from the woman who sat catty-corner from him.

Maddy, he kept thinking, what are you doing here?

She looked unbearably appealing, naturally sexy, and completely out of place. He'd watched her dash across the game field with her skirt swirling about her calves and those ridiculously inappropri-ate shoes. Even with her feet tucked safely out of sight, his mind kept drifting to the bright orange sandals with long laces wrapped about her ankles- and how much he'd like to unwrap those laces.

Then there was the yellow top. Tank tops normally looked better on someone with tanner skin and more muscle definition. On her, though, it worked. God, it worked. The knit fabric cupped her breasts, showed a hint of cleavage, and filled his head with thoughts of running his hands up and down her arms.

Or simply holding her hand.

He'd forgotten the way they used to hold hands everywhere they went. Now the memory returned along with the memory of other little pleasures. It hadn't all been about sex. There had been genuine caring. At least on his end.

'Maddy,' Carol said, jolting him with the mere sound of the name, 'since this is your first time working at a summer camp, do you need help planning your activities?'

'Not too much, actually.'

He felt her hesitate as she flicked a nervous glance his way. Then she straightened, as if coming to the same conclusion he had: that pretending to be strangers was the best way to get through this meeting.

'Mama sent lots of information from previous years, plus I found a bunch of books filled with craft projects. Here's a list of projects I'd like to do.' She started her own stack of papers around the table. 'I'm open for suggestions, though, since y'all have more experience working with the kids.'

Taking one of the sheets, he saw that she was remarkably well prepared for the job. So much for being able to fire her on the grounds of incompe-tence. That would have been too neat and easy. And life, he'd learned, was rarely neat or easy.

Finally they finished dividing up the work detail for cleaning and prepping the camp.

'Okay,' he said, glancing at his watch, ready to wrap things up. 'I think that covers enough for now. We have an hour before dinner, which will be a hamburger cookout by the river.'

'So we're free to go?' Dana asked.

'You're dismissed,' Joe confirmed.

'Woo-hoo!' Dana jumped up and turned to Bobbi. 'You know what that means.'

'Badminton rematch,' Bobbi answered. 'Prepare to get trounced.'

'In your dreams!' The two took off at a full run.

The other counselors followed at a more sedate pace. Joe had an uneasy moment when Maddy didn't immediately stand. Surely she wasn't going to sit there with nothing but his mother as a buffer between them. Luckily, Carol turned when she reached the edge of the patio. 'Maddy, aren't you coming?'

'Oh.' She straightened as if surprised they would include her. 'Yes, of course.' She grabbed -her enormous hippie purse and followed. Apparently her fondness for funky, out-of-date clothes hadn't faded.

Now that her back was to him, he watched her openly. The others quickly closed ranks around her, and she laughed at something one of them said. The sound sent him hurtling back to the first time he'd seen her. It was right after he'd moved from Albuquerque to Austin. He was walking down the hall of his new high school with his head down, his hands in his pocket, and a hitch in his step that let everyone know 'Yeah, I'm bad.' He heard a laugh, not a girly giggle but an all-out laugh.

He looked up and saw Maddy walking toward him with a pack of girls. The sight of her throwing back her head and laughing stopped him in his tracks. He stood there bug-eyed as she continued past him, sucker punched by something that went beyond the normal adolescent-hormones-gone-haywire. One thought rang in his brain: I want. The wanting filled him with an intensity he rarely allowed. Couldn't afford to allow. But with Maddy, he'd dared more than want. He'd dared to have.

And he'd relearned one of life's cruelest lessons, that having and keeping are not the same thing.

He turned to his mother, who sat calmly watching him.

'I have one question,' he finally said.

'Yes?'

'What is she doing here?'

'Maddy?' His mother blinked her blue eyes as if the question confused her. Which he knew it didn't. Not for a minute. 'She's here to work as our new A and C coordinator.'

'But why? It's been bugging me all afternoon. Considering the way she dumped me, I have a hard time believing that she came out here hoping to take up where we left off. And if that was what she wanted, why the job? Why not just contact me?'

His mother pursed her lips, considering. 'And if she had called, what would you have said?'

'Nothing. I would have hung up.' Then promptly had heart failure.

'Exactly. It's a little harder to hang up when she's here in person.'

'Conflicting emotions clamped about his chest.

'Are you saying she does want to get back together?'

'I didn't 'say' that.'

'Okay-' He ran a hand over his hair and tried to think. 'Let's say she does, which blows my mind to even think about. Why the job? Why not come out here on the pretext of visiting you? Why would a thirty-two-year-old woman travel hundreds of miles to take a job at a summer camp? It can't be for the money. The job doesn't pay that much. So what is she doing here?'

'Why don't you ask her?'

Because that would involve talking to her.

Leaning forward, she patted his hand. 'Ask her, Joe. Otherwise you're just going to drive yourself crazy wondering.'

He dropped his head forward in defeat. 'I hate it when you're right.'

'Yes, I know.' She rose and kissed the top -of his head.