Tonight she just wanted to hang out with her husband and child, however. She was more relieved than she could say about the way the day had gone. What she hadn’t told Greg was how worried she’d been that their visitors would blame her for her part in making it hard for the others to win Base Camp, or that they’d think she was lazy taking time off, or was a bad mother for going back to work as soon as she had, even if she was working right here, which meant she got to see Adalynne all the time.
That was succumbing to old fears. In the first months after marrying Greg, she’d struggled to really feel a part of Base Camp after so many months of hovering around the outskirts filming their activities. She’d assimilated over time, however, so it was interesting the way those old worries cropped up today. Doubtless the visitors reminded her of Base Camp’s audience, especially since Byron had been documenting the day for a special follow-up show Fulsom wanted to run.
Those times of being on the outskirts were long gone, though. She was as much a part of the community as anyone else, and to her surprise she was loving it. She appreciated how the other women made such an effort to include her in their get-togethers, especially. She hadn’t learned to cultivate female friendships in her childhood as she moved from foster home to foster home. Sometimes she felt she was getting a second chance at being a teenager, especially when someone suggested a women’s-only movie night at the manor when it wasn’t booked, and they all piled together to watch something sweet and sappy, eat popcorn and stay up way too late.
She’d grown to be grateful for all the men at Base Camp, too. It wasn’t just women she’d avoided when she was younger. Now she was learning that for all their rough-and-tumble ways, she could appreciate their humor, energy and dedication to getting things done—and the way the men here always stepped up to protect their homes and families.
People were… okay, she decided. She didn’t need to keep them at arm’s length, boss them around or always be in absolute control of the situation. She could be one of the group and let things happen the way they happened.
It was a new way to be in the world.
Adalynne uttered a little sound from her crib, and they both stilled, listened and waited until it was clear she wouldn’t wake up.
Motherhood had softened her in some ways, Renata mused as Greg worked away on her tired feet, and it had made her fiercer in others. No one was going to hurt her daughter. Nothing could ever persuade her to leave Adalynne behind.
She was determined to be here to usher Adalynne through every step toward adulthood. And if something did ever happen to her and Greg, there would be a dozen people ready to care for and love their daughter for as long as she needed them.
That’s what security was. Not money. Not possessions, or accolades, or career triumphs.
It was knowing there was a community of like-minded individuals ready to step in and raise your child should you ever need them.
“Ready for bed?” Greg asked softly.
“More than ready.”
“Mommy!” Iris cried, toddling toward Win, a grin splitting her little face. Her red-blond hair glinted in the last rays of the setting sun. Angus’s heart squeezed to see his wife bend down and scoop up their daughter, twirling her around until Win’s skirts swirled, too.
At just over a year old, Iris Eliza McBride was one of the happiest creatures Angus had ever met. Her unending wonder and joy at every new sight that met her eyes kept him looking sharp for new things to show her, just to get to experience it with her.
She was a handful in the greenhouses these days, wanting to touch, tug, examine and squeeze the life out of everything she could reach, which made her dangerous around the hydroponics setup. He tended to take her to the outside gardens when he was caring for her so she could dig to her heart’s content in the dirt, “plant” sticks and rocks and dig them up all over again. She was a bundle of energy until she conked out. Then she loved for them to read her stories, especially when he put his accent on thick and acted out all the characters’ voices.
Iris attended Base Camp’s child-care group every weekday morning, during which time he and Win scrambled to get their work done. They ate lunch together, put Iris down for her afternoon nap and got some more things done—or spent some time together, then took turns with Iris through the rest of the day. With Kai cooking most of their lunches and dinners and all the extra hands around, everything seemed to get done sooner or later.
Angus was working hard to figure out how they could grow more vegetables through the winter, which meant he was learning a lot more about hydroponics,
