Beach House

"Well, sorry about that," he told her. "Unfortunately, you're stuck with me. I suppose I was dreading being out here alone as much as you were hoping to be. I like people and it's hard for me to turn that off."

Now Michelle really felt bad if he was having to try to not be himself on her account.

"Again, I apologize. I wasn't always like this," Michelle began. "I went through a pretty nasty divorce a couple of years ago and I kind of stick to myself now."

"That's too bad," he offered making Michelle wonder what he meant by that. There was a 25-watt bulb burning which was just enough so they could see one another, and Brock realized she'd taken offense.

"I didn't mean it like that, Michelle. I was trying to say you seem like a really nice person. You know, someone I'd enjoy talking to."

"I don't have a whole lot to say these days," she told him knowing that also sounded pretty bad.

"Look, I can't imagine what you've been through, but, well, I haven't done anything wrong to you," he said as politely as he could.

Michelle turned his way then said, "I guess I just don't trust many people anymore."

She paused the said, "Especially men."

"I get it. But it's not like I'm hitting on you or anything. I was just hoping to maybe talk and get to know you. If you'd rather I leave you alone, I can go back inside."

Michelle was trying to figure out how things had gone so far south so fast, and yet she knew the answer. She was being a bitch. Okay, maybe not a 'bitch' but she was being very cold at a minimum.

"No. Please don't do that," she said in a much gentler tone. "It's not like the divorce or my ex-husband are responsible for me or my behavior. This is all on me. It's just been easier to push people away and shut the world out than to risk, you know..."

"Getting hurt again?" he said completing her thought.

"Yes. I know I'm being...rude...when I act like this. It just seems preferable to being friendly, which, when I say out loud, really sounds awful."

"Then let's compromise. I'll stop talking so you can stop saying things that sound awful," he said almost playfully.

"Okay. I deserved that," she told him truthfully. "Can we maybe start over here?"

"Sounds good to me," Brock said. "Could I possibly interest you in a glass of wine?"

Michelle rarely drank and when she thought about it, it seemed likely that that, too, was due to wanting to avoid social situations where she'd have to be pleasant and engaging.

"Well, if you're going to have one, sure. I think I could do that," she agreed then wondering immediately why she had.

"Great. Gimme a sec and I'll be right back."

It was more like a minute, but he returned with an open bottle and two glasses. It was too dark to read the label, and Michelle didn't know wine anyway, so she wouldn't have known the bottle sold for just under $300.

Brock poured her a tiny sip and waited for her to sample it, but she never did.

"What?" she asked as he kept standing there looking at her.

"Oh. Nothing," he said when he realized she didn't know why he was waiting for her. He smiled then poured some more into her glass and then filled his half full, too.

"To starting over?" he suggested.

"Sure. To starting over," she said as they touched glasses.

"Wow. That's very smooth," she said having no idea why.

"This is one of my favorite reds," he told her. "Oh, it's not like I sit out here drinking alone. Just in case you were wondering."

Michelle actually smiled at him.

"Hey! Look at that! I knew there was a gorgeous smile behind that beautiful face!" he said.

"Yeah, right. I'm so beautiful my husband cheated on me and is now dating his...what is this? Oh, right. His third girlfriend since the one he cheated on me with."

"Wow. That's awful, Michelle. I really am sorry," Brock said sincerely.

"Me, too. It's been even worse on the kids," she told him.

"I like your kids. There're both very polite."

"Thank you. I'm really hoping summer camp will help with Teague's self-confidence, you know?"

"I'll do everything I can to make sure it does," he told her.

He waited for a second then said, "I'm probably gonna be right back in the doghouse with you, but it seems like you could use a little self-confidence yourself."

"I guess that's not such a big secret, is it?" she said knowing it was obvious.

"It's none of my business, but it surprises me because you really are very attractive," he told her.

Michelle nearly spewed her wine as she covered her mouth and said, "You've gotta be kidding! I'm a middle-aged woman with two children. How beautiful is that?"

"Hmmm. Looks like I have two projects to work on this summer," he said with a smile before taking another sip.

"Good luck with that," Michelle said trying to sound cheerful but not quite getting there.

"You're gonna have to be willing to help me out, though. I mean, I'm good at what I do. Really good, in fact. I'm just not that good," he told her in a way that let her know he was mostly kidding.

"Yeah, I'm a project, all right," she told him. "Or at least that's one word for it."

Brock laughed then said, "Well, I think you're pretty great, Michelle. You just need to give yourself some credit."

His kind words hit her so hard she found it difficult to speak.

"Did I say something wrong?" he asked sensing a problem.

"No. Not at all," she told him. "I...I just don't hear things like that very often."

There was another, longer pause before she said, "Gee. I wonder why, right?"

Brock laughed politely and that let Michelle do the same.

"Don't be so harsh on yourself, Michelle. You're out here with your children because you care. That makes you a good mom. Your husband cheated on you so...no offense...that makes him a bad husband. You didn't do anything wrong so there's no reason to beat yourself up for it. And if I may say so, I haven't done anything to deserve to be pushed away."

Michelle went to respond, but Brock quickly said, "But just give me some time and I'm sure I'll come up with something."

This time she laughed out of more than just politeness. She laughed because she found herself enjoying his company.

They sat and talked until a little after eleven when Brock finally said, "I have to get up at 4:30 to make sure everything is ready tomorrow morning, so I should go get some sleep."

"Oh, sure. Wow, I thought we were getting up early. Four-thirty is...brutal."

Brock laughed then said, "I'm not much of a morning person, but I do enjoy being around kids so it's a sacrifice I gladly make one month a year."

"Oh, so this isn't your first year as director?" she asked.

"Actually, it is. I was a counselor here for the three years before that. They needed a director this year, and when they called me I said I'd love to," he explained.

"I'm not sure why that surprises me so much but it does," Michelle told him.

Brock sat there for a moment before saying, "My mom died when I was seven. I remember feeling so sad and all alone. My dad made me go to summer camp that year and I was really angry at him. But by the time I left, I'd had more fun than I could ever remember. So when I heard about this place when I was an undergrad, I checked it out and then volunteered. I ended up having almost as much fun as an adult as I did as a kid. So every summer, I keep coming back."

"I'm...impressed," Michelle told him truthfully. "You could probably be doing pretty much anything else and yet you're out here helping these kids."

"I've had a pretty wonderful life, that one tragedy aside. I'm too chicken to serve in the military and while I don't mind roughing it a little bit, I'm not cut out for the Peace Corps or anything like it, so this is my way of trying to give back just a little bit."

"You know, when I first saw you, I thought you were probably a beach bum or maybe a surfer dude kind of guy," she confessed.

"They don't do a whole lot of surfing around here," he said politely ignoring her negative first impression.

"True. I just made a snap judgment, you know? You're young, you're...well, you're very good looking, and you're here living in a beach house."

"Right. Just like you, huh?" he said playfully.

"Except the very good-looking part. And the young part. Otherwise, okay, you got me."

Brock stood up, grabbed the glasses and the bottle, then said, "No. I got the part about being you very good looking exactly right."

Michelle laughed a nervous laugh then said, "It's very dark out here so your error can be excused."

Brock chuckled softly then told her, "I saw you in the light of day, Michelle, and I know whereof I speak."

Before she could reply he said, "This was really nice. Thanks for making this such an enjoyable evening."

And with that he was gone.

She sat there for a few more minutes as she realized she hadn't felt this good in nearly five years. Maybe it was the wine. Maybe it was just the polite conversation. Or maybe it was something more.

"Ha! Get real," she said to herself before standing up. "He's like...ten years younger than you are and he's a camp counselor for heaven's sake!"

But he was a very...hunky camp counselor. Or rather—director.

After being out of school for seven weeks, the kids weren't happy about getting up early the next morning.

"Mom? Do I have to go to camp?" Teague asked not only because he was tired, but because he was already sick to his stomach from just thinking about being away from him mom all day. He was much too tired to think about being around new kids, as well.

"Yes, you have to go," Michelle said. "Come on. Let's get up and I'll get you something to eat."

Teague dragged himself out of bed and Michelle almost laughed when he said, "At least I didn't have to jump down from the top bunk."

After some scrambled eggs and toast, both of them felt a lot better. Since Emma was't going to camp, Michelle let her sleep in until 7:15 knowing she was much easier to get up.

"Rise and shine, sleepy head!" her mom said looking at her from eye level when a quarter past seven rolled around.

First one eye slowly opened and then the other before Emma smiled.

"Hey there," her mom said. "You ready to get up?"

"Okay," she said quietly as she always did when it was time to get up.

Michelle offered to help her down, but Emma wanted to use the three-step ladder and do it herself.

A piece of toast and a glass of milk and Emma was all set.

"Okay. Go brush your teeth and let's get ready to roll, sports fans!" their mother said with too much enthusiasm for the time of day.

It was less than five minutes to the camp along the winding road that ran parallel to the beach. When they pulled in, Teague suddenly got interested.

"Is this camp?" he asked looking at the rock wall he couldn't wait to climb.

"This is it," his mom said.

"Look! An obstacle course," Teague said pointing over his mom's shoulder. "Just like in the movies. This is gonna be so cool!"

Michelle shut the car off and nearly yelped again when she turned to open the door and saw Brock standing there.

"You have this uncanny ability to scare the hell...the heck out of me," she said but not before both of her children looked at each other before laughing at hearing their mom say a 'bad' word.

"Sorry. I saw you pull up and wanted to say 'hello'," he said as he opened her door.

"Thank you, Brock. Or is it 'Mr. Director' over here?" she teased feeling in a very good mood for a change.

"Well, I prefer 'your majesty' but Brock will do," he told her with a smile.

"This looks very impressive," she after getting out of the car and taking a better look around.

"I've had a lot of help," he told her as he pointed to three young men and a woman in uniform.

"Is this a military camp?" Michelle asked.

"No. Not hardly," Brock assured her. "They're junior ROTC cadets from a local high school. They've volunteered to help out by setting up a lot of things we'll be doing."

"Like the obstacle course?" Teague asked excitedly. He'd been listening to every word and taking it all in.

"Yes. And the rock climbing, the orienteering, and even the color guard," Brock told him.

He turned to Michelle and said, "I hope you can stay for the opening ceremonies."

"Wow. Opening ceremonies? I really am impressed," she told him.

"The JROTC cadets will be posting the colors and then we'll play the national anthem. After that, I'll welcome everyone and let both the parents and kids know what to expect while they're here."

"Mom, did you hear that?" Teague asked even though Brock was talking to her.

"I did. See, I told you this would be fun!"

"Can we go look around?" her son asked.

"Is that okay?" she asked Brock.

"Sure, just don't go any further than those large bushes over there, okay?"

"Emma! Come on!" Teague hollered.

"Go on, honey. Go check it out," Michelle said knowing her daughter didn't like the outdoors all that much.

Reluctantly, she followed her brother around the part of the camp up to the bushes, and Michelle heard her son saying things like 'awesome' or 'this is so cool' at every station.

"It's all laid out so well," Michelle said.

"We've been working on it for two weeks," Brock told her. "And again, I couldn't have done it without the cadets. I have six other counselors working for me, but those kids are some real 'go-getters'."

"How many girls do you have enrolled?" she asked.

"Just over one-third of the kids," he told her. "Why? Is Emma thinking about giving it a try?"

"Hah! You've gotta be kidding! She is a girlie girl all the way," she said. "Now if you had classes on makeup or nail polish..."

"Sorry. Nothing like that," Brock let her know. "Just good, old-fashioned outdoor actives to build trust, self-confidence, and to get those little hearts beating."

He leaned over and said quietly, "We have quite a few kids every year who look like they never get any exercise. We teach fitness and nutrition, too, so I'm hoping we can help these kids want to make healthier choices when they leave. If not, we want them to at least have fun and learn what it means to be a part of a team while they're here."

"I heard a lot of good things about this camp, Brock. And so far, everything I heard is true. I really hope Teague gets some confidence from all this. He's just so shy and quiet."

"We'll do our best, and I'll personally give him all the time and attention I can," he told her.

"You don't have to that," Michelle told him. "I just want him to learn to be a little more confident."

"It's no problem," Brock said. "Besides, I'm not above showing a little favoritism if it helps me get in good with his mom."

His smile caused her body to flush with a range of emotions she hadn't experienced in a very long time even though he was almost certainly just being nice. The age difference was a huge deal all by itself. Then there was the fact that Brock was just plain gorgeous and although it wasn't as important, he didn't have an actual job. Still, it was very nice to feel something like that again.

"Be careful what you wish for," Michelle replied with a bright, happy smile.

"You say that like you wouldn't be a great catch or something," he told her with an equally friendly smile.

Michelle spread her arms a bit and said, "I'm a 36-year old mom with two kids so, um...see for yourself."

Brock glanced at her body without staring then said, "Uh-huh. I've noticed. Trust me."

His smile plus the comment sent a second salvo of whatever was going on with her through her body, and Michelle suddenly remembered the way she'd felt during her first crush. It was an almost giddy kind of feeling, and even though it was just playful banter, it was still very pleasant.

She laughed politely then told him, "Well, those kids come with this um...hot body...so if that isn't enough to scare a guy off, I'm not sure what would."

"Yep. I've noticed," he said again. He smiled then added, "Trust me."

Michelle tilted her head then said, "A guy like you should never flirt—even playfully—with a divorced mom like me. Just sayin'."

He smiled then said rhyming her words, "Who says I'm playing?"

"Oh. Well...okay," Michelle said as she quickly looked away not knowing what else to say.

"I really need to run. We've got several things to take care of before we get started, and I hate being late!" he told her as he got ready to head off.

"Oh, boy," Michelle said to herself seeing another huge problem with the non-existent relationship she'd just allowed herself to imagine might possibly someday exist even though a relationship was the last thing she'd come here looking for. If he was punctual, her tendency to be late more often than not would drive him crazy.

"Relationship. Yeah, right," she said out loud as she called for her kids to come back.

At five minutes to eight, Brock picked up a microphone and asked for everyone's attention. It was loud enough that it got people's attention before he even asked.

"Good morning, everyone! I just wanted to let you know we will begin our opening ceremonies at eight o'clock sharp. So in just under five minutes we need to have everyone gathered around in a semicircle in front of me leaving room for our color guard to pass through. Thank you!"

People began moving his way with some kids running, other's walking, and the adults more moseying than hurrying.

Brock separated the group into two halves so the color guard could walk through them and get to the area where flag holders were set up on the ground.

At exactly 8am, he grabbed the mike again then asked everyone for quiet. When it was dead silent, he nodded to the color guard which proceeded to march the colors upfront. When the cadets were in place, the national anthem played and everyone put their hands over their hearts until the last note. The colors were then posted (stood in the flag holders), and Brock formally introduced himself.

"Welcome to summer camp 2017 everyone! I'm Brock Nothen, the camp director. Please allow me to introduce my counselors and our color guard that has been so instrumental in getting everything ready to go."

Each counselor waved to the crowd while members of the color guard remained perfectly still as they stood at 'parade rest' in their JROTC uniforms.

Brock then went over the purpose of the camp which was to build teamwork and self-confidence as well as a generic overview of how they'd be doing that day in and day out.

"So in conclusion, we will not tolerate lying, cheating, stealing or disrespect to anyone. And bullying is NOT allowed. Period! That's the negative. The positive is to have all the fun you can, learn as much as possible, and always believe in yourself and your teammates. Are there any questions?"

Almost immediately a woman about Michelle's age called out, "Are you single and available?"

There was a lot of laughter followed by Brock's reply.

"I am both single and available—as long as you are."

That brought some more laughter and an, "Ah, shoot!" from the obviously-married woman who'd asked.

"Are there any other questions?" he asked. "No? Okay, parents, you'll have fifteen minutes to say goodbye to your kids. You can pick them up at 8 pm tonight if they aren't staying with us in the bunkhouse. Lastly, we ask for your attention and respect one more time as the colors are retired."

The cadets did their thing and once they were finished, everyone relaxed and began talking again.

"I didn't know they had a bunkhouse!" Teague said. "Can I stay there?"

"Seriously?" his mom asked. "You want to stay here at night?"

"I...think so," he told her.

"I want you to think about it for a day or so. If you decide to stay, that's fine. But you can't come home if you get homesick. You stay in the bunkhouse or whatever they call it every night for the entire month. Okay?"