“They’ve never done this before,” Noah responds before Parker chimes back in. “This is new. I’m guessing things will change during the night, and we’re to watch for those changes. The note doesn’t say anything else other than we have to dress up.”
“Dress up?” Surprised, I consider what all I brought with me and find my options lacking. I’ll have to see if Lily has something I can borrow. I just have some sundresses and skirts. Nothing nice. Another thought occurs to me, and my chest tightens with panic. “We don’t have to know Miss Manner’s table etiquette or anything, do we?” My hands shake, and I press them against my thighs. I’m not rude at the table, but I’ve never been in a formal setting.
“It doesn’t say, but it wouldn’t hurt.” Parker shrugs, not really concerned. “You can go over some of that with Lucca this afternoon if you finish off your pictures.”
“I’ll give you the highlights, Lucca reassures me. “I don’t think you’ll need to know too many specifics. I’ve dined with all sorts of important and wealthy people because of my parents. It wasn’t anything you couldn’t figure out if you had to. The times you have to worry are when you’re in another country and don’t know their social rules.”
Lucca’s explanation makes me feel a little better, and the panic subsides.
Ever the leader, Parker gets us back on track. “Let’s get going. We’ll meet back up at dinner and talk about this more.”
“After dinner, Cassie wants to work with Jay on some martial arts techniques or self-defense,” Lucca informs everyone, relaying part of our earlier conversation.
“That’s a good idea. It’ll take time to build up some of those skills, and we’ll need them by the time we’re at our last task.” Jay stands and heads to the door.
“Okay. Here’s our plan. Lucca and Cassie will stay here until dinner to finish the pictures.” Parker joins Jay at the door. “Jay, Noah, and I will go ask for a bonus task. We’ll meet up for dinner at six, and then go to the playground to work on the self-defense later.”
“Why the playground?” I ask because we never go there.
“The ground’s covered in this soft, rubbery material to stop people from getting hurt if they fall,” Parker explains. “It will be a good cushion for us to use on drops and throws. We don’t want to hurt each other, and there are no other good places to do this kind of workout.”
“Sounds like a plan.” I wave as they walk out the door.
~
Friday brings sore muscles I didn’t know I had. Jay thought I did well by being able to pull from my dance and gymnastics background, but the moves were different, so now I hurt. I hide it from the others, though. Bringing attention to it will do me no good if it means they go all crazy protective and stop letting me practice. I want to learn, and the idea of being able to protect myself is invigorating.
We decide to break early in the afternoon to get ready for dinner. As we leave, Parker stops me. “We’ll meet you at your cabin at five-thirty so we can walk back up here together.”
I frown, confused why they would do that. “I can meet you on the path. There’s no reason to walk all the way to my cabin and then back past yours on the way here.”
“It’s not a problem.” He walks out the door before I can convince him otherwise.
When I get back to my cabin, I discover Lily laid a dress on the bed for me to use. When I change into it, the rich lavender, strapless dress with a handkerchief hemline hits just over my knees. The bodice is tight, then it flares out at the waist. I’ve never worn anything so pretty. She also lent me a pair of silver, low-heeled sandals to round out the outfit.
Because I have no jewelry, the girls convince me to leave my hair down. Lily curls it to form soft waves down my back. A light touch of makeup completes the look.
At least, that’s what Lara tells me.
With the number of campers, the staff split the dinner event into three nights so the room wouldn’t be crowded. Lily’s and Lara’s teams went last night, and Fallon’s team will go tomorrow night. Fallon warned me Mindy will be attending tonight’s session. I won’t let that bother me, though. I’ll be fine as long as her table is away from mine.
Right at five thirty, a knock at our door echoes through the cabin.
Fallon opens it and calls me over. “They’re ready for you. If you don’t hurry, they’ll barge in here.” She rolls her eyes. Parker wouldn’t burst in here unless he thought there was a problem, not with having the wrath of his sister come down on him. She turns to the guys. “She’s coming. Slow down.”
Thanking the girls for helping me, I walk toward the door. I take a deep breath, nervous but not sure why. I glide out the door, working to exude as much confidence as possible before I see the guys standing at the bottom of the steps waiting for me. Each one has a different wildflower in his hand.
I take the steps slowly so I don’t fall in the heeled shoes, and Noah reaches me first. “You’re breathtaking.” He hands me my flower and kisses me on the cheek.
A blush heats my face as he steps aside, and Lucca walks up. He hesitates for a moment before he hands me his flower. “Even more lovely than a field full of wildflowers.” He, too, kisses me on the cheek.
Jay strides forward, hands me my flower, and he kisses my cheek, close to my ear, before whispering. “We’re a lucky team.”
After he steps back, Parker takes Jay’s place. He kisses my cheek before he hands me my flower. “Beautiful,” is all he says. He then offers me his elbow. Jay, on my other side, also offers me an elbow.
Lucca and Noah bring up the rear.
I shift to glance back at them, and Noah offers me a full tooth smile. “We get to escort you back to the cabin later.”
As we walk down the path toward dinner, I spot Mindy waiting for her team near her cabin. Jenny stands next to her, whispering in her ear. The two girls sneer at me as we pass. Mindy’s mouth pops open to speak when Jay leans down, distracting me. “They’re just jealous. Smile and walk on because nothing can match how amazing you look tonight. Don’t let them ruin it.”
He gifts me with another kiss. I blush, smile, and keep walking, missing if Mindy said anything or not.
Dinner tonight is located in the main building, in a conference room behind the auditorium. Instead of a plain, academic feel, a bright, flower-filled room greets us. Around the room, the dimmed lights glow softly as candles burn low on the round tables, adding to the ambiance.
Rather than focusing too much on the changes, I concentrate on how this will impact our assignment. “I think they made it darker in here to make it harder to detect changes.”
“Good observation,” Noah agrees. “I wouldn’t have thought about that.”
“Cassie, why don’t you sit with your back to the wall so you can see most of the room?” Parker surveys our surroundings. “Even if we don’t catch everything right away, your memory will help.”