After that whole scene in the boardroom, I'd been reluctant to mention his job at all. And yet, the longer I knew him, the more confused I became.
On one hand, he wasn't from around here, and he seemed to be on vacation. But on the other hand, he'd somehow been hired to paint the boardroom. Those two things didn't quite mesh.
While thinking this over, I nibbled at my marshmallow, loving the taste and texture of its warm, semi-crunchy exterior. Next to me, Joel pulled his own stick from the fire and gave his marshmallow a closer look. It was darker than mine and smoking at the edges. Even so, he plucked it off the stick and popped the whole thing into his mouth.
I had to laugh. "Isn't that too hot?"
He shook his head. "Nope. It's just right."
"Oh yeah?" I teased. "Is it the best one you've ever had?"
"Sure." He leaned his stick against the side of his chair. "The worst, too."
"How so?" I asked.
"It was my first one."
"Your first marshmallow? Seriously?"
"My firstroastedmarshmallow." He flashed me a grin. "Big difference."
I didn't get it. While making the fire, Joel had mentioned in passing that he'd grown up on the other side of the state. I knew for a fact they had plenty of campgrounds over there, too. And yet, he'd never gone camping? Or roasted a marshmallow?
I just had to ask, "What else haven't you done?"
That same shadow passed over his features. "Trust me. I've done plenty."
I had no doubt of that.
He returned his gaze to the flames. "You wanna know why I'm here?"
"Yeah. I mean, if you feel like telling me."
"Alright. Here's the truth." He turned and gave me a smile that chased the shadows away. "I'm in hiding."
I laughed. "Oh stop it, you can't be."
"Yeah? Why not?"
"Okay, let's say you are. Who would you be hiding from?"
He gave a rueful laugh. "My family."
Given what I knew, that actually made sense. I recalled the little he'd told me on Friday night. He had multiple brothers, who he didn't seem to like very much. Other than the guy who owned the Camaro, I knew nothing about any of them. But Ididknow that the car wasn't the only thing that Joel had taken.
I said, "Can I ask you something?"
"Yeah, what?"
I lowered my voice. "We talked about the Camaro, but what about the other stuff?"
"What other stuff?"
I glanced around before whispering, "You know, the guns."
Unlike me, Joel didn't feel the need to whisper. "What about them?"
While peddling out here, I'd given this a lot of thought. By the time I reached the campground entrance, I was pretty sure I'd figured it out.
