Lena's River Read Free Page B

she
emphasized “vintage”.
    “Yeah? Well yours is a sweet classic. What, 1970’s
make?”
    “It is 1967. I had to rebuild the wall around the sink
and stove, but other than that it was in great shape for its age. My friend
Mary has the charmer though. Hers is an old Boler 17 built up in Canada.”
    He nodded his approval: “Those are tough to find. My
grandfather has a vintage caravan. I’m not sure what make it is. I’d love to
see yours sometime, if you don’t mind. I’m kind of interested in one.”
    “Sure, it’s nothing fancy though.” She noted his use of
the word caravan and thought it odd. “You can see it right now if you
want.”
    Way to go Lena, invite a total stranger
into your camper after five minutes…that’s really smart.
    “That’d be great; I mean if I’m not interrupting any
fishing?”
    “No, I fished all morning. I was taking a lunch break
when Pascal here showed up. No worries.”
    Lena tried to get off the picnic table without scraping
her butt. “You aren’t from this area, are you?”
    Levi whistled for Pascal and smiled again. “No, is it
that obvious?” He took a sip from his drink. “I just finished grad school back
east and I’m supposed to be job-hunting. My family vacationed near here a few
times, when I was a kid. I loved those summers and I’ve always wanted to come
back, so I decided to drive out and look around – tour the area with adult
eyes, so to speak.”
    Lena ambled down the loop toward her camp. “Where’d you
go to grad school?” She liked the way he smiled.
    “MIT.” Levi looked at her sideways. He kicked at a
branch in the path.
    Lena whistled. “Wow, I almost am afraid to ask in what
field for fear of showing my ignorance.”
    Levi laughed. “Applied Biometrics . I’ve been living in
academia so long that I need to get out and do something different for awhile
before I start working at an actual job.”
    “That’s fascinating. I’ve never met anyone with a
degree from MIT before. Well, you shouldn’t have any trouble finding a job. I
mean, with those credentials.”
    “Ha, well one can’t be too sure. I wake up at night and
wonder if I might have specialized too much.”
    Lena shook her head. “I know nothing about that field.
I taught high school math for five years. I know the schools are scrambling for
math teachers.” Before Levi could respond, Lena said: “Here we are – my little home
away from home.”
    As they walked up to her camper Lena felt self
conscious again. She hoped the inside wasn’t too messy. She’d taken off in a
hurry this morning; anxious to get to the river and cast her line in the
stream.
    Levi surveyed the outside. “Great old crank windows. Do
you have problems with them leaking?” He ran his fingers over the aluminum
casing.
    “No not at all.” Lena replied. She opened the door and
hopped in, grabbing a pile of clothes on the bench and tossing them into the
storage cupboard.
    He stood outside and peeked in through the open door.
“Wow, very nice. You did a great job. And you kept the original appliances?
Sweet.”
    “Yeah, they are. I even have a little oven.”
    “Oh wow, well if I smell fresh croissants in the
morning then I’ll know where to go!”
    Lena laughed: “Not likely, chocolate chip cookies in
the evening, maybe. You can come in if you want.”
    Levi paused: “Are you sure? I don’t want to intrude or
anything.”
    “You’re so polite! No, come on in, it’s fine. Unless,
I’m too scary.” Lena laughed and then wished she’d not said that. You’re
really batting a thousand with this one, girl. Any moment now he’s going to
bolt.
    Levi stepped up into the camper and Lena sat down on
the edge of her bed. He examined the layout with admiration, commenting here
and there on details that caught his eye. Then he sat on the edge of the long cushioned
bench near the dinette. Lena wondered if he felt awkward and that he might
excuse himself. She waited for the countdown until he left.