Page 90 of Valley Girls
Adeena waved her hand. “Don’t do that. Go steal it for me.” She clenched her fist. “Show the man who’s boss.”
Petra laughed. “Come on, Caroline. Rilla will lead us.”
“You coming?” Rilla asked Walker, fingers crossed.
His gaze met hers and then dropped. “Nah, I gotta sleep. I’m on call again tomorrow, and it’s supposed to be really hot. I want to get some good sleep.”
Fine. Be that way.She wanted to snap and flounce off, but she just shrugged and tried to make it look like she didn’t give two hoots that he was still sitting by the fire with wide-eyed Olivia.
Rilla fell into step beside Caroline and Petra as they left the camp behind and headed down the dark path still randomly populated with tourists. Caroline and Petra were always polite together, but she’d never seen themhang out. It was a new, strange dynamic.
“Olivia was super into your brother,” Petra said.
“Do I look like I give a shit?” Caroline asked.
Petra rolled her eyes and gave Rilla a look like,OMG.
Rilla’s stomach tightened.
“I don’t want to talk about my brother’s dating life,” Caroline said.
“Ugh, yeah. I hear you,” Petra said smoothly, even though she’d brought it up. “Did you hear that rumor that Celine is coming to the park?”
“Not a rumor,” Caroline said. “She’s coming at the end of July.”
“Rilla, do you know who Celine is?” Petra asked.
“Um. Vaguely,” Rilla answered, dodging dazed and sunburnt hikers through Yosemite Village and trying not to feel dumb she didn’t really know. “A famous climber, right?”
“Hopefully she’s not so celebrity she can’t climb with us,” Petra said. “I’m friends with one of her climbing partners, and I’ve heard she’s nice, but we’ll see.”
“She’s nice,” Caroline said.
“Oh, you’ve met her?”
Caroline was quiet, but she must have nodded, because Petra moved on. “Rilla wants to do a big wall,” she said.
“Oh yeah?” Caroline’s tone picked up excitedly.
“We should all do one together. You’re the queen of big wall logistics,” Petra said.
“Mmm ...” Caroline said. “Yeah, maybe.”
Petra and Caroline were going to climb together? She’d never seen that. But more importantly, they would climb with her. Rilla nearly skipped with glee, off the asphalt, onto one of the grass beaten meadow paths that the employees used to shortcut the Valley.
“Why are you so loud?” Caroline said to Petra. “Quit trampling through the undergrowth. We’re stealing something, not waltzing in and announcing our presence.”
“I am being quite stealthy,” Petra shot back.
Caroline laughed.
Rilla slowed, trying to be quieter, just in case.
Petra shoved her elbow into Caroline’s side, and Caroline jumped. “Quit trampling through the undergrowth, Caroline,” Petra said.
Caroline covered her mouth to smother her laughter.
Rilla crept through the gardens with Caroline and Petra in tow. Her mind ran circles around Walker, her schoolwork, and how to convince Thea she should take the exam for a GED, only half aware of what she was doing.
