Monday, June 8, 1992, Bass Lake, Wisconsin
"Leah, are you about ready to go?" asked Bonnie as she fixed her top and took another glance in the mirror on her desk.
"Yeah, almost ready," said Leah as she looked back through her luggage, getting her bag ready for the day. "No swimming today, right?"
"No, not today. I need to drop off some supplies for my grandma at the Diner, and we can grab lunch."
"What are we dropping off?" Leah wondered.
"I'm not sure. Grandma called Mom earlier, and whatever it is, Mom said she left a note in the garage," said Bonnie.
"Do we need to take Joe?" asked Leah.
"No, Joe's staying here. He normally avoids the diner because he gets put to work by my grandma," said Bonnie, laughing as she headed out of her bedroom door and down the staircase.
As they opened the garage, they saw her mom's note of the supply list. Bonnie began loading the boxes of styrofoam cups and lids into the car before they headed from Waukesha to Bass Lake.
"So, how far are you all from the lake?" asked Leah.
"Like 20 to 30 minutes," said Bonnie. "Not too far, but far enough. I wouldn't want to live where my cousins do; my grandma has them practically live there," Bonnie said as they drove down the old county trunk until their turn onto Bass Lake Road.
Bonnie pulled the Ford behind the diner. They unloaded the boxes, and as they were heading toward the back door, Clara swung it open and called out to her granddaughter.
"Saw you pull up. Thank you for bringing these over, Bonnie, and Leah, I hardly recognize you," said Clara as she took the box and set it upon the storage shelf. "Come here, child, let me give you a hug. I haven't seen you since you were here with your.." as Clara caught herself mid sentence.
"It's okay, Mrs. Beck. Mom always loved seeing you all when they came up here back in the 70s."
"How are you doing, dear?" asked Clara, looking at the young girl with warm eyes.
"As good as I can, I guess. Some days it's still tough," she said, looking away.
"I'm sure they are, dear. I'm sure they are," said Clara, giving her a tight hug. As she let her go, she looked at her granddaughter and asked, "So what are you ladies up to today?"
"Well, I wanted to show Leah the beach, grab some lunch, and stop by Aunt Ingrid at the farm if she was up to it," said Bonnie.
"Probably not today, Bonnie. Your Aunt is in town with the younger boys, and Rusty and Caleb are busy inside. You know, it's the lunch crowd," said Clara.
Clara looked at the broad smile on Leah's face as she talked. "What are you smiling at, sweetheart? You don't have many Minnesotans in Georgia?"
"No, we don't. I forgot how much I loved it," said Leah.
"Well, dear, I will say with your pretty face and the sweet southern accent, if you hang around the beach, you'll make some friends and feel right at home in no time," said Clara before turning her attention to her granddaughter. "Actually, speaking of "friends", Bonnie, that handsome Stanton boy is back in town and is at the beach today with his cousins."
Leah cocked an eye at her cousin, who gave her an "I'll explain in a minute" look.
"Here for the next two months, per Lucy. I recall you two were pretty good friends last summer," said Clara.
Bonnie's eyes lit up. "Jake's here already," she said with a smile. "He wrote me that he was coming up this weekend, but I hadn't heard from him yet."
"Wrote you now, did he?" Clara said with a knowing smile. "Well, go over and say hello, dear. Then you all can come back and get a bit to eat."
"Thanks, Grandma," Bonnie said as she and Leah headed out of the diner.
The moment they exited, Leah turned to her cousin with a raised eyebrow. "Alright, spill the beans," she drawled. "Who is this Jake?"
Bonnie, trying to keep things under wraps, replied, "He's my grandma's best friend's grandson. Lives in Arizona, but spends summers here."
"Hmm, so how close are you guys? And is he, you know, hot?" Leah pressed.
"It's weird," Bonnie admitted. "He's kind of like family, but not really. I mean, he's not bad looking. Tall, plays baseball, and even has a band with his friends." Leah paused, struggling to find the right words.
"Well, I can't wait to meet your hot Arizona 'friend,'" Leah declared, using air quotes for emphasis as they walked through the fenced gate.
"Shh, stop it!" Bonnie hissed. They could clearly see Lana playing in the water with her cousins as they walked past a few familiar moms and kids enjoying the beach who waved to Bonnie.
Lana saw them and waved, then pointed to the old oak tree by the fence. There, under the shade of the large tree, was a tall boy wearing blue board shorts and no shirt, with a ball cap over his face, sound asleep.
Bonnie waved back to Lana but put her fingers over her lips when she saw them, preventing the girl from shouting anything. Bonnie and Leah walked quietly up to where he was sleeping. Bonnie leaned down very close and blew air at his cap and face, causing him to move his hand to swat at an imaginary fly. She then leaned in even closer and carefully blew into his ear, stirring him from his slumber.
As he began to stir, Leah could no longer resist and said, "Well, Bonnie, from your description of this desert boy, I was hoping for someone with nice LA Golden legs to match his golden locks, not someone with a quite blinding farmer's tan."
"Be nice, Leah," said Bonnie. "It's obvious the boy is still sleeping off his jet lag."
Jake slowly opened his eyes from under his cap and moved it to get a better look at the voices that had awoken him from his nap. As his eyes adjusted, he saw Bonnie's smiling face and her tussle of brown curls that were cut nicely around her face wearing her standard tank top and brightly colored shorts. Then he looked and saw a girl he had never seen before, whose face belied a certain level of mischief brewing behind those blue eyes. She had raven-black hair that flowed clear to her shoulders as effortlessly as an afternoon walk. She was wearing a tight-fitting Ace of Spades shirt and cutoff jean shorts. Jake tried to find the words to say as he woke out of his sleep, trying to remember where he was in his half-alert state. But he waited too long for Leah, as her quick wit fired back at him. "And they say Southerners talk slow, Bonnie. I do believe I have found competition for the boys back home," she said as she smiled back at Bonnie. "Is he able to speak?"
"Oh, don't you worry about that, girl," said Bonnie. "Once he gets started, he won't shut up."
By this time, Lana had gotten the boys closer to shore, and she was making a quick path up to the older girls to join the conversation.
"Hey, Bonnie, how are you doing? Who's your friend?" said Lana.
"Hi, Lana, this is my cousin Leah. She's spending some time here for a couple of weeks."
"How'd you get here? Did you get your license?" Lana inquired.
"Yeah," said Bonnie, "I've had it for about four months."
"Cool. Does your dad let you drive the Roadrunner?" asked Lana.
Bonnie laughed out loud. "Umm, no, I'm not allowed to touch that car."
"So, " Bonnie nudged Jake, trying to get him to talk to Leah and stop staring at her cousin. "When did you get in?"
"I flew in the other night," Jake replied. "I'm staying with Grandma in the city, but I'll be out here at the lake a lot this summer. I have a bunch of work to do on the cottage. Grandpa wants the boathouse painted and reshuttered among other items."
"That's cool," Bonnie said. "How's the water, Lana?"
"Not too bad," Lana responded. "I was hoping for a warmer day, but it's okay."
"How much longer are you guys going to be out here?" Bonnie asked.
Jake checked his watch. It was a little after noon. "Probably another hour or so before we get the boys changed and get the cottage locked up before heading back to the city."
"Well, we were going to grab some lunch and then head back to the house." Bonnie explained.
Turning the conversation back to Leah, Jake asked, "So, how long are you staying here for?"
"And why would that interest you, Farmer Tan?" Leah teased.
"Well, I've got four weeks before my party gets crashed, and I'll be out here a lot working on the cottage," Jake said, trying to act cool. "Just curious if I'd be seeing you again."
Lana rolled her eyes at her cousin's blatant flirting. "It was great to see you, Bonnie. Nice to meet you, Leah. I'm going to head back out and swim with the boys."
"Nice to meet you, Lana," Leah replied.
"See you later, kiddo," Bonnie smiled as Lana bounded back out to the water.
"Well, Farmer Tan," Leah said with a smirk, glancing at Bonnie who was looking across the road, "it was nice meeting you."
"Did you guys already have lunch?" Bonnie asked.
"Yeah, we grabbed a bite a little while ago at the cottage," Jake answered. "Why?"
"We were going to hang out at the diner for a bit and have some burgers," Bonnie said. "If you want to stop by, my uncle just updated the jukebox. They might even have some songs you country folk might like." She took a playful dig at both Jake and her cousin.
"Well, I might just have to check that out," Jake said with a laugh as the girls walked away. He watched them all the way until they crossed the road and disappeared back into the diner.
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