Free Inspire by Heather Buchine Page A

found his eyes on me and every time, he smiled a crooked little grin like he had been caught with his hand in the candy jar. It was adorable and made the butterflies buzz around in my stomach.
    It was obvious that our parents had really connected because they were already laughing at inside jokes and had so much to talk about. “So Paige, your parents told us about Pri*Tee Pixies today. Impressive is an understatement. It’s amazing what someone your age has been able to accomplish. You should be so proud of yourself,” Barney stated and Lucille nodded in agreement. The comment broke through our silent ogling, and my cheeks burned with embarrassment realizing that Travis and I had been locked in a stare.
    “Thanks, I just feel fortunate to be able to do it and for all of the support the community has provided,” I said and then looked back to see Travis’s confused expression.
    “Travis,” Lucille said, gaining his attention, “has Paige told you that she started an organization a few years ago in order to support needy and starving families? She puts together dance performance events to raise money for the charity and has managed to raise over a few million dollars.” Lucille’s brief explanation captured the gist of my organization, so now Travis would be clued into my life as a Pixie.
    “Wow, Paige that’s incredible. So is that what the dance is for?” he asked and looked to be putting it all together.
    “Yes, we are hosting our next event on Labor Day. It’s usually one of our largest turnouts. So, I need to work on the dance while I’m here this summer,” I answered and met his eyes. He looked to be deep in thought and I wished I knew what he was thinking.
    “Do you have other dancers Paige?” Lucille inquired, pulling my attention towards the adults.
    “Yes, my best friend Tracey and I are usually the leads, but then we have a group of ten guys and girls that we pull from for different numbers,” I replied and glanced back at Travis.
    “So how will you prepare for the dance while you’re here Paige?” Lucille seemed really interested and wanted to learn the details.
    “Well, I usually write down all of the moves and then make a video of the entire dance. Tracey is back home and will teach it to the group, and then all of them will be able to view the video online to practice.”
    “Wow, modern technology,” Barney said, shaking his head in awe.
    “Yeah, it makes things easier that’s for sure,” I agreed.
    After dinner was all cleaned up, we sat around the fire to roast marshmallows for dessert. Travis showed off his technique for getting a perfectly roasted marshmallow.
    “This one’s for you! Perfectly golden brown,” he said, handing it over to me. I took a bite and immediately nodded my approval. Travis then continued making them for me. I tried to return the favor, and ended up handing him a fully charred marshmallow.
    “Wow, that looks delicious,” he teased, looking at it from every angle.
    “Aren’t you going to at least try it, you wouldn’t want to insult the chef,” I needled. He popped it in his mouth and then my mom started laughing.
    “Sorry Travis, I only have myself to blame. She inherited her cooking skills from me!”
    We all laughed and joked around and I couldn’t believe how comfortable it was with him and with his family. It was as if we had known each other for years. Finally, it got to the point where I needed to use the bathroom because I had drunk so much lemonade. Barney was in the RV taking his time, so I excused myself from the group to go over to the main building.
    “I’ll walk you over,” Travis said, grabbing a flashlight to show the way.
    “Thanks,” I said, thrilled by his offer. The entire night I had been flustered by butterflies and tingles from all of his flirtations, but I still had yet to learn whether he was taken. Boys have a tendency to flirt no matter what, so I wasn’t reading anything into it.
    “So is that why your dad calls