AllFreeNovel
Share Us
While some of the other men they were familiar with swung by to join in on the conversation, they didn’t say much to me. They were still standoffish, but those chose to say less rather than to fight.
It wasn’t much, but it was something.
“You guys need to try the lemonade,” Hayley said, sipping it from her cup. “They’re putting lavender in it, and it’s amazing.”
Willow smiled at that. “We’ll swing over that way soon. I think it’ll make the baby happy.”
The girls cooed at that, all agreeing with the notion.
Before long, River swooped in, looking somewhat dazed but excited about everything happening.
“The children’s games will be starting soon if you all want to watch.”
Everyone responded with their positive acknowledgments, which made her smile.
“We won’t miss it,” Willow confirmed, to which River beamed and waved as she headed back in that direction.
Deciding it was time to try some of the fair food, we broke off from the rest of the group and went to the midway.
I was amazed by how many different options there were, and we grabbed a few things that caught Willow’s attention, along with two lavender lemonades.
On the way, we took in more of the sights, and I knew Willow was over the moon. She looked beautiful as she went, her emerald green dress flowing behind her. It was my favorite color on her, and I began to wonder if she already knew that.
“A lot of the kids in Rose Valley registered to compete in the races, and I can’t wait to see it,” Willow said, looking at everything with such delight as if she didn’t help put it all together.
“Maybe ours will enter one day, too,” I said, liking the idea of our baby growing up with lots of friends their age.
“With me as their mother? Of course they will.”
We both laughed at that and made our way over to the meadow where a straight track was drawn into the grass, with a start and finish line. Colorful flags blew in the wind, and many of the kids were climbing into their potato sacks.
While I had been in a good mood for most of the day, it was getting harder for me to ignore the wandering eyes that always seemed to find me. No matter how much I smiled in return or tried to ignore them, they persisted.
I started to feel like a science experiment gone wrong or like I had personally attacked each one of them at one point in time.
I so badly wished I could tell them I never had a hand in the attacks myself. That I had turned tail and got out as soon as I could without my dad noticing.
But I had the feeling they wouldn’t believe me anyway.
The staring was off-putting, to say the least, but I reminded myself not to be bothered by it, even if it irritated me.
I wanted to enjoy our day together and celebrate Willow’s hard work. I didn’t want it to be about me in the slightest.
Picking up on my discomfort, Willow reached for my hand and gave it an affectionate squeeze. Tucked in close to my side, she murmured, “You’re okay. I know they’re looking, but their opinions don’t matter. We’ve been having fun, and I want to make sure that continues.”
Allowing myself to relax with a deep breath, I nodded and smiled at her.
Looking at each other for a moment, the warmth between us helped soothe that irritation that festered beneath my skin. She was perfect in every way, and I wanted her to know that.
Willow leaned up and pressed a quick kiss to my lips before smiling and pulling me along behind her. “Come on, it’s starting.”
As we found a place to stand and watch the competitions, I couldn’t help but appreciate the swell of love in my chest. I was so grateful for Willow and our growing baby.
They gave me strength, and I knew I needed to hold out for them. Even if some of Rose Valley were resisting me and my desire for lasting peace, at least I knew I had them to lean on.
Chapter 23 - Willow
I was nearly crying with laughter by the end of the races and games, especially after some of the men decided to try out the potato sack race for themselves.
