"Ooh, I want some of that." Enrico got down next to her in the grass.
"I guess you guys are working hard," Mitch said seeing them stretched out on the lawn with Veronica pawing at Enrico's shirt pocket.
Instead of getting up, Enrico called out to Mitch, "You get down here too. Put down some more road for these kittens."
"Yes, Daddy. It's nice," Sammy urged him.
"Fine. But then we have to get to work," Mitch said. He got down next to Sammy and tried to get Natalie to come over to him but she saw a bee fly by and she ran off.
"Don't get stung by a bee, Natalie!" Sammy warned her as she sat up.
"I better scoop her up before she gets in trouble," Enrico said. As he stood up, he handed Veronica to Mitch. "You cuddle with this one since Natalie ditched you for a bee."
As Enrico leaned down to hand the kitten to him, Mitch grabbed him and pulled him down for a kiss. The kiss was quick, but it made Sammy giggle and Enrico looked stunned once again.
Mitch was a little overcome by it too. For the first time, he was kissing Enrico in front of his kid and it felt like he was sealing his fate. They weren't a secret any more. They were together.
Chapter 31
Everything was coming together for the Peach Festival. The floats were mostly built and now were being painted and decorated. The few that were behind schedule had problems that Mitch would be working on. Rico hoped he would be assigned to help him, but sometimes more experienced workers took his spot.
Despite that, Rico felt more excited about the festival than he had in a long time. No one was more excited than Sammy though. When they went to report for their assignment at the Peach Tree Elementary School, which acted as the headquarters for the festival, Sammy couldn't wait to join the other kids. The kids had their own projects to work on.
"Kids get to help too," she told Mitch and Rico proudly.
After they dropped her off, the two of them went to where the adults were gathering. Lara was giving people their work assignments. While they waited their turn, Rico told Mitch how he was feeling, "You know I haven't looked forward to the Peach Festival this much since I was a kid. I'm giving you and Sammy credit for that. I can't wait to see Sammy as a little peach, how about you?"
"I just like to see her having fun, but I kind of feel guilty about getting paid to work for the festival while everyone else is donating their time," Mitch said.
"Lara isn't, and she wouldn't push to hire you if it wasn't in the budget. She is not that nice," Rico said loud enough for her to hear him.
When their turn came, she gave him a scary look. "I got one word for you. Latrine duty."
"There's no such thing. Is there?" Rico wondered, but Lara turned all official and started talking to Mitch. One thing she said caught Rico's attention.
"Mitch, we'd like to have you on call during the parade. Things break down and we'll need someone who knows how to fix things and fast, so we can keep everything going," she said.
"But the little peaches need spotters for when they fall over," Rico reminded her. Their round peach costumes meant they couldn't get up by themselves. "Mitch can't miss out on that."
"Could you maybe let Rico take your place as Sammy's spotter?" Lara asked.
Mitch agreed easily. "Sure. If you don't mind." He turned to Rico, but he did mind. And more importantly Sammy would mind.
"Sammy will be disappointed if you stay on the sidelines." Rico looked for a compromise. "Can't he be on call and still be there with Sammy? You can text him if you need him and he can step away. I can be there as backup if that happens."
Lara didn't have to think about it long. "That should work. You and Rico would both be out there in the parade, and then you can step away when we need you."
With that resolved, Mitch spotted Sheriff Jackson and stepped away to talk to her. Lara wasn't ready to give Rico his assignment yet, but she was ready to rag on him. She shook her head at Rico.
"You just wrangled yourself a place in the parade right next to Mitch, didn't you?" she accused him. "You're a wily one."
"I'm helpful!" Rico yelled after her as she left to check who might need his help.
Before now, Rico never envied the parents who had to walk with their kids and wear silly t-shirts while making sure the kids didn't fall and picked them up if they did, but it turned into one more thing he was looking forward to. He did like the idea of being anywhere and doing anything with Mitch. For now, he joined him and the sheriff to find out if there was an update.
Sheriff Jackson didn't have any news about the break-in, but Rico had noticed that patrols were still driving by the house. That was probably his grandmother's doing.
The sheriff confirmed that she talked to her. "Mrs. Del Rio said there was a man who was at the yard sale and that he showed a little too much interest in seeing the house when it wasn't up for sale yet. You haven't seen him again, have you?" the sheriff asked.
