AllFreeNovel
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“Where are we going, DW? Somewhere fancy?”
She seems to still think I’m the person I left behind in Boston, but I’m building a normal life and a new me in Freedom Valley. I want her to see that side of me. I shake my head. “Keep calling me that, and I’ll show you Daddy,” I tease.
“Oh, please do,” she challenges. She knows I’ll bite if she wants me, too.
“I thought we’d hit up the food trucks and do some mini golf,” I reply, now wondering if maybe I should have planned something fancier.
She squeals, surprising me. “I was worried you were going to take me to some five-star restaurant with forks I don’t know how to use and then to the opera or something.”
I laugh and stare at her. “Again, I don’t think you really know me, Paige.”
“There are new trucks tonight!” she says excitedly. “I want to try them all.” She stops and looks at me, then finally says, “You surprise me, Preston.”
“Of course we can try them all,” I say as I scan the trucks all lined up on the street in a row. Lines are already forming, and picnic tables are filling up fast. Food truck night is a serious night in Freedom Valley. Nearly everyone turns up to try new food and to support the trucks that come from all over the area. “How do I surprise you?”
“You’re just not how I thought you’d be. You’re so... down to earth. Normal.”
I laugh and say, “Well, this is who I really am. Take it or leave it.”
“Take it.” She grins, leaning in to me as we walk.
I didn’t miss the stares as we walked hand in hand to the trucks, or the people whispering and smiling. I nodded to a few people and waved at a few others as we went. Paige, almost like the new unofficial mayor, stopped to pet dogs, talked to people she knows, and even met a few new people.
She never ceases to amaze me. People like her, and she likes them. Freedom Valley looks good on her, too.
We get a variety of foods to share and nab a picnic table. She sits right beside me, scooting in close. It feels so good to be with her.
“Okay, we have kimchi fries, chicken street tacos, fried pickles, and burger sliders. And we haven’t even chosen a dessert yet,” she says, rubbing her hands together.
“I have dessert planned for later,” I tell her. I love watching her squirm.
“Preston,” she murmurs.
“Yes?” I say, still looking at my dessert.
“You’re bad.” She laughs.
“I know.”
* * *
The mini golf course isn’t busy, so we take our time, stealing kisses at every hole. I don’t want this night to end. Could we build a life together here?
After mini golf, we walk hand in hand up Main Street to the ice cream shop. We order giant cones and eat them quick because it’s still so hot out and they’re melting fast. Once we’re done, we walk to the gazebo where we had our picnic.
“Thank you for a great night, Pres,” she says.
“Who said it’s over?”
“It’s not?”
“Nope.” We slow down in front of Axel’s shop. I hold the door open. “Want to get a tattoo, Paige?”
“I wasn’t sure if you were serious or not,” she says.
I was expecting her to be nervous, but instead she’s excited. She stops when she sees Axel behind the counter putting a sign up on the wall of tattoo designs. “Axel...” she calls and heads over to him like he’s her old pal now that they’ve met.
Axel comes to greet us. “What are you two up to?”
