Page 66 of Love's Bloom
A waitress brought food for Sarah and the girls, and Misty placed an order for herself.
As she waited for her food, Misty observed Sarah’s handling of the giggly girls. She seemed so calm. No wonder Aaron Collister had spent time talking to her at the wedding.
Misty’s food arrived, and they all finished their meals at the same time. Misty stood. “See you later at the picnic at the cottage. I will bring brownies, but Ineed to get home to make them.”
On the way out of the restaurant, Misty waved at Nettie.
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That afternoon, after saying goodbye to Sugar, Misty drove to the Lilac Lake Cottage with a platter of warm brownies. She’d also brought lemonade to share and decided at the last minute to bring her bathing suit and a towel. For large parties like this, two bedrooms in the cottage were available for those wanting to change clothes.
She found a place to park and walked into the front yard to see it teeming with people. Like other Labor Day parties here, people came and went whenever they wanted. She saw Hazel talking to Mike and checked to see where David was. She’d parked her car near his truck.
He looked up at her and smiled as she walked toward him. “Hi. I made brownies. You said you liked them.”
“I do. Here, let me carry your bag while you have the other things,” said David.
She walked up to Taylor. “Shall I put the brownies on the dessert table?”
“Yes,” said Taylor. “You can put the lemonade in the kitchen. We have paper cups and plenty of ice there. Clothing can be placed in one of the bedrooms. One is marked for ‘girls,’ and the other is for ‘boys.’”
In the kitchen, Dani greeted her with a hug. “I’m glad you came. We need to talk. Follow me.”
Dani led her into the living room, away from the other guests. “I understand you had a fight with Harley Kirk.”
“Brody’s father? I wouldn’t call it a fight, necessarily. I have Brody in my class, and when I saw him with his father at The Meadows waterfront, I did make some suggestions to Harley about handling Brody.” Misty could feel her blood pressure rise. “The man’s a bully to his son. He was calling him a chicken for not going into the water. Alone.”
“He and his family are new to the area. I understand his wife has been away in a treatment program, and while she’s been gone, he’s been raising Brody with her mother’s help.”
“That’s no excuse for treating a child like that,” said Misty.
“Of course not,” said Dani. “I’m concerned for your well-being. Harley has a bruised ego and a quick temper. Not a good combination.”
Misty let out a long sigh. “Thanks for letting me know.”
They walked back to the kitchen together, where Misty grabbed a cup of lemonade. Her mind was still whirling with emotion as she went outside.
David met her. “Want to go sit on the rock? There’s a nice breeze coming off the lake.”
“Yes, I need to cool off,” Misty said. She explained what was going on with Brody’s father.
David frowned. “That doesn’t sound good. Be careful, Misty.”
Hazel came over to them. “Can I join you?”
“Sure,” said Misty. “When did you arrive?”
“About an hour ago. It’s great to see everyone,”
They turned at the commotion by the entrance. JoEllen had arrived with a man in tow.
Misty blinked rapidly, studying the outline and the size of the man. “That’s him. Brody’s dad, Harley,” she said to David. “Leave it up to JoEllen to become involved in some way.”
“Better to have him distracted by her than for him to pay attention to you. If what Dani said about him is true, just stay away from him.” David took hold of her arm. “Let’s go.”
He led Misty and Hazel to the rock. Misty lowered herself to the warm surface and inhaled the lake air, feeling some of the tenseness leave her. She’d felt herself slipping back to when she’d been so inhibited by Vince, scared of doing something wrong.
Sensing her feelings, David clasped her hand and gave it a squeeze.
