Page 34 of The Dating Pact

Yeah. Of course.

Tomorrow was Saturday, farmers market day. No going back now.

I packed up the green beans in a paper bag to hand over to a customer as I heard a sweet, elfin voice call out, “Brooke!”

I finished up the transaction and turned in time to bend, catching Amelia in a hug. “Hey, girlfriend. What’s going on?”

“Can you do my hair?” She patted her head with one of her ever-present stuffed unicorns.

“Yes. Of course. But where’s your dad?”

“Nana and Pop dropped us off,” she said, pointing in the direction of Jude’s stall. I barely saw the top of his head through the crowd, but Sebastian was easy enough to spot, slowly making his way to us. Probably because he was supposed to escort his little sister here.

I waved at him. “Hey, Seb. How are you?”

“All right,” he mumbled, then shot Amelia a glare. “You can’t run away from me like that.”

The market covered two blocks, with tents set up in the cordoned-off street. Though small, it attracted a fair number of people looking for fresh produce or gourmet goods. We were all relatively safe here, but Amelia was only five and quite tiny for her age. I caught her gaze, reiterating her brother’s point. “He’s right. Don’t go running off.”

She stuck her tongue in the corner of her mouth and covered half her face, obviously embarrassed at her behavior, so I hugged her again then spun her around to comb my fingers through her hair. “How do you want me to do it?”

“Braid! Like Elsa.”

“You got it.”

I dug into the pocket of my overalls for an extra hair tie and tried to tame her wild curls as I spoke to Sebastian. “I heard you two had a movie night with your grandparents last night. How was that?”

Amelia pumped her unicorn up and down. “Awesome!”

Sebastian shrugged, craning his neck around, as if seeking an escape. He was ten going on twenty, and the older he got, the more he looked like his father. The same wide brow and nose, with the dark coloring of his mother. Little Amelia was a twin of Mira, from her pint-size stature to her eyes, though Sebastian’s personality was closer to his mother’s, quiet and considerate. Amelia, on the other hand, was born of pure sugar, sweet and full of energy, a pixie all of her own making.

I separated her hair into three sections, careful to keep her curls in as I wound them together. Admittedly, I was vain about my own hair. I’d always loved my hair, but I’d become especially attached to it after my cancer. It was the one thing that made me feel feminine anymore, and funnily enough, it was what Mira and I had bonded over when we’d met. She’d had a full head of long black curls, and we’d traded hair care secrets.

I wouldn’t say Mira and I were best friends, but we were more than acquaintances. I still had her number in my cell phone, hesitant to delete it. But now, after last night? I wondered how long girl code lasted. If I should feel guilty. Because I didn’t, and I imagined she’d be happy if Jude was happy.

Her sudden death had rocked her family and the wider community since the Grays were well-known from their candy business. All of us regular vendors at the market had rallied around Jude as much as we could. I had taken it upon myself to check in regularly, which had snowballed into the friendship we had now.

Or not.

I didn’t know.

We still hadn’t spoken to each other today. Usually, we took turns treating each other to Miss Diane’s coffee. I had yet to find a place with a better brew than the tent at West Chester’s Farmers Market.

I liked an iced French vanilla, while Jude was partial to the French roast, but really, a person couldn’t go wrong with any order.

But I hadn’t bothered picking it up this morning. Neither had Jude. And it sucked running my booth uncaffeinated all morning.

“Finished,” I said, tapping Amelia on the shoulder.

She whirled around, whipping her plait over her shoulder, pointing at my own braid. “Twins!”

I smiled, hands on my hips, shimmying my shoulders until Amelia laughed. I split my attention between the siblings. “Got big plans for today?”

Amelia hopped up and down. “Da-daddy said we’ll build me a new Lego set tonight!”

“Ooh, that sounds fun.” I tipped my head to Sebastian. “What about you?”

“I’ve got a baseball game.”

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