Page 173 of Ever With Me

And she couldn’t have been luckier to have been born into such an incredible family.

She and Naomi made their way out the back door, then crossed the street to the parking lot beside Bunny’s Café. It had always been Maddie’s favorite place to view Main Street. From here, you could see all the way down to Yardley’s Pub, practically the whole length of the strip.

Her heart gave a throb at the storefronts, the people walking on the sidewalks, and the kids playing on the playground in front of the town hall.

The place she’d loved and lived in her whole life.

In a month, it would glow with twinkle lights for Christmas. The Christmas Carol play would be on the street, the smell of apple cider and cinnamon would permeate the air, and Brian Pearson would bring some of his horses to town for carriage rides in the snow.

For Valentine’s Day, reds and pinks would take over, then flowers would sprout everywhere once spring hit, and the cherry trees planted near the sidewalk would bloom.

Summer would bring hot, sticky days filled with tourists visiting the lake and the Depot. Ice cream dripping down faces, and pit beef and barbecue wafting through the air. Fireworks for the Fourth of July. Days at the lake.

But now, they were in that brief season between the end of fall and the beginning of Christmas, when the trees were bare, but not everything was decorated for the holidays quite yet. When people were starting to think about holidays and family but still felt like they had time on their hands.

The in-between two seasons.Like me.

Maddie tore her gaze away and hurried to Naomi’s car. As she settled in, she smiled, determined to be happy.Today is a good day.“Where are we headed?”

“It’s a surprise.”

They started forward, and Naomi put on a song. Something about it felt familiar, but it wasn’t until the vocal part started that Maddie sat straight with recognition.

Brooks.

She turned to Naomi and gave her a shocked look. “What?”

“I thought you should listen to it. It’s his new song, ‘Ever With Me.’ It’s a beautiful song, Maddie.”

Maddie’s jaw quivered, and she stared down at her hands.

That voice would be the death of her.

“ . . .I’ll be forever with you. You’ll be forever with me. . . ever with me.”

She reached across and slapped the button on the radio.

“I can’t,” she said.Not yet.

She needed to brace herself first. Get herself ready.

They drove straight out of town onto the curving roads of the woods. Maddie frowned at Naomi. “Where are you taking me?”

“You’ll see.”

At last, Naomi pulled off the main road onto a dirt path. Her car bumped along it, but she pushed forward. Even from here, Maddie could see the lake through the trees in the distance.

The car drew to a stop as the trees thinned and the path ended.

What in the heck?

“Um . . . Naomi, I’m not sure what you had in mind when you said celebrate, but this isn’t quite what I was expecting.”

Naomi smiled. “Will you just trust me? Get out of the car and go that way.” She pointed toward the lake. “It’s all set up there. I’ll come join you in a minute. I just have to get some stuff from the trunk.”

With a skeptical look, Maddie opened the car door and climbed out. She hugged her arms to her chest, wishing she’d brought something thicker than a light jacket. She hadn’t expected to be outside.

As she pushed through the trees, the leaves crunched against her boots.

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