Page 52 of Samuel

“How many girls have you brought out to your favorite spot?”

His eyes darted to hers and then back onto the dirt road.

“It’s okay,” she said. “It’s like the most romantic idea for a date. Although you didn’t have to take me into town first. We could have just done this all along.”

“First, I’ve never taken anyone out to this spot. Not a friend. Not a date. It’s very special to me. And second, Iwanted to share my hometown with you, but I also wanted people to see exactly whose hand I was holding.”

They drove on the old dirt road for a few more minutes, until Sam pulled off in an open field.

“Give me two minutes to get everything set up and then I’ll come get you.”

“Okay.”

Sam moved to the back of his truck, dropping the tailgate and grabbing the small set of stairs he’d built for just this occasion. There was no way he was going to have Evie climbing into the bed of his truck without making sure she had a safe way up and down.

He got to work opening the tote he’d stashed away that afternoon. A thick blanket went down over the metal, then several pillows. He knew how much Evie’s back had been bothering her lately. Once those were out, he grabbed the cooler and set it next to where he would sit.

“I can’t believe how many stars we can see out here. It’s so beautiful.” Evie was still in awe at the view in front of her. It was clear the second she sat down in the bed of the truck why that spot was Sam’s favorite.

“Yeah, the view really is stunning.”

Her eyes drifted down to his. He wasn’t looking at the sky. He was looking right at her. Those damn butterflies took flight again in her stomach.

So much of the night reminded Evie of the time she would spend out in the woods, camping with her parents as a kid. The warm breeze, the crickets in the distance, the stars.

“Will you tell me more about your parents?” Sam asked as he wrapped his arm around her back. She sank into his side.

“Are you reading my mind?”

“No. Were you thinking about them?”

“I was. We used to go camping when I was little. My favorite part was when my dad would build a campfire under the stars. It felt like the longest nights, sitting out with them, making s’mores and singing songs together. I never knew why we stopped going when I was little until after they died.”

“Why did they stop?”

“I told you they died in a plane crash, right?”

“Yes.”

She sighed. “My mom told me they were taking a friend’s small plane for a weekend away. I was a senior in high school and they trusted me to be home alone. I begged them not to go. There was a storm coming through, but they promised me they were heading out well in front of it.”

“But they weren’t?”

“No. They flew into it. I still don’t know all the details. I never wanted anyone to explain it to me, it was all too painful. But their plane had to make an emergency landing on the highway. Scott and Joanne Williams just…. ceased to exist after that moment.”

“I’m so sorry, Bluebell.”

“I don’t feel like I ever really got to grieve them being gone. I’ve been so angry with them since it happened. So angry about everything they held back from me.”

“What did they hide?”

“My dad… he was sick. For years before he died. That’s why our camping trips stopped. He was getting treatments and they never told me.”

Sam pressed a kiss into her hair. “They weren’t flying for a weekend away. They were going for your dad’s treatments.”

“Exactly.” Evie cleared her throat, trying to push away the rush of emotions barreling towards her. Her hand drifted to her belly, and she rubbed tiny circles over the baby. “I yelled at them. Told them they were selfish. I told them…”

“Told them what, sweetheart?”

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