Page 110 of No Rings Attached
Ellie snorted.
I rubbed the back of my neck. “Morning, Mrs. Fawcett.”
She winked at Ellie. “He’s a handful. Good luck.” Then she bustled off, cackling. I didn’t have the heart to tell her she’d likely confused me for Wyatt.
At nine o’clock sharp, our mayor’s mic squealed, earning a collective groan. It happened every time Everly Grant used a microphone and while we all expected it, it was still startling.
Mom and Dad appeared, their hands brushing together the way they always did.
“Ellie!” Mom swooped in with a hug that nearly lifted her off her feet. “I was hoping to see you today.”
My girl blinked at me, unsure how to handle the affection, but before I could respond, Mom already had her tucked under her arm and began interrogating her about attending the next family dinner.
Dad handed her a cider donut before she could protest, the dusting of sugar floating to land on the sleeve of her top. “There. Now you’re officially part of the family.”
Ellie laughed, licking the sugar off her lip. She wasn’t just fitting in?—
She belonged.
Grace arrived a few minutes later with flowers tucked into her hair, and pulled Ellie into a rapid-fire conversation about which vendors were worth the hype. Within minutes, they were laughing like they’d been friends for years.
Then, the crowd parted as if a special guest had arrived.
Of course.Glamma.
She swept in wearing a sequined ruby–red pantsuit with Coco in one arm, paw raised like a queen’s wave. Vendors paused mid-sales and set-up to cheer and call out greetings.
“Glamma!” Someone in the crowd yelled out.
She waved. “Hello my loves!” Then she held Coco higher. “Say hi, sweet girl.”
Coco barked once.
Beside me, Ellie clutched her stomach, laughing hard. “Does she make such a grand entrance every year?”
“Everyevent,”I corrected.
“God, I love her,” Ellie whispered, awe in her voice.
“And I love you, dear Ellie.” Glamma shifted closer. “Don’t forget to fill out your wish scroll and get your flowers to float on the river.”
“Flowers? Wish scrolls?” Ellie’s eyes lit up. “Could this get any better?”
I knew her little notebook was tucked in the purse draped across her body. She’d been kidding about the fanny pack, but this was a close second to one.
Mom chuckled. “Yes, towards the end of the night, we release flowers into the river to set a positive intention for ourselves and our loved ones and to commemorate the town’s founding.”
“The scrolls are a place for everyone to write their secret wishes on, and then we tie them to a tree.” Dad’s gaze slid to Mom. “The year I wished to catch Laura’s eye, it worked.”
“It certainly did.” Mom chuckled. “Although, it was more of what hedidthat drew me to him.” Her eyes went soft at the memory. “Robert is a tad clumsy. When he tied his wish to the tree, he stepped back, tripped, and tumbled right into the river. I helped pull him out, along with our friends. And that night, we huddled together under a blanket so he could stay warm.”
“She onlythinksit wasn’t on purpose.” Dad winked.
“And then you saw the river change color?” Ellie asked, her voice dreamy.
“We did.” Mom squeezed her a little tighter. “But even without the color changing, I knew I’d found my one. What he didn’t know is that I’d had a crush on him for months, but had no idea how to approach the school’s golden boy. So we sat on the bench … ”
“While I dried off, talking about anything and everything. And after that night … ”
