Page 18 of Surrendering His Heart (Buena Hills #4)

The smells of popcorn and Christian’s childhood hovered in the air at the Autumn Festival a week later.

On both sides of a marked walkway, booths selling everything from fall crafts to artwork to candles filled the soccer field behind Buena Hills’ community center.

Metal poles wrapped in burlap stood between each vendor, white lights and colorful maple leaves twining around them to provide more illumination once the sun went down.

Festive music mingled with kids’ laughter and shouts of glee, stirring up memories of attending this same event with his parents and sister years ago.

He used to love how Dad would whisk him off to play carnival games.

It hadn’t dawned on Christian back then that his father always let him win.

The realization of that now put an additional sting on his absence.

Sadly, they’d stopped coming to this event after Dad died.

A lot of things went away during that horrible year.

Christian suspected it was just too difficult for Mom to face all those happy memories she’d had with her husband.

And once she’d come to terms with her new reality, this particular tradition had already been buried underneath the others she no longer had time for with raising her kids on her own. Boy did he relate.

Holding onto his daughters’ hands, he browsed a booth selling hand-crafted jewelry.

If he’d known he’d spend the whole time missing Dad, he wouldn’t have come.

Today, as it had many times in the almost-six years since Isla’s birth, the unfairness of it all hit him.

Dad wouldn’t be around to see the girls grow up.

And Isla and Penelope were being deprived of knowing a man who’d love them with every piece of his soul.

But it wasn’t only his father’s absence plaguing Christian’s emotions today. What bothered him almost as much was how much Sabrina would’ve loved the Autumn Festival.

No, Dating Sabrina would’ve loved it.

He often referred to his ex in stages. Dating Sabrina was all sunshine and blue skies while frolicking in fields of daisies.

Not that Christian had, or would. ever frolic. But that was beside the point.

Next came Married Sabrina, where that field became a little rockier. Once Pregnant Sabrina entered the chat, their whole relationship had been thrown off a cliff.

Was it insensitive to think of her that way? Maybe. But it kept him from diving too deep in analyzing what went wrong. Channeling the anger in his heart prevented him from dwelling on how much her abandonment still hurt.

Penelope tugged on his arm, slipping her small hand from his grip. Christian latched on again. “You need to stay here, Nell. There are too many people around for you to wander.”

“I’na go over dere.” She jabbed a finger toward the booths on the other side of the soccer field. “I see toys.”

Christian could see the booth of handmade wooden toys from where they stood. “We’ll go over there in a minute.”

He tightened his hold on her hand. He’d rather not spend the next hour searching for his kid.

I should’ve brought the stroller. But the soccer field was so packed it would be difficult to maneuver it through the crowds.

He wouldn’t be surprised if Buena Hills’ entire population, plus the surrounding suburbs, had decided to show up on opening day.

“Oooh, I like this one.” Isla pointed at a gaudy mood ring in one of the displays. “Look at the swirly colors!”

He gave the ring a passing glance. “I think it’s too big for you, kiddo.” She didn’t need any more useless stuff. It would surely end up in her pile of forgotten junk two days from now.

“I know,” Isla said with a shrug. She moved to a display of beaded bracelets. “This one’s pretty too. ”

As he looked at where she pointed, Penelope managed to free her sweaty hand from his grasp.

“Nellie!” Christian called after her, but she slipped through a gap of people, blocking her from view. Hastily, he grabbed onto Isla, tugging her away from the jewelry. “Come on.”

They left the booth. His heart pounded as they crossed the central path toward the toys, skipping several beats when he didn’t see any sign of her. Seriously, where could she have gone in only a second?

Hurrying his steps, he scanned both sides of the path, relief flooding his senses when he spotted her two booths past where they’d come. She stretched on her tiptoes, reaching toward a crate of cookies. Man, that girl was quick.

“Come here, you little cookie monster,” he play-growled, plucking her off the ground. He tossed her in the air, and her infectious giggle cut through the commotion around them.

As he caught her and pretended to gobble her cheeks, awareness pricked at the back of his neck. Shifting his daughter to one arm, he took a good look at his surroundings, realizing for the first time whose cookies Penelope had attempted to snitch.

Christian’s heart thumped against his chest. He hadn’t stopped thinking of Hallie since their conversation outside the nail salon last Friday.

Why did seeing her cause him such a gut reaction?

She’d told him herself she’d have a booth this weekend.

Had that been the reason he’d brought the girls in the first place?

Don’t encourage this, he reprimanded himself even as his feet brought him closer to the table of baked goods.

Hallie stood behind it, a soft smile on her lovely face as she watched him approach.

He tried squashing the subtle stirrings taking root in his heart.

This strange preference to his buddy’s sister couldn’t make him surrender the choke hold around the organ.

Doing so would only bring more pain he didn’t need and certainly didn’t want.

Speaking of that best friend, Tyler stood a few feet away, chatting with an older couple who looked familiar.

Maybe Christian had seen them around town.

The woman carried most of the conversation, her ginger bob bouncing as she talked.

None of them noticed Isla surveying the sweets, her nose inches from a display of cakes sealed in plastic containers.

Confident that she wouldn’t wander off, Christian stopped directly in front of Hallie. “You have quite the set up here.”

“Thanks. Can I interest you in something sweet?” Her tone held a slight teasing quality, and she swept her arm above the orange-and-white checkered tablecloth filled with pumpkin bread, cupcakes, and other sweets.

Three wooden crates of cookies took up the right side, each set at varying heights created by small hay bales.

Leaning into the whole fall theme, she’d scattered miniature pumpkins around the table. It all looked very … festive.

“Based on those cookies you dropped off last week, that’s a pointless question if you ask me. Which is your favorite.”

She opened her mouth to respond but didn’t get the chance before the red-haired woman cut into their conversation.

“Hallie, these are simply marvelous,” she said, holding up a partly eaten cookie shaped like a maple leaf. “I could eat a dozen of these right now.”

Christian stomped down the prickle of annoyance percolating in his gut. He’d finally succeeded in starting a normal conversation with Hallie. Couldn’t he have a few minutes to talk to her without being interrupted?

What would it be like if he just pulled her away for a few minutes? Maybe an hour? Isla and Penelope loved Tyler. And he could handle the customers too, right? Getting to know Hallie while browsing the booths together sounded like the perfect way to spend the afternoon.

You shouldn’t want to get to know her better. Still, the noose around his heart eased a little more.

“Thank you, Mrs. Hawthorne.” Hallie flashed the woman a pleased look. “You’ve always been one of my favorite customers.”

Hawthorne! He knew he’d recognized the woman. She worked in the youth section at the library.

“That’s good to hear. We’re ecstatic to see the finished order for our Halloween party. Aren’t we, Lawrence?” Mrs. Hawthorne leaned toward her husband, her hair brushing forward slightly to reveal the festive leaf clip pinning her locks back from her face.

Mr. Hawthorne mumbled an agreement around a mouthful of his own cookie.

“I’m saving my calories for all the yummy treats.” She patted her already plump stomach.

I’m pretty sure caloric intake doesn’t work like that. Though Christian secretly loved the way Hallie glowed at the praise the woman gave her cookies. As she should.

Mrs. Hawthorne finally seemed to notice they weren’t alone in the booth. “Well, we won’t take any more of your time. I think sweet Penelope needs a treat.”

“Thanks for coming by,” Hallie said to the Hawthornes. “It was good seeing you both.”

“You as well,” Mrs. Hawthorne waved her cookie in farewell. “We’re off to catch the hayride.”

Munching on their sweets, the couple walked away, heading in the direction of the community center where the horse-pulled trailer waited out front to take passengers on a leisurely ride down Main Street.

With the booth now empty besides Christian and the girls, Tyler came around the table, holding out his hand. “It’s good to see you, man.”

Christian accepted the greeting as his friend slapped him on the back.

“Hey, Nellie girl,” Tyler cooed in what his wife always deemed his kid voice. His face scrunched up as he tickled Penelope’s neck, making the child giggle. She lunged forward, and he caught her before she flung herself from Christian’s grip.

Securing her in his arms, Tyler reached his closed hand toward Isla. “Pound it.” She knocked her smaller fist against his.

After all the times Tyler had come over to help with various house repairs and projects the last few years, he’d become like a favorite uncle to the girls.

In fact, Penelope had latched onto him like he was her second dad.

Even Isla had taken to him, though her affections were more understated than her energetic sister’s.