Central Park was crowded. Eve had to wend her way slowly to the stage and the cluster of preschoolers wearing plain red T-shirts. Adults were being told to pick up their children at the end of the performance.
Katie squirmed free of Eve’s arms and joined her best friend, Meggie, a freckled redhead with a broad smile. Katie’s teacher, Miss Parsons, was passing out green pipe cleaners topped with paper bumblebees. Almost immediately, two boys began poking each other with them.
“Boys, no stinging.” Miss Parsons squelched that activity right away.
Reassured that Katie was in good hands, Eve went to find seats in the rows of folding chairs on the grass. Empty seats were hard to find. Not surprising, given that several groups of children were performing this morning. The audience was filled with multigenerational familes.
“Eve! Over here!” Steven’s voice cut through the crowd noise. He stood near a row close to the front, khakis and a white polo marking him as an outsider among boots and denim.
Eve was tempted to pretend she hadn’t seen him. But Mom and Violet stood with him, waving. She made her way over, not missing the way Steven’s gaze hunted down the wedding ring on her finger.
“I saved you two seats,” Steven said, gesturing to a pair of empty folding chairs before settling himself beside Eve’s mother.
Eve drew up short, relieved to realize she didn’t have to sit with Steven. “I need one more seat for Irene.”
“No worries, honey.” Hayden’s voice came from behind her, warm and unhurried. He carried two coffees and smiled easily, as if he belonged by her side and was unbothered by the presence of her ex. “You can sit on my lap.”
Hayden didn’t look at Steven. Didn’t wait for Eve’s answer. He simply made it happen as if Eve had sat on his lap hundreds of times. Then he handed her a cup of coffee. Hayden’s arm came around Eve’s waist, solid and sure. The scent of coffee and clean cotton wrapped around her, his presence steady in a way that made it suddenly difficult to remember he didn’t love her.
From the corner of her eye, Eve caught Steven’s expression shift from surprise to calculation.
Irene sat down next to them, eyes wide, clearly overwhelmed by the crowd.
Mom smiled, looking reassured by Eve and Hayden’s coziness.
Vi’s expression weighed and measured. She was in overprotective, big sister mode. Still very much unconvinced that Eve and Hayden loved each other.
I never could lie to her.
Eve’s breath caught, snagged by a barb of unexpected guilt. She was letting very important information slip through the cracks in her relationship with her sister.
It wouldn’t be a lie if Hayden fell in love with me.
“Take your seats.” The command came through the loudspeaker. “Please take your seats. We’re about to start.”
Eve kept her gaze forward, pulse skittering, painfully aware of how real her marriage suddenly felt. That hadn’t come from the marriage license. Not the ring on her finger. But it came now from Hayden’s arm around her.
And that feeling elbowed aside the guilt she’d been feeling about lying to her family.
*
“What’s the purpose of this festival?” Steven asked Hayden in a low voice as Katie’s preschool class took the stage. “The school kids are performing, there are food vendors out the wazoo, and there’s an obstacle course competition.”
“We’re at a higher elevation than Missoula.” Hayden put both arms around Evie’s waist. She was talking to his grandmother, leaning into Hayden as if comfortable in his lap. And he was comfortable having her there. “After being snowed in all winter, Bentwood Creek needs to blow off steam.” Those who weren’t working, of which Hayden should have been one. And would have been if Katie hadn’t been performing. She took the stage like a pro, beaming at the audience. “The kids do their thing on stage and those who are competitive take to the obstacle course.”
“We should give it a go,” Steven said with that slick smile.
Hayden stared at him, hard. “It’s a couple’s competition. One guy and one girl.”
“I could do it with Katie.” Steven grinned.
“Steven,” Evie said sharply, turning away from his grandmother. “That’s not going to happen.”
“I’ll do it with Steven,” Violet said from a few chairs down. She wore a long, flowing pink skirt and beneath which Hayden was willing to bet were high heels. “I’ve always wanted to try, and Charlie isn’t here today.”
She’s up to something.
“See? I’ve got a partner. You and Eve can give it a go against us,” Steven countered. “Unless you aren’t up to it, Hayden.”