by Nina Bocci
He turned, smiling. “What does that mean, exactly?”
I sighed. It was a good sigh, though. Not a sad and resigned to a certain fate type of breath but a content and happy exhalation. “I was always worried day to day in New York about what would happen. If one thing got out of sync, it would throw my day off and would take me a little while to come back from. Here, I don’t have that sense of urgency or worry. It’s more of a I can handle anything thrown my way vibe and I’m grateful to Hope Lake for that. Emma told me once that this place held a little bit of magic.
“While I don’t necessarily believe in magic, I do believe that this place brings out what’s best in each of us.”
Dad smiled, his eyes a bit watery. “It may be twenty years in the making, but I couldn’t be happier to hear you say that.”
20
As the sun was beginning to set, the male voice announced that the celebration would be starting shortly. The food trucks were lined up and ready. The beer tent was filled, people were enjoying themselves, and the fireworks would be starting soon. He announced the businesses that were a part of making the celebration what it was, and my friends clapped and whistled when he got to Late Bloomers and said my name.
There was a captive audience in Hope Lake Park, where everyone had gathered on the large expanse of green fields. Locals and tourists alike crowded the space that we secured, and while many were listening in on announcements, the immediate group surrounding us was eyeing my blanket mate with delight. Nick was giving them a show. He stripped off his shirt, balled it in his hand, and tossed it behind him, where it landed on a disgruntled Emma. It left him with only a white tank top that he usually did his landscaping work in.
“If I get a rash from this, Nicholas, I swear I’ll rip your di—” She paused, spying little ears at close range. “Arm off and beat you with it.”
Not much better.
Stepping in to stop his fiancée from maiming his best friend, Cooper stood beside her and handed her a beer.
“This is my favorite time of year. Hot, sticky, muggy—” Nick said, oblivious to the mental beatdown that Emma was giving him.
“Bugs, sweat, smell,” Emma responded, and I myself was wondering why I agreed to sit out here when I had Cooper’s perfectly good SUV to sit in and watch the fireworks from.
“If you hate the outdoors, why aren’t you in the car?” Parker asked.
Emma scoffed. “How can I make sure everything is running perfectly from the car, Parker?”
My friend looked terrified of my other friend.
“Noted. Is she always scary?” Parker asked me.
“Yes, you get used to it, though. I’m still in shock that you came. And pulled off a surprise. You’re usually awful at them,” I said to Parker, who’d arrived on Gigi’s doorstep at five in the morning.
Good thing I had to be up with the chickens for setup, or I’d have killed her for knocking at ass-crack-thirty.
The statuesque blonde, who happened to be my best friend, was sitting next to me on our blanket, watching Nick intently.
“What were you saying? Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention because of that,” she said, pointing haphazardly in Nick’s general direction.
Nick was applying sunblock to his nose. He lathered it on thick like an eighties lifeguard.
“Hey, I’m not a piece of meat to be gawked at,” he said. And, as if to disprove his point entirely, he gripped the hem of his tank and in a completely not safe for work move that I had the feeling was just for Parker’s enjoyment, tore it off over his head.
“You look ridiculous,” I said, pointing at my own nose.
“Says you. I’ve got a cheering section,” he said, hooking a thumb toward Parker.
“As if,” she mocked, but her eyes didn’t leave his chest.
What do we have here?
“How are you doing that?” Parker asked, squinting up at him from the blanket.
“Doing what?” he asked, confused.
“You’re dewy. I look like I ran up the mountain in a garbage bag and you look like someone is delicately spritzing you. It’s annoying.”
Except Parker’s face was anything but annoyed. It was curious and interested.
Interesting …
Nick shrugged, finishing up his application. “I’m naturally dewy. Sue me.”
“You’re naturally obnoxious,” she mumbled.
“Parker, I’m glad you were able to join us this weekend. Charlotte has told us nothing about you,” Cooper said jokingly.
“Okay, okay, everyone on this blanket is a regular friggin’ comedian. In case you hadn’t noticed, I’ve been busy.”
Parker, fanning herself with a paper fan that she carried with her everywhere, looked down at Cooper and Emma, who was enjoying her fourth beer. Cooper mentioned earlier that Emma was hoping to get tipsy in celebration of a job well done. She just seemed to be celebrating a bit early.
“I just decided to come last night. Charlotte told me about the festival ages ago, but I wasn’t sure I could swing it. But then I said screw it. Why not, right? I closed the bakery after I finished all the preorders and rented a car. Charlotte’s been prattling on about this place since she got here. I just had to see it.”
“I wish I knew you were coming; I would have warned everyone that Hurricane Parker was making landfall,” I said, laughing when she flipped me off.
Nick was rummaging around the picnic basket when Parker slapped his hand away. “No desserts yet.”
“You bought dessert?” he said excitedly.
“Bought? Add an r and you’ve got your answer. I baked a dessert and brought it,” she seethed, this time sounding genuinely annoyed. She recovered quickly, though. I would have to explain later. I hadn’t really talked about New York or my friend there because it felt like I was cheating on them when I was with my friends from Hope Lake.
“Well, however it got here, can we, uh, eat it now?” Nick said, taking a long whiff of the small slit in the box before he groaned.
“Really, Charlotte? They know nothing about me at all?”
I shrugged. “Been busy.”
Parker rolled her eyes. “She likes to keep me a secret. That way she doesn’t have to share the cakes I bring her.” Turning to me, she scowled. “I’ll remember this in a couple of weeks when you’re sniffing around for a birthday cake.”
Cooper and Nick looked at Parker curiously. When she realized they really had no idea about her, she added, “I’m a baker. I own a shop in New York.”
Emma clapped her hands before wobbling enough that Cooper had to put his hands on her waist to steady her. “I watched your appearances on the Food Network. Loved it! Glad you were able to expand the shop because of all the promo from it.”
Parker smiled. “Thanks, Emma. I’m glad someone here knows about me.” Parker and Emma had met before, of course, and had been on the call together before the shop opened, but this was their first “in-person.”
“The bakery’s gotten a lot of business, which is both a blessing and a curse. I’m sure Charlotte can appreciate that.”
“Are you staying with Charlotte at Gigi’s or are you at a B and B?” Cooper asked.
“She’s staying with me,” I explained, knowing where this was going. “Gigi would kill me if she knew her favorite Parker was here and not staying with her. Parker always makes Gigi treats that she’s not supposed to be eating.”
Parker looked guilty, briefly. It’s not like she wouldn’t make the Bananas Foster cupcakes that Gigi always asked for.
“Well, you couldn’t have chosen a better weekend to spend with us here in Hope Lake,” Cooper said in all his mayoral glory.
Like the perfect one-two punch, Emma piped up, climbing up onto her knees and fixing her flouncy skirt. “I’d love to give you a tour tomorrow,” she offered with a hiccup.
Parker laughed. “Maybe the day after, sparky. I don’t think you’ll be in any shape to tour anything tomorrow. Well, what do we have here?”
Parker’s eyes had traveled to a figure stalking toward us. I would recognize that gait anywhere. Parker knew about Henry. The push and pull and the confusion I felt over all of it. What she didn’t know was what had happened between us over the past week.
We hadn’t even discussed it because there wasn’t time.
“Dibs,” she said, reaching into her shirt and pulling her boobs up one by one.
“Stay classy, Adams.”
Standing, I moved toward Parker and whispered, “That’s Henry.”
“I figured,” she whispered back. I wondered why she’d angle the girls up for him to notice if she knew how I felt about him. “It’s a test. Go with me.”
Henry shook hands with Cooper and then Nick. Giving Emma a quick hug, he turned to Parker, smiling.
“Hello, I’m Parker Adams. I have a section of blanket here waiting just for you,” she purred, lightly touching his shoulder.
Henry took Parker’s outstretched hand. “I’m glad you were able to come. I know this isn’t Coney Island on the Fourth, but if you stick around, you’ll be able to see Nick partake in a stomach-roiling contest of wills.”
Parker laughed. “You told him about our trips to Coney for the hot-dog contest?”
“I did. It’s a great time and maybe, just maybe, this place will make us laugh and cheer as much as that one does.”
Henry looked back over to me, and the full wattage of his heart-flipping Henry Mercer smile wasn’t aimed at Parker anymore. His eyes fluttered to hers for a moment, then back to me.
“Charlotte, before I forget, I wanted to tell you that you did an incredible job here.”
I smiled, feeling the warmth in my chest set off like the upcoming fireworks.
The park had been empty when Nellie and I arrived this morning. We had a few other volunteers come out to help, but it wasn’t until people started arriving with their picnic supplies and blankets to watch the band that the work we focused on for so long had been appreciated.
It had turned out better than I thought. “It’s been great. People love it. Even Kirby’s wife told me she liked how things turned out. It was a begrudging compliment, but I’ll take it.”
Henry laughed and wrapped his arm around my shoulders before he spied every eye turn to us.
Everyone in the park had given me effusive feedback, but hearing it from Henry meant a lot. Even though we had just parted that morning, I’d missed him all day.
“You must be so pleased. Everyone is impressed. Well done,” he fawned, just as a marching band started playing “America the Beautiful” in the background. The whole scene was very Hallmark, and I couldn’t have been happier to have been in our little bubble.
The spaces between the blankets were getting smaller as more and more people filled in any available stitch of grass. Emma had the foresight to send a couple of her office interns to scope out the best spot for viewing the fireworks and had them sit with our blankets until Nellie and I were finished setting up.
Emma, of course, was never done. She kept popping up and taking off at the slightest sign of something going wrong.
“Does she always do that?” Parker asked, watching Emma spring up from the blanket and power walk through the crowd toward the face-painting area. The line had to be twenty kids deep and they were starting to shut down and whine.
“Think outside the box? Always. It’s her superpower, I think. I wish I had the ability myself,” I said, staring across the field at the hundreds of people either milling about or sitting and enjoying the slightly cooler temperature since the sun set.
“No—well, yes, but mainly I’m wondering how a small person like her can down four or five beers and still function like she’s stone-cold sober. That, my friend, is a gift. And don’t let me hear you questioning your abilities or I’ll kick your ass. You’re not giving yourself enough credit, C,” Parker insisted, holding up a plate of cookies in front of me. “You come here, fully expecting the worst possible scenario, and look at what happened in a short amount of time.”
I shrugged, feeling the warmth creeping up my face. Praise was always something in short supply when my mother was still alive. Hearing it now was still a hard pill to swallow.
“It’s been unexpected. Amazing? Brilliant? Not without fault, of course, but still, this place is the opposite of everything my mother ever told me about it. It’s crazy how it gets under your skin. The places, the people.”
Parker scoffed. “My God, I’m going to slap you! You’re so happy here I might drown you if you don’t stay here forever! You don’t have to go back, you realize that, right? You can stay. Make this your home. Fuck New York.”
I sucked in a breath. “Parker! There’s kids around.”
“What’s left in New York? Honestly?” she continued, ignoring the looks from the parents nearby.
“Parker, I—” I began, but she kept rambling.
“Think about it. Tell me what would make you run back there when you have all this and all that”—she pointed to Henry—“here?”
“You?” I replied weakly. “I’d miss you.”
“And I can come visit. Hell, maybe I’ll come with you,” she said, glancing over to the other blanket where Henry and Cooper were in a deep conversation. They didn’t seem like they were arguing, but it didn’t look like an entirely pleasant conversation, either. I could only hear bits of it: “What if it backfired?” and “I appreciate the thought, but,” and “I know it’s only two hours, Cooper.”
“What’s that about?” Parker asked, following my eyes and glancing over at the friends, who noticed us watching them and turned to hide their arguing.
“No clue. It’s been weird around here lately,” I said honestly, taking a sip of my drink.
Parker took my hand. “I’m being serious when I say to think about it. You can start over anywhere. Why not have it be here where you’re clearly very happy?”
“I decided to stay,” I said finally, and waited.
“You what?” she howled, so loud and shrill that everyone turned. “Why didn’t you tell me before I went on and on like an ass?!”
“Because you were going on and on like an ass!” I said, laughing when she pulled me into a hug.
“I don’t know that there was one thing specifically that sold me,” I continued. “But a ton of little things. Seeing that I can make a difference somewhere has done a lot for my mental health. I struggled with that so much and this place, this job, these people just seem to elevate that happiness for me.
“Tonight was sort of the ringer of it all. I know you’re not supposed to work for praise, but hearing from everyone about how great the park looks, or how much they love what I created for them, has made me question what giving this place up would mean for me.
“I don’t know that staying in Hope Lake is the answer to everything that I’ve been missing, but it’s definitely a step in the right direction. I think I still need to figure out what else I need but I think I’m off to a damn good start. I only wish I found it sooner.”
When I looked at Parker, she was glassy-eyed. “I’m so proud of you, C. Truly, beyond happy for you. I will miss the shit out of you, but if I’ve learned anything, it’s that life’s too short.”
She looked over to Henry and Cooper.
I smiled. “It’s not all because of him,” I insisted, repeating it when she rolled her eyes. “I’m serious.”
Parker patted my hand. “C, I never said it was.”
I wiped the sweat from my brow. “Okay, good. Because he’s a major factor, but it’s about me, too.”
“Interesting that you brought it up not once but twice,” she remarked, smiling into her beer.
“Oh, shut up!”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“Your eyes, they’re judging me.”
Emma returned, squatting down on the blanket. “I’m officially out of beer and I’m sad. What did I miss?”
“Oh, not much, Emma. Just that my girl here is going to be your gi
rl full-time. She’s on loan, though, in case I need her once in a while.”
Emma shrieked, drawing attention from Cooper and Henry. “Holy shit!”
“No, no, don’t do that,” I said, trying to calm her down. Each of them had one of my hands, so I couldn’t use them to wave off a very nervous-looking Henry.
Emma mimed zipping her lips, but she was shaking, clearly giddy over Parker’s words. “I know nothing. I’ll say nothing,” she whispered.
“I’ve got to make some calls and figure things out logistically. There are so many decisions about if I can do this without Lucille bankrolling it. Now is not the time for them—” I stopped midsentence when Henry, Cooper, and Nick joined us.
“The fireworks are going to start,” Cooper explained, extending a hand to Emma. “I believe this blanket is too crowded for all of us.”
“That’s code for I want to be alone with my fiancée,” Nick said with diluted laughter. “No hanky-panky under the blankets!”
“It’s ninety-five degrees, who is going to have a blanket on?” Parker chided, and Nick shrugged.
“It’s an expression,” he retorted, and turned his back to her.
“Henry, why don’t you sit?” I suggested, scooting over on the blanket. With the way everything was positioned on the grass, we would only be able to fit two people on my blanket, which was convenient, as I only wanted Henry and me on it. Sorry, Parker.
The blanket behind us was where Emma and Cooper were lying, and I supposed Nick and Parker would have to go to the blanket in front of us. I might be refereeing WrestleMania in a bit if they got aggravated with each other.
With his legs stretched out, Henry leaned back on his arms, mirroring my position. I looked behind us, where our friends had set up camp. Cooper looked pleased, as did Emma. Her eyes widened when Nick and Parker approached.
They sat on opposite ends of their blanket.
“What were you and Cooper talking about earlier?” I asked, not looking at him. Given our close proximity, I felt his body stiffen. “Or, you can just say it’s none of my business,” I added quickly, feeling the awkwardness building up.