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I laugh at his sour tone and squeeze his arm. “I appreciate the sacrifice, really.”
His eyes dip down to my hand on his arm and I rip it away, heat blazing across my face.I cannot believe I did that.I see Poppy grin wickedly out of the corner of my eye, but thankfully she stays silent.
“Attention bingo lovers!” Community Representative Henry shouts into a microphone–yes,shouts. “We are about to begin. Please turn off your cell phones and turn on your hearing aids. The numbers will be on the screen to my left.” He gestures to a rolling projector screen. “We will not be repeating any numbers after they have been said the customary three times. Once you get bingo, you will yell it out and then I will check your card for authenticity.”
“We know the rules, Henry!” Gerty squawks from her table, her yellow bike helmet bobbing on her head as she shakes her bingo dauber at him. “Let’s get this thing started before bedtime.” For the record, it’s barely past five in the evening.
Henry looks as if he’s considering retiring from his position for a moment before pasting on a smile again.
“Five minutes until the first number is called!” He forces cheer into his tone before placing the microphone back on the podium stand and stalking off to the snack table.
“Isn’t bingo a form of gambling?” Adrian asks, turning my attention back to him. I think–I hope–my face cooled during Henry’s announcement.
I shrug. “Maybe?”
“I would think the church would be against it then.”
“Oh, well ten percent of the funds go to the church, so I guess they’re okay with it. Did you buy a card and dauber?” The table is blank in front of him.
“Dauber?” He tries out the word, his brows drawing together. I hold up my yellow paint pen.
“It’s what you dot the numbers with,” I explain and he nods in understanding.
“No, I didn’t know I was required to attendandplay.”
I shoot him a look and he sighs.
“Fine, I’ll be right back.”
“Thanks, Sunshine.” I beam up at him.
“Don’t push it.”
My grin only gets bigger. As soon as he leaves the table, Poppy clears her throat.
“Don’t you start,” I say and pin her with a warning look. She doesn’t even bat an eye.
“You like him.”
“Of course I like him, we’re friends.”
“No, youlikelike him.”
“Aren’t you a little old to be using elementary terms?”
She narrows her eyes at me. “Don’t you sass me young lady, or else I’m going to start passing around a rumor that you two are together. Then you’ll have Georgiana at your door warning you about the dangers of holding hands before marriage.”
Georgiana is Peach Hollow’s morality police. When I first moved here she took it upon herself to educate me on how hand-holding leads to a baby on your hip. She has diagrams that would make even the most promiscuous of people blush. The image on page seven of her twenty-page pamphlet still haunts me years later.
“Okay, okay, I have atinycrush on him. Who wouldn’t? He’s practically a model, except better looking because he’s got this edge to him. He’s definitely not a pretty boy type, he’s way too brooding for that. But sometimes he smiles just a little bit and it’s really something to see. He’s such a Mr. Darcy and I’m a sucker for taciturn men in fiction…” I trail off when I spot Poppy’s sweet smile and head tilt.
“What?” I ask, afraid of why she’s looking at me like I’m a puppy who just sat for a treat for the first time.
“You’ve got it bad,” she replies and my mouth drops. I check over my shoulder to make sure Adrian isn’t near. He’s still waiting on Fiona to hand over his bingo supplies. It looks like she’s holding them hostage in order to get a conversation out of him.
“I do not,” I protest after I turn back around. “He’s attractive, that’s all.”
“Mhmm, whatever you have to tell yourself sugar. I bet I’ll be serving almond croissants at your wedding not long from now.”
