Evelyn smiled. “Don’t worry, he didn’t tell me your deepest secrets.”
Thank goodness. Not that he knew her deepest secrets anyway. Well, he knew at least one—Logan. That was enough.
“I’ve got to run, but I wanted to make sure I formally met you. Are you going to be in town long?”
“A couple more days.”
“Maybe we can get coffee sometime.” She backed away.
“Uh, sure.”
“Great, see you around!” She waved and hurried off, only to spin around again. “Seb’s over by the bouncy castle.”
A little stunned by Evelyn Margot’s surprise invitation and her eagerness to tell Jade Sebastian’s whereabouts, she turned to the kid’s area. The giant hot dog would have to wait. As she neared the play area, she heard a man’s voice through a loudspeaker.
“Square dancin’ time! Our dauntless dance instructor, Ms. Eugenia Pickles, is here to guide you along. Even if you don’t know your do-si-do from your promenade, come join the fun. She’ll whip you into shape!”
The woman took over and soon the band was playing while she was calling out different dance moves. Or so Jade guessed. She’d never square-danced before. She hadn’t danced much, period.
Jade made her way through dozens of kids and parents and walked toward the bouncy castle. Teens and adults were manning different stations—face painting, beanbag toss, knock the cans—
Pop, pop, pop, pop!
She jumped and saw a group of young children jumping rear-end-first on balloons, giggling as they popped them with varying success. Cute. She searched around for Sebastian, expecting himto be hanging around the perimeter of the area, talking to people and taking notes.
“Higher, Mr. Hudson!”
She turned to see him by a large swing set, pushing a laughing little girl on a swing.
“My turn!” shouted the boy in the next swing. There were two other boys in the remaining swings, and Sebastian dashed by, giving each one a firm but gentle push.
Jade watched as he continued to swing the kids. She hadn’t spent enough time around children to guess their ages, but these had to be early elementary. Clearly they were having a great time, and she didn’t blame them. It looked like fun.
After a couple more pushes, he helped each kid slow down. The boys ran off while he lifted the little girl off the swing. She put her arms around his neck and hugged him tight. He planted a quick kiss on her cheek and set her down.
Something in Jade’s heart moved. He had his hand on his hips, grinning as he watched the little girl dash away. Unexpected warmth spread through her body. She couldn’t help but smile, just as he turned toward her.
Their eyes locked, like they had in his office during their reunion. This time, though, it was different. There were no mixed feelings or apprehension or regret. Not on her part. Her smile grew.
He ambled over to her, his cobalt-blue-and-red plaid shirt hugging his fit torso, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, exposing strong forearms. Her gaze traveled to the rest of him.Oh. My. Word.Just jeans and hiking boots but... swoon.
“Didn’t expect to see you at the hoedown,” he said, moving to stand in front of her.
Me neither.And that was the reminder she needed. She was here on business, not to swoon.
“Did Mabel convince you to come?” he asked. “She’s the unofficial hoedown ambassador.”
“No. I, um, just wanted to see what the fuss was about.”
“Mr. Hudson?” A young boy tugged on Sebastian’s pants leg.
“Oh, hey, Jason.” He crouched so they were at eye level. “What can I do for you?”
“I want to swing too—”
“Jason!” A harried-looking woman hurried over, holding a baby on her hip. “Mr. Hudson’s busy right now.” She put her hand on top of the child’s mop of blond hair. “Sorry about that,” she said to Sebastian.
“I don’t mind.” He glanced at Jade. “I can swing him for a little bit.”
