“What’s that?”
“It’s a beauty pageant,” Mom cut in, leaning forward to see Alex. She’d met up with us at the stadium to watch Tessa jump. “It’s just a fun little thing we do around here.”
“Unfortunately, I didn’t fit the requirements. You must be ‘of good moral character and personality’.” I said dryly.
“And what, you don’t have good moral character and personality?” Alex grinned, entertained.
“Elle was a trouble maker, and she was quite loud about it,” Mom said. I shrugged my shoulders, not disputing the fact. “I was Miss North two years running—until Tessa’s mom won it and broke my record.” Mom added with a chuckle.
“So you and Tessa’s mom were beauty pageant rivals then?” Alex asked, his eyebrows drawing together.
“No, the opposite. They were the best of friends. Inseparable,” I explained patiently, a subtle smile on my lips. I still felt weird about having Alex in town, but I was content to fill the voids of silence with conversation—so long as that conversation wasn’t pertaining to my complicated feelings that I’d yet to make sense of.
“Sounds a lot like you and Tessa,” he remarked, pulling me closer to him.
“They are definitely inseparable,” Mom laughed, shaking her head. “When they were growing up, you’d rarely see one without the other.”
“Let’s give a warm welcome to contestant twenty-five; Tessa Armstrong!” the announcer’s voice blasted over the speakers. Mom and I stood up to cheer for Tessa, our hoots and hollers loud and proud. I could see Tessa’s dad standing by the entry gate, a proud grin on his face. Alex stood up too, clapping along with us.
Once she’d trotted into the ring on Spirit, we sat down and watched the show. Tessa eased through the jumps in record time. She placed second, bested only by a younger horse’s two-second lead in speed.
After the show jumping competition ended, Alex and I went over the barns to see Tessa as she got Spirit prepped for the trailer while Mom took off to do her grocery shopping. “Hey,” Tessa said, smiling when she caught sight of us. “Glad you guys came today!”
“Wouldn’t have missed it,” I responded, stepping up to the beautiful palomino. I stroked his velvety nose and he whinnied at me. “You did good, old boy,” I told him. “And you were alright too, I guess.” I added, grinning at Tessa.
“You were awesome,” Alex said. “I wouldn’t even know what to do on a horse,” he chuckled. He was keeping his distance, standing several feet back.
“Thanks,” Tessa smiled. “You can pet him if you want, just hold your hand out and let him sniff you first. It’s the polite thing to do, after all.”
Alex stepped forward, holding his hand out for Spirit to sniff. Then he gave the side of Spirit’s face a tentative stroke. “He’s soft,” he remarked, as if surprised.
“Seriously, this is your first time around a horse?” I asked him, a small smile lifting the corners of my lips up.
“Yeah, well. Barrie’s more city-like than Parry Sound, not many people have horses. I played sports.” He shrugged, almost embarrassed.
“It’s alright,” Tessa told him. “Elle only knows how to handle them because she practically grew up on the farm with me and I always made her help me with my chores.” I stuck my tongue out at her jokingly and she gave me the finger. “Are you two going to actually stick around today, or will you be bailing again?”
“We’re sticking around,” Alex answered on behalf of the both of us. “I really want to see the smash-up derby and eat some disgusting carnival food.”
* * *
Tessa and Brock were perfect buffers to have hanging around. They lightened the mood and distracted me from my heavy, complicated thoughts. We had a great time wandering the fair and checking out all the different craft booths. Tessa even got me to go on a few rides.
I used to love carnival rides. Braden and I would ride every single one of them over and over again until I was so dizzy and disoriented that I couldn’t stand. There were so many memories with him and me at this fair that it hurt to be here with someone who wasn’t him.
Then it was time for the smash-up derby and the four of us made our way to the stadium. Brock caught sight of Braden and called out to him. He was standing near the stadium entrance, waiting with the other drivers while the judges inspected the cars. He was dressed in his regular uniform of torn jeans and a black t-shirt that amplified his broader chest and the muscles in his arms. The scruff along his jaw was every bit as enticing as the call of his eyes as they landed on me. His gaze dropped to my hand in Alex’s and his jaw clenched. He turned around to say something to Ezra Johnson.
“Oh my God, Ezra! I haven’t seen you in forever!” I squealed, tugging my hand free and practically flying at him. He walked a few steps towards me before his arms wrapped around me in a hug. Picking me up, he spun around twice before releasing me. Ezra may have been Braden’s best friend first, but he and I grew close when I started dating Braden. He was lovable and loyal, and for a while…I’d tried to push him towards Tessa.
“I know!” he exclaimed, grinning at me. “Maybe if you came home more often…” he was joking, but his words still made me feel guilty. He was right, after all.
“Yeah well, you know how it is. I got busy with college and then working,” I shrugged, keeping my smile in place. “This is Alex, my boyfriend.”
“Nice to meet you,” Ezra said politely, shaking Alex’s hand.
“What have you been up to lately?!” I added, trying to ignore the fact that Braden’s eyes remained glued to me.
“Working as well. I scored a union job,” Ezra answered proudly.
