Chapter 26
Kira zoomedin on a brightly colored Easter egg as Harper led a cluster of toddlers toward a hidden egg. Holding tight to one hand was Phillip, Maddie and Bear’s nephew. Dressed in a white shirt and bowtie, a chocolate smear over his lip, he was the perfect match for the toddler gripping on to Harper’s right hand: Benny & Darcie’s little girl. Sure, the dainty one had on a frilly dress with lace gloves and a matching hat to go with it, but that little lady wasn’t messing around. Her small face scrunched as they neared, her eyes fixed on whatever part of the egg she couldsee.
Kira twisted the lens, bringing the tiny blonde into focus, and snapped a few shots. She zoomed out enough to capture a colorful egg in soft focus at the forefront, the small treasure tucked into a gnarled bend of a bark-covered tree. She captured more shots as the child rested the egg in her grass-heaped basket, only to have it tumble right out and onto the ground. Little Phillip came to the rescue, though, swooping it up with messy fingers and pressing it back into her basket where itbelonged.
Marissa, who’d attempted to watch from the sidelines, had been dragged into the action by a curly-haired Callie, a little gal related to a woman who helped run the B&B. Kira’s mom and dad had come into town with her sister this time, which made the holiday even more special. Her parents had surprised her by helping the bunch color eggs at Tony’s Diner the day before. They also agreed to meet with the volunteers early that morning to hide them all at Lakeview Park. Of course, not all of them were actual eggs. Many were plastic eggs stuffed with goodies and stickers, press-on tattoos of baby chicks and fluffy bunnies. That was part of the magic of Cobble Creek: empty nesters, single adults, newly marrieds, or someplace in between, there was a place foreveryone.
It took Kira a moment, among the excitement, to locate Anthony, but at last she did. Perhaps it was due to the growing number of kids surrounding him. Or rather, the giant bunny Anthony was guiding through the park. Seth, bless him, had volunteered to be Cobble Creek’s Easter Bunny. Trouble was, the limited visibility caused him to stumble. A lot. Anthony caught her attention across the way and reached up to give her a wave. “Hello overthere.”
“How’s it going?” she asked. He held her gaze, the heat it always brought zooming through herchest.
“Oh no!” one kidhollered.
“The Easter Bunny’s clumsy,” another calledout.
Kira glanced down to see Seth stumbling over a diaper bag. She could hardly hold back alaugh.
Anthony shot into action. “The Easter Bunny isn’t seeing very well today. I think he forgot to eat hiscarrots.”
“The Easter Bunny’s a girl,” little Calliehollered.
Anthony shot Kira a questioningglance.
“Okay,” Kira said with a laugh. Good thing Seth was such a good sport. “Leadherto the pond, will you, Anthony? It’s time forpictures.”
Kira’s parents waited on a bench beside Maria, who busily tucked tulips into a watering can she’d found at Frank & Signs. The woman had an artistic eye, and she wasn’t afraid to use it. In the eight-plus months she’d been there, Anthony’s mom had become Kira’s assistant. She was talented, hardworking, and kind. And most of all, she seemed to savor each day like a precious gift. Kira was challenging herself to do thesame.
“Hop, hop, hop,” Kira heard as she headed toward the water’s edge. She stopped, spun to see what the hollering was about, and grinned wide at the sight. What had once been clusters of kids making their way to the pond was now a line of bunny impersonators, happily hopping as they followed the leaders—Anthony and Seth, that is. Tiny giggles drifted from the trail. Several parents joined in on the action, and Kira paused to shoot a few pictures of the sight. Judy, the gal who ran the police station, would probably pin a few on the community board at the reccenter.
Once they made their way to the prepared spot for the photo shoot, Kira guided Seth to the special Easter Bunny chair. The kids lined up, and Kira got straight to business. Seth was great with the kids. Anthony was, too, distracting the little ones who’d been scared to tears at the sight of the giant bunny. It was a side of him she hadn’t seen a whole lot. Harper helped out, too, pulling a special egg from the Easter Bunny’s basket and handing it to each child before they shuffled back to the crowd gathered by a nearby tree. Once they were through, Harper pulled a gold-colored egg from the basket. It was smaller than the others, and stood out next to the pastel ones she’d handedout.
“Mind if I shoot a few candid photos of the group, since we’re done with the posed ones?” Mariaasked.
“Not at all.” Kira shrugged out of the camera strap and handed it over, glad Maria was interested in learning to shoot. It would help out a whole lot if Kira had an assistant who could take photos on her own ifneeded.
“Anthony,” Harper called out. “It looks like this egg is foryou.”
“Itdoes?” Anthony asked with a lifted brow. “Are yousure?”
Harper handed it over to Seth, who held it with white, furry paws. “Oh yeah, this one’s his, allright.”
Anthony laughed. “That doesn’t make any sense, but … okay.” He rolled his eyes and leaned into Kira. “Seth’s probably pulling some sort of prank. May as well playalong.”
Kira watched as he headedover.
“What’s going on?” Mariaasked.
“He said something about the egg being for him,” Kira’s dad mumbled in reply. Kira hadn’t even realized her parents had broken away from the shaded area to joinher.
“The Easter Bunny has a special egg for Anthony,” Philliphollered.
By the time Anthony had the small egg in his hands, the crowd had gathered in. A hush fell over the group as he held it up, inspecting it with tight lips and narrowedeyes.
“What is it?” Callieasked.
“I’m not sure,” he mumbled. “But I think Kiramight.”
Kira tilted her head. “Huh?”
