Page 120 of Roping Her In

“I love you, sweetheart,” he whispered on his way to kiss her.

“I love you too,” she murmured right before his lips met hers.

44

Happy wedding day to Shiloh and Brett!

Hailey saw the first text from her momma as it came in, realizing quickly that this was a group text for the vast majority of Glover women. She currently sat on her mother’s couch as she’d volunteered to help with the food for this event.

We also wanted to let everyone know what date to put on their calendars for the fifth Glover wedding of the year—Hailey and Jake—and that’s January tenth!

Hailey grinned at her mother’s text as the timer on the tart shells she’d made that morning went off. She’d no sooner heaved herself off the couch than the front door opened.

Savannah walked in with her darling baby in her arms, and Hailey’s attention got torn between the timer and the infant.

“January tenth,” Savannah said with a broad smile. “That’s so exciting, Hailey.”

She hurried toward her, and Hailey embraced her friend and then turned to get the timer.

“Wilder and the girls are bringing in all the raspberries,” she said.

“Perfect,” Hailey said. “Clover should be here any minute.”

“Clover is here,” the woman said, and Hailey turned toward her as well. She’d volunteered herself, Savannah, and Clover to do the tarts, while Momma had made vats of macaroni salad last night and set the chicken to marinate. She still hadn’t come out from her bedroom, and Hailey hoped she’d sleep in for as long as she wanted.

Shiloh and Brett would be married in True Blue later that afternoon, with a huge picnic dinner and reception to follow. Holly Ann and Momma had been asked to spearhead the food, and several individual assignments had been handed out.

Clover held up a twenty-pound bag of lemons. “I just got these from Clara Jean.”

“Perfect,” Hailey said. “We still have about half a bag left over from the marinating.”

Momma also currently had two hundred pounds of chicken breasts marinating in a lemon pepper sauce, and Uncle Duke and his brothers, Dawson and Brandon, would be grilling the chicken for the picnic.

Hailey pulled out the last of the tart shells, noticing that a couple on the upper right corner had gotten too dark. She frowned at them and then told herself they could use them as their taste tests.

“I’m going to have to tell my momma that her oven doesn’t cook even.”

“They still look good,” Savannah said, peering over her arm at the tart shells.

More voices joined the fray as Wilder entered with the twins. “Hailey, Hailey, Hailey,” Gal yelled. “Look at my new apron.”

She wore a bright purple apron, bordering on fuchsia, with llama appliqués that Hailey knew Savannah had stitched on for her. Hailey pulled in a breath and bent down to receive the little girl.

“Wow,” she said. “Look at this. Did your momma make it?”

“Mm-hmm,” Gal said, and she puffed out her belly to show off the bright yellow llama that had been sewn there.

“I got one too,” Sequoia said, and hers was a tamer, paler version of purple, with puffy clouds and rainbows sewn on.

“I need a girl here who can squeeze lemons,” Clover said brightly.

Though Hailey knew she struggled to fit in the wider Glover family, she wasn’t sure why. The girls loved her, and both of them clambered over to the stool Clover had set beside her.

“Sequoia’s your girl,” Savannah said. “Gal, you’re going to hand me ingredients for the custard, remember?”

“Oh, yes,” she said, as if she’d just been chosen to be queen.

Wilder put a crate of raspberries on the counter and started unpacking the individual pint containers.