Hummingbird Lane by Brown, Carolyn (good books to read for beginners TXT) 📕

it right over Arty’s head. “Next time you call me fat, that’s going to pop your arm—or your butt, if you’ve got the good sense to run.”

“Oh, honey, I can outrun you any day of the week.” Arty stepped back closer to the door.

This was what Emma wanted in a relationship—fun and bantering as well as all the rest.

“Josh is hanging the lights from a couple of tree limbs, and he wants to know if you have any more.”

“Oh. My. Goodness,” Emma said. “You really are going all out.”

“Of course we are. You finish stirring this frosting while I locate the lights.” She started back down the hallway. “Sophie is like our granddaughter, and, honey, you and Josh are like our grandkids, too. Besides, we love a party.”

Filly returned in a few minutes with a box and carried it out to the porch. When she came back inside, she put a small amount of the frosting into a bowl, added a few drops of blue food coloring, and motioned toward two dozen sugar cookies. “You can put a thin layer of icing on each of those. Something old is the hanging lights. Something new is the cake. Something blue is the cookies, and something borrowed is Arty’s fancy tablecloth that we normally only use on Christmas Day.”

“But this is an engagement party, not a wedding,” Emma said.

“Oh, honey, we’ll have something even bigger at the commitment ceremony. Arty and I will both cook for a week, and this park will look like a wedding chapel,” Filly giggled, “with a broom in the middle, of course, and we’ll send them off with fireworks.”

“I love this place,” Emma said with a long sigh, “and I love every one of you all.”

Filly patted her on the shoulder. “And we love you, too, girl, and you’ve made us so happy by talkin’ about stayin’ on with us. We need you. Josh gets lonely with just us old people, and me and Arty get cranky in the summer without a few more folks around us.”

We need you.

Those words kept going around in circles in Emma’s head. She’d never had anyone tell her that they needed her. She had always been picked last.

“Thank you,” Emma whispered.

“Nope, darlin’ girl, it’s us thanking you.” Filly stopped and gave her a side hug and then went right back to work on the cake.

Sophie was glad to see sunshine and a blue sky on the trip from the airport to the park. Emma had mentioned that they were planning a little party. Sophie just hoped that they weren’t going to too much trouble since Teddy would only have a couple of hours before he had to leave.

She always hated to see him leave, but this time it was going to be doubly hard. After the amazing time they’d had together, she couldn’t imagine telling him goodbye. Maybe that’s why she had this feeling of dark doom floating over her head.

Everything is perfect. Why are you sad? the annoying voice in her head scolded.

Because nothing is ever perfect, and that scares me, she thought. And I don’t deserve a perfect life, or perfect showings like I just had.

“Darlin’, we’re almost there,” Teddy said.

She turned to face him and realized that they had turned off the highway onto the dirt road leading back to the trailer park. “I’ll miss you so much, but I’ll paint from daylight to dark to make the time go by faster.” She leaned over the console and kissed him on the cheek.

“I may not wash my face or shave for a week,” he teased.

“Oh. My! Look what they’ve done,” she squealed.

“What?” Teddy asked.

“Look at the park and all those lights. It’s broad daylight, and the sun is shining, but just look at what they’ve done for us.”

“Holy smoke,” he gasped. “We’re not having the commitment ceremony today, are we? I haven’t even bought the wedding bands or written my vows.”

“No, I made it clear that the ceremony would be on July Fourth. That way you won’t ever forget our anniversary, and there’ll always be fireworks,” she said.

“Honey, there will be fireworks between us until we dance across the clouds into eternity,” he told her.

“Keep telling me pretty things like that even when we’re old and gray.” She laid a hand on his cheek. His sweet words helped chase away part of the heavy feeling, but not all of it.

“You’ll still be hot to me when your blonde hair is gray, sweetheart, and I bet the twinkle in your eyes will always be there just like it is today.” He parked the truck in front of her trailer.

Filly, Arty, and Josh all waved from the table. Emma came out of the trailer wearing one of her flowing skirts and Filly’s jewelry. Her dark hair was piled up on top of her head in a ponytail, and she was smiling even brighter than the sun and the flashing lights hanging from the trees. Suddenly, Sophie couldn’t wait to get her alone and get all the details of what had happened while she was gone.

Teddy unfastened his seat belt, got out of the vehicle, and jogged around the front end to help Sophie. They started toward the table together, but when the hugging, hand shaking, and back patting started, they were soon separated.

“We are so happy for you kids,” Arty said. “Come on around and take your places at the table. It’s ready and waiting for you to dive in.”

“Y’all didn’t need to go to all this much trouble,” Teddy said, “but those steaks sure smell good.”

Emma gave Sophie a second hug and whispered, “I’m so glad you’re home. It’ll take hours and hours to tell you everything.”

“I know, and then I’ll tell you everything,” Sophie said.

Teddy reached out and took Sophie by the hand, tugging it gently. “Shall we, darlin’?”

“Of course.” Sophie flashed a smile at him and stepped out of the hug. “This is absolutely amazing. Em, you should have told me. I would