Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 109205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 546(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 546(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
God, I loved how she tried to act like my answer wasn’t a big deal, but after the whole Greer thing, I knew that was far from the truth.
“No. Never. This will be my first one. I just figured you had been on at least one before.”
Her eyes met mine, and the smile was back. “No, I haven’t.”
Laughing, I said, “So this will be the first picnic for the three of us.”
Willa’s teeth dug into her lower lip as she barely nodded, then looked over her shoulder at her still-sleeping son. “He’s going to be ready to go by the time we get to wherever it is we’re going,” she said with a giggle.
I winked, and she quickly looked away and cleared her throat.
It wasn’t long after we left Arabella’s that I pulled up to my family’s gate.
“The lake,” Willa said with almost a sigh in her voice. “We’re going to the lake, aren’t we?”
I nodded. “Yeah, I figured we could set up a good distance away so that Ben doesn’t get near the water. There’s a spot where my mother used to lay out a blanket, and she would sit and watch me and my father fish. It’s got a beautiful view and plenty of space for Ben to crawl around.”
Taking a chance, I glanced over to Willa. She chewed nervously on her lip. “I can’t wait to see it. It’s been a number of years since I’ve been to that little lake.”
“I’ll have to run into the house to grab a blanket or two.”
“I’ve got a giant blanket,” she said quickly. “I mean, it’s not like I normally carry a blanket around in my car, but sometimes I like to lay it out under the apple trees and play with Ben.”
“Great. Then let’s park over here. It’s a short walk, and it sounds like the little man is awake.”
Sounds of baby talk filtered from the back of the car as I pulled up and parked in the grass. Willa got out and quickly tended to Ben while I popped the trunk, found the blanket, and then grabbed the basket. It was heavy, and I couldn’t even imagine what Arabella had packed in there.
“I packed paper plates, plastic ware, and plastic cups. You have everything you need for a romantic picnic!” she’d said as she handed me the basket.
After setting the basket down, I opened the blanket and laid it out. It was bigger than I thought, and Ben would have plenty of room.
Willa sat and laid Ben down, changed his diaper, and then pulled out some toys and set them on the blanket. Ben crawled over to them and quickly started playing.
“I asked Arabella to pack some things that Ben would like. I hope that’s okay.”
Willa grinned. “Of course. Ben loves Arabella and going to the apiary. She knows exactly what he likes.”
“Good.”
“Wow, she really went above and beyond with all of this,” Willa said with a giggle as she picked up a square piece of cheese and popped it into her mouth.
There was a small cheese and meat tray. Skewers with fruit, as well as some with tomatoes, olives, and artichokes. Crackers and a fresh loaf of bread, two different types of jam, and of course, honey. Roasted pumpkin seeds. And last but not least, chocolates. Then a small bag that had BEN written on it.
Willa pulled out a little tray from her bag, placed it front of Ben, and began putting different things on there for him to eat. The little guy didn’t take long to check out his lunch and start taste-testing it all.
“Will you make me a plate?” she asked.
“Sure, what do you want on it?”
“A little bit of everything!”
I couldn’t help but smile. The few times I had gone out on dates, I hated the way women nibbled at their food, almost afraid to eat. It was nice to see Willa hadn’t changed in that regard. She’d always loved food.
After piling up our plates, we ate and watched Ben devour his own food.
“Why haven’t you been home over the last few years?” Willa asked.
I paused for a moment and looked out over the lake. “A few years back I went for a position on a Tier One team.”
“What’s a Tier One team?”
I grinned. “The best of the best. Think Green Berets, but Navy SEAL style. It’s also called the Naval Special Warfare Development Group, or DEVGRU. Think SEAL Team Six.”
Her mouth dropped open, and she placed her plate down on the blanket. “I remember you saying that you wanted to be on the best SEAL Team, but I had no idea it was something like that. You never told me.”
With a half shrug, I replied, “You’re not supposed to know. We weren’t really able to travel very far from base since we could be called up for an op at any time. The few times I did get leave, I honestly didn’t want to come back to Boggy Creek.”