Again, I looked to Pa and again, he was fidgeting. It was rather amusing. “That’s mighty kind of you, Walynn . . . but . . . ,” I began and Pa’s stiff shoulders relaxed, making me want to chuckle. “Well . . . you know what? I think I would like to hang out for a while. Thank you.”

Pa grunted in surprise and Foxy coughed to try covering her snort, but the boys were loudest, cheering their excitement about getting to ride in the “red bug,” as they called Walynn’s Volkswagen Beetle.

“You liable to get a talking-to when you get home for that,” Foxy commented, still laughing after Pa had stomped off.

“That’s what he gets. Walynn is just being kind and the little boys have really taken a shine to her. Pa should be grateful.”

“The man acts like he’s scared to death of her.” Foxy handed me a basket full of our little signs, shaking her head.

“Well, Walynn is a bit much, but I’m just glad she’s provoked any kind of emotion out of him.” I shook my head too and concentrated on neatly folding the tablecloth and then tucking it into one of the empty crates. Pa had become even more withdrawn in the last few months, almost as though the dormant fields around the farm had dictated his emotions. Seeing him responding to a situation, even if it was a reaction of awkward nervousness, gave me some sense of relief.

Three crates were all that remained to carry to the truck, so I offered to handle it and encouraged Foxy to go find her man amongst the crowd. She didn’t have to be told twice. Laughing off how fast she disappeared, I didn’t realize I was being followed until he spoke and near about caused me to drop the crates in the dark parking lot.

“I’m sorry, Austin. I didn’t mean to scare you.” Vance reached for the top crate, steadying it and then taking all three crates out of my arms.

“I had it,” I grumbled, defenses up and attitude pronounced. I snatched the top one and slid it into the bed of the truck, the scraping sound hushing whatever he was about to say. I twisted around and yanked the next crate, repeating the task two more times. I wanted to leave, but my siblings were wandering around the festival, making a hasty escape impossible.

“Of course you had it. Don’t you always?” Vance clamped his hands on my shoulders, stopping me from turning to leave. “Will you be still for a minute?”

I yanked out of his hold. “Where’s Malorie?”

He drew a step closer and angled his head to the side to meet my eyes. “I don’t know. Why should I?”