Chapter Fifteen
The Fourth of July did not end with the fair. When I found my way back to my family, they were at the picnic table, all together, gathering around Ash, who was showing off the new diamond ring on her hand. Even under the night sky, darker now that the fireworks had ceased, her blush looked evident.
“I can’t believe it,” Aunt Marie was saying over and over again, near to tears.
“‘Bout time, ya bum!” Granddad howled.
Uncle Willard shook his head in full “shucks” mode.
“Better late than never…Dad,” Ash responded, trying it out for the first time.
“Connor! There you are.” Willard noticed me as I walked over and waved me closer. “Why don’t you come over and meet your future aunt?”
I complied. Ash smiled proudly as she held out her hand to display the ring that I suspected
