Sweet Holiday Romance Books 1 - 4

Chapter 6

6

“A field of ripe pumpkins under a bright blue sky is a true delight, wouldn't you say?" Atticus asked as they tromped across the rough surface of the harvested cornfield towards the pumpkin patch. The tall, green corn plants of summer were long gone and all that was left were the golden brown dried stalks and husks that had been chopped down and stripped of their corn by giant harvesters during their peak ripeness.

Owned by the Fischer family, this corn farm always set aside three acres to grow pumpkins and sell locally for Halloween. The pumpkins were dirt cheap compared to those sold in the store. The catch was, customers had to pick their purchases themselves and the closest anyone could get to the pumpkin patch was to park on the road and march over the uneven fields of corn surrounding it on all sides. Nobody was completely sure why the Fischers didn't plant their pumpkins along the road for easier access. Maybe it deterred late night teenage pumpkin thieves, or maybe they just thought people needed to get more exercise. Eve didn't mind, walking to the patch was part of what made it such a grand adventure.

She, Atticus, and his entire English class were on this adventure together today. The smell of turned earth, decaying corn plants and crisp, cold country air was a distinctly fall experience that she thoroughly enjoyed. From the looks on the kid's faces, they were enjoying it too. So was Atticus. The fresh air invigorated him, made him even more animated, and it turned the tip of his nose and tops of his ears pink, a look Eve was beginning to find charming.

"I see them!" He exclaimed, pointing for the other's benefit in the direction they needed to go. "Look at them, like happy orange orbs just waiting to be gathered up and taken home." He waved his long arms wildly towards the patch, encouraging his charges, "Run! Run, children, before they escape!"

Eve had to laugh as the children bounded off towards the patch in the distance, shouting and squealing. Under Atticus' direction these normally moody and sullen teenagers had turned into a g**g of bright eyed, spirited explorers. On the bus ride from school, he'd led them all in silly songs until everyone was joining in the fun. He'd joked and sang and cajoled the whole lot of them into belly laughs. She couldn't remember the last time she had laughed that hard. The real delight, however, was seeing the kids lighten up and enjoy just being kids.

Atticus fell into step next to her, keeping one eye on his class from a distance.

"You're really wonderful with them," Eve said.

"Thank you.” The pink from his ears spreading to his cheeks. "Coming from you that's quite a compliment."

"I'm sure my Dad would have approved of how you are with the kids." She was sure. The way Atticus engaged with this class reminded her more than just a little bit of her father, how he kept them entertained and learning all the time.

"I can't take all the credit," Atticus said. "I get very excited on field trips and I love anything orange, so for me today is a win-win!" He tilted his tousled red hair towards her and winked, making her laugh again. "And don't forget my new shoes!" He exclaimed, lifting his right foot up high in front of him so she could see his bright orange tennis shoes.

"How could I forget those shoes?"

He'd already shown them off three or four times on the bus ride only to receive protests and groans from the whole group. She couldn't tease him too much, she'd worn her own goofy Halloween sweatshirt with a giant, toothless pumpkin on the front to get in the spirit of the whole trip.

They continued walking, falling into a comfortable silence. She liked Atticus. He was funny and kind and she was glad he had taken over her father's class. Something about him made her feel like they'd known each other longer than only a few days.

"You still miss him, I imagine?" Atticus asked, breaking the friendly silence.

"My Dad?"

He nodded.

"Oh, yes, very much.” A pang of grief went through her chest, but she was surprised to find she didn't start crying.

"What about your Mom?" Atticus asked.

"Oh, my Mom passed away when I was three," she responded. Atticus made a sympathetic noise, but didn't say anything. "How about you?" Eve asked, "Are your parents near here?"

Atticus shook his head 'no', "My Dad has never been around, I don't know anything about him." It was Eve's turn to be sympathetic. "And my Mom passed away about four years ago."

"I'm so sorry," Eve offered. Atticus nodded and looked into the distance as they walked.

"I have a younger sister who lives near here. That's why I transferred," he told her.

After that, there was nothing much to say, she knew. He completely understood her pain and learning this shifted something between them, it made walking quietly next to each other feel even more normal. She had an urge to reach out and touch his shoulder.

"Mr. Murphy! Mr. Murphy!" One of the boys, Simon, stood at the edge of the pumpkin patch about 30 feet away holding a bright orange pumpkin high over his head. "I found mine!"

"Excellent, Simon!" Atticus waved at the boy and turned to her, suddenly playful. "Ready to find your magic pumpkin, m'lady?" Eve nodded and Atticus gallantly offered his hand. She took it and he led her into the pumpkins like she was a princess and he was her knight in shining armor.

An hour later they were back at the school bus, laden with their round, orange bounty. Eve had realized that she couldn't buy a lot of pumpkins for Belinda's party because she didn't have any way to carry them all back to the bus. Atticus had offered to carry two for her and enlisted a few of the older boys who were only getting one for themselves to help her out by using their free arm to carry her extras. All in all she'd managed to procure six for Belinda's party and that seemed like enough.

The controlled chaos of loading two dozen teenagers and their pumpkins onto a school bus after romping outside in the fresh air was quite a sight to behold. Eve stood guard at the back end of the bus watching traffic. This road wasn't especially busy, but she felt like it was safer to make sure none of the kids stepped out past the edge of the bus, just in case. As she waited, a dark grey, shining sports car slowed down and pulled in to park behind them. The muffled thumping of music playing inside the car caught her attention. She peered at the driver who unexpectedly flashed a smile at her and instantly Eve knew who it was, Chip.

Chip turned off the engine and opened the door, emerging from the slick car looking like a man modeling a well cut suit, or the sports car itself, or a fancy brand of scotch in a magazine. He looked that good, like a scotch ad in a magazine.

"Chip," Eve greeted him, a flush of excitement making her smile like a goon.

"Hey," he said, meandering towards her.

Under his gaze she became acutely aware of her attire. She had on worn jeans, old tennis shoes and her sweatshirt, which, in addition to the smiling pumpkins, had the words 'Hocus Pocus' scrawled across the top. She hadn't put on much makeup and just swept her hair into a quick ponytail before heading to the school this morning. In short, she didn't feel quite prepared to face Chip Hendricks with his over the top, scotch ad good looks.

"You've been picking pumpkins?" He asked as he reached her, his voice was so deep and smoldering, even when he was talking about vegetables.

"Yeah.” Eve had all but forgotten about the kids, the school bus, and even Atticus, when Chip got out of his car. "It's a school field trip."

"You volunteer at the school?" Chip looked over the back end of the bus and taking in the kids now visible in the windows, jumping and singing and generally being crazy.

"Oh, well not really.” Eve couldn't find the words to explain exactly how she'd ended up here. "It's just a sometimes thing...and I needed some pumpkins...for Belinda's party." Over explaining was a great way to look appealing, she thought to herself.

Chip grinned and, much to her chagrin, she found herself blushing.

"All right, Eve, we're rea–" Atticus jogged around the end of the bus and stopped short when he saw Chip. Chip didn't move from where he stood, which Eve suddenly noticed was quite close to her. He only turned his head and gave Atticus a once over, pausing for a beat on his very orange tennis shoes.

"Have you met each other?" Eve tried to break the ice. Chip didn't answer and Atticus shook his head 'no'. "Atticus, this is Chip Hendricks. We grew up together." She motioned towards Chip and Atticus stepped forward as if he might try to shake Chip's hand.

"I'm Atticus Murphy–" he started.

"He's the new English teacher," Eve interrupted. "He's teaching my father's class." She wanted Chip to understand why she was on this middle school field trip, but her words only added to the awkward vibe and nobody moved or said anything for a few moments. Before she knew what was happening, her nerves overtook her senses and she started explaining even harder, "I used to go on these trips with this class and Atticus, well the class really, invited me to come today, which is great because I needed some pumpkins for Belinda's party, but I couldn't carry them all back, and now that I think about it I don't know how I'm going to carry them all home because I walked to the school..." her voice trailed off a little and she let out a nervous laugh.

"I'll give you a lift," Chip said.

Eve's stomach did a little flip.

"Oh," she tried not to stammer. "You don't need to do that. I mean, following the bus all the way back to the school, isn't that a little out of your way?"

He chuckled and shook his head. "No, I mean I'll give you a lift from here. Put the pumpkins in the trunk." He pulled a key fob out of his pocket and pushed a button. The trunk on the sports car opened smoothly. "I insist," he added.

Eve blushed at her misunderstanding. Of course he didn't need to follow the school bus back to the school. She turned to Atticus, who remained quiet nearby.

"Well, um, I guess that would be okay?" She posed the question to Atticus. It was hard to ignore the look of disappointment that flashed across his face, but it disappeared in a nanosecond and turned to one of gracious acceptance. She was thankful to him for not making her feel guilty.

"Of course, no problem," Atticus said. "I'll just get your pumpkins for you."

A few minutes later she slid into the soft, leather seat of Chip's sports car. The seat was so low she could barely see over the dashboard, but she could see Atticus standing next to the bus. She waved at him and smiled, and he smiled and waved back. Then Chip started the car, revved the engine and pulled around the school bus, leaving it behind in a flash.