Page 80 of Whispers and Wildfire
“Sounds about right,” Sharla said.
“Anyway,” I said, still gesturing with my pickle. “Hank was fine. Nice guy and everything. But he obviously couldn’t handle all this.”
“Takes a brave man,” Nathan said.
Sharla and I ignored him. Lucia ran up to her mom with a juice box and Sharla helped her with the straw.
“So that didn’t work out,” I said. “Which is fine. I’m not desperate.”
“Of course you’re not,” Sharla said. “And I’m proud of you for giving it a shot, even though it didn’t turn into anything.”
“Thanks. It would have been nice if I’d been the one giving theit’s not you, it’s mespeech. Especially because he gave me the,it’s definitely youspeech.”
“Ouch.” Sharla’s tone was sympathetic. Zola came over with her juice box and flushed cheeks. Without missing a beat, Sharla helped her with her straw. “What a jerk. Can I hate him? I think I want to hate him.”
“How about we disdain him,” I said. “Hate seems a bit dramatic, even for me.”
“I can live with disdain.”
A few more kids ran to the playground—a little boy of about four, two girls, and a bigger boy who was clearly the older brother.
“Will, don’t run up the slide when other kids are going down,” the older boy said. “Emma and Juliet, you have to stay on the playground.”
Sharla waved. “Hi, Thomas.”
The kid waved back. “Hi, Mrs. Andolini.”
“Are your mom and dad here?”
“Yeah, they’re bringing our lunch from the car.”
A moment later, Annika and her husband, Levi, walked across the grass. Levi pulled a wagon with a cooler, and they stopped at the picnic table next to ours. The kids were already running around the playground together.
We all said our hellos while Annika and Levi unpacked their lunch. Annika kept a close eye on the kids, especially her youngest.
“Are you going to the bachelor auction?” Sharla asked.
I looked at her over the top of my sunglasses. “Are you asking me?”
“Yes, you. Nathan and I are going to show our support, but obviously not to bid in the man auction.”
“Why would I go to a man auction?”
She shrugged. “For fun.”
“It’s for a good cause,” Annika said. “The SPS is building their headquarters.”
“What’s the SPS?” I asked.
“The Squirrel Protection Squad,” Sharla said, her forehead creasing as if I’d asked a dumb question.
“What is the Squirrel Protection Squad?” I asked. “Never mind. I didn’t think Tilikum could get weirder, but there you have it. But why do the squirrels need protecting?”
“They’re really more of a grassroots civilian security team,” Sharla said. “They’ve done a lot of good for the community.”
“And they’re going to auction off single men to raise money? How is that legal?”
Sharla laughed. “It’s not like that. You know how these things are. Just all in good fun. You get an evening with a bachelor. It’s not a romantic thing. Most people will probably have them do yard work or chop wood and stuff.”
