Season of Dreams by Jenna Mindel Page B

she reached Uncle Larry, her eyebrows shot up. “Beekeeper?”
    Uncle Larry smiled, proud to explain his duties. “Sweet cherries don’t self-pollinate. Come blossom time, we bring over the bees.”
    Eva glanced at Adam and read the gratitude in his eyes. But she couldn’t shake what Anne had said about her brother. Adam didn’t follow through. Not a good thing. Not at all.
    She turned her attention back to the conversation.
    â€œWe place the beehives in the orchard for a week or so. They get fruit, and we get honey along with a rental fee on the bees,” her uncle explained.
    â€œYou’ll have to bake me something so I can try this cherry blossom honey,” Adam said softly to Eva.
    His request had been phrased as if they’d been alone. Eva felt her cheeks heat as the stares of everyone bored into her. It was out in the open now. She baked for Adam. “Absolutely. Sure.”
    She glanced at Aunt Jamee, who raised one perfectly arched eyebrow. But Eva hurried Adam and his sister toward the other guests before her aunt had the chance to state the obvious. Something more than muffins simmered between Eve and Adam.
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    As the fire blazed with sparks towering into the cool night air, Eva watched Adam work the party like a pro. He chatted with Jim Sandborn and another grower from a few miles north. The men laughed, and Eva could tell they were beginning to accept Adam. Trust might be a ways off yet, but then, she didn’t fully trust Adam either.
    Sipping hot chocolate, Eva smiled when Ryan’s marshmallow caught on fire. The smell of burning sugar wafted toward her in the soft breeze and she breathed deep. She loved the annual bonfire and hoped this wasn’t the last one. As long as Adam stuck it out, there could be more. There had to be more.
    Anne tiptoed toward her, careful to keep her heels from sinking into the moist grass. With a laugh, she said, “I wore the wrong shoes.”
    Anne was decked out in designer jeans and a long gray coat over a simple knit turtleneck. Just like Adam, she looked as if she’d stepped off the pages of a glossy magazine.
    â€œThe ground’s still wet from the snowmelt.” Eva stood in the entrance of the pole barn.
    The pile of branches had a while to burn down, yet Ryan threw on more logs. The warmth of the fire and the mild spring evening fostered folks’ desire to linger. Beth pointed out star constellations to a couple of kids who sat enraptured with her knowledge.
    â€œNow I understand why Adam loves this property. It’s beautiful. I’d build a house right over there. With the view of the lakes, it’d be perfect for a summer place.” Anne pointed toward the crest of a hill where the orchard began.
    Eva squeezed her empty cup until her thumb poked a hole through the Styrofoam. “Yeah.”
    â€œYour home is lovely, too.”
    Eva got the feeling Anne had left off the phrase for an old house. Adam’s sister struck her as a gotta-have-new kind of girl. “Thanks.”
    â€œIt reminds me of our grandparents’ place. Adam used to spend hours in the field with Grandpa during our summer visits. They had a small farm not too far from the condo. But Adam must have told you all that.”
    â€œNot really.” That explained a lot when it came to Adam’s approach to the orchard. His kid-on-vacation eagerness suddenly made sense.
    Anne smiled. “Growing up, all Adam ever wanted to be was a farmer like Grandpa. Drove my dad nuts. Then, in high school, he wanted to be a mechanic. Again, not something suited for a Peecetorini, if you know what I mean.”
    Eva didn’t. “Peece-tor-eeni?”
    â€œOur real name. The family name. Dad had it legally shortened to match the business after mom died.”
    â€œOh.” Eva silently rolled the name around on her tongue.She caught Adam’s gaze from the other side of the fire. His family name suited him. Peecetorini