Free Seeking His Love by Carrie Turansky

evident in her eyes.
    “I’ve been thinking about what happened today.” He shoved his hands in his jeans’ pockets and rocked back on his heels. He hated to admit he was wrong, but that was the only way to straighten this out. “I made a big deal out of something we could’ve easily worked out with a little discussion.”
    Her wary expression softened a little. “I didn’t exactly make it easy for us to talk it over.”
    He shrugged. “That’s true.”
    She stared at him for a second. Then she seemed to realizehe was teasing. “Okay. I’m ready to listen to whatever you have to say.”
    A grin tugged at his lips. “Wow. That’s all it took?”
    “Well, that and a talk with Hannah on the Taylor Avenue dock.”
    He cocked his head. “What?”
    “Never mind. It’s not important.” She set down the bags. “I’ve been thinking about it, too. And I’m sorry I was so defensive, but I felt…”
    “Attacked?”
    “Yes.”
    “I guess I did come on a little strong.”
    She lifted her brows, sending him a meaningful look.
    “Well, I suppose I was more like a bulldozer at a construction site.”
    “A little.” The light returned to her eyes.
    “Do you want to sit down?” He motioned toward the round table and four chairs shaded by a large green umbrella. “Maybe we could talk for a while.”
    She hesitated and glanced across the patio. “Okay. But I need to run upstairs and put some ice cream in the freezer.” She bent down to grab her bags.
    “Whoa, did you say ice cream?”
    She looked up and nodded.
    He peaked in one of her bags. “What flavor?”
    “Moose tracks.”
    “Wow. That sounds good. What do I have to do to convince you to share?”
    “Hmm.” She tapped her chin for a moment, then her teasing expression faded. “How about promising you’ll give me another chance?” The sincerity in her eyes was unmistakable.
    He nodded. “If you’ll do the same for me.”
     
    Sunday afternoon Cam followed Ross through the crowd gathered in Fairhaven’s historic district. The number of people packed into the eight-block area for this year’s festival was definitely higher than last year.
    The sun shone down, warming Cam’s shoulders and lifting his mood. He didn’t normally like crowds, but this one seemed focused on enjoying the day, so he didn’t mind mixing with them. Live music from a band on the Village Green stage filled in the air with a lively, upbeat sound. The mouthwatering scent of grilling meat floated past, teasing his nose.
    Earlier that day, he and Ross had watched several kayakers race to the shore, run up the hill and ring the bell, signaling the end of their team’s efforts to make it from the top of Mt. Baker to Bellingham Bay in the annual Ski to Sea Race.
    The community festival, celebrating the end of the race and the beginning of summer, was a favorite with people from all over the Bellingham area. As Cam made his way through the Memorial Day weekend crowd, he agreed it was worth the hassle of finding a place to park and feeling like a fish swimming upstream against the flow.
    “Why didn’t we sign up for a booth?” Ross pointed to the line of tents filled with all types of artwork. “We could’ve all gone in together and put up a great display.”
    “File that idea away for next year.” Another whiff of something barbequed floated past. Cam’s mouth watered, and he glanced at his watch. “Let’s grab something to eat.”
    “Okay. Just a minute.” Ross lifted his camera, adjusted the settings and snapped another photo. “Maybe I can sell some of these to Entertainment News NW or the Bellingham Herald. ”
    “Don’t they send their own photographers to big events like this?”
    “Sure, but if I get a great shot…” He clicked off another series of photos. “…maybe they’ll buy it.”
    Cam nodded, though Ross was still viewing the festival through his camera lens.
    “Hey, there’s a great subject.” Ross grinned and continued clicking away.
    Cam