Hope in Our Hearts by Lydia Proffitt

Chapter Seven

CHAPTER SEVEN

My great hope is to laugh as much as I cry; to get my work done and try to love somebody and have the courage to accept the love in return.

- Maya Angelou

"Okay, so Andrea is married to Gavin, Kelly to Rhett, and Amanda to Elliot?" Lucy asked. Lucy had Jason jot everyone's names down. She tried to memorize it all night, but all the kids started getting her confused.

"Yes," Jason said casually.

"What about all the kids?"

"You don't have to know who everyone is Luce. You haven't even met them yet. But, Andrea and Gavin have four. The twins, Taylor and Tara. Then there is Jenny, and their baby son, Michael. Kelly and Rhett have Samantha and another on the way. Amanda and Elliot have Jim and Jake."

"Okay, I know I'm going to mess it all up."

"And it will be fine if you do. Don't worry they will love you."

Lucy bit her lip. She wasn't nervous. She was petrified.

Jason and Lucy pulled into the campground early in the morning. Another vehicle was in front of them, so they followed them to see which way the arrows pointed. Lucy was watching as leaves flew out from under the truck ahead of them. Lucy was surprised by how many people were there since it was October. It was still fairly warm outside, but summer was gone. It slipped right between their fingers, and there was no denying the arrival of autumn.

They finally maneuvered through the roads and found the camping space Elliot's camper took up. Jason got out Kale's stroller and put a hand on Lucy's back to guide her towards his friends. Lucy could feel her nerves going haywire, but Jason's hand reassured her that everything was going to be okay.

Amanda was the first one to get out of her chair and shake Lucy's hand. "Hi, Lucy. I'm Amanda. It is so nice to finally meet you."

"Nice to meet you too," Lucy said.

Amanda's blonde hair was up in a messy bun. She smiled at Lucy, and Lucy knew instantly they were going to be great friends. One quick glance told Lucy all the women looked about twenty-five, but Jason assured her later they were all over thirty.

Lucy noticed Elliot mouthed something like, "She's pretty." She turned to see Jason's reply, but she must have just missed it. Jason winked at her, and Lucy smiled back at him.

"This is Kale," Lucy said, introducing Kale to the group.

Lucy dressed Kale in a little Halloween outfit. Lucy had his real costume in the diaper bag for later. For now, he wore black sweatpants and a jack-o-lantern shirt. He also wore a Tennessee Titans football cap––something Jason bought for him.

"He looks like a little doll," Andrea said.

"Can I hold him?" Taylor, one of the twins, asked.

"Of course," Lucy said, picking him up out of his stroller.

Taylor looked eleven years old. Lucy could see her twin sister, Tara, holding her baby brother, Michael. The twins looked exactly alike. Lucy knew there was no hope of knowing the difference between the two.

Lucy handed Kale to Taylor, who walked to join her sister. They both sat on the ground. Taylor was holding Kale's fingers while he stood, but he showed no intention of walking.

"Not quite a walker yet, is he?" Kelly asked, turning towards Lucy.

"Not quite yet, but we are working on it."