She pointed toward a large area with grills and picnic tables.
“The orphanage does a big cookout party here every year with all the kids and prospective parents. It’s a chance for them to have fun and get to know each other.”
“Do you attend?”
Jacqui nodded.
“I volunteer, usually putting the food together. I remember what it was like to have all these adults coming in to look you over, and I want to make that process better for these kids.”
Khizar hesitated, because he didn’t want to make her sad, but he was curious.
“You were in an orphanage for how long after your parents died?”
“I actually lived there for about three months. I was in different foster homes the rest of the time, bouncing around. I lived in four different towns during that time, with six different families.”
“That’s… I don’t even know what that must have been like,” Khizar said.
“It was tough. But at least all my families were good people. Some of these kids have it much harder than I did.” She sighed. “I got really lucky when I found Mom and Dad, though. They made me a part of their family, but they never wanted me to forget my parents.”
“Did you always call them Mom and Dad?” Khizar asked.
“I didn’t, for the first two years after they adopted me. I called them by the first names, but as I got more comfortable, I realized that they weren’t trying to replace my parents. It got easier to wrap my head around the idea of having two sets of parents, and I just started thinking of them that way.”
Khizar hesitated again. He hadn’t planned on bringing up other family members yet, but it seemed like a natural time to ask.
“I’m surprised you didn’t go to live with your grandparents or other family members.”
Jacqui shook her head. “Didn’t have any. Both my parents were only children. My mother’s parents died before I was born, and both my Grandpa Jack and Grandma Evelyn died when I was young. I remember them, but just barely.”
Khizar could hear the hitch in her voice and realized that talking about her lost family was making her sad.
He nudged her arm and said, “I think you are an amazing woman.”
Jacqui tilted her head to look up at him. “I am?”
He nodded. “Not everyone would triumph over adversity the way you have.”
Khizar thought for a moment that he might kiss her; he was certain Jacqui would welcome that. The look on her face was soft and inviting, and she leaned into him.
Instead of acting on that impulse, he looked away, deflecting the intense feeling of wanting to get closer to her. He nodded toward a large amphitheater set into the hillside. The carriage was on the road at the top of the hill looking down, and Khizar could see people working on the stage there.
“What’s that?” he asked.
Jacqui followed his gaze.
“Oh, they’re starting to set up for the season! The city does this amazing summer arts series. Every year, they pick a different theme and then every week during the summer, they hold plays, concerts, and musicals that fit the theme. It’s a city-wide effort—all the different organizations get involved and it’s free for everyone.”
“It sounds like a magnificent program.”
Jacqui nodded. “The performances are great, but they also let people come watch the dress rehearsals. Lyssa and I walk over a couple of times a week from the bakery to see those. I sketch and she does work for her classes, and…” Jacqui started laughing at herself. “That’s probably the most boring thing you’ve ever heard. But we like it.”
Khizar shook his head and protested, surprised to find that he really meant it.
“No, it sounds wonderful. Quiet and easy and peaceful. I think it’s a perfect thing to do.”
Jacqui leaned a bit closer to him. “Rethinking the opulent princely life?”
He laughed softly.
“No, but I wouldn’t mind a few more moments of simplicity.”
“Well, stick around, because that’s how we live here.”
“Hmmm, not this week.”
Jacqui looked up at him in question, and he pointed forward and off to the side as the carriage rounded another bend. There, under the shade of a half-circle of trees, was a large red-and-white-checked picnic blanket, spread with everything one needed for an afternoon picnic.
“I know you haven’t had lunch yet, so I thought I’d prepare something.”
Laughter in her voice, Jacqui asked, “You prepared this?”
He acknowledged the point with a grin. “I had it prepared. Which still totally counts.”
Jacqui held up a hand. “You took me on a carriage ride to a picnic in the park. I’m not arguing with you.”