Chapter Nineteen – Estelle
Maybe I should call Leo and tell him I’ve changed my mind, Estelle said to her dragon as she sipped her coffee, her second cup of the day, and it wasn’t even eight o’clock.
No, her dragon said firmly. This is a good thing. And if you call it off, it won’t just be Leo who’s disappointed.
Estelle half turned to look at Adara, who was seated at the table, eating her breakfast while telling Fizz about all the wonderful things they would see at the market.
“And Fizz wants to choose something pretty for the fairies,” Adara continued, her voice bubbling with excitement. “Maybe a stone. Or a ribbon. Or something shiny.”
Estelle’s heart squeezed. Adara’s enthusiasm made her own anxiety feel small and mean by comparison.
You’re doing this for her, her dragon reminded her gently. So she doesn’t grow up afraid of being seen.
But what if being seen is exactly what puts her in danger? Estelle countered, her fingers tightening around her mug.
Her dragon sighed. Who is going to see us? Anyway, we can’t hide forever. And Leo will be there the whole time.
Leo. Her shifter senses locked onto him. He was coming along the mountain road in his truck. She glanced at the clock, 8:15. Right on time.
“Okay, Leo will be here in a minute,” Estelle told Adara. “Let’s make sure we’re ready.”
“Leo’s here! Hear that, Fizz? It’s time to go to the market!” Adara scrambled down from her chair and went to fetch her shoes.
Estelle set her mug down with unsteady hands and smoothed her sweater, checking her reflection quickly in the small mirror by the entryway. She’d chosen her plainest outfit, a simple gray sweater, jeans, and boots. Nothing memorable. Nothing that would draw the eye.
Is this what we’ve become? her dragon asked sadly. Someone who dresses to be forgotten?
Estelle ignored the question as she heard Leo’s warm greeting to Adara as he stepped inside the house. Taking a breath, she rounded the corner.
“Morning,” Leo said, his smile reaching his eyes as he took her in. “Ready for market day?”
No, Estelle thought, but she kept it to herself. It was too late to change her mind, and she didn’t want to dampen the mood.
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” she said instead, forcing a smile.
Leo studied her face. “We can leave anytime. No questions asked. Just say the word. Kirk will take over my stall if you need me to bring you home.”
“Thank you,” she said, grateful that he had a contingency plan in place. “But I’m sure we’ll be fine.”
“I’m ready!” Adara announced, proudly displaying Fizz tucked into the small backpack Estelle had helped her pack earlier.
Leo crouched down to her level. “That’s excellent. I’m going to need a special assistant today, and Fizz looks perfectly prepared.”
Adara beamed, and Estelle felt her resolve strengthen. This was why she was doing this, for that smile, for the chance to give Adara something normal.
The drive to the market was mercifully short. As they approached, Estelle could see other vendors beginning to set up their stalls. The early morning light cast long shadows across the town square, and the mountains rose beyond, solid and reassuring.
Not too many people yet, her dragon observed with relief.
“We’re some of the first here,” Leo explained as he parked. “Gives us time to get set up before it gets busy.”
He unloaded wooden crates of produce from his truck, gleaming tomatoes, bunches of herbs, leafy greens, and early summer squash. The colors were vivid against the weathered wood of his stall.
“What can I do?” Estelle asked, needing her hands occupied.
“Would you mind arranging these?” Leo handed her a crate of tomatoes. “However you think looks best. There’s no wrong way.”
The simple task helped steady her nerves. Estelle began placing the tomatoes in neat rows, their weight solid and reassuring in her hands.
Meanwhile, Leo had given Adara the important job of arranging herb bundles, which she took to with solemn concentration, Fizz supervising from her perch on the counter.
“Is this right?” Adara asked, holding up a bundle of basil.
“Perfect,” Leo assured her. “You have an excellent eye for display.”
He’s good with her, her dragon said softly.
Better than good, Estelle replied. He’s a natural.
She could not have picked a better replacement father for Adara if she’d tried.
As they worked, more vendors arrived, setting up stalls around them. A woman selling handmade soap waved to Leo. A man with a bakery stand nodded as he passed. Leo greeted each one by name, introducing Estelle and Adara as though they were a part of his life.
We are, her dragon reminded her.
The market gradually came to life around them. The scent of fresh coffee and baking bread drifted over from nearby stalls. Somewhere, someone was playing guitar, the notes threading lazily through the morning air.
“All set,” Leo announced as they arranged the last of the produce. He smiled at Adara. “Thanks to my excellent assistant.”
Adara glowed with pride. “Can I help sell things too?”
“Absolutely,” Leo said. “You can be my official greeter.”
The first customers began to arrive, a trickle at first, then steadier. Estelle tensed, bracing herself for the press of bodies, the eyes that might linger too long, the questions about where they’d come from or how long they’d been in town.
But it wasn’t like that at all.
People nodded hello. They asked about Leo’s tomatoes. They smiled at Adara when she solemnly informed them that the basil was “extra special today.” No one pried.
It’s just... normal, her dragon said, sounding almost dazed.
An hour passed. Then another. Estelle found herself relaxing enough to help customers, to answer simple questions about the produce. The rhythm of the market, selecting, weighing, exchanging money, became almost soothing.
“You’re a natural,” Leo said quietly during a lull, his shoulder brushing hers.
Estelle’s cheeks flushed pink. “I’m just following your lead.”
“You’re doing more than that.” His eyes held hers. “Come on, admit it. It’s fun.”
“Yeah,” she said with a shrug. “I guess it is.”
The realization caught her off guard. When had that happened? When had she finally let go and embraced the moment?
“Mama, can we go and look for something for the fairies?” Adara tugged at her sleeve. “Please?”
Estelle hesitated, glancing at Leo.
“Go ahead,” he said. “I’ve got things covered here.”
“You’re sure?”
“Positive. Take your time.”
Taking Adara’s hand, Estelle stepped away from the shelter of Leo’s stall and into the flow of the market. Her heart quickened, but not with panic. With nerves, yes. But something else too. Excitement. It was as if she were finally part of the world.
They wandered from stall to stall. Adara charmed everyone they met, introducing Fizz and asking earnest questions about everything from ribbons to polished stones to tiny carved animals that, in her opinion, would be “just right for fairies.”
By the time they returned to Leo’s stall, Adara was carrying a handful of velvet ribbons and a smooth green stone for the fairy garden.
“You look happy,” Leo observed as they approached.
“I am,” she said as she slipped an arm around his waist and leaned into him. “Everyone’s been so... kind.”
“That’s Bear Creek for you,” Leo said, and dropped a kiss on the top of her head.
As the day warmed toward noon, the market grew busier. Estelle felt the press of people more keenly then, but it no longer threatened to overwhelm her. The idea of running or hiding now felt slightly absurd.
A young woman with a professional camera stopped by the stall, admiring Leo’s display.
“These are gorgeous,” she said, lifting her camera. “Mind if I take some photos for the community newsletter? We’re doing a feature on local producers.”
“Not at all,” Leo replied easily.
The woman snapped several pictures of the produce, then captured Leo arranging a display of herbs. “Perfect,” the woman said, checking the screen on her camera. “These are great. I’ll tag you when I post some previews on the Bear Creek Community page later today.”
“I look forward to seeing them,” Leo said with a wave before he moved on to the next customer.
As the market began to wind down in the early afternoon, Estelle helped Leo pack up the remaining produce. Adara had made friends with the baker’s granddaughter and was showing her Fizz while the adults worked.
“Thank you for coming today,” Leo said as they loaded the last crate into his truck.
“Thank you for bringing us,” Estelle replied. “It was... not what I expected.”
“In a good way?”
She smiled, a real smile that came without effort. “In a good way.”
An hour later, they were back at the cottage, where Adara arranged her treasures from the market, the smooth green stone and the ribbons next to her fairy garden.
Such small things, but they meant something far bigger.
They were proof of a world beyond caution.
Of a morning spent out in the open, not merely surviving it, but living it.
Then they headed inside for coffee and pastries they’d brought from the baker. Together they sat in complete contentment, Adara curled up in a chair watching cartoons, while Estelle and Leo sat side by side on the sofa.
This could be our life, her dragon whispered. Not just surviving. Living.
The thought frightened her. But it called to her, too.
A notification sounded.
Leo glanced down at his phone. “Looks like the market page posted already.”
Estelle leaned closer and looked over his shoulder.
Then everything inside her turned to ice.
There on the screen was a candid photograph of Leo’s stall.
In the foreground, he was smiling at a customer, relaxed and open.
And in the background, unmistakable despite not being the focus, were Estelle and Adara.
Estelle was bent slightly, pointing something out to Adara, her face clear enough to be recognized.
Adara was looking up at her, delight on her face, Fizz tucked beneath one arm.
The caption read: “Local favorite Leo Thornberg sharing his passion for heirloom produce at today’s market. #BearCreekCommunity #ShopLocal #MondayMarket.”
Already, the post had dozens of likes and a growing line of comments beneath it.
Estelle’s blood ran cold.
It’s online, her dragon whispered. Anyone could see them.
And they both knew exactly who might.