Chapter 59: Festive Excitement
** Eli **
It was an innocent, friendly kiss, no more than a mere peck and no different from what Eli was used to getting from a good number of his lady acquaintances. But somehow, this one made him feel ... shocked, and he even forgot to kiss her back in a state of daze.
One couldn’t quite blame him though. Harper was never the type for intimate greetings like this. Was she really that excited about the book fest?
She pulled away before he could dwell further on the question. Tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, she smiled and glanced over at the busy tents. "Where should we start?" she asked. "This is much bigger than I expected. I can’t believe I’ve never heard of it the past couple of years."
"Ah. It’s been growing, slowly." Eli pulled his attention back — no, he certainly wasn’t still staring at her lips for no good reason. "There were only a couple of stands for the first year, but now it goes all the way to the other end of the harbor walk. May’s booth is closer to that end, actually. We’re currently at the center of all the art vendors."
"Perfect, then we can browse everything while we stroll that way and save the surprise of her favorite collections for the last!" Harper exclaimed merrily. "Let’s get going!"
She nudged on his elbow and pushed them into the crowd.
It was a busy event for sure. Even Eli was surprised by how much things had changed from the previous years. It wasn’t quite a "book fest" as much as a full-fledged summer street fest, with a huge offering of street art, souvenir stands, food trucks, and a live band on stage. People were everywhere, and the two of them kept having to dodge as they weaved their way slowly through crowd traffic.
Harper bumped into him a few times. Their shoulders brushed, then their elbows touched. He apologized at first, but when she only smiled back without looking annoyed at all, he stopped mentioning it, and they simply moved closer to each other to make more convenient space.