"Father, this is Roy. Roy Griffin. Roy, this is my father. Roy's... Roy's my boyfriend," she said softly, her voice barely audible.
Roy tightened his grip on her hands as he stood beside her, feeling proud to be able to introduce himself as the man who had won Beverly's heart.
They stood there a little longer, Roy and Beverly both talking to her father and each other before they moved on and he took her to his grandparents' graves and told her stories about the four of them.
Only then did they return to his truck, and he drove her over to her house for her to eat her Easter meal with her mom with the promise that tomorrow would be theirs together.
ChapterTwenty-Four
Everything had been amazing with Easter dinner and then the next night? The date of dinner and a movie had been so wonderful that Beverly didn't want the night to end.
But all good things did come to an end, and Roy pulled up to her house.
"I had a wonderful time," he murmured.
"Me too." She smiled at him. Her heart was racing, and she felt happiness bubbling within her like near before.
He took her hand in his. "The night doesn't have to end just yet. How about a walk?"
"I would love that."
So, they walked, hand in hand, through the streets until they arrived in a nearby park.
Once there, Roy began to tell her stories from his past that made her laugh and smile.
"I'm sure you to into all kinds of misadventures with your brothers when you were young," she said.
He burst out laughing. "Without a doubt! One time, we all went swimming in a lake without informing our mom first... only she found out about it not even a minute after I cannonballed into the water!"
"You cannonballed? I would've expected that from Ronald, not you. Myles too."
"The Spanglers weren't there, but I wasn't the only one to cannonball." He laughed and shook his head. "Ronald did, and he splashed Mom. To say she was furious... yeah..."
"Oh no!"
"Oh yes." He laughed some more. "You really need to meet her."
"I would love to meet your parents."
The stars started to twinkle brightly in the sky above them. Beverly didn't think she could feel happier than she did, but each moment spent with Roy only increased her happiness.
Roy smiled at her. "Do you want to explore a bit?"
Beverly nodded eagerly, and soon, they were running along trails surrounded by lush foliage, enthralled by all the colors of nature that only seemed to brighten in the moonlight.
They sat together on a bench overlooking a small lake, and Roy began to tell her about his childhood. He spoke of days spent fishing with his dad, camping trips with his family during summers, how he explored every inch of their property looking for new places to explore or animals to befriend.
He shared stories about when he was younger and got lost in an unfamiliar forest but found himself again.
"During high school, one of my friends pulled off involving hundreds of balloons being released inside the cafeteria during the lunch break. The teachers didn't even get too upset about it because they took credit for it, saying it was for the principal. It turned out it was his birthday that day."
"Seriously? Wow." Beverly couldn't help but laugh.
His funny anecdotes from the past had her endeared to him all the more, and she found herself listening with rapt attention as he described each incident with vivid detail.
The night was getting late, but neither one of them wanted it to end. They continued strolling around the park until eventually, Beverly noticed that the hour was really getting late.
"We should probably head back," she murmured.