We came in second in the relay behind Cade and Wendy and they celebrated like they just won the lottery. Cade hosted Wendy up in the air after they received their jam basket and their winning was worth seeing the celebration. Finn pouted, but we were still one up on his brother. Capture the flag could tie them and I don't know what they'll do as a tie-breaker.

The last game is played toward the end of the festival since the boundary is from the church to the parking lot behind Weston's Hardware, meaning the entire park and parking lots are fair game. The kids play their round first and then the adults go since it can take up to an hour for a team to win. Finn and Cade are not the only competitive ones as several couples speculate where the flags will be hidden while we wait at the picnic tables with lemonades in our hands.

"Mel is finally here," Finn says after we finish our afternoon snack. Cade looks around and says, "Penelope missed almost all of the kid games."

"I'm going to go find her, see if she needs help carrying anything over," Finn says and then looks at me, "Alright if I leave you with these two heathens?" I nod as I clench my jaw. I am terrified to meet Mel. I pray to all that is mighty that Mark does not come up.

He pries himself away from the picnic table and Wendy looks at me and says, "Mel is the sweetest thing. Her husband is in the Coast Guard and is deployed right now, so she's doing the single mom thing. Finn and Cade try and help out."

"That's amazing," I tell Cade and then ask, "I've been to Finn's and seen your mom and Mel's house. You don't live on that estate?"

Cade shakes his head, "I love my family, don't get me wrong. But when I came back here after the Navy, I wanted to grow with Wendy away from them. So I moved near the library. I also didn't have time to build my house from the ground up like they did."

"We're still over at his mom's plenty," Wendy says and Cade shakes his head.

"So what about you? Sticking around here for a while? I haven't seen Finn like this with any girl," Wendy says as she adjusts her long black hair under her hat.

"Like what?" I ask cautiously. Wendy looks at Cade and they have some secret language flowing between them silently at the moment. Wendy looks back at me and says, "I dunno, smitten? He doesn't date girls from Magnolia since his divorce, so I guess it's just kinda weird to see him so openly flirty with someone. He's private about his love life."

"Yeah, Finn and I just kind of happened. I am also going through a divorce so I thought I was going to spend this summer...growing I guess? Independantly. So meeting Finn has kinda, changed my plans a bit."

"Still planning on selling Sadie's house then at the end of the summer?" Cade asks and then pops a strawberry into his mouth.

"Finn and I are still too new to start changing plans around," I tell them so hopefully they don't think I am planning on marrying Finn after weeks of dating. "If things continue like they are, I might wait a bit. But I have to be back in L.A in August for my court date."

"You know, uh, your ex-husband didn't come up when Finn briefly mentioned you were getting divorced. I didn't say anything since your grandmother was technically my client but um..." Cade says and then glances at Wendy again, "Does Finn know who you are married to?"

I knew Cade knew. He had to have known. This whole time he hasn't said anything to Finn.

"I'm going to tell him. I just recently found out about Pete and your brother, so I was a bit hesitant to say that I am technically a DuBois."

Cade nods, "Yeah, I don't know how Finn is going to feel about that to be honest." I bite my lip and squeeze my hands between my thighs. That reaction right there is what I am worried about.

"Finn is crazy about you. Anyone here can see that," Wendy adds after she notes my apprehension.

"Well, Matty and Layla are here. I know Finn's beef with those two, so I kinda think he's playing it up," I confess but Wendy instantly shakes her head.

"No honey, he's being genuine. I've known Finn since his Layla days and he was never this way with her. He has it bad for you," Wendy says with a grin and Cade nods in agreement. My heart swells and it's good to hear he's not putting on an act for his ex-wife's sake.

"I'm planning on telling him everything tonight. Thanks for letting me be the one to say something," I tell Cade and he gives me a short nod. "I heard your sister and Mark had a thing in highschool too. I hope she doesn't put two and two together before I can say anything to Finn." I add, so hopefully Cade can help me out.

"Oh fuck, that's right," Cade says with a light laugh. "Oh shit, that might be awkward." I nod in agreement and then I see Finn strolling over with a tiny little girl with her dark hair in pigtails dressed in a Belle nightgown tucked into his arms. The image makes my ovaries explode. His sister must be the short brunette walking alongside him and you can tell all three of them are related.

Mel is wearing a smile as she approaches our table and Wendy, Cade and I pop up to greet them.

"Penny did not want to wake up," Mel says as she throws her arms around Cade. "Bubbles and candy weren't even tempting enough to get her to want to leave." I watch as she hugs Wendy tightly and then her gaze falls to me. She's wearing oversized aviator glasses and her dark hair is in a messy bun. She's wearing a tank with a yellow stain on it with linen wrinkly shorts. Her whole look screams, I have a young child!

"Hi!" Mel says brightly before throwing her arms around me, "You must be my big brother's girl." She pulls away after a long squeeze and maybe this won't be so bad. She seems extremely friendly and outgoing.

"This is Sadie. Sades this is my sister Mel and her daughter Penelope," Finn says, but Penelope keeps her head in Finn's chest, too shy to meet a stranger.

"I love your dress," I coo to Penelope and she looks down at her gold nightgown. "Belle is my favorite."

"I can't get her to wear anything other than princess dresses now that school is out," Mel says while looking at her daughter. "I learned to pick my battles." She rubs a hand over Penelope's dark curls and I ask, "How old is she?"

"Five. She just graduated kindergarten," Mel says proudly. She then flicks her head over to Cade and asks, "So who is kicking who's ass?"

"Tied," Finn answers and Mel drops her head back and laughs. She pops her head back up and then looks at me, "Finny rope you into this nonsense?"

I nod, "He sure did." She shakes her head at him and then looks behind her toward the food trucks. "I should probably get Penny here a snack. I'm guessing y'all ate already?"

"Wendy has been eating all day," Cade says and then his wife swats his shoulder. Mel tilts her chin toward the table and says, "And shopping I see."

Wendy glances over her shoulder and then says, "Oh, that was all Finn." Mel gives Finn a devious look and he tries to hide a grin as he says, "Sadie begged me for a Yeti with a fish on it. I couldn't say no."

"Right," I tell him with a sarcastic laugh and Mel's twinkle shows she is loving this interaction. Penelope gets our attention by pointing toward the red and white striped popcorn tent and saying, "Popcorn!" Cade gestures toward the tents and we all walk behind Finn and Penleope over to the food vendors.

Mel slows her stride so she falls beside me and excitedly asks, "So, you new to Magnolia then?" Finn is within earshot, so I am trying to be careful with what I say.

"Newish, I used to visit as a kid."

"Needed your fill of small town life?" She asks innocently and I am pretty sure she has no idea who I am. She would have only known me as a blonde teen and Mark's summer neighbor.

"Yeah, something like that."

"Where do you live now?"

"Los Angeles actually." She surprises me when she whacks me on the shoulder in excitement.

"Oh no way! What part? My husband was stationed in Long Beach so I used to go to California all the time."

"That seems like it would be a cool place to be stationed," I tell her, hoping she'll forget her original question. "Did he like it out there?"

"Loved it! We took Penelope to Disneyland out there and I made Jeff take me to Hollywood to try and stalk Justin Beiber, we didn't see him though. Have you seen any celebrities out there?" Mel asks, talking a mile a minute. I cannot tell her LeBron James lives two doors down from us and that Justin Beiber has come to Mark's whiskey tasting nights with Scooter.

"I've seen a few at restaurants," I tell her vaguely.

"Magnolia must seem so rinky-dink compared to L.A then. I know Jeff had a hard time adjusting when he was here on leave."

"It's nice to leave the noise," I reply honestly and she just scrunchies her nose.

"If I didn't have Penelope and need a village to help me with her, we would have tried to make it work in Long Beach. He's somewhere in the pacific right now and after this, he is done!" She dashes off to catch up with Finn still carrying her daughter and then nestles her face in Penelope's chest. Penelope giggles and then Mel asks if she wants popcorn or an ICEE. Penelope answers both and Mel laughs at her response. Finn puts Penelope on the ground after she starts to wiggle out of his arms and she leads her mother over to the popcorn line. He turns and looks at me as he says, "Mel can be a lot. She gets around adults and is excited to have real conversations."

"She seems fun," I tell him and he slides his arm around my shoulders. We wait while Mel gets her daughter situated and Finn looks at his watch, "We should be heading over to the field in about fifteen."

"What are you guys doing for dinner after this?" Wendy asks and Finn shrugs.

"We haven't gotten that far."

"Do you really think capture the flag will take an hour?" I ask Finn, hoping that we are wrapping this day up so I can stand under a cold water stream for at least fifteen solid minutes. I have sweat in all the wrong places. I even have a line of it sitting under each of my eyes.

"Your job is going to be swiping it from Matty, so..."

"You are so convinced he's going to be the guard," Wendy says, clearly wondering how he got his intel.

"I have it on good authority," Finn says mysteriously and leaves it at that. Penelope comes wobbling back over to us, delighted to have a red ICEE in her hand. She's dipping her tiny tongue into it as Mel carries a long plastic bag of popcorn.

"Okay, she's settled. Where should we watch you two be completely dramatic about a grade school game?" Mel asks as she scouts the field area.

"Kids bubble station is over next to the strawberry baskets if you want to hang there," Cade suggests and Mel nods in agreement. Cade turns to lead the way and his sister falls in step with me and Finn.

"So how long are you in Magnolia for?" Mel asks as she rips her popcorn bag open. The fresh kettle corn smells delicious and she shoves a hand full into her mouth.

"Just for the summer, I think."

"She's flipping her grandmother's house," Finn interjects and my stomach flips.

"Oh no way! That is awesome!"

"It's been quite the task," I joke and I can feel myself sucking my personality in with these small, non-elaborate answers.

"Yeah, it's that big old Victorian that sits on the corner of Hope Street. The purple and gray one," Finn tells her while pointing off toward my side of town. I'm now not sweating from the heat and I am praying Mel never went to Mark's house.

"I know that one! Mark DuBois used to live next door, so I know it well," Mel says mischievously and then elbows Finn in the side.

"Oh fuck, that's right," Finn groans as the realization of Sadie's old neighbors now dawns on him. "How did I forget the DuBois' used to live right there."

"Mark DuBois is a tight-end for the L.A Rams now," Mel tells me like it is quite the big deal. "He actually went to high school here and we used to date." She pretends to flip her hair over her shoulder, impressed that she dated a famous football player. "Jeff still doesn't believe it, but I have our homecoming photo to prove it."

"The DuBois' were asshats," Finn tells her but she's still high on her high school memories.

"Mark had an older brother who had drama with Finn. So I had to sneak around with Mark for a bit," Mel says leaning into me like she's telling me a secret. She smirks at Finn and he just shakes his head at his naughty little sister.

"Actually, Sadie used to hang out here in the summers in high school. Maybe you two bumped into each other if you were hanging at Mark's all the time," Finn asks us and I notice Cade and Wendy have been silent during this entire exchange. I have yet to say anything either and Mel abruptly stops walking. Finn looks back at her, but she's looking at me. All of us have now stopped walking and Mel is connecting the dots in her head.

"What year did you graduate?" She asks me and my heart is slamming around in my chest.

"High school?" I ask, wondering how the fuck to get me more time. She's staring at me and Peneleope is tugging on Cade's hand to get him to take her to the bubbles. "Um, 2011."

Mel's jaw snaps up as she digests who I am and then she lets out a big dramatic laugh. She snaps her gaze over to Finn and says, "You're dating the summer slut?"

"What?" I ask at the same time Finn barks, "Mel!"

"Sadie right? Sadie Melvin? You used to come down and live here in the summer. You were Mark's neighbor?" Reiterating all of the facts she's now gathered up. I don't confirm or deny and she looks at Finn while pointing to me, "She's who we used to call the summer slut remember. Mark would break things off with me to go fuck her whenever she came to town." I can tell she fucking despises me by how much venom she put into that last sentence. She went from warm to freezing toward me in seconds.

"Christ Mel, there's children around," Cade chides, but Finn quickly asks, "You dated Mark too?" Stunned at the revelation.

"Uh, I'm pretty sure she married him," Mel says with a breath of a dramatic laugh. "Right after high school. Remember how devasted I was?"

"I thought you said your husband's name was Preston?" Finn asks me, trying to not let these things add up.

"Huh?" I ask, "Preston is our chef."

"Of course, you have a chef," Mel says enviously.

Finn isn't responding now and he isn't looking at me either. I have no idea what is going on in his head.

"Don't you like go by Alabama now too?" She asks me, disgust in every word she says to me. Finn finally looks over at me and asks, "The divorce you are going through...your husband is Mark DuBois?" He's shaking his head like he literally cannot believe it.

I nod slowly and Penelope is about to become unglued if her uncle doesn't take her to the bubbles. Cade looks between his brother and his seething sister before scooping his niece into his arms and promising to show her the bubbles. Wendy quickly follows and I want to reach out and beg her to stay so I am not left alone with Finn and Mel.

"You know, it used to eat me alive, wondering what would have happened if the summer slut never came to town. I always wondered if Mark would have stayed with me because I told him I'd go to Ole Miss with him," Mel tells me. "We made plans you know? And then your vagina got him to ditch me and marry you before his freshman year of college. You must have one magical pussy," she says vulgarly and I am no longer sympathetic. That was a step too far.

"Mel," Finn warns but Mel quickly cuts him off, "This girl ruined my life. Remember how he would destroy me when summer came around? I'm sorry Finn, but you can't date the summer slut."

"Alright Mel, you've said your piece." I snap and then add, "I wasn't the only one Mark was fucking around on you with. Trust me. He may have married me, but he wasn't faithful to anyone."

"So you were aware he had a girlfriend back then, you just didn't care," Mel snaps as all the high school memories she suppressed come out in full force. She was just bragging about dating him minutes ago.

"I really didn't," I say honestly.

"Well, Pete destroyed Finn's baseball career. Did Mark ever tell you that?" She asks me venomously. "That's what the DuBois' do, they destroy things and don't look back," Mel spits out and then looks at Finn, "And she's now Alabama DuBois. She'll destroy you too." Mel storms off toward the bubble machines and Finn stays silent. He's looking toward the grass and I have no idea where to start.

"I was going to tell you!" I say once Mel passes the vendors.

"What made you hesitate?" He asks, his hurt conveyed in every word.

"Alyssa told me your history with Pete and that Mel dated Mark-"

"So you knew?"

"Yeah, which is why I was worried you'd hate me because of my association with the DuBois."

"I literally asked you earlier today if there was anything else you had to fill me in on and you said no," Finn says, clearly disappointed that I lied about something else.

"I wasn't going to tell you five minutes before the games started. But I was going to tell you tonight, I told you I wanted to show you something, remember?" I say, trying to keep the tears at bay. I can tell Finn is pissed.

"Your Instagram. You said your Instagram."

"Which is under Alabama DuBois. I was going to show you who I was," I tell him, taking a step closer to him.

"Yeah, I think you've already done that," Finn spits out and then turns away from me. He doesn't head towards his siblings, but off towards the fountain which is where he parked.

I watch him walk away from me and I think I just royally fucked up.