Forgotten Souls (The Saving Angels 2)

As Mark turned up the radio, I closed my eyes and turned my face toward the window to soak up the warm rays of the morning sun. With my head relaxed against the headrest, the warm air blew across my face as the music from the radio surrounded us.

After half an hour, Mark pulled off the highway and made a series of turns, finally pulling into a sandy parking lot. By the look of the many outdoor tables and booths in the distance, it looked like we were at some kind outdoor market.

Jumping out of the vehicle, I took a look at the sights surrounding me. Mark came around the vehicle and joined me.

"You remembered," I said, throwing my arms around him. Weeks ago I had expressed my desire to someday visit a year-round outdoor market. Being from the arctic climate of Montana, an outdoor market was unheard of.

"Of course I remembered. I remember everything you’ve ever said to me," he said in a husky voice near my ear making me shiver in delight.

"I'm so excited," I said, grabbing onto his hand and dragging him toward the entrance.

The outdoor market was everything I had imagined and more. Each seller had their own wooden stand with long tables filled with their wares. Fruits, vegetables, and baked goods lined the majority of the tables. The sweet smell of every fruit imaginable hung succulent fragrances in the air making even a chocoholic like me, water at the mouth. Vendors from each side of us offered to cut open fruit from their stands hoping to entice buyers in.

I paused at one of the tables to try a fruit I had only read about in books. Accepting the small piece of passion fruit, I popped it into my mouth cautiously after eyeing the slimy yellow middle. I was pleasantly surprised at the flavors that burst in my mouth. I wasn’t overly crazy about the texture, but aside from that, the fruit was extremely tasty.

Moving on to the next stand, I paused to look at the pretty color of the porcelain hair clips that lined the bright, woven cloth. "How much?" I asked the old Mexican woman behind the table.

"Six dollars each, two for ten, or three for twelve," she said in a heavily accented voice.

Pleased at the price, I studied the hair clips and picked a pale pink one for myself, and a dark purple one that appeared black until the sun shined on it just right making the purple come alive, for Lynn. Finding one for Sam took much longer as I searched for something that she would like. I had it narrowed down to three when I finally had to ask Mark for his opinion.

"I think that one matches her the most," he said, pointing toward the swirl-colored one I had been leaning toward.

"I think that one's perfect too," I said, giving him a quick peck on the lips.

"So, are you trying for the perfect boyfriend award or are you really okay with this whole shopping thing?" I asked teasingly as we moved on.

"I enjoy shopping as much as the next guy, but spending the day with you totally makes it worth it," he answered, draping his arm across my shoulders.

"Well, I'll take it," I said, moving on to the next stand where a cute little boy who looked to be about three rushed around the table to proudly show me his truck. I squatted down to admire it.

"I think that's the coolest truck ever," I said, praising it as he handed it over for me to take a closer look. "I love the big wheels," I said, handing his prized possession back to him. Grinning at me, he scurried back around the table, suddenly shy.

"Sorry about that, he's usually too shy to come out behind the stand," a pretty woman that looked to be in her mid-thirties said to me while wiping her hands on the half apron tied around her narrow waist. "He obviously knows a pretty girl when he sees one," she added, grinning at me before she turned to help a customer. I returned her smile and turned to Mark only to see him studying me intently.

"What?" I asked, self consciously swiping at my face with my hand, making sure I didn’t have anything on it.

"You're going to make a really good mom someday," he said, looking at me in a way that made my heart beat at an erratic pace. The picture of cradling our child in my arms filled my head and I blushed thinking about what we would have to do to have a child. Both were extremely appealing pictures. I was definitely not ready to have kids now, but the promise of someday was enough to make my soul sing.

Mark smiled when he caught the gist of my thoughts. "Yep, definitely not ready for kids but…," he said, winking at me suggestively.

I giggled and reached for his hand. Our minds were obviously on the same page on that topic.

After several hours of shopping at the various makeshift stands, we were both famished and decided to dine at one of the countless food eateries there.

"I want a corn dog and fries. The smell has been driving me batty since we got here," I said after a few minutes of deliberating. "Ooh and I want a yummy chocolate ice cream cone," I added, spotting the ice cream vendor across the way.

"Of course you do," Mark said laughing as he headed off to get the food.

All the plastic resin tables were taken, so I picked us a secluded spot under the shade of a beautiful weeping willow tree. I ran my fingers over the light branches that hung almost to my waist in some places, giving it the feel of an outdoor tent. Stooping low, I crab-walked under the long branches sighing with pleasure as I stood under the canopy. Willow trees were by far my favorite species of trees. They had a mysterious appeal about them that seemed so romantic and sad at the same time. Combining our purchases into one bag, I spread the other two out so we could sit on them.

I sat down on my bag and drew my knees up to my chest, smoothing out the skirt of my dress over my legs. I watched mesmerized as the branches danced around me, gently putting on their own little show.

"Hey, I almost couldn’t find you," Mark said, chuckling as he parted the branches to join me.

"Sorry, I couldn’t resist the nice canopy under here. It feels magical doesn’t it?" I asked.

"It's pretty spectacular," Mark said, handing me the tray with the corn dogs and fries on it, before he plopped down next to me with our drinks. "I figured we could get you your cone when were done eating," he added.