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She grabbed each of us by the hand and led us to the stage. I shot Gavin a pleading look, but he just shrugged, resigned to his fate. Mrs. Smith positioned us next to each other and stepped back, snapping a picture with the professional camera I didn't notice hanging around her neck. She looked into the viewer and frowned. I stood with my hands clasped in front of me, unsure what I was supposed to do with them.
“You both look too stiff. Just relax.” I tried to do as she asked and heard Gavin release a long breath as he presumably did the same.
Click. Click. Click.
She checked the new shots and again, displeasure filled her expression. “Move in a little closer,” she instructed, and Gavin and I both closed the distance. He brushed against my side, and a shiver ran down my spine. “Now, Mr. Phillips, put your arm around Ms. Barrett and, Ms. Barrett, you do the same.” Gavin’s hand slid around my lower back and settled on my hip, and I fought the urge to melt into him. “Much better.”
She snapped away as Gavin and I stood with our arms around each other like we were prom dates. “Perfect,” Mrs. Smith crooned and lowered her camera. Gavin’s hand tightened on my hip, gripping it possessively before he let go.
“I better let you get back to your family,” he said as he stepped away.
“Okay,” I replied breathlessly, my heart pounding. I could still feel his hand on my hip, and I was afraid if I moved, the sensation would fade. Finally, I forced myself from my spot and walked off the stage. Eli’s face was covered in caramel when I caught up with him and my grandparents.
“Is that good?” I asked, smiling down at him as I tried to forget the way Gavin’s touch had felt.
“Mmm, hmm.” He nodded as he took another bite of the apple. I spent the rest of my free time walking around with them, stopping at different booths to check out their wares, but my mind never left Gavin. Occasionally, my eyes landed on him wherever he was in the room. His gaze connected with mine a few times, piercing through me like he could see straight into my soul.
When it was time for me to take over at the admissions table, I bid my grandparents goodbye and kissed the top of Elijah’s head. “Be good for Grammy and Grampy, okay?”
“I will,” he promised, and I waved at the three of them as I headed toward the entrance.
“How was the photo shoot?” Bryn asked as I settled in beside her. I froze and turned my glare at her. She snickered as she accepted a five-dollar bill from a customer and stuck it in the lock box.
“Why did you have to be the first friend I made when I came to town?”
She let out a real laugh this time. “I was the only friend you made. Unless, of course, you count Gavin.” Fire licked up my spine at the mere mention of his name.
“I wouldn’t exactly call us friends.”
“What would you call the two of you, then?”
“I don’t know,” I answered honestly. Our relationship was hard to define. We weren’t lovers. It was just that one time months ago, and it hadn’t happened again since. We weren’t exactly friends either. But there was something building between us, and I had a feeling that after last night, things were about to change.
“You all did an excellent job,” Mrs. Smith crooned once the final vendor was gone. “This was the best fall festival we’ve had in years. Mr. Phillips, you were a rockstar through all this. Thank you for all your hard work.” Gavin gave her a shy smile, clearly uncomfortable with the praise. She turned her attention to the rest of the volunteers and clasped her hands in front of her. “Thank you all for your hard work. Each and every one of you were instrumental in making this event a success.”
We set to work cleaning up the space. Once the final trash bag was tied off and hauled away and most of the tables and chairs put up, volunteers began to file out. It was after dark, and everyone was eager to get home to their families. When there were just four of us left—Gavin, Brynlee, Mrs. Smith, and me—Gavin assured us he’d finish up and lock the doors so we could all head out. Mrs. Smith thanked him and gathered her things. Brynlee and I lingered as she waited for her ride.
“Here, let me help you with that,” I offered as Gavin folded the final table and tilted it on its side. We were the last ones there. Brynlee had bid us farewell a few minutes earlier, before walking out to meet Macon who’d come to pick her up.
“You don’t have to do that. I’m sure you want to get home to Eli.”
I shrugged. “He’s already asleep.” I’d gotten a text from my grandmother twenty minutes earlier, and I let her know we were still working. I didn’t want her to worry that I still wasn’t home.
I grabbed one end of the table and helped him carry it to the dolly, piling it on top of the other tables. “I guess that’s it,” I announced when he returned from pushing the dolly into storage and dug my keys from my pocket.
“Yeah,” he replied, and my face fell. We were finally completely alone. I half expected him to make a move, but he showed no signs of trying. We walked to the door, and he hit the lights, bathing the room in darkness. Still nothing. “You go on ahead while I lock up. I can see you from here,” he instructed, nodding to my SUV.
“Okay,” I replied, trying to hide my disappointment.
What was I thinking? We couldn’t be anything more than friends. He was my son’s principal. We had a history, albeit a brief one. Things would never work out between us. But after that kiss in the storage room, I thought he might want to try … I didn’t know … something.
I slid into the driver’s seat and stuck my key in the ignition, but I couldn’t make myself start the engine. My fingers curled around the steering wheel as I fought the urge to get out and go to him. I caught movement out of the corner of my eye and glanced to my right as Gavin approached his truck. The lights flashed as he hit the button on his key fob to unlock his doors, and my heart sank.
I dropped my forehead to the steering wheel, cursing myself for thinking—even hoping—something would happen between us tonight. It was silly. Just because he kissed me yesterday like his life depended on it, didn’t mean he owed me more today. But his grip on my hip after that picture had felt like the promise of more, and I was ready to cash it in.
I was wallowing in self-pity and unfulfilled desire when my driver’s side door was yanked open. Jumping back, my gaze shot to the intruder as fear speared through my chest, my pulse racing as adrenaline coursed through my veins. But it wasn’t a carjacker.
Gavin stood next to me, his chest heaving like he’d just run a marathon. The golden starburst surrounding his irises practically glowed beneath the light of the streetlamp above us. I didn’t have long to take him in. I was pulled to my feet and my back pressed against the back door.
