Page 27 of A Fall to Remember

She was the one who had signed a contract with Voyager. Not Pete.

Her stomach swirled with nerves, but not the good kind.

What were Jim’s motives?

Had she put her trust in the wrong person?

And how could she fix this with Pete?

Pete was her main priority, and she knew he’d be terribly upset by this. She tried to call him, but he didn’t answer. She needed to get back to work, so she left him a voicemail explaining the mishap.

“Honey, I’m so sorry about the video. It’s my fault. I didn’t think it through. I said yes without watching it first. I guess I’m caught up in the excitement of it all, but it will not happen again. Call me or come by the store when you can, okay. I love you.”

Miranda hated that she’d put Pete in the middle, but there wasn’t anything else she could do in the meantime except continue to apologize.

Inside the store was buzzing with activity. Everyone had followed the mayor’s suggestion and was filling baskets to the brim with wine, honey, fruits, cheeses, and spread. Miranda tied on an apron and scooted behind the deli counter to help her young staff wrap sandwiches and package soups and salads to go.

It was great to see the store so busy, but if sales kept up at this rate, she would be sold out by Sunday.

Miranda had to be in the moment, so she spent the next forty-five minutes offering customers a taste of award-winning blue cheese and paper-thin slices of prosciutto, while internally she couldn’t stop worrying about Pete. “There are three key elements to achieving a classic Italian prosciutto,” she said, handing a customer a piece of the dried ham on parchment. “Sea salt, air, and time. I always like to say that it’s a good metaphor for life.” She tossed her hand in the direction of the ocean. “Can’t we all use a bit of the salt sea, a fresh ocean breeze, and the gift of time?”

The customer agreed and purchased a half pound of the cured meat. Miranda packaged more salads and sandwiches to go and kept everyone caffeinated with their cold brew finished with pumpkin cream and cinnamon foam.

Once the post-parade rush died down, Miranda handed off the store to her capable staff and walked to the park with Elise.

“So, Aunt Mimi, I’m assuming you’ve seen the video?” Elise stretched out the question as she looped her arm through Miranda’s and practically danced down the street. Elise had always been a free spirit. Miranda saw a lot of herself in her niece. Elise was bright and bubbly, quick to laugh, and yet had a much deeper, spiritual side. She hadn’t said anything to Pete, but Elise had confided in Miranda that she was on a bit of a personal quest to find herself. She’d gone through a bad breakup a few years ago, and rather than jumping into a new relationship, she was taking time to unpack what she really wanted for herself and out of a partner. She’d been meditating on the beach every morning, taking yoga classes, swimming, journaling, and concentrating on her floral designs to get to know herself better. Miranda was so impressed. She hadn’t had that same sense of self-discovery at Elise’s age. She’d fumbled her way through mistakes and wrong turns, but like she’d told Elise, things always had a way of working out, even if they didn’t work out as expected.

“Unfortunately, I did.” Miranda frowned. “But only right before things got chaotic. Is Pete upset?”

“Define upset?” Elise tipped her head to one side to shield her face from the sunlight. “I mean, yeah, kind of. He shouldn’t be, though. His DMs have been blowing up. He literally has women from all over the U.S. begging to come meet him.”

“That explains my interactions right after the parade.” Miranda filled her in on the multiple offers she received to play matchmaker for her son. “It’s my fault. Jim asked me if he could post something fun and cheeky, and I agreed without even thinking. Is it a bad look?”

“What do you mean?” Elise dug through her oversized purse looking for her sunglasses. The glasses were tinted yellow and reminded Miranda of John Lennon. It was funny to see how fashion trends tended to recycle themselves.

Miranda gave her niece a sheepish shrug. “I didn’t mean for that to go viral. I am honestly upset with myself and with Jim. I feel he crossed a line. Yes, technically, he asked me, but is he trying to take advantage of us? I hate that Pete is upset about it and that suddenly he’s all over the internet.”

“Oh, no, Aunt Mimi, it’s great. It’s all in good fun.” Elise leaned into her shoulder affectionately. “Pete might be embarrassed, but are you kidding me? This has to be a major ego boost. Who wouldn’t want thousands of smart, funny women reaching out to you?”

“But I looked bumbling again, and Shelby has been very adamant that she wants to ‘elevate’ my brand.” Miranda used air quotes to accentuate her point.

Elise chuckled and tossed away the thought with her wrist. “Yeah, I wouldn’t worry about that. You’re being yourself. That’s what makes it endearing. It feels very authentic and real to me. I don’t think Jim meant any harm. I don’t get that vibe from him at all. It would be one thing if it were staged, but it’s so wholesome. And, come on, it’s so you, Aunt Mimi. You’re constantly trying to set us both up. That’s why the video is going viral. Not to mention Pete is such a great catch, but he isn’t totally motivated by the attention. Women go bonkers for that combo.”

Miranda wished she shared Elise’s confidence. The last thing she wanted was for her partnership with Voyager to make Pete uncomfortable. She hoped that this experience would be good for all of them, Pete and Elise included. She needed to find Jim and Shelby and fix this right away. She could already picture Pete being surrounded by a group of well-intended moms, trying to convince him to date their daughters.

22

JIM

Jim was stuck in a conversation with one of the festival organizers who was giving him a full history of the Fall Harvest Fest.

“It started out of desperation,” she said as they blended in with the crowd. It felt a bit like Disneyland. The entire parade route was funneling from Main Street to the park in a semi-organized fashion. “Don’t print that part.”

“Oh, we don’t print these days. We’re completely digital,” Jim said, teasing her as he glanced around the crowd, hoping to spot Pete and Shelby.

The organizer didn’t realize he was teasing. Well, no, technically, they didn’t print glossy, expensive travel brochures and guides any longer. A handful of larger campaigns and accounts would send curated boxes to influencers. Most of these included a selection of branded practical travel products like custom toiletries kits, reusable water bottles, power banks, luggage tags, luxury skincare and sunscreen, and snacks.

“I mean, it would be better if you focus on how much the festival has grown,” the organizer said. “Maybe don’t use the word ‘desperation,’ but yes, it began because our local farmers were struggling to get people to come to our farms to buy produce directly. Thankfully, a few forward-thinking members of the town council at the time decided to host a pumpkin-weighing contest. They went door-to-door downtown and collected small donations from the community to use as prizes. What you see today was born out of that very first year. Now we anticipate over two hundred thousand visitors throughout the weekend.”