Page 3 of A Fall to Remember

Her vacation photos were undeniably terrible. A kindergartener could have done better. But she had shrugged it off. She might not have captured the azure waters or the pod of gray whales breaching just off the coast, but she thoroughly enjoyed every minute of the trip and had been in the moment the entire time.

“Are you mad, Mom?” Pete asked again, his voice cracking slightly with nerves as he twisted the single strand of hair around his finger tighter, cutting off circulation.

That wasn’t like him. “No. Never.” Miranda reached across the counter and squeezed his hand. “It’s hilarious. I fully admit that selfies, or let’s face it, anything involving a phone, is not my forte. Why would I possibly be upset?”

“Well, as of an hour ago, over one million people have viewed your video. My hashtags hit, and so did you,” Elise said, jumping in to answer with a touch of triumph as she tossed her thick hair that fell loosely to her shoulders like she was auditioning for the part of Glinda in Wicked. Elise’s style was quintessentially Californian with her wide-leg flared jeans, breezy Bohemian blouse, knitted cardigan, and chunky silver necklaces. “You are a legit internet sensation. Everyone loves you, Aunt Mimi, as they should.”

“A million people?” Miranda’s jaw fell open as she took a closer look. “What? No. That’s not possible.”

“A million and counting,” Pete added, nudging his cousin in the waist. “Read her some of them.”

“Read me what?” Miranda had forgotten about her other AirPod. She tugged it out of her ear and pointed to the espresso machine. “Does this call for a pumpkin spice latte or just a strong shot of espresso?”

“It’s all good,” Elise said, reaching into her soft, cable-knit, milk chocolate cardigan for her phone. “Listen to some of these. Some of them are super funny, which I know you’ll appreciate.” She proceeded to rattle off several comments in the thread.

Is Catalina Island in the room with us?

Protect this woman at all costs!

She is our mother now.

As a foot enthusiast, loving that blue polish.

I laughed. I cried. I watched it a thousand times.

Why am I crying? This woman is living her best life, and I’m here for it.

I’ve never missed my mom more. Will you adopt me?

Move over, Wes Anderson, Mom will take it from here.

I don’t know your mom, but she’s my best friend now.

“Oh, my goodness,” Miranda exclaimed, clutching her chest when Elise finished. “They said that? About me?”

“They did, Mom. They love you.” Pete beamed with pride. His blue eyes caught the light, making it look like they were flecked with gold. “Tell her the rest,” he urged Elise.

“The rest? There’s more?” Miranda was having trouble processing that over a million people had seen her Catalina Island pictures and the kindness in the comments. She looked around the store again, trying to imagine a million people in Half Moon Bay. The town consisted of two long blocks that ran parallel to the Pacific Ocean. The tree-lined streets would soon be filled with tourists eager to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city and escape to the picturesque seaside town, known for its surrounding organic farmlands. The Fall Harvest Fest was by far the busiest time of the year, but on a busy weekend, the Green Grocer might get a few thousand people stopping in to check out their assorted delicacies and fall delights. A million sets of eyes on a silly video was pretty much impossible for her to comprehend.

“Yeah, Aunt Mimi, there’s so much more. We have offers rolling in from everywhere,” Elise said, shifting into practical mode. She had a degree in marketing and was slowly but surely bringing the Green Grocer into the twenty-first century. Not only had she gained a loyal following for her floral designs, but she’d also launched social media pages and a newsletter for the shop, as well as revamped their website and rolled out a variety of fun and engaging promotions like pumpkin-carving night and special beer, cider, and wine tasting with their local vendors. “The DMs are blowing up. Brands want to sponsor you. Families are inviting you on vacation with them. Travel companies want to send you on paid trips—all expenses covered. We’re talking flights, swanky hotels, spas, skydiving, you name it.”

“What?” Miranda shook her head in disbelief. Things like this didn’t happen to her. She led a lovely, albeit semi-boring life, at least maybe to anyone looking in from the outside. It was a life she loved. She didn’t care about skydiving or swanky hotels. Half Moon Bay was the most perfect place on the planet. It was where she belonged. She fell asleep every night to the lulling sounds of the waves crashing onto the shore, the scent of salt in the air, and the quiet calm of her small town nestled under a blanket of stars. She loved that she knew everyone by name and could pop into Brews and Views, the coffee shop down the street, where they’d have a warm pumpkin turnover drizzled with cream cheese frosting and a spiced latte waiting for her. And that, no matter what direction she traveled, she was met with golden sandy beaches or picturesque sidewalks lined with deep burgundy-red maple trees, colorful shops, and patient dogs waiting for their owners to return with a treat.

Thinking about how much she loved her hometown was a good reminder that she didn’t need to worry about the future. At least not at this very minute. She knew she never wanted to leave Half Moon Bay, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t explore farther corners of the world. She was twenty-two when she had Pete, a baby herself now in hindsight. Back then, she had anticipated seeing so much more of the planet, backpacking through Europe and hiking in New Zealand. It wasn’t too late for her to have adventures. She just wasn’t sure she wanted to take them alone. A table for one. A night out dancing solo on the streets of São Paulo for Carnival or in the French Quarter of New Orleans for Mardi Gras just didn’t hit the same.

“Listen, we’re going to need to get out ahead of this pretty quickly,” Elise continued, gesturing as she spoke like she was internally checking off each item on her list. “If you want, I can start ranking each of the offers and compile the best ones. There’s probably a fairly tight window to jump on this. Momentum is good, you know?”

Miranda didn’t know. “Uh, I guess. I, uh…”

“Let us take care of it, Mom,” Pete said. “We’ve got your back.”

“Sure, okay.” Miranda hesitated. She’d barely had a chance to breathe, let alone consider potential offers from brands or travel companies. And the truth was, she knew her five minutes of fame would be gone in a flash, and in the meantime she had the Fall Harvest Fest to focus on. If Elise and Pete wanted to find out about brand deals and social sponsorships, that was fine with her. It would be a fun adventure for them, but she knew little, if anything, would come of it. She switched on the coffee machine and drank in the scent of her favorite brew as it filled the store. It was time to crank Harry Connick Jr. on the overhead speaker and turn the Green Grocer into the coziest fall shop Half Moon Bay had ever seen.

3

PETE

Pete clicked open the document he’d been compiling for the last ten years. Names, dates, locations. None of which had yielded anything. Nothing. Not so much as a hint. A tiny breadcrumb. Some glimmer of a trail he could follow.