Page 79 of Fall Fake-Out

We stand there, just looking at each other.

The wind lifts a strand of hair across her face, and without thinking, I reach up and tuck it behind her ear. The second I do, everything changes.

Ari goes still.

So do I.

Because nobody’s watching.

Nobody needs convincing.

And yet my hand remains there for one second too long, tangling into her hair, and I don’t know why. But even more confusing, why does she let me do it?

A dog barks somewhere down the river trail, breaking the spell.

I drop my hand and clear my throat. “I should probably get you home. We don’t want Barb to worry.”

She agrees because we both know the one thing Ari doesn’t need right now is another Andy in her life. And right now, that’s exactly who her mom thinks I am, and perception is reality even when it might not be true.

Ari

Despite not hanging out with Reese and Liv in person for over a year, we have no problem jumping right back into normal hangout cadence.

This lunch is already off to a great start with Reese telling us about living with her mom.

“I’m serious,” she says, banging the table. “I love my mom, but she’s driving me crazy, and I’m not even talking about how messy she is or how she snores at night. I’m talking about her. Alvina Lucinda Berkeley is driving me insane.”

“Tell me about it.” I laugh. “I don’t know how much longer I can take my own mother and her meddling disguised as love.”

“At least your mom is the adult in the relationship,” Reese huffs. “I’m the one having to be the parent in our situation.”

I grin as I tear off a piece of bread. It feels good having the three of us together again. For years, we’ve been scattered across different states, different lives, different problems.

Now, somehow, we’re all back in Autumn Ridge.

Which is either comforting or deeply concerning.

Possibly both. But I’m starting to like how Autumn Ridge is a safe place for all of us to return to.

“Have you seen Dom yet?” Liv asks Reese.

“I’ve only lived here for forty-eight hours, but thankfully no.”

I shrug. “Small-town odds aren’t in your favor.”

“I know.” The look on her face says she’s already spent considerable time thinking about it.

Dom and Reese avoiding each other in Autumn Ridge feels about as realistic as me avoiding the Ednas. Eventually, the town wins.

The waitress appears, carrying three salads.

She sets a grilled chicken Caesar in front of Reese.

A strawberry-walnut salad in front of Liv.

Then, she places mine down. Roasted beets. Goat cheese. Candied pecans. Arugula. I have no idea what possessed me to order it, other than lately I’ve been trying new things, like beets and fake-dating principals with mustaches.

At a nearby table, another plate lands in front of Tate Walker. His BLT is approximately the size of a small mountain.