Page 25 of A Fall to Remember

She scanned the crowd for Jim but couldn’t see him.

Great.

She was on her own.

“It’s Shelby,” she said, answering the call and stepping away from the dwindling crowd.

“Shelby. Good. Glad I caught you. Well done. Very well done.” Nadine’s voice was bright and enthusiastic. “You and Jim are killing it. Two hundred and fifty thousand views in an hour and climbing. You’re on your way to another million. This has exceeded our expectations. We already have had four new advertisers reach out about partnerships with Miranda.”

What? Shelby glanced around her, as if she were suddenly the person being filmed. Was this a joke? What was Nadine talking about?

“I know you and Jim are busy, so I won’t keep you. I just had to personally call you to say congratulations and keep up the good work. We’re watching the campaign closely, and I like what I’m seeing. If this is indicative of your vision, I’ll be eager to have you formally share your strategies and results at the final team interview next week.” Nadine hung up before Shelby could even process the call.

Shelby stood on the corner, dumbfounded.

The photos Jim posted have already garnered a quarter of a million views?

No chance.

Not that she was downplaying her abilities, but she knew social media trends. Sweet pics and short video introduction clips didn’t go viral.

Jim was heading straight toward her.

“What did you post?” Shelby spat out before he could get a word out. She heard her accusatory tone, but couldn’t help it. They had a plan, and he’d obviously gone rogue and she had a sinking suspicion she knew why.

“What?” Jim pulled a piece of candy from his pocket, unwrapped it, and popped it in his mouth.

“What did you post on Miranda’s page?” she repeated, opening the app on her phone, not even trying to hide the irritation in her tone. Jim was trying to get her promotion. She couldn’t let that happen. What if he were the other candidate still in the running? That had to be why Nadine had sent them both to Half Moon Bay. It was the only explanation that made sense.

“Everything we discussed.” Jim sounded nonchalant. He grabbed more candy. “Want one?”

“Put your candy away. We need to figure out what the hell is going on.” Shelby scrolled through the first gallery of pictures like her life depended on it. Everything was fine. He’d used the filter, the hashtags, her suggested text, and he’d tagged their ad partners.

“What’s the problem?” Jim asked as she reviewed the first video clip.

It was also fine.

That didn’t make sense. How had Miranda garnered that many views?

“I just got a call from Nadine Hendricks,” Shelby said, clicking onto the next video. Instantly, she knew this was the one.

“I know. I got a text from her, too,” Jim said with a broad smile, sucking on the hard candy. “They’re very pleased. Did you hear we have four new potential advertising partnerships?”

Shelby clenched her jaw so hard it hurt her cheeks. The video was the exact opposite of her branding goals. Miranda fumbled with her phone, trying to get a view of a potential date for Pete. Shelby had been on the other end of the call. Why had Jim filmed this? “You posted this?”

“Yep. I told you we wouldn’t have a problem with Miranda going viral again. She’s such a natural. Every mom, just like I said. She resonates because she’s not trying to be anyone other than herself. Have you seen the comments yet? People love her and Pete.”

No wonder Pete was glaring at her like he was out for blood.

“But we discussed the aesthetic,” Shelby said, wondering how much of Jim’s affable nature was real. Was this his technique? Was he intentionally trying to sabotage her efforts? Block her from the promotion?

Had she read him wrong?

Maybe he wasn’t a nice guy.

Maybe this was all an act.

Of course, he would take full credit for this new video going viral.