Page 28 of A Fall to Remember

“Get ready, because we might double that next year.” Jim made mental notes as they walked. He knew the analytics were already trending well. Thanks to Miranda, Half Moon Bay and the Fall Harvest Fest was a hot topic on social right now. That would die off, of course, but the beauty of a seasonal event like this was that they could repurpose the content every fall.

“Do you think?” The organizer sounded hopeful.

“It’s possible.” They waited at a corner for a few parade floats to pass. “There is a very seasonal nature for these kinds of travel campaigns. Obviously, we’ll get good traction and views right now, since this is the height of the festival. The goal will be for Miranda to re-share everything we capture this year, along with new material that we’ll save so we have fresh content to work with, and then we’ll run another campaign next August and September to drive more traffic. We treat seasonal offerings and events differently. Evergreen travel destinations are different—places like Hawaii, let’s say—our influencers and partners post about the islands year-round, but with something like the Fall Harvest Fest, we go hard from mid-August through the beginning of October, and then we archive and bring it back out year after year. We’re not going for a one-hit-wonder.”

“That’s so good to hear. I had no idea.” The organizer regaled him with more tidbits and historical facts, hoping Jim might weave them into some of the posts. “Did you know that, during Prohibition, Half Moon Bay was a hideout spot for bootleggers thanks to our secluded coves and dense fog? Or, I’d be happy to connect you with the head of our historical society who can tell you all about the old stagecoach that used to connect us to San Francisco.”

“Interesting. Absolutely.” Jim was a bit of a history buff and would never turn down an opportunity to glean more about the places he featured online.

At the park, the organizer headed for the bandstand to check in with the judges. Jim waited for Shelby and Pete. He opened the Voyager analytics app to see that Miranda’s video was still climbing. Once a video gained traction like this, it tended to snowball. There wasn’t much—if anything—they needed to do now, short of liking and responding to comments. The algorithm was doing its thing, and so many users were sharing the video on their own that it was gaining new views by the second.

He was thrilled with the result, and so was the team back in Seattle.

However, a new message popped up in the app. It was from his boss’s boss, the head of the department, a VP, and the chief brand strategist for Voyager Travel, Nadine Hendricks.

Hey, Jim. Great work on the meet cute. Need the kid to go on a date with a few women. He’s as popular as the mom. Looks like even more popular given the way the numbers are trending. Can you arrange?

Arrange dates for Pete?

Jim reread Nadine’s message.

That couldn’t be what she was asking.

Not sure what you mean.

He spotted Pete and Shelby approaching as he read the response from corporate. This wasn’t good. He felt like he knew Miranda well enough already to know that the optics of dragging Pete into the mix probably wouldn’t please her.

Nadine responded.

Want to get her son involved. Set it up.

You want me to set up Pete?

Stage a few dates. Dinner, hayrides, wandering the pumpkin patch. His numbers are trending high. Great opportunity to tag on. Short clips are fine. We can get you budget for the kid, and there’s a bonus in it for you. We’ve hit the jackpot here. Time to capitalize!

They couldn’t be serious. Staging fake dates wasn’t in his wheelhouse. Jim wasn’t going to do that. No way. He liked Pete, and he really liked Miranda, and even with only knowing them for a short while, he could say with confidence that neither of them would be up for this idea in the slightest.

23

SHELBY

“Hang on a minute. I need to have a one-on-one with Jim,” Shelby said to Pete when they arrived at the park. The bandstand had been transformed with garlands of miniature pumpkins and a long table draped in rustic fabric. Shiny gold trophies sat at the edge of the table, waiting to be handed out by the judges who were milling around with clipboards. A DJ blasted tunes. White tents lined the far side of the park where food vendors were grilling sausages and popping fragrant kettle corn. It was a sea of colors, costumes, masks, fake swords, and face paint. There were stations for kids to bob for apples, pumpkin decorating booths, fruit stands, and giant balloons for sale.

“Wait, are you guys going to talk about me? Because I want to be part of this conversation,” Pete protested. His mouth fell open as he threaded his hands through his hair and shook his head. “This is my love life, or lack thereof, out on the internet for everyone. I should at least get a say in how we deal with this.”

Shelby couldn’t argue with that. “Okay, yeah. Fair enough.”

Jim leaned against the smooth trunk of a eucalyptus tree, trying to stay out of the way of the dizzying display of costumes. He waved happily when Shelby approached him with Pete following close behind. “Can you believe this? I read in the event guide that there are five age categories this year. You can tell that some people have spent a significant amount of time on their costumes. I’m partial to the Day of the Dead dancers, but the Flintstones family is very cute.”

“Mm-hmm.” Shelby didn’t bother to look in that direction. “Hey, we need to talk about the video.”

“Okay, sure.” Jim offered them kettle corn from an oversized pumpkin-shaped bucket. “I couldn’t help myself. It smelled too good.” He shook a few pieces into his hand and crunched them between his teeth.

“So, what’s the deal with the video?” Pete asked, ignoring the offer of buttery caramel corn.

“I hope you’re not upset.” Jim sounded concerned. Shelby wasn’t sure what to make of it. Was it an act? “I hope you know I never intended for that to be a call to every single woman on the planet. I thought it was a cute look for your mom. I checked with your mom first, just so you know. She agreed, too, but I don’t think either of us realized that it would blow up like this. I genuinely thought it was fun and light. I hate that I’ve put you in an awkward position. I promise that was not my intent. Please accept my apology.”

“Yeah, I mean, I’m not mad. I guess I was just sort of stunned for starters.” Pete looked at Shelby for help.