Page 36 of A Fall to Remember

Jim hesitated. None of his friends or colleagues had ever even heard of his favorite Broadway show, let alone seen it. “You probably won’t know it.”

“Try me.” Miranda shot him a playful yet challenging stare.

“You won’t know it. No one does.” He liked this banter. She was so at ease with herself and with him. It felt like they had known each other for years.

“Oh, you underestimate my extensive Broadway knowledge. Shall we make a little wager? Put your money where your mouth is?”

Jim could tell she was enjoying this. He was, too, and he was confident Miranda would never guess the show he held near and dear to his heart. “Sure, what’s the wager?”

She thought about it for a minute. “Hmm. Well, let’s see.”

“I’ve got it,” Jim interrupted, seizing the opportunity. “We’ll say the name of the show at the same time, out loud. If you guess correctly, we’ll watch your favorite Broadway show tonight. If you don’t, we watch mine.”

“Tonight? But we’re going to dinner.” She pointed to the line of cars in front of them. A group of teens wearing bright yellow construction vests was directing traffic to park in an empty field.

“After dinner. We’ll grab a nightcap and have a late-night viewing party.” It was an obvious ploy to spend more time with her, but at this point, he didn’t care if she caught on. Any excuse he could come up with to be near her was fine by him.

“Okay.” Miranda nodded like she was game.

“You ready? On three.” Jim kept his foot on the brake and counted down. “One. Two. Three—Dogfight!”

“Dogfight!” Miranda didn’t miss a beat.

In fact, she may have even said it first.

Jim was floored. Who was this woman, and where had she been all his life? “You know Dogfight? Impossible.”

“Do I know Dogfight? It happens to be my favorite Broadway show. It’s so underrated, and I don’t understand why. Did you know the script writer also wrote lyrics for A Christmas Story, Dear Evan Hansen, The Greatest Showman, and La La Land? I’m always baffled why more people aren’t familiar with the show.”

Was this the woman of his dreams?

Jim wanted to pinch himself, but instead, he rolled down his window to show one of the parking attendants their tickets. “Okay, you win. I guess we’re watching Dogfight later.”

Miranda grinned. “But if it’s both our favorites, we both win, right?”

“Yes, yes, we do.” Jim tried to steady his heart rate as the rental car rumbled over the uneven ground. “Lucky us.”

28

PETE

Pete couldn’t take his eyes off Shelby. Her polka-dot dress fluttered in the slight breeze. She kept having to brush her curls from her face every time a little gust would ripple through the farm. But she already looked cold. He noticed her rubbing her shoulders twice. She had to be freezing. Despite her insistence that she was impervious to the weather, fall got chilly in Half Moon Bay. Very chilly. He wanted to wrap his arms around her and shield her from the wind.

The bluegrass band had taken the makeshift stage. Guests were starting to arrive. Music wafted through the salty air as staff began circulating with bottles of wine and strawberry-basil lemonade served in mason jars. Candles were lit, and people searched the tables for their name cards.

Elise and Shelby were chatting with the organizers about moving Pete’s seat so that he and Shelby could sit at the end of a table. That would make filming much easier. He used the opportunity to run to the car. He always kept a beach blanket and an extra sweatshirt in the trunk. Growing up on the coast had taught him to be prepared for a freak storm or a cold fog to roll in.

This was great. He and Shelby were going to get to spend more time together.

It wouldn’t be hard to flirt with her. He wasn’t going to need to fake interest or pretend to be into her. He had a feeling Elise suspected as much, but that was fine. He could deal with his cousin, especially if it meant getting to hang out with Shelby tonight. He couldn’t stop thinking about her. Thinking about her little giggle or how she scrunched her nose like a wild rabbit when she was concentrating on something. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from her either. She looked radiant in the sundress with her soft red curls cascading to her shoulders.

He returned to the table a few minutes later with the blanket and hoodie. Shelby stood at the end of the table, sipping a glass of white wine and taking everything in. He wondered if she was painting an image in her brain of how she wanted to capture the dinner for social media. “Here, in case you need them.” He held the blanket in one hand and the hoodie in the other for her to choose.

Shelby shivered, raising her wine in a toast. “Thank you. That’s so sweet. Do I seem cold-blooded?”

He shook his head. “Nah. I just happen to have had enough experience with Mother Nature to overprepare.”

She set her glass on the table and folded the sweatshirt and blanket over her chair. “I’m glad I’m hanging out with someone in the know tonight.” She tucked her cardigan tighter. “You and Elise are right. I already had to put this on. And here I’ve been talking a big Seattle game. I might have packed wrong for this trip.”