Page 46 of A Fall to Remember

“Elise is already on that. She said she’ll take care of it.” Shelby pointed in their direction. Mom and Elise were conspiring against him. Couldn’t they tell he wasn’t into Lacy?

“Um, I guess. I just don’t—” Pete stopped in mid-sentence when Lacy returned with a bouquet of flowers and a basket of goodies. He didn’t want to be rude or offend her.

“Is this good for props?” she asked Shelby, looping the basket over her arm and posing with the bouquet. “You ready, Pete?” She tossed her hair over her shoulder and angled her chin so that Shelby could get her best side.

He’d never heard anyone talk about their “good side” so much during dinner. Anytime Shelby asked them a question or even so much as touched her phone, Lacy would stop her. “Hold up. Wait. Make sure you get my good side.” Then she would proceed to contort her body and twist her neck like a gymnast to make sure her profile was in frame.

He’d also heard “Can you delete that one? That’s my bad side” at least a few dozen times throughout the meal. He was growing weary of this, but he had made a promise. He might as well finish the night. As long as he could get through the short car ride home, then the first thing tomorrow, he’d let Shelby know he was done.

“Okay, Petie, let’s do this,” Lacy said in a sing-song voice.

Shelby wasn’t recording. What was she doing? And he’d already told her three times that he hated nicknames, especially Petie. It made him sound like a deranged cartoon parrot. He glanced at Shelby, who had thrown her hand over her mouth to hide a grin. She was actually enjoying this. Great. She was taking way too much pleasure in watching him squirm.

Was that part of what she was going for with the social posts? Trying to spin him as geeky and uncomfortable around women?

Well, fine. He was. At least women like Lacy.

There were plenty of guys who would die for a chance to have dinner with her, but she wasn’t his type. If Mom had ever had a conversation with Lacy rather than spotting her in the store and thinking she was cute, she never would have tried to set Pete up with her.

No chance.

This might go down as the worst date of his life, and it was going to be broadcast online for everyone to see.

Just get it over with, Pete.

He gave himself a pep talk, as Lacy tucked the flowers into the basket and switched arms so that they could hold hands.

“Petie, what a night. This has been epic. Can’t wait to do it again tomorrow,” Lacy said as they headed for her car.

“Tomorrow?” he asked, reaching for his phone. The pathway to the field where he’d parked was lit with torches, but it was still dark.

“Yep. Shelby and I already had a chat. We’ve worked out the details. First, a lunch date to watch the pumpkin-weighing contest. We’ll check out the festivities downtown and then meet up for the bonfire.”

Oh, no. No. That isn’t happening.

Pete glanced behind them, trying to catch Shelby’s eye, but she’d already stopped filming and disappeared into the crowd. He released her hand, using the excuse of turning on his flashlight app so they could watch their footing. “I’m not sure what my day looks like tomorrow. I have some work to get caught up on.”

“It’s Saturday,” Lacy retorted.

“I work remotely, and I help in the store on the weekends, so I need to check with Mom and Elise to see what kind of coverage we have.” He was trying to let her down nicely. Honestly, he didn’t think Lacy would be heartbroken in the slightest, but he could tell she saw him as her social media ticket.

“Well, tell Shelby to fix that,” she said dismissively, as if it were no problem for him to completely rearrange his life. “I’m sure they can find someone to cover for you. How hard is it to make sandwiches? Isn’t that what you do?”

The Green Grocer was so much more than a sandwich shop, but Pete wasn’t going to argue that tonight. It was late. He was tired. All he wanted was to go home and crash in his bed. Somehow, he’d missed saying good night to Mom. She must have already left. He’d tried to catch her eye at dinner to signal that he was not into the date, but she had seemed distracted. He could use her advice on this. He thought by playing along, he’d have more time to hang out with Shelby, but now he was stuck with Lacy? This weekend was not turning out how he had hoped, and he wasn’t sure how to fix it.

36

SHELBY

Shelby felt a pang of regret watching Pete and Lacy traipse through the field together. She’d been surprised when Lacy had cornered her after dessert and confessed that she was having the night of her life with Pete and didn’t want it to end.

“Are you open to arranging another date for us?” she’d asked Shelby, clasping her hands together like a schoolgirl. “He’s so great. I’ve usually gone for the gym bros. I’ve never spent this much time with a guy like Pete. He’s a real throwback. I feel like I’m in an episode of Gilmore Girls. I really don’t want this to end, and I know you mentioned wanting to capture Fall Harvest Fest. I’m at your service. I’d gladly spend the day with Pete tomorrow, and the bonfire tomorrow night should be iconic.”

“Uh, sure. I should confirm with Pete,” Shelby said, checking in his direction.

“No need. Already did. He’s all in.” Lacy flashed her a dazzling smile. “Let’s plan to meet at the park for the pumpkin-weighing contest. I’ll coordinate outfits and timing with Pete. Oh, and by the way, I went ahead and made Voyager a collaborator on my posts tonight, so feel free to accept those whenever you have time. My followers are swooning over him. It’s not often you find a real gentleman who is also so handsome and witty. I can’t thank you enough for connecting us. This could be the start of something serious.”

Shelby felt nauseous.