Page 65

“Well, volunteer coordinator,” Maye clarified. “You should definitely come, if you can.”

“After this role, I don’t have any long shoots on the books for the rest of the year. A couple one-day things here and there, so count me in!”

“Okay, places, yah?” Lars announced from behind the cameras.

Chris leaned close to Maye’s face and turned in toward her left cheek. “I’m going to destroy you in the bobbing for apples competition,” he whispered. As he pulled back, he plastered a tight-lipped smug smile on his face and strutted away.

“Joke’s on you!” Maye shouted. “I don’t even like apples!”

After their scene was filmed, the crew began setting up for some other outdoor scenes.

“That’s a wrap on Maye and Tracy!” Hanna said. “Great job, ladies! Now if you’ll follow me back to wardrobe I’ll get you outta here.”

Chris caught up to them before they left the set.

“Hey!” he panted as he reached them. “Have a safe trip back.” He hugged Tracy and indulged her as she held on for an extra ten seconds. “And thank you both so much for coming up here.”

Maye nestled into his chest and rocked in his arms. It took her breath away when he kissed her cheek. She closed her eyes and squeezed him tighter.

“Hey,” Chris said, “if you’re able to hang around for just a few more hours, me and some of the crew are grabbing an early dinner. You could still be on the road and back home tonight-ish…?” He bit his lower lip eagerly.

Ugh, she thought. She really wanted to stay longer.

“That sounds great, and I really, really would like to,” she said, “but we also need to get back. And I don’t want to have to drive tired into the night.”

“I get it, I get it,” Chris shook his head. “I don’t want that either. I need you home in one piece.”

“Fall Fest?” she asked.

“Fall Fest,” he confirmed.

“Places, yah?” Lars announced.

- 23 -

Greenville Fall Fest Volunteer Coordinating

Maye returned to Greenville from her trip to Nova Scotia with renewed motivation. She began her mornings with a fifteen-minute shadow boxing routine and twenty-five pushups, and a quick gratitude meditation. With a packed calendar and lots to do, she was excited about all the activity in her life.

She got right back into work, filling her appointment schedule as much as she could, lunch and drinks after work with Tracy happened as often as possible, and she was even excited about the idea of consistently attending a kickboxing class. On top of all of this, she still had her commitment as Fall Fest Volunteer Coordinator to fulfill.

Fall Fest preparation had been under way for months, but her coordinating role officially kicked off the day after Labor Day. Maye received an invitation in her email to a Fall Fest Volunteer Kickoff meeting that Todd was hosting later that week. She blocked off the time in her calendar right away.

On the day of the volunteer meeting, Maye arrived at the Town Hall early so she could make sure to get a seat. The meeting was being held in a conference room she had never been in, and she wasn’t sure how many people would attend, so she made sure to give herself enough time to get settled. Maye opened the conference room door and gasped at the table full of people staring back at her.

“Ah, Maye, you’ve arrived,” Todd announced. “Now we can officially get started.”

“How am I late?” she asked. “The meeting doesn’t start for another fifteen minutes, right?”

“If you’re not twenty minutes early then you’re late,” Melvin said.

“Now, now,” Todd said. “Be nice, Melvin. We don’t want to scare off our new volunteer coordinator on her first day.”

“There’s an empty seat next to me, dear,” Laura said from the far end of the table.

Maye was relieved to see one of the Lunch Ladies at the meeting, so she squeezed her way down to the empty seat.

“Alright, let’s get started,” Todd said as he knocked on the wood table. “This is me gaveling us into session,” he explained. “For reasons I am not allowed to discuss, my real gavel has been confiscated. Justly or not, this is where we are.” He sat back in his chair and looked around the table. And then, as if he had just remembered it was his meeting, he continued. “Oh, so we have about three weeks to get everything set for the fest. For those who don’t know yet, Maye Daniels will be our liaison to the volunteers.”