Page 61 of Horn of Plenty
It always was.
Mabel Muldowney could love fashion, dream of traveling, support organic farming, and eat casserole until the cows come home. She didn’t need to hide behind Bella Mae. No matter what path she chose, she was enough.
She met Reba’s gaze as a realization set in. “I need to get back to Elverna. I should get going now.”
“Don’t you have another Eat Elverna Farmers’ Market tomorrow?” Reba replied. “I’m sure you don’t want to miss it. Every time Lily shows me an Eat Elverna post with you in it, you look truly happy there.”
A warmth radiated through her body. “I am. I’m very happy there. It’s my home.”
She pictured her farm and recalled the days when she’d run through the field with the scent of wheat and wildflowers in the air. With the sun on her face and her arms extended, she would glance over her shoulder to find Jamie and Cal a step behind.
“Did you ever learn the identity of the Castle King?” Reba asked, pulling her from her thoughts. “Lily showed me the post on your Bella Mae newsfeed.”
“It’s—” she began when Lily called to her mother, blessedly cutting the conversation short.
“I better check on my daughter. There’s a good chance she wants to buy a lifetime’s worth of honey. It was good to see you, Mabel,” Reba said, gifting her with another grin before joining Lily at the farm stand.
In the center of the bustling market, Mabel exhaled a slow, steady breath. This wasn’t a dream. She knew who she was in this world—and it wasn’t Bella Mae. She pulled out her phone to cancel her meeting with Chelsea, then saw the alerts she’d set up to monitor Eat Elverna. Lily was right! People had recognized her here. Farm to Mabel in NYC was trending. A euphoric sensation passed through her when someone tapped her shoulder. Expecting it to be another fan of Eat Elverna, she turned on her heel, but the person standing in front of her wasn’t a stranger.
“I overheard your conversation. It’s me, Mabel. I’m the Castle King.”
She blinked once, then twice. Okay, scratch that. Maybe she was dreaming, or perhaps the mushrooms she’d sampled when she’d arrived were the magical kind.
Was this really happening? It couldn’t be him!
In an instant, the hum of the farmers’ market disappeared.
“Dad, what are you doing here?”
Dressed in a pair of worn jeans and his Muldowney Farms cap, Elias Muldowney looked as if aliens had beamed him up from the farm, then beamed him back, smack dab in the middle of New York City.
“I was having a conversation with Chelsea. She’s the one who told me you were here. You’re doing something that’s called trending. That’s when your name comes up a lot on the internet with a hashtag,” he answered straight-faced as if his being in New York City wasn’t completely insane—and sounding internet savvy to boot!
The aliens that beamed him here must have scrambled his mind.
“It’s good to see you, Mabel,” a woman—no, not just any woman—Chelsea Blaine said.
Her gaze ping-ponged between them. “How do you two know each other?”
“We just met,” Chelsea explained. “I got to your hotel a little early and noticed your father’s hat. And, of course, I recognized him from social media.”
Mabel’s jaw almost hit the pavement. “You know about Eat Elverna, too?”
Chelsea chuckled. “I do. But that’s not the only reason I wanted to meet with you.”
Here it was. Chelsea was here with an offer for Bella Mae.
Mabel caught Lily out of the corner of her eye. “I’m sorry for wasting your time, Chelsea, but I’m done pretending. I can’t be Bella Mae anymore.”
“I see,” the agent replied, raising an eyebrow.
Mabel smiled to herself as she observed Lily place a dried bunch of lavender in a reusable bag.
She held Chelsea’s gaze. “I’m sorry to have wasted your time.”
Chelsea leaned in. “What if I told you that I didn’t want Bella Mae?”
What else could she want? Mabel Muldowney?
