“Mom!”
“I’m old, not dead.”
Her statement reminds me of Jake and the first time I’d seen him in my room. “I love how Posh does that thing with her little legs, where she sticks them out straight and makes you think she’s dead.”
Mom laughs, throwing her head back. “And how Jake would say that she’s not dead, just dramatic? Too cute. That man and his dog were a delight.”
I snort and she sighs. “What did I do now?”
“You said delight. It’s cute.”
“Well, he was. He’s the kind of guy I wouldn’t mind having come back around, if you know what I mean.”
“I don’t have any idea what you’re saying,” I respond, ducking the insinuation.
“Stop it, you are not stupid,” she snaps, playfully but still a snap. “Look, I saw the sparks fly between you two. All I can say is keep your heart open.”
I open my mouth to say something, but she shoots me a look that tells me to shut it, which I do and right in time. A momentlater, the front doors fly open and Levi comes walking in with Georgie right behind him.
“Hi,” I say, looking at the two of them. “What are you two doing together?”
“Ran into her outside,” Levi says, giving me a quick hug before heading over to my mom. “Hey, Mrs. Richards, just point to where you want me to drop these bales, and I’ll get it done.”
I watch with Georgie as Hurricane Levi combines forces with Mad Dog and the two of them set about getting hay bales organized. Giggling, I turn to my friend.
“You here to help, too?”
She nods. “I saw your mom earlier and she mentioned you would be here setting up. She also said you suggested that Levi and Austin host tomorrow night and share their stories for the fundraiser?”
“It seems like a smart idea to me.” I pick up a tablecloth and start draping the next table. “A silent auction is one thing, but having it a special VIP experience is another.”
“It’s a great idea. In fact…” She points over her shoulder. “I spent some time this morning looking up authors who were in Big Brothers Big Sisters and I found a few. So I pulled their books off the shelves to donate. I was telling Levi about it, and he’s going to use them as spot prizes for giveaways during their talk.”
“That is epic,” I say, fighting the urge to cheer loudly. “Mom is going to love it.” I look around the room and spy Levi solo setting up hay bales, but my mother is nowhere to be seen. “Where did she go anyway?”
A voice behind me pipes up. “I’m right behind you, silly.”
Jumping, I spin around on my heel and clutch my heart. “I seriously would love to know how you do that.”
“What?” She feigns surprise as she hands the phone to me. “It’s your brother. He needs to talk to you.”
I take the phone from her, keeping one eye on her as she walks back over to help Levi.
“Yes?”
“Am I really going to distribute a ticket for you for tomorrow’s game?”
A dull thud echoes in my tummy as my eyes slam into Georgie’s. “I don’t know about that.”
“What?”
“You heard me. Mom has an event and I told her I’d help her with it.” I look around the room, a feeling of dread bubbling to the surface. “I can’t leave her in the lurch after saying I’d do it.”
“Riley, do you know what Jake did yesterday?”
“Um, not really. I know we said goodbye.”
“You’re such a ding-dong. He called the assistant coach and arranged to have something sent to you. There’s a package already sitting outside your apartment door waiting for you when you go home tonight.”
