Page 5 of Home to You
I hadn’t precisely forgotten to eat. Just every time I sat down to a meal, I could barely get anything down. I hadn’t really had an appetite since my run-in with Jake Mercer at the beginning of the week. The man was straight up ignoring me now, pretending like I didn’t exist every time he dropped Cole off in the morning and then picked him up again in the afternoon. I thought maybe I’d seen a brief flash of heat in Jake’s eyes that first day, but perhaps that was only wishful thinking.
At the front of the room, Carol clapped her hands once. “Okay, folks, let’s get into it. Big item this week: our annual fall fundraiser.”
A collective groan rippled through the room.
“I know, I know,” she said with a grin. “It’s nobody’s favorite task, but you all know how important this is. The money we raise supports outdoor programming, need-based scholarships, and a good portion of our materials budget. So let’s treat this like the celebration it is.”
She glanced at the clipboard in her hand, and I already knew what was coming—Lily had warned me this morning.
“As our newest staff member,” she continued, her eyes scanning the room and landing on me, “Eden will be joining the planning committee. Thanks in advance for pitching in.”
Several heads turned my way. I lifted my tea in a toast. “Happy to help.”
It was the truth. When Lily first warned me about the fundraiser and how I’d get roped into the committee, my initial thoughts were less than generous. At Hawthorne Prep, where I used to work, fundraisers were bureaucratic minefields—elaborate productions where committee politics inevitably superseded actual progress.
Lily leaned in and whispered, “I hope you’ve done CrossFit, because if not, you’re about to get a crash course in how hardit is schlepping hay bales and dragging folding tables all around town.”
I snorted. “Sounds fun.”
She grinned. “Oh, it is. Blisters, splinters, and just enough awkward tension with community volunteers to keep it interesting.”
At the front of the room, Carol continued, flipping to the next slide in her PowerPoint presentation. “This year, we’re moving the event to Three Pines Ranch. When Jake Mercer enrolled his son Cole here over the summer, he generously offered to host.”
Suddenly, I felt dizzy. My hands started shaking, and I gripped my tumbler with both hands, pressing it against my stomach to hide the tremor. I could feel Lily’s eyes on me, but I kept my gaze locked on Carol, praying my expression looked normal instead of like I was about to throw up.
Three Pines Ranch.
So not just Jake then. His whole family … on his turf. The place where I first fell in love, then later, the place I ran from.
What the hell had I signed up for?
You didn’t sign up for this, a snarky voice at the back of my head reminded me. You werevolun-told.
“Offered or was coerced?” an eighth-grade teacher with more hair on his face than on his head said from the front row with a chuckle.
Dimly, through the ringing in my ears, I heard Carol snicker. “Let’s just say he’s probably surprised to have come up with the idea.”
“What’s the theme?” Lily called out. She leaned into me and said, out of the side of her mouth, “Last year it was an 80s prom theme. Cute in theory. Terrible in practice.”
“No real theme since the ranch itself is plenty atmospheric,” Carol answered. “The committee is meeting tomorrow with Mr. Mercer to discuss event specifics, but I’m thinking of a bonfire ifit’s feasible, live music, and maybe a chili cook-off. That sort of thing.”
Her eyes found mine again, and I did my best to squash the shock and anxiety that I knew must be written on my face lest she think I couldn’t handle something as simple as a school fundraiser. “Eden, I’m pairing you with Mr. Mercer for logistics and item coordination—pickup, inventory, setup … that sort of thing. Next year, once you’ve got the lay of the land and how these things work, we’ll shift you into a more administrative role.”
I nodded my agreement, but inside, my emotions were rioting. Still, it would be disastrous if my boss knew how badly I was freaking out right now. “Sure, Carol. Sounds good.”
It didn’t sound good at all. It sounded like a disaster in the making.
The library wasquiet when I walked in ten minutes after the final bell and ducked into the room where the committee was set to meet.
I stopped cold, my heart lurching into my throat.
Jake was already here, sitting at the far end of the table, one arm slung over the back of his chair, his posture casual but guarded. A clipboard rested on the table in front of him.
My pulse hammered so hard I was sure everyone could hear it. I forced my feet to move, willing my expression to stay neutral even though my hands had gone clammy and my knees felt weak.
Carol greeted me brightly. “Eden, great. You remember Jake Mercer, Cole’s dad?”
“Hello again,” I greeted him, managing not to wince when my voice came out sounding slightly breathy and thin despite my best efforts to project an air of calm.
