9. Maggie
NINE
MAGGIE
I’m really wishing Hope would postpone her wedding right about now. Not because I don’t want her and Jason to get married, but because of this whole date fiasco.
At this point, I’ve probably given myself an ulcer trying to figure it out. Actually, I’ve just been thinking about it non-stop, but doing nothing about it.
I try to think if any of my brother’s friends would be up for it. But they’re almost five years younger than me. That doesn’t always translate well to being a mature adult, and that’s exactly what I need when facing my extended family at a reception and wedding.
Yes, there is the option of asking Duke, but I don’t know if my pride can take that kind of hit. That would mean I’d have to be around him for several hours. I struggle as it is to be around him for the five minutes every morning when he’s here to get ice cream.
Would I have told him my ice cream theory had I been in my right mind? Absolutely not.
I head over to get a small bag of jerky, hoping that the tiredness in my jaw after chewing so much will help distract me from worrying about this.
Maybe I should just have the word “spinster” stamped on my forehead. I might get less heckling if I didn’t have to worry about explaining things.
I take a seat on the bench outside the jerky shop, checking my email. There’s one from the mayor, which is strange. I’m not sure when or where I would’ve shared that information with her. I’ve only met Martha Dobbs once and while she was polite, I didn’t take her for one of those people who remembers the little details.
Dear Citizens of Willow Cove,
We’re excited about how this summer has gone already and hope that the businesses and families here are benefitting from the increased crowds.
In an effort to promote tourism to the visitors here and to give more support to the shops and stores, we’re implementing the first annual Willow Cove Quest. It will be a two-week scavenger hunt to specific places around town. If you would like to add your business to the hunt, please reply to this email and let us know what you want to highlight or give away.
We hope that all residents will take this opportunity to join in the fun, in order to promote bonding and town unity. Because not all tourists will be staying for the duration of the hunt, we’ve got a different track for them to be able to accomplish things in a shorter time frame.
Thank you to Stanford Walker for creating the app we’ll use to achieve this. We hope to get this prepared to launch by next Monday.
We’ve been in talks with DreamTime Vacations and will be offering winners a grand prize of a trip to the destination of their choice to one and a cash prize of $5000 to another. We’ll also give away several smaller prizes to those who’ve participated.
We thank you for your willingness to create a town that people flock to in the summer.
Mayor Martha Dobbs
The idea of a scavenger hunt in Willow Cove is exciting. It gives the residents and visitors something to do and would be perfect for The Candy Jar to establish our spot in the shopping center.
But the moment I see DreamTime Vacations, I see red. Of course, I’m now unable to avoid any mention of the company Duke manages and the thing I despise the most.
My phone rings and I see Hope’s name on the screen. “Hey Hope.”
“Did you see the email from the mayor? What should we offer?”
Leave it to my cousin to know something the moment it happens.
“We can do mini bags of candy,” I say, trying to picture something that would be easy to give out. And a small sampling of what we sell might help them buy more candy.
“I think we have some of the cellophane bags out back. I’ll grab those and start experimenting. Will you email the mayor?”
Blowing out a breath, I nod. “Sure. I can do that. Aren’t you supposed to worry about the wedding prep?”
“I hired Dallas and I think it’s going to be great. I can give her my ideas and not have to worry about the preparation.”
I stand and walk toward the shop. Opening the door, I see Hope walking out of the back room with a small cardboard box, probably full of the bags. I hang up the phone since we’re now face-to-face.
“I love that the mayor is promoting something like this,” Hope says, all smiles. “I know I would’ve loved it growing up.”
Grinning, I say, “We would’ve been the best at a scavenger hunt.” We’d spent a lot of time during our summer trips coming up with forts and playing games, but we always loved searching Willow Cove and the beauty here.
“Maybe you should enter it,” Hope says, turning to me with wide eyes like she’s just thought of the best idea ever.
Raising an eyebrow, I stare at her. “Really? This should bring more people to the store. There’s no way I can duck out and play around when there’s work to be done. And this is right during the big time to plan your wedding. I’m supposed to support you as the maid of honor, not hinder your progress.”
Giving me a small smile, Hope says, “Maggie, it’s okay to take a break. And it’s okay to have fun. Think of it like this: Sasha and I will hold down the fort when you’re out working on the scavenger hunt. I’ll be gone a lot longer for my honeymoon and my surgery than you will.”
That’s probably true. The scavenger hunt would probably only take a day to finish despite the two-week time frame.
“What if I don’t want to win a trip from DreamTime Vacations?” I say, trying to block out a mental picture of Duke. It’s so difficult lately.
Hope shifts her weight from one foot to the other, her eyes on me but I can tell her brain is working. “Isn’t there a cash prize? That could go toward you fixing up the old Waterford house you’ve always admired.”
I like that thought for all of two seconds before remembering that my savings went to this business and I can’t buy a house just yet. But a cash prize would go far to helping me get my savings back up.
“This will hopefully increase business. I’ll just help at the store.”
“How about this?” Hope says, licking her lips. It’s what she usually does when she needs another few seconds to answer something. “ If you participate in the scavenger hunt and actually try, I’ll tell everyone in our extended family to leave you alone at the wedding.”
Frowning, I say, “What do you mean actually try? You don’t think I’d be into it?”
“I’m saying that I want you to go for this. To have fun just because. If it takes me making an announcement to leave your relationship status alone for one day as a royal decree from the bride, I’m willing to do that.”
Shaking my head, I say, “You’ve been bugging me about finding a date for days. Why the sudden one-eighty?”
“I’ve been putting a lot of pressure on you. Seeing my favorite cousin be comfortable at my wedding is the best gift of all.”
“So all I have to do is sign up?” I ask, intrigued. I don’t think I’ve had a break from the nagging and teasing of my family since I was a young child. For one reason or another, they always like to give me a hard time, but I’ve been able to take it. Up until Zander the Cheater upended my life.
“Yep. Sign up and put in the effort. Fulfill every task that you’re assigned and I’ll do it.”
I nod a few times, trying to figure out if there are any loopholes in this agreement. The one thing I know is that Duke probably wouldn’t be in the running for this hunt because his company is the one offering the vacation. That has to look bad for the company if their employee tries to win it.
Why is he the first thing that popped into my head right then?
“Okay, I’m in.”