Chapter 26
SHELBY
Shelby was quickly losing control of, well, everything. First, Jim had gone rogue with the video. Now she was supposed to set Pete up on an over-the-top romantic date and film it? Things had gone from bad to worse.
Did Voyager expect her to pluck some poor, unsuspecting woman from the crowd at dinner and try to make an instant match?
This wasn’t in her job description. This wasn’t what she’d signed up for.
She and Jim had brainstormed a list of potential scenarios.
The farm dinner tonight certainly had high visual impact.
That was good. There was just one huge problem—how to find Pete a date.
She’d called ahead and arranged to arrive at Banner Farms an hour early.
Working for the world’s most recognizable travel brand had its perks.
Shelby had explained they’d be filming the event and wanted to get some before shots.
Pete and Elise were supposed to be meeting her any minute to put their heads together and come up with an impromptu plan.
This wasn’t Shelby’s style. She had prepared for days before this trip—spreadsheets, competitive analysis, talking points, and style guides.
Shelby continued to be impressed by Half Moon Bay.
The farm looked like something straight from the style pages of some of Voyager’s most influential partners.
Guests were greeted with a rustic wagon overflowing with buckets of wildflowers, pumpkins, and gourds.
After stopping to check in and receive a custom wine glass, they walked along a pathway lined with globe lights and corn stalks.
She felt like she was in The Wizard of Oz.
The pathway spilled out onto the fields, which were filled with more pumpkins, hay bales, and rows and rows of corn.
Long wooden tables were arranged in a rectangle.
Pale orange table runners ran through the center and were decorated with cake stands, lanterns, and huge bouquets of farm flowers.
Every place setting had a different jewel-toned earthenware plate and matching napkins.
Guests’ names were marked on mini chalkboard place cards, and menus printed on pumpkin paper had been rolled up and tied with gold string.
The cake stands were filled with rustic apple and pear tarts, pumpkin and pecan pies, and chocolate and cinnamon Bundt cakes. Twinkle lights, tea lights, the lanterns, and more globes gave the illusion that the fields were on fire.
Shelby captured every detail while she waited for Pete and Elise. She almost felt relaxed for the briefest of moments, but then her phone rang.
This time, the call was from her mom.
“Shelby, good. I didn’t know if I would catch you. Have you spoken with the mortgage company?”
Her mom sounded vulnerable, as if she were the child in this relationship.
She had been a stay-at-home mom when Shelby and her sister were young and deferred the big decision-making—things like the mortgage, insurance, and taxes—to Shelby’s dad.
Now that he had bailed on the family, her mom had decided Shelby was the best person to handle their finances since she had a corporate job.
Shelby had repeatedly tried to remind her mom that she was grossly unqualified to make these kinds of decisions.
But her mom was in a dark place emotionally and tended to shut down.
If Shelby didn’t take on the responsibility, no one would.
“Mom, I told you, I’m in Half Moon Bay for work.” She hated that their roles had reversed. She wasn’t supposed to be the parent. “But yeah, the bank called earlier. They’re preparing to move forward with the foreclosure in thirty days. They’re sending you a notice.”
“Sorry, I know. I’m just so worried. They came to the house today. It was mortifying. They handed me a certified letter. I’m sure the neighbors are gossiping.”
Shelby felt queasy. She pressed her hand to her stomach and closed her eyes briefly, trying to remember the calming techniques from her therapist.
The neighbors’ gossip was the least of her worries. But clearly, Citizens Bank was serious about putting the house up for auction. There was no chance she could come up with the balance due in thirty days. Not unless she landed the promotion and got that bonus.
She breathed slowly and opened her eyes just in time to see Elise and Pete coming toward her. “Listen, Mom, I need to go. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
Pete looked effortlessly hot in a pair of well-worn jeans and a pale blue pullover sweater.
Shelby had to press her thumb and index finger together as tightly as she could to stop staring at him.
He and Elise looked like they’d coordinated their outfits, and they also seemed prepared for much colder weather.
Elise was dressed in leggings, knee-high boots, and a sky-blue sweater dress.
“We’re here. Let the matchmaking begin.” Elise said, pulling Shelby into a half hug. Her bubbly and effervescent energy made her feel like an instant friend. Shelby was glad to have her and Pete on her side. Hopefully, between the three of them, they could come up with a reasonable plan.
“Are you going to be warm enough?” Pete asked, running his eyes from her bare shoulders to her sandals and looking at her with concern.
Shelby had opted to wear a sundress she’d had stuffed in the back of her closet and yet to find the right occasion for. It was a halter-style cotton dress in a soft brown with bright white polka dots. “I live in Seattle, remember? This is summer for us.”
Pete winced. Elise shook her head. “Uh-oh.”
“What? I brought a sweater.” Shelby pointed to her chair where she’d hung a thin cardigan. “It’s like forty degrees and raining back home. Trust me, California fall is basically Seattle summer.”
“You’re not familiar with California cold,” Pete said with a little laugh, pointing toward the beach. “We’re right on the ocean. As soon as the sun sets, the wind will kick in, and it’s going to get pretty chilly.”
“Yeah, like frigid,” Elise added, rubbing her arms and blowing on her hands.
“I’ll be fine.” It was sweet that they were concerned about her, but Shelby had bigger problems to tackle.
She grabbed the guest list that the organizer had shared with her.
“I’ve reviewed the list and seating chart, and it looks like there are about fifteen single guests.
Do you two want to take a look and see if you recognize any names?
I don’t want to set you up with your middle school teacher or an ex. ”
“An ex won’t be a problem,” Elise said, taking the list and nudging Pete. “When’s the last time you broke up with someone?”
“No comment.” He looked at Shelby again, his blue eyes holding a tiny hint of mischief. “Are you sure you’re not cold?”
“Not in the slightest.” She gestured to the list. “If we can identify a few options, I’m thinking when they arrive, I’ll introduce myself and explain that we’re doing an experiment tonight. If nothing else, we can get you seated next to one of the women and film your dinner.”
“Film my dinner? You want to watch me eat?”
“I’m speaking in a broader sense,” Shelby said. “I’ll film a few vignettes of you meeting, chatting, that sort of thing. Keep it light. Keep it simple. I’ll mainly focus on how gorgeous the table, food, music, and farm are. We’ll lean heavily into the aesthetic of our surroundings.”
“You’re just going to ask a random woman if they want to have dinner with me?” Pete asked, running his hand over his sweater. “I mean, if nothing else, I guess I’m a fashion icon, yeah?”
“Pete, come on. Don’t sell yourself short,” Elise said, punching her cousin in the shoulder. She tapped her finger on a name about a quarter way down the list. “I went to high school with her. She was a bit wild, but she’d probably be up for it.”
“What about you?” Pete looked at Shelby again. For a minute, their eyes locked, making Shelby feel anything but cold.
“Me?” Shelby shook her head, confused. Surely he wasn’t suggesting what she thought he was? “What do you mean?”
“Why can’t it be you?” Pete held her gaze, almost challenging her to say yes. “That makes the most sense to me.”
“No, I work for Voyager.” Shelby’s heart rate kicked into high gear at the thought of being Pete’s dinner date. “It can’t be me.”
“Why? You work on the backend. You don’t have a public-facing account or anything. I checked.”
He checked?
Shelby wondered if they could see her heart pounding against her chest. Did her voice sound shaky, or was it just her? “Yeah, but I mean, the entire idea with Voyager is to send you on adventurous dates with women you don’t know.”
“I don’t know you that well. We only just met.” Pete held her gaze, making Shelby feel even more exposed.
“It’s not a bad idea,” Elise said. “You look the part. The dress is great. Very fall. It fits the vibe.”
“Thanks.” Shelby smiled, but she shook her head again. This was going off the rails—fast. “I don’t think Voyager would like it.”
“But isn’t this a test run?” Pete said, sweeping his hand toward the table.
Why was he pushing so hard?
“Yeah, but I work for the company.” She was struggling to come up with another reason this was a bad idea, and already imagining sitting next to him.
Maybe their knees would touch. Maybe he’d casually wrap his arm around the back of her chair.
Then he’d lean in and cup her chin in his hands and kiss her tenderly.
Knock it off, Shelby.
Stop.
“I don’t know, I kind of like it.” Elise pointed out another name on the list. “Although there is your former babysitter, Pete. That wouldn’t be weird, would it?”
“You could tell Voyager it’s my idea,” Pete said, ignoring Elise.
“Tell them that I wanted it to be you to get comfortable with the idea. It’s just dinner.
” He gestured to the romantic tablescape.
“We’ll enjoy a glass of wine, chat, get to know each other a little better, and then you can use it as a placeholder.
See if the concept even works. I’d feel much better hanging with you tonight than trying to be set up with a stranger. ”
He sounded so earnest and sincere. And why did his pleading eyes remind her of a puppy dog begging for a lap?
“But I need to film it.” Okay, yeah, technically that was true, but it wouldn’t be hard to set up a tripod to record them. She couldn’t get caught up in the idea of enjoying a leisurely dinner with him. This was her job.
“I can film.” Elise raised her hand like they were in class. “I manage the content for the Green Grocer. I can handle shooting a few clips for social.”
“Yeah, but we have filters and angles and continuity we plan across any of our campaigns.” Shelby was fumbling to come up with another excuse. Having dinner with Pete sounded like a dream.
“You do that after you record footage, though, right?” Elise asked, handing her the guest list. “Honestly, I think Pete is right. There’s no one coming that is an immediate yes for me.
” She tossed the guest list on the table.
“And we don’t have a lot of time to conduct quick interviews with every single stranger who shows up tonight.
You two cozy up and get flirty. I’ll film it, and then we can work on finding someone else for the rest of the weekend. ”
“What do you say? You want to have dinner with me, Shelby?” Pete held out his hand.
Shelby froze. She was jolted by how much she wanted this. “Uh, okay, sure.”
Was this a terrible idea?