by Jen DeLuca
I was true to my word. I met Simon at Willow Creek High School—our alma mater and his employer—bright and early that Saturday morning. He unlocked the building and turned on the lights in the auditorium, and I sorted out stacks of forms, attaching them to clipboards. Before long, the first wave of kids started showing up for tryouts.
Tryouts. Auditions. Sign-ups. This whole process was a little of each, which is why we never called it by one name. Our cast was made up largely of high school kids, and we vetted them for whatever talent they had, which meant listening to a lot of questionably sung madrigals. Our dance captain was a volunteer from the local ballet school; she led aspiring dancers through some simple figures and would let Simon know later which kids had promise. Students who had participated in the past were a shoo-in if they wanted to do the same thing the next year. Adults who wanted to participate had a much easier time of it; we always wanted more adult volunteers, so if you could fill out a form and were even halfway willing to learn an accent, you were in.
I stationed myself at the top of the house in the auditorium, handing forms out to kids and adults alike as they came in. Emily joined me a few minutes after ten.
“There you are,” I said. “I thought you’d come in with Simon.”
She shook her head. “I swung by to pick up Cait.” She indicated down at the front of the auditorium, where I immediately spotted Caitlin by her brown, curly hair—so much like Emily’s you could tell they were related. She leaned against the edge of the stage, talking to Simon. Emily shook her head. “She’s such a suck-up.”
“What do you mean?”
“I think she’s got a little bit of a crush on Simon—excuse me, on Mr. G—but she won’t admit it to me.”
“Oh, really?”
She shrugged. “I could be wrong. May not be a crush so much as her seeing him as a means to getting into a better college. She’s been all about that college prep this past year.”
“Well, that’s good, right? She’ll be a senior, time to start applying to schools.”
“Oh, absolutely. But soon I’m going to have to break it to her that she won’t be in Simon’s class next year.”
“She won’t?” Simon taught advanced placement English to juniors and seniors. “I thought her grades were good.”
“They’re great. She’s a smart kid. Like her mom.”
“And her aunt.” I nudged her with my shoulder, and Emily smiled in thanks for the compliment.
“But once Simon and I get married this summer, he’ll be family. And he doesn’t want anyone to think he’s favoring her for any reason.”
“Ahhhhh.” I blew out the word as a sigh. “Well, that sucks.”
“Yeah.” She shrugged. “I just need to make her see that there’s an upside to him being family. I foresee a lot of private tutoring sessions at the dining room table.”
I considered that. “Well, if she really has a crush, then she’ll like that more.”
“I can only hope so. She’s been talking about Simon’s college prep English class since, oh, I don’t know, the first day I met Simon. Two years ago.”
“And thought he was a prick.” If Emily thought I was ever going to let her live that down, she was wrong.
She nodded, a rueful smile twisting her face. “Well, he was kind of a prick.”
“Uh-huh.” I handed forms to some more kids who walked through the door, offered one to a mother who put up defensive hands before shaking her head and sitting down in the back of the auditorium. “Good turnout this year.” I still remembered the days when kids were strong-armed into participating; Simon’s big brother had been in charge back then, and he’d been particularly good at begging. These days we had more high school kids volunteering than we could use; we had actually started turning some of them away the past couple years. Amazing. Sean would have been proud. I made a mental note to mention that to Simon later.
Emily scanned the crowd of kids. “Caitlin wants to sing this year, so she’s been practicing.” She threw me a sideways glance. “Didn’t you used to sing? Before your tavern wench days?”
“Sure did. Lots of summers of madrigals.” I smiled at the memory. I’d been active in glee club in high school, so it had been a no-brainer for me to go in that direction. I’d spent my first summers at Faire singing in five-part harmony with four other girls. The Gilded Lilies, we were called, all five of us dressed in identical yellow dresses, like some kind of Renaissance-themed Von Trapp kids. As the older girls aged out and stopped doing Faire, younger girls took their place. I switched over to being a wench sometime during college, and by then the original four girls I’d sung with had all moved away. But the Lilies lived on. The girls seemed younger every year, but maybe that was just me getting older. The dresses, however, were still yellow and weren’t flattering on anyone.
I eyed Caitlin. She’d look good in yellow. “She should go for it.” This would be her third year doing Faire, and she was a rising senior. She wouldn’t have to worry about being turned away. And after all, at this point she was also family. Simon might not want to show favoritism in his classes, but he had no such scruples when it came to Faire.
All in all, sign-ups went extremely well. Plenty of kids, and I was even able to persuade a few new parents to take part. We had a cast in place, and once school let out in June, rehearsals would begin in earnest. Before long, we’d be spending our Saturdays at the high school for the yearly rehearsals for life as a Faire volunteer. For the returning cast members, these Saturdays were mostly a refresher, but for the newbies they would be a crash course in Elizabethan history.
Of course, I was also excited about Faire for a different reason. Text messages with Dex were practically a nightly occurrence these days, and the closer we got to the summer, the more inadequate they became. There’d been more than one night that I’d almost hit that Call button on my phone, desperate to hear his voice. Something always kept me from doing it, but knowing that Faire was on the horizon, and that I’d be seeing him soon, kept me anticipating his return like a kid waiting for Santa Claus. But with more kissing.
Meanwhile, the planning for Simon and Emily’s wedding had started to ramp up as well. There was lots going on, and more and more often we met a couple evenings a week at April’s house, which became command central for both wedding planning and Faire organization. April had lodged a protest at first, saying that she had nothing to do with Faire, but it was halfhearted and we kept showing up anyway. She must not have minded that much, because somehow there was always a family-style dinner waiting for us on those nights: a huge tray of baked ziti and salad or a shepherd’s pie. Caitlin joined us some nights around her mother’s big dining room table, usually engrossed in homework since finals were coming up for her, but also giving us a unique, teenage perspective on high school gossip, especially when it concerned kids who were participating in Faire. I kept a close eye on her, especially when she asked Simon for help with her homework, but I didn’t detect any real signs of a crush. Her interest in her future uncle seemed to be purely academically motivated, which had to be a relief to Emily.
One night, Caitlin looked up at me from across the dining room table. “Emily said you used to sing too, right?”
“Sure did.” I shot her a grin as I slipped my phone into my bag. It was too early in the evening for Dex to be getting in touch anyway. “Let me know if you want any help rehearsing. It’s been years since I was a Lily, but those songs are still stuck in my head.”
She nodded eagerly. “That would be awesome, thanks.” She peered at me a little closer, and I wondered if I had something on my face. “You really like doing Faire, huh?”
“Guilty,” I said with a smile. “I’ve been doing it since I was your age. Probably my favorite part of the summer.”
“Well, it’s not like there’s a whole lot else to do around here.” Her voice had a grumble in it, and I could see her point
. Willow Creek wasn’t exactly a metropolis. I was about to turn back to my list again, but Caitlin wasn’t done. She tilted her head to look at me, looking so much like a younger version of her aunt Emily that I had to bite down on my smile. “Is that why you’re here?”
“Well . . .” I shrugged. “I mean, I’m helping more with wedding stuff than Faire stuff, but it’s kind of all hands on deck, you know? You should be careful; they’ll put you to work next.”
“Nope, I have to study,” she said cheerfully. “But I mean, is that why you haven’t left Willow Creek? Because you like doing Faire?”
“Oh.” I looked down at the papers in front of me. I wasn’t sure how to answer that question.
“I mean, Mr. G and Coach Malone grew up here, but they teach at the high school. But, like, you could work in a dentist’s office anywhere, right? So did you stick around here to do Faire?”
“They have faires other places too, you know.” I hated how defensive I sounded. Why was I arguing with a teenager? I fought to not cross my arms over my chest. Instead I slapped my patented Stacey Smile back on my face. “But, yeah. Maybe I like this one.”
“And maybe you’re being rude, kiddo.” April appeared in the doorway between the kitchen and the dining room. “You don’t just ask someone why they live where they do. Maybe it’s none of your business.”
Caitlin opened her mouth and then shut it again, her face reddening. “Sorry,” she mumbled, throwing a look in my direction.
“Hey, it’s cool.” My defensiveness faded. She was a kid. It was okay to ask questions. I picked up my pen again. “Let me know when you want help with those songs. I’ll teach you some of the ones you’re too young for, and you can sing ’em in the tavern when Simon isn’t looking.”
“Yeah?” Her eyes lit up.
“No,” April said from the doorway, in unison with Simon from the other end of the table. But Caitlin and I grinned at each other in solidarity, all awkwardness forgotten.
April shook her head and leaned against the doorjamb, swirling some red wine in her glass. “When am I getting my dining room back?”
On my left, Mitch shrugged and reached for another slice of pizza; he’d contributed dinner tonight, which meant takeout. “Well, Faire’s in July, and so’s the wedding, so . . .”
“July,” I chimed in, my attention back on the invitation list. Emily and April had been sending them out in their free time in groups of ten or fifteen, and someone needed to make sure none of the names had fallen through the cracks. And since I’d been the one to point that out, that someone had become me. It was going well, though; most of the invites had been sent out, and I could probably get the last of them addressed in the next few days. RSVPs were already starting to come back too, so that was my next task.
“July.” April sighed. “Great.” But when I looked up she dropped a quick wink at me, and I caught the ghost of a smile that she camouflaged with a sip of her wine.
“I know. I’m sorry.” Emily’s sigh was a more genuinely aggrieved echo of her sister’s. “Getting married at Faire seemed like a really good idea last fall, didn’t it?”
“Hey,” I said, “it’s still a great idea. The wedding is going to be fantastic.”
“I know.” Emily sighed. “Everything’s happening so fast now, though. All the prep, along with Faire rehearsals every weekend, and there’s still a lot to plan . . .”
“For the wedding or for Faire?” April asked.
“Yes.” Emily nodded. “Both.” Her eyes were wide, and her chin trembled a little. Oh, man, she wasn’t kidding around. She was overwhelmed. I’d never seen a problem that Emily couldn’t plan her way out of. This was serious.
I put down my pen and grasped her arm, getting her attention. “We’ll get it done,” I said. “Don’t worry.”
“We will,” April said. “And it’s all going to happen at my dining room table.”
“Oh, whatever.” Emily’s snark was coming back as she glanced up at her sister. “It’s not like you throw any dinner parties anyway.”
“I might.” April took another sip of wine, but her eyes laughed at us over the glass. I knew her well enough by now to know that our book clubs were as social as she got. Odds were good that she’d never thrown a party in this house, and wasn’t likely to do so anytime soon.
“You won’t.” Emily picked up her own glass of wine. “And that’s what you get for having the biggest dining room table.” She was back to joking around; she was going to be okay.
“Plus you’re a better cook than I am,” Mitch said.
April snorted. “I can see that, considering your contribution tonight.”
He shrugged again. “Some people are good at cooking. I’m really good at picking up takeout.”
“Everyone’s good at something,” Simon said absently from the other end of the table. He frowned at his laptop before looking up at Mitch. “Speaking of which, how are the acts coming?” Simon was holding down the Faire-planning end of things while Emily took care of the wedding stuff. They were a list-making power couple.
“It’s getting there,” Mitch said. “There are a few that I still have to confirm, and a good seventy-five percent still have to send in their contracts, but I’m sure it’ll work out fine. It always does, right?”
“Well, yes.” Simon’s frown didn’t go away. In fact, the crease between his eyebrows deepened. “But not without effort. You’ll be able to stay on top of it, right?”
“Well . . .” Mitch rubbed the back of his neck. “Here’s the thing. Baseball season is winding down, but I’m pretty sure we’ve got a shot at State this year. I’ve really got to concentrate on my guys right now. I mean, I’ll do what I can, but . . .”
Simon sighed. “Okay.” His eyes sharpened and he pinched the bridge of his nose; he was thinking hard. “Okay,” he said again. “I suppose I can take that part over, so you can . . .”
“No, you can’t.” Emily’s eyes were just as sharp. Bridezilla or not, the closer it got to go time, the more stressed out she’d become.
So I jumped in, to try and diffuse some of her tension. “What about Chris?” As the words came out of my mouth I realized that she should be here. Didn’t she help organize Faire every year?
But Simon and Emily shook their heads in tandem. “She’s still in Florida,” Emily said. “With her mom.” She clicked through the calendar app on her phone. “She comes back in June, so she can help with rehearsals at least.”
Mitch sucked in a breath. “Yeah, I need someone to take this over before then.”
“Okay,” Simon said. “I’ll see if I can . . .”
“Oh, no, you don’t,” Emily said. “You have wedding stuff to do. We’re meeting with the bakery soon, and we still have a million little things to decide on. Like, you know, what you’re wearing.”
“I’ve got a kilt you can borrow,” Mitch said cheerfully. Emily snorted, and even Simon cracked a smile.
“No one’s checking out my knees at my wedding,” he said.
“I’ll do it,” I said.
Simon raised an eyebrow. “What, check out my knees?”
“They’re not that great,” Emily tsked. “Sorry, hon. Your strength really lies in your leather pants.” She looked thoughtful. “Are you sure you don’t want to get married as Captain Blackthorne? My mom would love to see you in that hat.”
“No.” Simon’s voice was stern, but his eyes warmed as he looked at his fiancée. “I’m not getting married dressed as a pirate. That’s final.”
I couldn’t believe this. They’d all completely lost the thread of the conversation. Was this Opposite Day? How was I the only one who cared about Faire right now? “What I meant was, I’ll do the entertainment stuff.” I looked over at Mitch. “It’s just down to confirmation, right?”
“Yep,” Mitch said. “Almost everyone’s booked, like I said. Once w
e get the contracts, it’s just a matter of confirming rooms for the ones who need them and sending them their confirmations. We have a deal with a couple hotels and split the cost with the performers fifty-fifty. And it’s not even that many. Most of these guys camp in RVs. It’s just a few that use the hotel.”
“I know that,” I said. I probably said it a little too quickly, but I was pretty familiar with at least one of the hotels, and at least one of the acts who took advantage of our offer of rooms. A thrill had started taking hold in my chest the moment I’d volunteered for this. It didn’t make sense: Dex had nothing to do with contracts and hotel reservations. His cousin Daniel was the one who handled that minutiae. But there was still a part of me that was excited to see the Kilts listed as performers. Confirmation that he was coming back into my life. My real life.
If Mitch noticed my uncharacteristic eagerness, he didn’t say. “Yeah, so that’s basically it. You think you can handle it?”
I waved a hand. “No problem. Do you have a list of what you’re still waiting for?”
“Yep. Here . . .” He pulled his phone out of the pocket of his jeans and sent me a text, judging from the answering beep that came from my phone in my bag hanging on the chair behind me. “That’s the password to the email account; just about everything is in there. I’ve got a spreadsheet with everything else. I’ll email that to you tonight.”
“That sounds perfect.” I wasn’t sure why I was so impressed at Mitch being that organized. It was easy to think of him being the fun guy who shoved tequila shots in my direction at Jackson’s, but the man coached football in the fall and baseball in the spring. Of course he was organized.
“You sure you don’t mind?” Simon’s words were careful, but I caught the meaning behind them. He knew, Emily knew, hell, probably Mitch knew, that I wasn’t exactly stellar when it came to organization and planning. It was a weakness, and something I wanted to get better at. I was great at big-picture stuff, and I could tell when things were going wrong, but details overwhelmed me. I wasn’t great at figuring out what puzzle pieces I needed to make that big picture happen.