Page 31 of I Love a Good Challenge

Her reply surprises me more than the expression on Grey’s face when I turn around to see if everyone is staring. They are. Everyone in the room is turned toward me, and I feel the weight of their glares. Is this the moment the people retaliate, and I’m left running from the room, chased down by pitchforks?

“You belong to this town, Lily,” Ollie, the sweet owner of the toy shop, says in front of me.

Once, Lily told me she had visited his shop since she was a little girl. Her first stuffed animal came from there. Ollie used to give her sparkly stickers that she could put on her lunch box. I think I saw a few of them stuck to a journal she was writing in once filled with recipes she was working on.

My attention goes back to Lily. She’s not making eye contact with me. Her shoulders are hunched. She’s shutting down more and more with each passing second because she knows that my future in Birch Borough does hinge on her.

I feel my shoulders sink. Rafe claps a hand on my back in the way only guy friends seem to do. As much as I usually love anything made by Lily, I’m still chewing the last bite of cupcake, my stomach revolting at the idea of everyone thinking I’m the one who broke someone’s heart. And not just anyone’s heart: Lily’s heart.

I will myself to breathe in and out, my eyes downcast to the crevices on the wooden floor. It was probably installed during the Founding era of American history. Murmurs and a gavel being used mix with my heartbeat and my racing mind. Everything is a blur, but I don’t know what I expected. I guess a woman who ran from a relationship with me wouldn’t also defend me. Makes sense.

“George, I . . .” Lily says quietly.

I refuse to look at her. My jaw works, calculating how many seconds it would take for me to cross the room and get out of here. I’m just about to bolt when Lily’s arm touches mine. She leaps out of her seat.

“Stop!” she yells. “That’s enough. I love you all, but you don’t need to defend me like this. Drop your theoretical weapons.” She takes a deep breath. “He didn’t break my heart.”

Everyone freezes; the only sound is the creak of the heater as it cranks somewhat warm air through the grates in the floor.

“He didn’t break my heart,” she says again, the last syllable vanishing in the air as soon as it’s spoken.

My lungs allow full breaths again. I swallow, my attention shifting fully to Lily. I can’t quite look up at her. My pride won’t allow it, but I can make out the determined set of her shoulders and her wide-legged stance. Sparrow gasps, and Rafe puts his arm around her, his other hand gripping my shoulder in support. This is not how I wanted the truth to come out, and he knows it. But I’m curious to know how much of a revelation she’ll allow.

“Then what—” Clark begins.

Annoyed, Lily makes a noise that sounds like a buzzer. Her hand lifts in a signal for Stop, don’t cross the street.

“But your chemistry . . .” Mrs. Fiore laments.

“His hands!” a woman’s voice yells from the edge of the gathering, and I have no idea how her input could be construed as positive or negative.

The buzzer noise resounds from Lily one more time as she directs her open palm toward whoever is coming at her with their reasoning.

It turns out that she is a superhero with the power to stop people in their tracks. I wouldn’t be shocked if fire started coming out of her hands and flaming in whichever direction she finds opposition.

“But the way he looks at you . . .” Grey says behind us.

Lily doesn’t stop her, even though I know she hears Grey, as it’s clear her words are more observation than a rebuttal. She continues, “Listen here, all of you, before I withhold baked goods and decide not to make any pains au chocolat tomorrow.” There’s a collective gasp about the space. “It’s not your business, but I know you love me. So, leave Graham out of it, and trust me when I say . . . he is a good man.” The last part was significantly softer but still audible.

The murmurings of the crowd carry through the air before the gavel rings out again.

“Well, with that settled, this meeting is adjourned. See you next month!” Clark shouts, waving his hands toward the door.

At that, everyone files out like nothing about this whole evening was noteworthy. I’m still stuck on Lily defending me while speaking of the one dream I told her I had for my life when we first met. She remembered.

“You okay, man?” Rafe asks. “That was wild.”

“I’ve never seen that happen before in my whole life,” Sparrow states with a hint of shock still lacing her words.

Rafe stands. He leans against the chair in front of us, facing me diagonally. “Do you want us to stay with you for a bit? We could go to the tavern?”

I shake my head. Words are still a bit of a problem for me right now.

“Call me if you need me, okay?” Rafe insists.

Once again, I nod. Because that is all I can manage right now.

With another shoulder clap, Sparrow and Rafe extend their goodbyes before making their way toward the door. I hear apologies and, “Welcome to Birch Borough,” swirling around me, even though I’ve already been living here for months.

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