Page 2 of Ever With Me

Maddie sniffled, then stood. She found her way to the bathroom to take a minute and calm down. Make sure her expression didn’t readon the verge of tears.

She wouldn’t let Gina see a single tear on her face.

Checking the time, she took a few deep breaths. The committee meeting would start in five minutes. She’d slip in after it had already started to avoid any of the small talk that took place beforehand.

Maddie paused in front of the mirror and pulled out a tube of lip gloss, then reapplied. Her face looked blotchier and more pinched than she wanted it to—a side effect of how red she got every time she cried.

There would be time for her tears later when she got back to her place.

Not now. Right now, just get through this meeting.

She concentrated on breathing deeply, thankful no one else came into the bathroom. When enough time had passed, she hurried back out to the foyer, then found her way into the main hall.

The group had gathered toward the front of the hall. Usually, the main hall was packed for town hall meetings, as Brandywood wasn’t a town content to have a few octogenarians running things. Everyone wanted a say.

However, at committee meetings like this one, the groups that gathered were considerably smaller. Josh didn’t need to be here—but he’d come with Gina to represent the Stricklands. Maddie had always taken town fair committee duty for her family, a fact she now regretted.

Luckily, TJ was chair of the town fair committee this year. As a transplant to Brandywood, he was neutral on the most divisive issues in town. Friendly and funny, TJ was easy to get along with.

“Did you get the handwashing station rented from Larson’s?” TJ was asking Dottie Perkins.

Dottie, a sixty-year-old Black woman who’d handled the petting zoo for years, smiled politely. “I told you I did last time.”

TJ scratched his beard. “Sorry about that. We’re mostly down to crossing T’s and dotting I’s at this point.” He struck through a line item on a paper attached to the clipboard in his hand, then grinned at the group of eight. “In the interest of saving everyone’s time, is there anything new we need to add to the agenda today?”

Predictably, Gina raised her hand. “I have a change to announce in the lineup for one of the main events. It turns out River House isn’t available on Saturday night for the fair, so they’ve agreed to play on the main stage on Friday night. I already spoke to the band that we’d scheduled, and they’ve agreed to be an opening act instead.”

Just breathe.

Maddie’s heart ached against her tight chest.

“Oh.” TJ furrowed his brows at Maddie. “I mean, I guess that’s fine for Friday night—we’ll have to edit the website and any associated social posts—but what about Saturday? Who’s playing then?”

Maybe if Josh hadn’t just sprung this on me, I’d have an actual answer.

Maddie’s throat went dry as everyone’s gazes trained on her. Conveniently, Gina pulled out her phone and looked at it.As though anyone has proper service in the town hall.

“Uh, so I’m working on it still and don’t want to make any official announcements until I’ve got a signed contract in hand.” Maddie cleared her throat. The weight of expectation on everyone’s faces was clear.

Gina quirked a brow, a mocking laugh on her lips.

Fury rankled Maddie. She leveled her gaze at Josh, then TJ. “I amveryclose, though, to booking a national act that will blow everyone’s socks off. Maybe the biggest band that’s ever come to Western Maryland and definitely to Brandywood.”

Now why in the hell did I say that?

“Really?” Gina said dryly. “And who might that be?”

Shit.She really shouldn’t have opened her big mouth.

“Someone huge.” Maddie glared at Gina. “But they’d prefer I not make any announcements until it’s official. It’s an old friend—someone I’ve known for years.”

Dammit, dammit, dammit.This lie kept getting worse and worse. All because—what—she wanted to save two seconds of face in front of Gina now? This would just make her look so much worse in the future.

She should just admit the truth and be done with it.

But that little smirk in Gina’s eyes made her temper flare.

Maddie drew a thin-lipped, plastic smile, then flipped her hair over her shoulder coolly. “I should have a confirmation by the end of the week,” she told TJ.

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