Page 39 of Olivia's Only Pretending
We shook hands as she left, and my heart sank a little. I knew she probably walked back to her office feeling good about our conversation and would report back to the rest of the department that I was on the right track. But I felt like I’d let myself down, biting my tongue when I should’ve spoken up.
Ifound myself glancing at my watch and the clock on my computer, over and over, counting the hours and minutes until I got to escape to the fall festival down on the campus grounds.Until I got to see my best friend.
Pumpkins and bales of hay were scattered across the campus. Fall had arrived at our little college. I skipped down the steps outside the history building and was hit with the scent of fresh apples, cinnamon, and the pre-rain smell in the air. The airwasn’t necessarily cold today, but it was cooler under the haze of gray and muted sunlight.
I’d worn a long red button-down open over a white tank top. My hair was in a low bun.
Victor gave the bun a light tug in greeting. “Hey, baby girl.” He winked as I turned to him. He had his leather jacket on over his white T-shirt.
“Hey there, it’s my hero.” I slid an arm around him for a hug, which he turned into a full embrace and lifted me off my feet, making me giggle. But I could feel a few eyes on us.
There’s Olivia and her hot, new boyfriend.
He set me back on my feet, with his arms still around my waist, mine around his, smiling up at each other, easily selling the idea that we were something more than friends.
“Pie walk? Pumpkin carving? Candied apples? What’s up first?” he asked.
“Pumpkin carving. The last few years, the pumpkins ran out fast.” I snaked my hand into his and led him toward the pumpkin carving tent.
We got in line, but we didn’t drop our hands. His warm fingers were still tangled in mine.It’s just the charade, I reminded myself, an attempt to calm my excitedly beating heart.He’s just trying to make the Ryan fiasco easier on me.
Even though Ryan wasn’t even in sight.
I introduced him to a couple of my students as we slowly moved up in line. When one of the students called me his favorite professor, Victor gave my hand a little squeeze and shot me one of his proud smiles.
It was finally our turn in the pumpkin carving tent. We walked up to the long table lined with pumpkins for us to choose one and carry it over to the carving stations, which were set up at smaller tables with backless stools.
“I like this one.” Victor pointed at a big orange pumpkin with a bit of a slant. “He looks like one we could turn into a vampire or something.”
“Okay.” I cocked my head to the side. “I think I see the vision.”
Victor scooped up the pumpkin and carried it over to an empty carving station. A student working the booth had just set out a fresh knife, spoon, and a couple of thick black markers. We sat side by side at the plastic table, arms touching.
I picked up the marker. “So, a vampire?”
“A vampire.” Victor rubbed his hands together excitedly. His eyes were eager on me as I drew the two triangular eyes and then added fangs to the mouth.
I dropped the marker when I was done, feeling pretty proud of my work.
Victor examined the pumpkin skeptically, then cleared his throat. “The fangs are good, but his eyes look too friendly for a vampire.”
“Too friendly?”
“Yeah, I think a vampire needs menacing eyes.”
I chewed on my lip, trying to figure out how to make triangle pumpkin eyes … more menacing. After a couple of minutes, I picked the marker back up and made the eyes more angled, thicker. “Menacing enough?”
Victor tapped his chin. “He needs eyebrows.”
I squinted at our pumpkin. He could use eyebrows.
Once we’d finished the outline, Victor glanced down at the knife, then back up at me. “You want to carve?”
I nodded eagerly. “My family never carved pumpkins. I’m not sure if Mom wanted to avoid the mess or, since she worked as a nurse, maybe wanted to steer clear of knives, but we only ever painted our pumpkins.”
Victor chuckled in his quiet way, eyes crinkling as he grinned. “Oh, why does that sound just like Mama Rhodes?”
I shrugged. “Now, here I am, nearly thirty, and a first-time pumpkin carver.”
