Page 15 of Every Star that Shines

“I can answer that for you, Amber. Delanie has been a working actor for the past ten years, and she grew up on that stage up there. She might be new to directing, but she’s one of the most brilliant actors this town has ever known, aside from Molly herself. If you’re smart, you’ll stay out of her way and let your daughter benefit from Delanie’s experience.”

Amber’s face puckered. “If she’s so brilliant, why has she only ever done a few commercials and a part in some student film I’ve never heard of?”

Caleb flicked his glance to the phone in Amber’s hand. “Is that what your little Internet search told you? That that’s all she’s done? Huh.”

He turned around and walked through the double doors into the reception hall, letting Amber stew on that for a while. He hadn’t kept close tabs on Delanie’s career for the sake of his own mental health, but his mom had shared tidbits she had heard from Cheryl Fletcher over the years. And Molly had told anyone who would listen about Delanie’s stage career, including her most recent run as a supporting cast member in a production of Legally Blonde: The Musical. No, it wasn’t exactly going to make her a household name, but it wasn’t nothing. And if Amber had only searched Delanie’s film credits on IMDB, like most people would, that wouldn’t have come up.

The parents had assembled in a loose circle near the outer edges of the large open room, leaving space clear at the front where a door and pass-through window led into the dark kitchen beyond. Another doorway beside the kitchen window opened to a wide corridor that led to the basement walk-out entrance.

Delanie came in through the double doors at the back of the room with two binders in her arms and made her way to the front, a troubled look on her face. Violet followed a step behind.

Delanie set the thicker of the two binders on the rectangular grey plastic table that had been set up in front of the pass-through window. Opening the other binder and bracing it against her abdomen, she pulled a pen from the front pocket and started moving it down the page as if checking items on a list. Finally, she looked up at the assembled parents and cleared her throat, and the quiet murmur of visiting friends stilled as everyone gave her their attention. From the corner of his eye, Caleb caught Amber glaring at him before glancing back down at her phone and swiping upward as though reading a long piece of content. He focused on Delanie, but couldn’t keep from smiling a little. She must have found it.

“Hi, everyone,” Delanie said. Though her voice carried through the large room, she had lost the exuberance she’d had upstairs.

Caleb tensed. What had happened between then and now?

“Thank you so much for coming today,” Delanie continued. “As you know, we couldn’t run a production like this without our volunteers. Unfortunately, I just received some disheartening news, and it has left a big gap on our production team. Anne Erickson has been in an accident on the bridge, and she is currently in surgery.”

Gasps and soft whispers of shock and sympathy filled the room. Caleb swallowed. He didn’t know Anne personally, but any tragedy in a community this small would have ripple effects. And he was pretty sure he knew where Delanie was going next.

“Do you know how bad it is?” asked one of the moms.

Delanie shook her head. “Unfortunately, we don’t know much yet, including how long Anne will be unavailable. I think it’s safe to say, if she’s requiring surgery, that she won’t be jumping back into the production immediately. Which means the first volunteer position we need to fill is producer. For Anne’s sake, we’ll call the position Assistant Producer for now, in case she is able to return to her role.”

Uncomfortable shuffles and throat clearings drifted around the room.

“What would be involved?” asked Rachel’s brother-in-law, Dan Wood. His older two kids were in the play.

Delanie found Dan in the crowd and met his gaze. “You’d be involved in a lot of the hands-on work with the play, such as creating and posting schedules, communicating with parents and department heads, keeping volunteers organized, getting the souvenir T-shirts made, et cetera. Basically, anything involved in running the play that doesn’t have to be done by me would be done by the producer.”

“And you would be part of our planning meetings,” added Violet.

Caleb’s chest tightened as he fought the urge to volunteer. Being producer would mean spending more time with Emma over the next seven weeks and making sure her first year in the play was a positive experience. But it would also mean spending a lot more time with Delanie. And he didn’t think that would be good for either of them. So he waited, hoping someone else would speak up.

Amber stepped forward, her eyes gleaming. “I’d be happy to do it. I’ve been involved in the play for years now, and I’ve filled almost every parent volunteer role. I know exactly what to do.”

Delanie hid her consternation well, but Caleb recognized her aversion to the idea in the way she curled a lock of long blond hair around her finger and tugged.

“Okay, um, thanks, Amber. Can I call you Amber?” Delanie smiled brightly, but it was a little stiff.

Amber nodded shortly, a victorious smile on her face. Caleb could only imagine the living hell it would be for Delanie to work with the smug busybody for seven weeks. After everything she’d gone through recently with losing Molly, she didn’t need that too. Before he could rationally think it through again, he heard himself say, “I’d be willing to do it too.”

Relief flashed across Delanie’s face as she looked for the person who had spoken. When she saw him step forward, her hopeful expression disappeared in wide-eyed surprise.

“Caleb. Yes, you’d certainly be a good choice, as well. Um . . .”

Violet touched her arm, and when Delanie glanced at her, Violet turned her body away from the parents, urging Delanie to step away to chat. They murmured back and forth for a few minutes. A low buzz of voices filled the room, making it impossible to hear anything Delanie and Violet were saying, even if Caleb had tried. He could feel Monica’s gaze boring into his back, and Amber’s animosity drilled into him from across the room. But despite his misgivings, he stood his ground. Once he had committed to something, he wasn’t the kind to back down. He had thrown his hat in the ring. Now he would have to deal with the consequences.

And if Delanie chose Amber over him, he would know exactly where they stood.

Finally, Delanie and Violet finished their quiet consultation. Delanie stepped forward with a bright smile on her face, but her clenched hands on the top of the open binder forced the bottom edge into her midriff.

“Thank you both for volunteering,” she said, taking in Amber and Caleb in turn. “Your willingness is deeply appreciated. It was a tough choice, as these things always are, but I think I’ll ask Mr. Toews to take the position.”

Something in Caleb’s chest released, even as Amber’s face darkened.

“I should have known,” she muttered, glaring once more at her phone.

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