“Before the farmers’ market opens, I’d like to say a few words.” She looked around the square as a sense of calm settled in her chest—that feeling of knowing you’d done everything humanly possible calmed her frayed nerves. She cleared her throat. “It’s safe to say that the Eat Elverna co-op of farmers is a family. When I visited your farms, you showed me nothing but kindness. Your excitement about what you do is palpable. You treated me like family. Today, and every day after, when you interact with the people who come to your booth, I want you to see them as family, too.”
“But they don’t know us,” one of the Sperry sons called.
She pegged the man with her gaze. “Oh, but they do.” She slipped her phone from her purse and opened one of the Eat Elverna social media sites. “Eight hundred and twenty-two. That’s how many people liked the post we put up about how you make your own artisan cheeses at the Sperry Dairy.” Walking from booth to booth, she scrolled through the feed. “Five hundred forty-two. Seven hundred ninety-nine. One thousand three hundred and fifteen. Each one of these is a person who learned about you—who liked what you were doing. You might not know them yet, but they know you. They’ve connected with Eat Elverna online, and today, we show them that they are part of the Eat Elverna family.”
The Sperry brother nodded along with the others.
She glanced at Cal, and, heaven help her, he grinned at her like a kid on Christmas.
That man!
She blew out a slow breath. “Many people have RSVP’d for today’s event. It will most likely be a busy day. My advice to you is to take your time with each customer. It’s an honor to have them visit Elverna.” Thoughts of Jamie entered her mind. She remembered how he used to muse about a day like today. She swallowed past the lump in her throat and kept going, speaking the words he’d say if he were here. “There is no greater job than that of feeding a family and supplying the community with healthy, nutritious food. It’s a gift to have people trust you. It’s a privilege to have their support.” Her bottom lip trembled, thinking of how she’d lied to her followers. But she wasn’t Bella Mae anymore. No, she was Mabel Muldowney—and today, that was enough. She lifted her chin and caught Cal’s eye. “Every farmer here can go into today with a clear conscience knowing that you are what you say you are. Organic. Sustainable. Your food is grown and prepared with love. This is who Elverna is.”
The square remained still for a beat, then two, when a sound caught her attention. And not just any sound—a clap. She blinked back tears as she turned to see the source of the sound.
Elias Muldowney.
Soon, the entire square was engulfed in applause—for her.
Cal came to her side. “I don’t think anyone could have said it better—not even Jamie.”
She nodded, holding back an avalanche of emotions. “I meant it.”
“I know,” he said with so much feeling and so much adoration in his stormy blue eyes, it took her breath away. But before she could say another word, the rumble and hum of cars—lots of cars—floated in on the breeze.
“Look at that!” Kenny called, pointing down Main Street at the sea of automobiles heading into town.
She sucked in a sharp breath as Cal brushed his little finger against hers. To the unsuspecting eye, it would look like nothing—two people simply standing side by side. But it was much more.
“This could be the start of something big. Are you ready for it?” he asked, his expression awash with tenderness.
She held his gaze, and in his eyes, he offered her everything. All of him. Would she take it?
She brushed her little finger against his. “We’re about to find out.”
Chapter 5
Cal
Face your partner! Do-si-do!
Cal observed his grandmother and watched in awe as she clapped to the beat of the square-dancing music. Mabel had hired musicians and a caller for Elverna’s first square dance under the stars, and just like everything else that had transpired over the last twelve hours, it proved to be a hit.
The sun had set, but downtown Elverna was still the place to be. Couples sashayed and twirled as the lights crisscrossing the square lit the scene in an otherworldly glow. On the other side of the square, Betty Young manned a table selling slices of pie and helpings of casserole made with local and organic ingredients, and the line hadn’t let up in hours. Vibrant and alive, laughing children holding ice cream cones chased each other through the crowd of square-dancers as families strolled down Elverna’s Main Street. It had been years since he’d seen the town like this.
Mabel wasn’t kidding when she told him that things were going to get busy.
Busy was an understatement.
The day had passed in a blur. Thanks to her passport idea, throngs of people visited each of the booths. Enthusiastic customers, eager to purchase farm-fresh organic food, flooded into town. People had come from all over—some traveling over one hundred miles to take part. And no one left empty-handed. They’d sold out of everything. Carrots, kale, pies, jams, milk, cheeses, berries! You name it, folks wanted it. And when their supplies ran low, Mabel pulled out sheets of paper, allowing customers to sign up to receive email updates and indicate if they were interested in purchasing a weekly box of seasonal Elverna produce and baked goods.
Hundreds of families indicated that they were.
People even wanted to buy the Eat Elverna hats. He’d retrieved the box with the extras, and like everything else, they’d sold like hotcakes.
When will you be getting more hats?
Will you offer shirts or mugs?
Can we order online?
When will you know what you decide to plant and harvest next?
People couldn’t get enough!
It was as if a switch had been flipped, and all of a sudden, the entire state knew about them. Mabel was also absolutely right about people feeling a connection to the town. While he’d never met any of their customers, they recognized him. Smiling, they’d ask about Cal the Goat or one of the cats. Keen on supporting community agriculture and sustainable farming practices, it was uncanny how many conscientious individuals they could reach with the right kind of online advertising—an untapped well of consumers that he never would have found without Mabel’s help.
But none of that held a candle to what it was like to watch her in action.
Mabel sailed around the square, answering questions, directing customers, and handing out Eat Elverna passports. She’d facilitated several cat adoptions at Claudine’s animal rescue booth. She connected the Sperry Dairy with the director of a daycare center a few towns over that was looking for scheduled milk delivery, and she helped patrons in search of gluten-free alternatives, like the spelt and amaranth they grew and milled here in town.
She’d taken everything she’d learned during their farm visits and wove it together into an Eat Elverna narrative that got people talking—and buying.
And when it was finally time to close the market to prepare for the evening events, there was so much cash inside the lockbox, he could barely get it to shut. It was like something out of a dream. Elverna was on track to start making a profit, and he had the prettiest girl in town by his side.