“Thank you,” he said.
I nodded back, my shoulders finally loosening. Behind me, Great Aunt Cathy made a disapproving sound.
“You should have stationed someone there,” she said.
“We have limited volunteers, the ropes should be enough for reasonable people to understand not to cross,” I muttered then smiled at Great Aunt Cathy.
Anne caught my eye then, her expression sympathetic. She leaned in slightly. “I think you handled that well.”
“Thank you,” I said, meaning it more than I probably should have. I turned back toward the main area and nearly collided with Caleb.
“Sorry,” I said automatically.
He reflexively took hold of my elbow. “Are you okay?”
“I’m good. Ready to get the announcements and judging underway?” I asked.
“Everything is set up and ready to go,” Caleb replied. His phone buzzed in his pocket.
I noticed the way his shoulders tightened, just slightly, before he pulled it out and glanced at the screen. Whatever he saw made his jaw set.
“Is everything okay with you?” I asked.
“Yeah,” he said too quickly. “I just need a second.”
He stepped away, turning his back as he silenced the call.
I watched him for a moment longer than I meant to.
When he came back, he was smiling again, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.
“Do you need anything else right now?” he asked.
I glanced back at the sculptors, the judges regrouping, the crowd once again contained.
“I think we’re okay,” I said. “For the moment.”
“Here’s the microphone. Just switch it on or off as needed. It’s wireless and will work as long as you are within the roped off area. It will extend a little further than that, but I can’t guarantee how far,” Caleb explained.
“Thank you,” I said as I took the mic from him. I gathered the judges near the first sculpture and reminded myself that my role was not to control them. My role was to keep them moving and prevent open arguments with power tools involved. I gathered up the judges and headed into the roped off area.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the time to stop sculpting has arrived. Our judges are going to take a walk through together, take notes, and then narrow it down to the top contenders.” I clicked the mic off and gestured toward the row of sculptures. “Shall we?”
Great Aunt Cathy adjusted her gloves. “I would have thought the event would draw a bigger crowd. Anne, have you met Caleb Green?”
Anne looked startled. “Kitty’s boyfriend?”
“Oh, no, I’m not…” I tried to protest but someone stepped in my way, taking a photo of me with their phone. “Excuse me?”
“Caleb Green doesn’t have a girlfriend, if he did, I would know about it,” Great Aunt Cathy stated as the person moved away.
“I like Caleb. We are good friends,” I firmly replied.
“Then Anne wouldn’t have any trouble introducing herself to him,” Great Aunt Cathy suggested.
“Grandma, I’m judging the contest right now. Maybe later, okay?” Anne tried to divert Great Aunt Cathy’s attention.
“Right, let’s get judging,” I insisted, trying to steer the conversation back to what we were supposed to be doing.
