Blake was so busy with volunteering, extracurriculars, and babysitting that she rarely had a weeknight off. She used to have Wednesdays. Now it seemed it would be Tuesdays. Tuesday was theonenight Jenna did something for herself. It was Girl’s Night. They did Trivia Night at JT’s Roadhouse. But as she stared at her daughter, she made an on-the-spot executive decision: this Tuesday would be her final Tuesday Trivia Night. Not only that, for the next three years she was not going to take on any projects, any responsibilities, or any extracurricular activities, including dating.
Every spare minute she had was going to be soaking up the time she had left at home with Blake, because she’dnever get this time again. Once she left for college, that was it. Game over on raising her baby girl.
“Oh, yeah.” Blake lifted her head once more. “So, then we have to move prom dress shopping to next Tuesday. I already asked Viv and Ava and they can both come.”
Of course sheaskedViv and Ava and just assumed that Jenna would be free, because she always was. And she would be because she’d just decided this Tuesday would be her last Trivia Night. “Tuesday works.”
“Rayna thinks it’s so dope that you’re not threatened by Ava.”
“The more strong women in your life that love you the better.”
Blake tapped her forefingers and thumbs together in silent applause, the way the kids did it these days. “We love a secure queen.”
Jenna grinned as her daughter disappeared from her doorway, glad that’s how her daughter saw her, but not exactly feeling worthy of the crown or title.
She wasn’t gonna lie, when her daughter asked if she could ask Ava and Viv, prom dress shopping had it felt like a stab in her heart? Sure. But that was a Jenna issue, not a Blake, Ava, or Viv issue. She was mature enough not to make it about any of them.
Ava was Blake’s stepmom. Viv was Ava’s sister. In another universe, Jenna would have resented the way her ex-husband’s new wife and her three sisters had absorbed Blake into their family so seamlessly. But here, in Hope Falls—a town whose main export was well-adjusted blended families—it was just another thing to be grateful for in a way that sometimes felt like swallowing gravel.
Jenna had grown to appreciate Ava and her sisters. They were even friends. Although, she had to admit, itwashard seeing her ex find his soul mate. It was all she’d ever wanted, if she were being honest with herself.
When she’d moved across the country eighteen months ago, it was supposed to be a fresh start. Jenna had been determined to model “resilience” for her daughter. She landed on her feet, opened The Beauty Spot and built a client base. She’d even taken up Pilates and become besties with the yoga studio owner, Tiana, another transplant who had just survived a horrific divorce. She laughed at the right volume during girls’ nights, posted selfies, and convinced everyone—maybe even herself—that she was exactly where she wanted to be. The Miss Independent act was, she could admit, just that: an act. In her private moments, Jenna sometimes wondered if anyone believed her. She wondered if she believed herself.
When people tried to set her up, she told them she wasn’t interested. It was what she told herself she wanted because she knew she could never depend on anyone, especially a man. Life taught her that lesson at a very early age.
But she’d secretly signed up for dating apps. Which reminded her... She pulled out her phone and deleted Hinge, Bumble, and Match.
She sighed as she stared down at her phone. The truth was, she wanted to have someone who took care of her, just like she took care of them. She thought that was a fairytale, but since being in Hope Falls, those relationships were everywhere, she witnessed them on a daily basis. Her ex-husband was currently in one. His wife’s three sisters all found their happily-ever-afters. Hell, they had a town slogan that Viv had come up with called the Hope Falls Effect. It was plastered on all sorts of Hope Falls swag. Tourists had it on mugs, shirts, and hats. She had it on merch in her shop.
HOPE FALLS EFFECT™
Hope Falls:
noun (place)
1. a small, picturesque town tucked in the Sierra Nevada with an idyllic landscape backdrop of lush, deep green pine trees and dotted with colorful aspens. The heart of the town, Main Street, is a five-block stretch of small storefront businesses, lined on each side with wooden sidewalks filled with a cast of colorful characters sure to enrich your life.
Effect:
verb (action)
1. someone who never thought they would ever fall in love or fall in love again, and suddenly they meet their soul mate
2.a person who thought that their career was over
suddenly gets a new opportunity that changes their life forever
3. someone who is running from something bad in their past or has issues with their family, they move here and the situation resolves itself
4.those who are lonely find support from the community
5. things magically fall into place in the following areas: love, career, friendship
6.saves people
7.heals people
8. is the missing puzzle piece in people’s lives that was all about finding your soul mate.
