Few things changed at Harper High since Angie graduated seven years ago. The hallways still had a sticky wax to cover up the scuffs of tennis shoes. Football banners decorated every available space on the doors of classrooms, and the school had a permanent smell of pine cleaner and exercise band rubber. The latter scent was more noticeable since the reunion was held in the school gym.

“It’s good to be back at Harper High.” Max chatted with a couple football buddies of his, along with a cheerleader he once dated and her new husband. Angie stood at the beverage table with them, half-listening while she sipped fruit punch mixed with pineapple juice and Sprite out of a thin paper cup. A Jack White song blared from the speakers set up on stage. The band was somewhere outside, taking a break between sets.

She scanned the gym. She could count the number of people she knew on one hand. They must have moved out of town shortly after graduation. Then again, her senior class was three years behind theirs.

“Do you remember Angie’s part in The Wizard of Oz?” Max tried to bring her into the conversation. Once again, she was stunned he actually remembered her small role as a Munchkin.

His friends maintained polite, vague smiles. She said hi and asked about where they lived now, what they were up to, questions that a quick glance at a social media account could answer in five seconds. What was the point of high school reunions in this day and age, anyway?

Chill. She told herself to calm down and took another sip of pre-diabetic punch. Max’s class reunion wasn’t as awful as she was making it out to be. Maybe a little boring, but what did she expect? Besides, she wasn’t there to be entertained. She had a job to do, a role to perform as Max’s small town fiancée.

The band returned on stage to play covers of Britney Spears and Black Eye Peas songs. After the third pop number, the lead singer spoke into the mic. “Ladies and gentlemen, please take a moment to watch this tribute to a beloved classmate and American hero.” He put the mic on the stand and stepped into the shadows on stage as the lights dimmed.

Angie watched a screen being lowered from the curtains. What was this?

The band played music softly while a light shone on the screen. Angie’s mouth formed an “o” when her brother’s senior picture appeared. More images of him followed. She saw Detrick in his football uniform, another one with the team, and an eighteen year-old Max standing beside him. Where did these pictures come from?

The soft music continued to play. She wiped a tear as the screen showed her and Detrick posing together for some goofy Siblings Day photo. They both looked like little kids. Next, a short recording played from when Detrick tried out for his first and last solo in choir. It went so hilariously wrong. Then the screen showed him in his Army uniform, fresh from basic training, and in his dress blues when he graduated. The screen cut to black after displaying his full name and the dates of his birth and death.

The audience clapped when it was over. Angie heard a few sniffles. She wiped another tear from her eye.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we wanted to take a few minutes to honor one of Harper’s bravest men. His sister is here tonight. If you see her, let her know you appreciate her coming out to celebrate the life of Detrick Franklin with us.”

The band launched into an upbeat tune as the lights brightened. Angie looked around for Max. He was nowhere to be seen. People approached her to introduce themselves as Detrick’s former classmates.

Fifteen minutes went by as she heard stories about her brother, some uplifting, some funny. Then Max appeared by the beverage table with a frosty cup of ice water. He waited until all the people left her before he went to her. Angie accepted a cup of water from him. “Did you see the tribute to my brother?”

“I did. What did you think of it?”

“It was beautiful.” She took a sip of the refreshing ice cold water. “Did you organize it?”

He said yes without exactly saying yes. “I kept those football photos. I may have also asked old friends if they had any pictures and videos of Detrick.”

Angie was touched by all the effort he put into the presentation. “I wasn’t expecting this tonight.”

Max gave a slight frown. “It wasn’t out of place, was it?”

“Of course not. I love how you did it.”

“I wanted to do something to honor Detrick’s memory. He was a great friend. I still miss him.”

“Me, too, but he would’ve been happy to know we went to a party with his friends and danced.”

“Speaking of dancing, I haven’t seen you out on the floor yet.”

“Me, dance? No.”

“Come on.” Max set his water down and took hers away. “Just one. It could be the last slow song of the night.”

Angie let him lead her out into the throng of couples dancing. The band played a cover of a Mariah Carey song. Max held her around the waist and swayed to the music. She put her arms around his neck.

A long time ago, her young teenage self would’ve loved to have this moment dancing with him. She closed her eyes and could almost imagine being in this same gym years ago, fretting about how to keep lipstick off her braces.

“You’re smiling.”

She opened her eyes to see Max staring at her.

“What are you thinking about?”

She watched his lips form the words to the question. First, she was thinking about braces and wanted to laugh. Now she was thinking about his lips. She’d never admit to thinking about kissing him. “I’m impressed how a male singer can hit some of Mariah Carey’s high notes.”

Max saw through her act. “You weren’t thinking about him singing.”

“If you know what’s going on in my head, why did you ask me?”

He smiled and kissed her forehead. “You’re right. I don’t know. I just wanted to see you make that expression when you get mad, the one where your nose scrunches up.”

Her skin warmed at her brow and spread all over. She needed to get out for some air. “I’m going to look at the trophy case outside in the hall.”

“Fine with me. The band will probably play one or two more songs.”

Angie meandered out into the hall. Max came up beside her and put her hand in his. “Appearances. Remember.”

She almost forgot. For a while, she allowed herself to play into the belief they were simply at a high school reunion enjoying themselves.

They looked at the old and new trophies before leaving the reunion. Lou was outside with a new limo. He told them the other was in the shop, and apologized for the inconvenience.

“No worries,” said Max. “It all turned out fine.”

Angie got into the vehicle. Her pretend fiancé took his usual seat across from her.

“Did you enjoy the reunion, even though it wasn’t your class?”

She replied, “Yes. You?”

“I had a great time. I got to talk to old friends and dance. You saved the day by fixing the limo. That was kinda hot.”

Her former awkwardness returned. They were out of the public eye. Did Max forget he was no longer playing for a crowd or was he just entertaining himself to see what reactions she’d give? “What’s hot, me or the other limo’s engine?”

“Good one. They should’ve given you comedic roles in the school plays.”

Because that was her, right? Good for a laugh. Angie stretched her legs. The night was basically over and she should feel relieved, but she felt even more stressed. She still had a crush on her high school crush turned businessman.

There was money involved now. A contract. She couldn’t throw it away by allowing herself to start daydreaming like she was back in high school again. The Max Kelly of her youth could crush her innocent little teenage dreams. The man sitting across from her today had the power to rescind his contract and money. She had too much responsibility on her hands to have her head in the clouds.

Max prepared to walk Angie to her door when the limo reached her house. She shook her head, mumbled a phrase which sounded like a rushed “I’m good” and darted out of the vehicle like it was on fire.

Lou’s voice came on the speaker. “Where to now, sir?”

“The Kleghorn.” He glanced at his watch. After midnight. The reunion wore him out. He’d get a room at the hotel and make the drive to Atlanta in the morning.

As the limo took him to the hotel, he thought about Angie. No matter what, he just could not stay on her good side for long. Was it the tribute to her brother? Did his surprise turn out to be the wrong move?

He wanted to kiss her during the dance. What was wrong with him? He needed to focus on the whole point of their fake relationship status, not actually start to buy into it himself.

His phone vibrated in his pocket. He received a call from Steve Preston at the time he arrived at the class reunion. The music must have drowned out the ringtone. He listened to the voicemail. “Max, it’s Steve. My son just told us his paintings are going to be at an art show in New York in two weeks. Why don’t you and your fiancée fly up then? We’ll talk more and I’ll introduce you to investors in the health care sector who are interested in the Harper hospital project. Take it easy.”

Max pumped his fist. This was it. Steve wouldn’t bring other investors into talks if he and Charley didn’t plan on selling the land for the hospital.

He had to tell Angie. He hoped she wouldn’t mind another surprise. This was a good one.

He looked at the time on his phone. On second thought, it could wait until tomorrow.

Angie spent the Sunday afternoon prepping meals for the week and helping Raymond with his addition and subtraction for school. She tucked him into bed at eight-thirty after reading him a bedtime story. “Goodnight, sweetie pie.”

“Mom, when is Max going to come over and throw a football with me again?”

She still sat on the fence about Max spending more time with her son. “How would you like to play on a soccer team this summer?”

Raymond pulled his hands out from beneath the blanket. “Cool, but I still want to throw the football with Max.”

She couldn’t change the subject with her boy. Raymond was too smart for a seven year-old, sometimes. “I’ll ask him when he can come over.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

“Get some sleep. You have to get up early for school tomorrow.”

She turned out the lights in his room after giving him a kiss goodnight. Her grandmother already went to bed. Angie went downstairs to finish cleaning up the kitchen. She heard Max calling her cell phone. Last night, she assigned him a specific ringtone. “Hello.”

“What are you doing in two weeks?”

“Attending a family reunion. Why?”

“I need you to be ready to go to New York.”

“What?” She switched the phone to her other ear.

“Steve Preston invited us to his son’s art showing. He and Charley are bringing in people who want to invest in the hospital.”

“So they’re going to sell you the land?”

“Looks like it. Angie, this is it. We have to be at that art show on Saturday night.”

She set her teeth on edge. “If this is it, what about the contract I signed?”

“If you’re talking about the money, I’ll still pay you the rest of the hundred and ten grand. You did your part.”

“What time is the plane flying out? The family picnic is on Saturday.”

“We can take a private jet Saturday night so you can go to your reunion, but I don’t want to push the flight time back any further.”

“Sounds good.” Her grandmother was looking forward to introducing Raymond to older relatives, and she wanted to connect with them as well. “Max, how long would we be in New York? I’ve never been away from Raymond, and my grandmother won’t be able to care for him for days all by herself.”

“You can take him with us.”

“To an art show? I don’t think it’s the place for a second grader.”

“The hotel has a children’s activity program. If you want, I can hire a nanny to watch him while you attend the art gallery with me.”

Nanny. The very word left a bad taste in Angie’s mouth. She didn’t like the idea of dropping her son off with a stranger while she went to fancy parties at night. “I have to ask if my grandmother’s friends can check in on her. She’s independent at heart, but she still needs to get to and from her errands and appointments.”

“I can arrange for an assistant to help her while you’re away.”

“It could work as long as I’m not gone too long. Make sure the assistant has thick skin. I can’t be sure my grandmother will be keen on this whole thing.”

“I’ll talk to her at the family reunion.”

“Excuse me? Did you just invite yourself?”

“Angie, we have to keep up appearances.”

Her mind blazed through all the crazy scenarios which could transpire if Max showed up at the family reunion. “They’re going to grill you with questions.”

He actually chuckled. “I can handle it. I’m used to being grilled. I’ll call you later this week with more details.”

Angie shoved the phone in her pocket. Great. She thought she could relax at the reunion. Now she had Max to worry about. His presence was sure to complicate things with her grandmother and the rest of her family. Worst of all, when this sham of an engagement ended, she’d be the one stuck breaking the news to them.

Could it get any worse?