I blinked twice, still seeing her in front of me.
Nope, not a mirage.
“I’m sorry for startling you. I thought you’d have seen me walk up the aisle.”
Taking a quick glance at the aisle in front of me, I couldn’t disagree. I really should have seen her. I was too busy fending off exasperating jealously that I missed her completely.
I stood and held out my hand. “Don’t apologize, we were just . . . taking it all in. I’m Polly, Polly Alberton.”
“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Rae James. I help run the program along with Sienna and Jace.”
“Thank you for including my daughter, Ryla,” I said, then winced. “And I sincerely apologize for anything she does in advance. This is my son, Max.” I turned to point out Max, whose was staring at Rae a little dazedly.
“Hi, Max.” Rae flashed a megawatt smile at him. Twin circles of pink appeared on his cheeks.
My thoughts exactly, bud.Because this woman was sincerely gorgeous. Her face was flawless and . . . familiar. Did I go to school with her? Surely, not. I would have remembered her—everyonewould remember someone like her.
“I’m so glad you could come. I must admit, we’ve been excited to meet you since we found out Jace was working for you.”
“We?”
“Sienna and I. She’s up onstage. Her son, Ben, was the one who somersaulted off the stage just now.” Rae grinned and gave a little head shake.
“Kids,” I said absently, still studying Rae to piece together why she looked so familiar.
Focusing her attention back on me, she asked, “I hear you’re a doctor. What brings you to Green Valley?”
“I grew up here. And we needed a change of pace,” I answered noncommittally.
Rae narrowed her eyes a bit at my words, but I was still drawing a blank where I’d seen her before.
“Do we . . . know each other?” I asked hesitantly. “I’m so sorry if we did. I moved away right after high school and haven’t been back much at all since.”
Rae shook her head. “I’m not from here, either. I grew up in Ohio and moved here after I got married. Do you know Jackson James? He’s the county sheriff and my husband.”
Married.The tension in my shoulders immediately eased for a reason I did not want to fully examine.
“Wait, the county sheriff? I think I spoke with you and your husband on the phone recently, when I was checking references for Jace. Your husband was nice . . . .”
Kind of.
The phone call with Sheriff Jackson James and his wife started off as a call to make sure Jace wasn’t a serial killer, and I ended up sweating halfway through the call feeling like I was the one getting interrogated.
“And he seemed . . . protective,” I continued.
“He’s the best.” A small smile played on Rae’s lips as she looked down for a beat, then back to me, smile gone and eyes sharp. “And we’re both protective.”
Huh. Unless I was reading the room wrong, I think I was just threatened. Because that’s what you do for the people you love. You protect them.
I smiled at Rae. I liked her already.
“How long have you been doing the Young Wills program?” I asked.
“A little more than a year now. There wasn’t a local drama program for this age group. We try to keep it a fun, equal playing field, on a first come, first serve basis for the kids who live in the school district. The first few months we had to work out the kinks. There were a few people who signed their kids up thinking this would be a professional acting school and then when we weren’t Julliard, got all miffed.”
I frowned. “Why would someone ever think you were running a professional acting school?”
Rae blinked, looking surprised by my question for a moment before her face settled into a soft, genuine smile. “I have no idea.” Shifting her feet, she nodded at me. “It was very nice to meet you, Polly. I’m glad you came back to town.”
