Page 9 of Don't Go Faking My Heart
"A riverwalk is not an ocean! And Sugar Maple has no historic significance."
"We have a fort from the Spanish Invasion!" Chick Parkinson says.
"One fort doesn't compare!"
"Oh, you've gotten too big for your britches," Chick Allen says, waving a hand at him. "I'm fixin' to rethink my stance just to spite you."
Ash grabs my forearm. If we can get the Chicks, we may have enough votes.
"You're too smart to do something so crazy," Bill says. Ash goes rigid at the word. "Can you imagine a peach-colored hardware store?"
"A peach-colored hardware store?" Chick Allen looks like he's about to have a heart attack.
"There are a half dozen paint colors to choose from, including plenty of greens and blues," Parker says to Bill. "You watched the same presentation we did. Stop trying to make trouble."
Lou looks at Bill shrewdly, but she has an innocent look to her that tells me she's playing dumb. "Mr. Buckner," she says to Bill, "your restaurant in Charleston is doing well for you, ain’t it? What an honor that you'd find time in your busy schedule to come to Sugar Maple today, of all days. Especially when you've ignored the town for years." Lou's from Georgia, so she always has an accent. But it's a bit thicker right now.
"I can come to any meeting I like," Bill says.
"You can, but you haven't," Lou says. "I don't mean nothin' by it. I find the timing interesting is all."
"She brings up a good point," Chick Hanks says.
"How'd these girls get in here, anyway?" Bill asks, pointing to Parker and Lou.
"You want to phrase that differently," Tripp says, not asking.
"We've owned a marketing firm in town for, gee, comin' on ten months," Lou says innocently. "But you've probably been too busy in Charleston to come home that whole time, haven't you? Bless your heart."
Teddy Prescott, our pretentious mayor, clears his throat. "No need to get nasty."
"I notice you didn't find Bill's comment nasty," the owner of the antiques store says.
"Now don't go readin' into every little thing," Teddy says. "It's a reminder for everyone to keep things civil. And I, for one, am interested in hearing Bill's perspective."
Bill's perspective? Teddy cares about appearances more than anyone in this room. He, of all people, should love the idea of giving the town a face lift. He's the kind of guy who was told how attractive he was his whole life, and now that he's approaching middle-age, he's having a hard time letting go of being a prize pony. Something about a man frequenting tanning beds and getting enough botox to freeze a pond screams "insecurity."
But Teddy entertaining Bill's skepticism opens a can of worms.
"Bill's perspective is that he doesn't want to spend money on a town he doesn't care about," Tripp says.
"I love this town!" Bill protests.
"Why do you care so much?" Teddy asks Tripp. "Did you bring in these hotshots from Chicago in some ploy to take over the town and become mayor?"
Chick Parkinson laughs. "Tripp Carville is twelve dollars away from being a billionaire. What does he want with being mayor?"
"Prestige," Teddy says, his unnaturally tanned skin flushing against his equally unnaturally white teeth.
"Prestige?" Chick Parkinson and a handful of people laugh, but at least a few don't. Are they really worried that Tripp is going to take over the town?
I'm about to ask this, but Teddy starts blustering. "You're tryin' to take over this place! Your little friends want us all to 'invest' in some scheme that will benefit you more than anyone."
"Are you serious?" Ash asks. She looks like a rubber band wound around a toy propeller. If she twists one more time, she'll snap. If she lets go, she'll unwind too hard, too fast, and too chaotically. "Sugar Maple Farms' success has made all of you money, and we did that! My company!"
"You mean the hot one did that," Teddy says under his breath.
And my vision goes red.
