Page 96 of Meet Me at the Grand

Cody stared at him. “I’m sorry. Did you just say you want me to help you pick out a gift for your girlfriend? You can’t be serious.” He spread his hands wide. “I’m not exactly the person to ask for romance advice.”

“Oh, come on. You’re probably a secret romantic.”

“As evidenced by the girls lined up, knocking down my door.” Above their heads, the shop fan turned on, its huge blades stirring up the oily scent of the building.

“The right girl is out there for you. I know it.”

A flash of a smile, brown curls, green eyes. She’d been out there since he’d first met her at four years old. He shrugged it away.Thatgirl was off limits.

“You’ll be glad to know there is no romance involved anyway. I just wanted to buy Dani and myself a pair of fishing rods. I thought fishing could be a fun activity for us.”

Cody pictured Dani and Liam out on the water, Liam getting sprayed by fish guts. “You seriously want to do that? Aren’t you supposed to be a city kid?”

Liam uncrossed his arms. “Yeah, well, I’m trying to do better. This is a first step.”

“I don’t know, man, fishing rods are kind of romantic.” The newest Bass Pro Shop catalog featured a few that had made his heart skip a beat. Shoot. He really needed to get out more.

Liam laughed. “Maybe for you. What do you say, can you help me find a good starter rod and some tackle?”

“Sure, it’s no problem. I’ll text you a few links.”

“Hello!” Dani’s voice echoed through the cavernous shop.

“We’re on the other side of the boat,” Cody called back.

A moment later and Dani came into view. Cody had known the willowy blonde all their lives. She walked to Liam’s side, and he put his arm around her. She smiled up at him, and Cody glanced away, a pinch forming under his breastbone.

“I’ve got to get going,” Liam said. He dropped a kiss on the top of Dani’s head. “See you both later.”

“I need your help with something.” Dani clasped her hands.

A laugh burst out of him. “No warm-up? Just straight to the punch? I already told you I don’t want to take out any tourists on charters.”

She held up a hand to stop him. “No. It’s nothing like that. You know about the revitalization project, right?”

“I was at the town hall meeting, yeah.” Cody pulled a stool out from under the bench and placed it in front of Dani before grabbing one for himself. “We may as well sit, and you can explain. Want a Coke?”

She shook her head and sat. “Okay, so you know that step one of our plan is to rebuild and reopen the hotel so we have a place for guests and seasonal workers to stay, right?”

Cody nodded. The work on the hotel had already begun. Everyone in town knew about that. He crossed his arms and leaned against the workbench, the metal cool through his T-shirt. A tang of engine oil hung in the air.

“Step two is all about opening the businesses themselves. You know how we have all these open storefronts on Main Street?” Dani’s gestures grew more expansive as she warmed to her topic. “Uncle Seb owns those, obviously, but as part of our revitalization plan, he’s willing to majorly lower the rent for the first several years to attract new owners.”

“Sounds reasonable.” Cody cocked his head. “But is that really enough to get people here?”

She shifted on her stool, leaned forward. “Not on its own, no. Recently I saw a Travel Channel documentary about a tiny town in Italy. After the pandemic, this town had all of these empty homes and offered to sell them for the equivalent of a dollar just to get people there.”

Oh. Wow. He sat up straight. “So, you’re going to do the same thing?”

“Basically. So many of the older homes behind Main Street were left abandoned over the last decade. People moved away and couldn’t pay their mortgages, so the town pretty much claimed ownership.”

“Right.” So many families had left over the years. Jonathon Island was still amazing, but to think about what it used to be…the comparison ached. “And those are the ones you’re going to offer for a dollar?”

“Yes, but not just to anyone. To business owners who apply—and are vetted and approved by the town council. We have fourteen available storefronts and at least that many empty homes. Here’s hoping we have a lot of applicants.” Dani chewed her bottom lip. “That’s the part I’m most worried about.” She stared up at the vaulted ceiling for a moment.

In the silence, Cody heard the ticking of the clock mounted on the far wall. Overhead, the fluorescent lights buzzed. Finally, he cleared his throat. “So, what exactly are you wanting me to do?”

Dani’s smile flashed again as she looked at him. “I want to hire you to make sure the buildings and houses are move-in ready. We want people to be able to see how charming Jonathon Island really is.” She named the amount she’d been authorized to pay him. “Uncle Seb is chipping in a lot of the money, since he owns the buildings, but the town promised to put some up too. We’d like you to start right away.”

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