Page 61 of Christmas Home

I chuckled, having been on the receiving end of Corey when I’d overstepped or ignored my health. He could be harsh, but he’d always been truthful, and his heart was in the right place.

“I’ve decided to push the issue. He’ll probably send me packing, but you aren’t wrong,” I said. “My feelings should be respected too. Maybe Clyde isn’t ready for a relationship, and that’s something I might have to just come to terms with, but I’m not going to let things continue moving forward without some sort of commitment from him or at least an acknowledgment he wants this to go forward.”

Corey came over and pulled me into a hug. It was strange for Corey to show any emotion, so the gesture caught me off guard, but I leaned in, thankful I had his friendship when I needed it.

“Okay,” he said, “let’s finish this up so we’re ready to meet with Crawford City’s town council for final approval.”

“Think we’ll get it?” I asked, and Corey smiled.

“All the key players have already seen the plans and agreed. The townsfolk will get to weigh in on it tomorrow, and I have no doubt they’ll all have opinions, but yes, I think we’ll get it.”

“If we do, I want to break ground on New Year’s Day.”

Corey looked at me with shock. “That soon?”

I nodded. “Yeah, I’ve been reading that it’s better for the trees to do the work around them in the winter before they’ve leafed out. I want to keep a strong canopy for the building sites, and both Cliff and Randy have assured me they can work around thetrees we save. I’d like to have the surveyors mark the boundaries, including sidewalks, so we can have our arborists mark which trees we’re saving.”

“Before we bring in the lumber company?” Corey asked, and I turned to see his concerned expression. Maybe he was upset I was spending the money to preserve the old growth that’d sprung up there over the years.

When I saw his smile, though, I knew we were still on the same page. “Yeah, I want to mark the trees we’re keeping before we let the vultures in to take the rest.”

We went over our plans repeatedly, and both of us were ready for tomorrow, but the butterflies in my stomach told me how much I wanted this. We’d tested the feasibility with every contingency we could think of, and unless the numbers we had already showing interest in buying were off, we would be fine.

That didn’t mean I wasn’t nervous. This project had taken on a life of its own, and it was representative of the future I’d planned for myself. A future that involved my new hometown and my best friend and business partner.

forty-eight

Clyde

Ihadn’t seen Ruthersince he left for Nashville. I’d talked to Anita about the letter and about Corey’s rebuke. She basically said they weren’t wrong. Just because I was hurt didn’t mean my hurt wasn’t bleeding over onto Ruther.

In the café, I’d overheard Jake and Doc talking about a meeting where Ruther and Corey would be making a presentation about their development project. The meeting was in the evening, so I didn’t have to miss work.

I rushed up to my apartment after my shift, showered, dressed in half-decent clothes, and rushed to the town hall. Ruther and Corey were sitting at the front of a packed meeting room. I didn’t want to make a scene since I was late, so I slipped in the back but could still see.

Doc, as mayor, called the meeting to order and began discussing topics like the cost of the Christmas concert and lighting this year. I hadn’t thought about that, but I guess the event cost money, even though volunteers did most of the work.That just reminded me I needed to pay closer attention to things like that.

“Now,” he said once he finished telling everyone that the budget was still intact, “let’s get to what we came here for. As you all know, we’ve been discussing the development of the old motel site across the railroad tracks and have been lucky to have attracted a man who has a long history with our community, Mr. Rutherford Crawford.”

There was light applause but some tension as well. Shit, I hoped that didn’t mean they wouldn’t get their plan approved.

“I’ll turn the meeting over to Mr. Crawford and his business partner.”

Ruther stood up and scanned the crowd. When his eyes met mine, he paused briefly, smiled, and began talking.

“This project is one we’re excited to offer. As you can see, Corey is placing boards with sketches of the project up behind me. Lance McCartney, our architect, is also here tonight to answer any questions you may have about the design.”

“Will the houses be affordable?” Mr. Kim Banks called out not far from where I sat.

Ruther nodded. “Construction costs, as you all know, have gone up in recent years. The price will reflect that, but yes, we consider them affordable.”

And just like that, questions began pouring out from the gathered townspeople. I could tell Ruther had prepared a speech, but after pausing, he smiled and began answering questions. Sometimes Corey chimed in, and sometimes Lance would stand up and answer questions.

A full thirty minutes passed before Doc stopped the questioning, probably because it was getting silly. “Thank you, gentlemen, for your feedback. At this point, I’d like to open the floor to the public for remarks.”

Chris’s parents stood up immediately and went to the microphone. “As you know, we moved here after our son Chris took over the library. We had to search for months to find a place to live, and even finding a rental property was near impossible. Had Roth and Chris not redone Mr. Crawford’s mansion, we would still probably be looking.”

I looked at Ruther just in time to see him cringe when they mentioned the mansion. I was just about to go to him when Chris slipped over and patted his shoulder. That kind gesture seemed to help Ruther shake it off just in time for several more people to stand up and go to the microphone.

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