Page 118 of The Fix-Up

I swallowed and turned back in the seat, the metal from the back of the bench pressed against my spine. The overwhelming need to cry hit me hard. My heart physically ached. “What happens? Next month when the six months are up?”

He slid an arm around my shoulders. “I don’t know.”

We sat like that for a long time. The cicadas serenaded us, a toad or two added in their two cents. Beyond the lights of the house, there would be snakes and armadillos, coyotes and possums. Beyond that, the rest of the world waited and with it, the responsibilities and pressures we each carried.

But right now, here on this bench, it was just Gil and me, the steady beat of his heart, the quiet rising and falling of his chest with each breath. A feeling wrapped around me, kept me right there pretending nothing else existed, that my happily ever after was within reach.

It was a nice illusion. One that I knew wouldn’t last.

FIFTY

Love is when my parents help me practice my ballet.

—MAKENLEY G., AGE 10

The day before the Fourth of July celebration was hectic, and that was after a busy week of baking pies non-stop. Just when I thought I was caught up, Ali would show up with an updated estimate for the number of attendees.

“This is going to be huge,” she said, doing a little dance in the middle of the café. “Last year’s was pretty good. But this one…it’s going to blow it away. What town has the hardest-working mayor around?”

“She’s sure not the quietest,” someone muttered.

“Whoops, sorry,” she said, not looking even a tiny bit apologetic. “Gil still bringing his brother?”

I beckoned her to take a seat at the counter, so I wasn’t talking across the room. “I think he’s nervous. His brother was in a car accident when he was a teenager, and he sustained a brain injury.”

Ali nodded. “He told me a little.”

“He did? When?” He sure was getting around the town. Here I thought he stayed home all day and stared at paint drying.

“He had lunch with Theo and me last week. I was picking his brain about Two Harts getting its own community center. He had a lot of great ideas. I like him, Ellie. Are you sure the two of you aren’t…” she made an awkward gesture with the pointer fingers of both hands “…together?”

I covered her hands. “Never do that again, okay?”

She laughed. “Seriously, El. He’s a great guy.”

“Yeah, I know.” Boy, did I know it. “It’s complicated.”

“People say that all the time and you know what? It usually isn’t. It’s usually something a real long talk over a piece of pie could make much easier.”

“Thanks for the tip.”

“You’re welcome.” She grinned. “I asked him about what his future plans were. Thought maybe I could lure him to Two Harts for the community center?—”

“That we don’t have yet.”

“Details. Details. He didn’t say much else to that and then he and Theo started talking about baseball.” She pulled a sheet of paper from her magic clipboard and cleared her throat. “I did come in here on official business. You are hereby notified you have been nominated for Small Business Owner of the Year.”

On the table, she placed a flyer with my photo and two other smiling business owners I recognized. “Me?”

“Yep. We decided to give out three awards. One for volunteer of the year, one for city employee of the year, and one to a small business owner. Show a little pride in our people, you know? At the last city council meeting, we took nominations, then people voted online. The winners are announced tomorrow.” She pushed the flyer toward me. “You should hang it up in the window.”

“Thank you,” I whispered. “I’m not sure what to say.”

“You say, ‘Hell yeah, I’m winning this thing.’ You deserve it, Ellie. Two Harts loves you. You’re one of us. Now, I have about seven million things to do before tomorrow, including the finishing touches on the City Hall float for the parade. We went with a gnome theme this year.”

“You did a gnome theme last year.”

“I know. It makes Peter Stone see red. I have no idea what he has against gnomes,” she said with wide, innocent eyes. There was a story there. It involved gnomes in inappropriate positions left on his lawn. The culprit had never been caught; shehadbeen elected mayor though.

---