Page 48 of 40 and (Tired of) Faking It
Letting them steal her happiness.
And potentially letting them ruin a relationship that had opened her eyes to her own strength, as well as the knowledge that a man could actually live up to the dreams she had regarding love.
Her approach all this time had been to ignore the rumors. To refuse to respond. If someone couldn’t say anything nice… But that hadn’t helped the situation. It had been tolerable when the comments had grown intermittent, but now, with JD here, she was tired of just letting it go. Tired of letting Mason bad-mouth her. Tired of letting people get the best of her while at the same time ignoring the job that she did and how hard she worked. She was just tired.
Maybe it was time for a new approach. And maybe she should’ve considered that a long time ago.
JD’s impact on her life had been far bigger than simply showing her a good time in bed. He’d helped her peel back the layers of shame that had slowly stacked up on her, and reminded her that there was nothing to be ashamed of. None of this was hers to take the blame for. The naysayers were wrong, and she needed to start stating that instead of just ignoring it.
And she had to start tonight.
She’d wondered if JD would be at the coffee shop when she arrived. He’d called first thing, left a message, but she hadn’t been ready to listen to it, had needed the time to sort her own thoughts out first. Now, crossing the street toward Wildwoods, she couldn’t help but marvel at the difference a few days could make. It had only been one week since her birthday, a milestone she had dreaded, and yet now her life had changed significantly. And not just her love life.
JD wasn’t inside when she entered. In the bustle of the shop, she was able to grab her breakfast and hurry out, using work as an excuse not to linger with her friends, who promised to see her tonight at the planning commission meeting. She nibbled her egg muffins as she walked down Main Street toward the courthouse, waved her mocha at people she encountered as she went through town, just like she usually did. Some people smiled; some didn’t. That was no different than any other day either. As a public official, she knew not everyone was going to like her, and not everyone should. She needed those checks and balances to keep her eyes on what was best for the town.
Being mayor wasn’t always about being popular. She’d always known that, had prepared herself to face opposition whenever it arose. She wasn’t fragile. But she had allowed Mason to weaken her belief in herself to the point where people’s misguided opinions about her motives could tear her down.
Not anymore.
“Morning, Lily.”
Evan’s warm smile as she entered the office was reassuring.
“Morning! How was your weekend, Evan?”
They made small talk as she threw away her trash and finished off her coffee—a typical Monday morning, even if tonight’s meeting made this particular Monday significant. She wouldn’t give in to doubt. As Papa had reminded her, she was strong, even if she sometimes lost sight of that fact.
Time to get down to work. As she gathered her things, she reminded Evan, “We need to post reminders on our social media pages and the town forums this morning about the planning commission meeting.”
“Sure.” Evan grinned down at his writing pad, scribbling a note to himself. “Although I don’t think many people will need the reminders. Seems to be all the town was talking about this weekend.”
She’d figured as much. “The grapevine is working, huh?”
Of course it was. And no doubt her date last night had added fuel to the fire. The Whitlocks had probably been texting friends before they even got to their table at the restaurant.
Evan snickered. “As always.” When he looked up, he caught the wry twist of her lips and gave her a sympathetic smile. “You know how it is. Everyone’s got an opinion when it comes to something this big.”
“Or someone. JD is going to have a profound effect on this community one way or another.”
“And on you?” Evans asked knowingly.
She eyed him for a moment but couldn’t detect any judgment. “On me too,” she finally agreed. Not wanting to dig any further into that subject, she pushed on. “So are most of the comments about my relationship with JD or the disadvantages of this deal for the town?”
“About even,” Evan admitted.
She couldn’t resist rolling her eyes. “Don’t people have anything better to do than to talk about my every movement?”
It was a rhetorical question. In this town, no, they didn’t. Still…
“Honestly”—Evan tapped the pen he held against the desk—“I think it’s less about you and more about who you’ve hooked up with.”
Lily’s eyes widened in horror. “Please tell me the phrase ‘hooked up’ is not appearing on our town forums.”
His amusement was not appreciated, nor was the long pause he put her through before he finally answered. “No one is saying that,” he reassured her. “At least, not on the public forums.”
She worried for a moment that her eyes would pop out of their sockets.
Finally taking pity on her, Evan shook his head. “Probably half of what’s going around is pure fiction or fantasy. Okay, more fantasy considering JD’s…”
