Page 53 of 40 and (Tired of) Faking It
“For being a great mayor,” Erin said sincerely. “You’ve fought for this town from the moment I met you, and here you are, with this big guy”—she nodded at JD—“advocating for us—”
“Advocating how?” a nasty voice asked. “In bed?”
Mason.
Lily’s first instinct was to cringe at how loud her ex had been, loud enough that the surrounding clumps of lingering townspeople could hear him. Heads turned from all areas of the courtyard.
But she didn’t cringe. She didn’t hesitate either.
Stepping out of her friend’s embrace, she moved down the stairs until her head was level with his below her.
“Mason, you need to shut the hell up.”
Man, that felt good.
Silence followed as her words echoed even farther than Mason’s had. Mason glared up at her and opened his mouth to argue.
“No! I’m done with your gossip and your lies. I’m not going to let you do this to me anymore. It stops now.”
“Who says it’s a lie?” His tone implied no one would believe her, but he hadn’t gotten the memo yet. She no longer cared if they did or not. “People keep talking about it because—”
“People keep talking about it becauseyoukeep talking about it.” She could see her friends circling up around her on the steps, feel JD’s touch at the small of her back, and both helped keep her spine stiff. Facing the committee had been exhilarating, but facing her ex-boyfriend… This had been her personal demon to endure for the past three years. Longer than that, even—Mason hadn’t exactly been nice even when they’d been dating. He’d torn her down at every opportunity, and she’d taken it. For what? Just to have a man at her side like she was “supposed to”?
No more. She didn’t need a man at her side. She wanted one, one in particular, but he was standing behind her right now, supporting her, unlike the dick standing before her.
“Look, we all know what you’ve had to say about me, Mason.”
The prick smirked.
“But I’m finally gonna be honest—it wasn’t me who had the problems in bed. You were a lousy lover. Period. The epitome of all those memes about not being able to find a clit.”
Someone—maybe Erin?—actually giggled behind her. Mason’s face began a slow climb toward angry red.
“I am not the one who had any problems finding anatomy. Hell, I had to find my own most of the time because you couldn’t. And I’m definitely not the one who needed a bottle of Viagra in my bedside table because I couldn’t get it up.”
Shocked gasps rang around the courtyard, probably from people who’d never thought their mayor would use words likeViagraandclitandhellin public. And she’d been worried about the phrasehooking upthis morning?
Joke was on her.
A grin threatened to erupt. She forced it back.
“I didn’t get my position in this town because of you or dating you. I got it on my own merits and hard work, which is definitely more than I can say for you. I didn’t ride my daddy’s coattails into a job. But I did think if I just kept quiet, if I didn’t defend myself, it would all die down. You just couldn’t let it go, though, could you? Maybe this goes the other way around. Maybe the only significance you have comes from me and who your father is.”
A sound at the edge of the crowd echoed through the utter stillness surrounding her. Lily looked up to find Dwayne Prescott standing nearby, a horrified look on his face. Probably horrified at her, the things she was saying, but she no longer cared.
“You know”—she forced her gaze back to an angry Mason—“I thought about quitting, I really did, to give the town peace if nothing else.”
“So why don’t you?” he sneered.
“Because I’m not going to give up a job that is special to me for the likes of you. I love this town, and I will continue to work hard for them to the best of my ability, but that’s where I draw the line. Work is work. Who I date—or do anything else with, for that matter—is none of your business. What I do in my private life is. My. Business.” She glanced around the courtyard, meeting as many eyes as she could, including them in her declaration. “My business. Period.”
“Damn right, punkin’,” her grandfather called from a few feet away. “You’re a fine mayor, finer than a lot of people in this town, and that’s all that should matter.”
A light laugh started, rolling into a rumble that took over the courtyard. She wondered how many of the townspeople would start calling herpunkin’.
Mason’s face had reached the fire-engine stage, and she could see the argument boiling up inside him. Before he could release it, JD stepped up to stand beside her.
“You’re done, Prescott.”
