Page 56 of Summer People
Fisher breathes like a wild bull, nostrils flaring. It’s far more endearing than it should be.
“Okay, everyone. Quiet down. We’ve got a lot to get through this morning.” A man I haven’t met bangs a gavel against the plastic table he’s sitting behind at the front of the room.
From the back of the room, a man yells, “Yeah, we need to discuss this proposed ban.”
“Sit down, Blue,” Doris hollers.
“Naked painting,” he grumbles as he shuffles closer to the stage and finds a seat. “Who writes a law banning naked painting? Heathens, that’s who. You’re all anarchists, I tell ya.”
“I don’t think that’s the term you’re looking for,” Wilder’s poor mother mutters, cheeks flushing.
Gosh, I love this town.
An hour and a half later, my head is spinning. All the volleying back and forth to catch the firework display that was my first town meeting has given me a crick in the neck. It was complete chaos from beginning to end. Shockingly, outside of Doris, no one voted for the proposal to ban the naked painting. Not even Mrs. K.
“All her stuff is in here?” Mrs. K asks Fisher as I step outside, relishing the warmth of the sun.
Fisher made a beeline for the exit the second the meeting was over, followed by half a dozen people looking for his help with one task or another. I stuck around with Maggie, who stopped everyone she could, asking for their help with the play. She’s a little genius. Those innocent doe eyes and the overalls that make her look like a grown-up Pollyanna are impossible to say no to. Today her overalls are the same shade as my pink golf cart, I’m kind of obsessed—with her and the overalls. No one can say no to her, and she knows it.
Fisher pulls a pink overnight bag out of the back of the truck and hands it to Mrs. K.
“Yup. I’ll be by first thing in the morning to pick her up. And my phone is on. Call if you need me.”
As I approach, Mrs. K’s face lights up. With a squeeze to Fisher’s arm, she backs away. “Have a good night. Sutton will be fine. We’ll see you tomorrow.After breakfast.” She tacks on the last two words like it’s an order.
“Where’s Sutton going?” I ask as Mrs. K heads off with Wilder and Blue.
“She’s sleeping at Mrs. K’s. She forces Eddy and me to leave the girls with her and go out and ‘have fun.’” The last two words are accompanied by air quotes and a sneer.
I can’t totally blame him for being resentful about a night without Sutton. What will I do with myself if she’s not around this afternoon? She’s normally the one who drags me along to all the activities she and Fisher participate in. Now I’ll have to figure out something on my own.
“Well, enjoy your free time.” I force a smile and head toward my golf cart. I’ve gotten better at driving it. Mostly. As long as I avoid hills. Though that can be a challenge when the island is one big hill. Regardless, I do my best to keep my speed low and tap the brakes when I get going a little too quickly. It does result in a bumpy ride, but when I’m alone, and don’t have to worry about Fisher’s grumbling, it feels like my very own roller coaster.
“Wait,” Fisher calls, striding toward me with a diet ginger ale in one hand. He shoves it in my direction, pink straw and all. “I’ll pick you up at six thirty.”
I stare down at the heart-shaped straw in confusion. “Why?”
“So we can walk to the brewery together.”
My breath catches in my throat. He wants to go to the brewery…with me?
And this time Sutton isn’t the one dragging him out of the house.
His irises darken as he watches me, waiting for a response. What the hell is happening right now? When his focus snags on my mouth, a shiver rolls across my skin, and I can’t help but imagine him dragging his lips against mine.
“Okay?” he asks, his brows folding in on themselves.
I shake the ridiculous thoughts from my head and inhale deeply. “Yeah, okay. See you then.”
Fisher eyes me for another second, then turns and strides away without another word.
“Strange man,” I whisper to my soda. Why does diet ginger ale taste so much better through a pretty straw?
Must be another one of those science things.
“So the brewery with Fisher, huh?” Maggie’s voice startles me.
Dammit. I’ve literally been lost in space since Fisher walked away, and from the look of things, he’s long gone.
