Page 66 of The Story of Us
“Thank you. Council members, I’m Dana Sutton. With me is Sawyer O’Dell, and together we represent Ridley Property Development…” As if Jamie needed the reminder. She felt Lucy’s gaze on her, checking to make sure she was okay, but she kept her focus straight ahead as Dana continued, “…which, as you know, has presented a proposal for a redesign to the Waterford Business District.”
Gosh, this was painful.
Jamie squirmed in her chair, almost wishing they would just commence with the vote and call it a day. She didn’t have the emotional bandwidth for another splashy presentation of the architectural renderings of her beloved business district disappearing to make way for some hideous spaceship, and she was pretty certain that was what was next on the agenda because a drop-down screen began to unfurl behind Sawyer’s head.
Dana dazzled at the lectern. “We are here today to withdraw that proposal.”
Wait.
What?
The room buzzed with interest. Lucy grabbed Jamie’s arm, and she knew she should probably react. But she couldn’t. Until she knew exactly what was going on, all she could do was sit there numbly, afraid to get her hopes up.
But then Sawyer shot her a tiny, almost imperceptible wink…and her spirits rose like a buoyant, beautiful, heart-shaped balloon on a string.
“And we’d like to present a new one.” Dana turned toward Eric and his colleagues. “If the council is amenable.”
Eric leaned forward in his chair. “You realize this will mean we’ll have to delay the vote until everyone has a chance to review the designs, in depth?”
“We do. And, honestly? My business instincts are completely against this.” Dana pressed a hand to her heart, and Jamie was more bemused than ever. “But my creative instinct says that what Sawyer came up with deserves to be seen.”
Eric nodded. “Well, then, let’s see it.”
Dana stepped aside to make room for Sawyer at the lectern as the lights dimmed.
He looked out over the audience, briefly locking eyes with Jamie again before he spoke. “Everybody wants the Waterford business district to succeed. The question is—which direction do we take in order to achieve that goal?”
He pointed a clicker toward a projector set up on a small table beside the podium, and a current image of the Waterford business district flashed onto the screen. “If we only choose to preserve history, then we risk failing to revitalize the business district and losing out on the opportunity to bring new business to Waterford.”
He clicked again, and the onscreen image switched to the three-dimensional design that Ridley presented at the previous town council meeting.
“If we just wipe the slate clean, we lose the charm and history of what makes Waterford the kind of place we like to call home,” he said. Then he took a deep breath and aimed a quiet smile directly at Jamie. “But after being back here for the first time in a long time, and having several conversations with the very persuasive Ms. Jamie Vaughn…”
His eyes twinkled, and Jamie couldn’t move, couldn’t even breathe.
“…I started thinking about another route,” he said. This time, when he pressed the clicker, a new version of the design appeared.
Sawyer’s drawings came alive, spinning and revealing themselves, piece by piece. The plans definitely included a new building, but on the ground floor, supporting the new construction, the town favorites remained—the pizzeria, Anita’s Flowers, Olga’s Dance Studio, Beth’s Hobby World, Kagan’s Bikes. He’d even including the duck crossings.
And at the glorious center of everything stood True Love Books & Cafe on its original street corner with the old oak tree towering over its courtyard. Jamie couldn’t believe it. It was everything she wanted—and more, because even though the existing shops were still part of the new project in the same storefronts they currently occupied, the presentation included many charming improvements. Doggy water fountains were evenly spaced along the sidewalk, a huge pergola was placed over the entrance to Anita’s Flowers as a support for the elaborate flower arches she’d always wanted to create, and the pizzeria now had a wide picture window where passers-by could stop and watch pizza dough being tossed into the air. The Ridley coffee cart was still a thing too, parked at a jaunty angle near the entrance to the park, with a pretty striped awning, barstools and a sign promising free hot chocolate on snowy days.
Jamie glanced at a beaming Anita, then at Rick and Lucy, who exchanged a definiteI knew itlook. So this was real…she hadn’t imagined it. Sawyer had listened to her. He’d truly paid attention to all the things she’d been telling him about Waterford and True Love and the old oak tree. Even better, he’d come to understand what made their town so special, because all the added touches were beyond her wildest dreams. So sweet, so perfectly Waterford.
Her breath hitched. All this time she’d been doubting him, when in fact, Sawyer really was a true hometown boy.
True.
She blinked back tears as he finished his presentation.
“I believe this new design will help foster the sense of Waterford’s history and community while respecting the past, honoring the present…” He paused, cleared his throat, and his final words seemed to carry a tender promise. “…and planning for the future.”
“Thank you, Mr. O’Dell. Now…” Eric picked up his gavel, and before she could stop herself, Jamie flew to her feet.
“Can I say something?” she blurted.
Every head in the room turned in her direction. Most notably, Sawyer’s.
Eric nodded. “Please, Ms. Vaughn.”
