Page 18 of Falling Again
“How would I survive without you, Trudy?”
“You wouldn’t, and neither would your father or his predecessor. It’s a poorly kept secret, but I run this town.” Even pushing seventy, Trudy took pride in what she did, and Anthony was eternally grateful.
Anthony held his hands up in defeat. “No argument here.”
Trudy huffed her approval and left his office. Before she let the door close, she added, “If you happened to pick up a turkey club at the diner, I wouldn’t object.”
“Noted!” Anthony shouted through the closed door.
Going through the stack of contracts and proposals, Anthony paused to think about his upcoming visit with Max. He knew it was to discuss the council position, but he wondered if he could casually bring up Natalie.Hey man, remember when your wife left? Any advice on how I could avoid that?
Typing away on his computer, his eyes drifted to the framed photos on the edge of his desk. There was a family snapshot from Christmas. Both children were covered in tinsel after they had attempted to decorate the tree all by themselves. The top two-thirds of the tree were undecorated, which Anthony thought was both adorable and hilarious.
In the corner of the picture was the real reason it deserved such prime real estate on his desk. Natalie was just beyond the tree, her hand clasped over her mouth as she laughed. The pair of them had escaped to the kitchen to laugh and marvel at their children’s creativity. It was one of the last times he could remember where they were effortlessly connected.
Anthony couldn’t go much longer before they figured out what they needed to fix. This morning had been awkward, but damn, had it been worth it. He wasn’t even sure if Natalie realized they were cuddling; that he kissed her while she slept. Thinking about it now made him fear he was a creep. The dull ache from his nose was another reminder that he needed to get things right with Natalie. Although he’d potentially break his nose a thousand times if it meant he got to hold his wife.
His ringing office phone roused Anthony from his musings. Before he could say a greeting, Trudy barked, “It’s nearly noon. Get me some sweet potato fries if they have them.” She hung up without waiting for a response. Anthony chuckled and made the short walk down Main Street to the diner.
Opening the door to the diner, Anthony was assaulted with a million delicious smells. Garlic, bacon, and chocolate permeated the air in a heavenly aroma that should have been overpowering. Instead, it made Anthony hungrier.
“Good afternoon, Mayor Snyder,” Helen greeted from the hostess stand. Anthony and Helen had shared a few run-ins over the years, so he wasn’t surprised to see her frown at his entrance.
Anthony had a long way to go in this town before everyone would trust him, or hell, even like him; another task for the list of things Anthony needed to work on.
“Hello, Helen. How are you doing today? You’re looking well.”
His comment seemed to knock Helen back on her heels, but she collected herself quickly. “Thanks,” she muttered, snagging a menu and leading the way to the rear booth in the corner.
Before Anthony could take off his suit jacket, Max appeared with two mugs of coffee. “Hey Anthony. Thanks for meeting me on such short notice.” Max nodded to Helen who disappeared without another word.
“No problem. Is this about the council seat?” Anthony asked, pouring a package of creamer into his coffee. Without bothering to stir it, he slurped and waited for the caffeine to hit. Recently he was up to at least six cups of coffee just to make it through the day.
“Yeah. I w-w-wanted to check on something first,” Max stuttered, giving Anthony his full attention. Max’s stammer was hardly a secret in Buckeye Falls, but Anthony knew it only came up when Max was upset or nervous.
Anthony slid his cup back and made eye contact with Max. “What’s up?”
Max looked over his shoulder, making sure they were alone. “Well, you might already know this. I know Ginny and Natalie tell each other almost everything.” The statement brought the hairs on Anthony’s neck to standing. Had Natalie shared anything about their relationship with Ginny? He was sure they would talk, and it made Anthony nervous that someone else might be privy to their marriage.
“What is it?” Anthony asked through clenched teeth.
“Nothing’s happened yet, but Ginny and I are trying for a baby.” The news hit Anthony and he relaxed. This had nothing to do with him or Natalie, thank goodness.Of course it didn’t. Not everything has to do with you.
“That’s great, man. Congratulations.” He meant it too. Max and Ginny deserved every happiness, and he had no doubt they’d be excellent parents.
Max shrugged and smiled. “Thanks. It’s just that I don’t want to commit to a council seat if it’s going to take up a lot of time. Do you think I can balance a potential kiddo along with working full-time and serving the council?”
Anthony nearly choked on his coffee. “Uh, well,” he said. How could he possibly tell Max that he was currently drowning under the weight of it all? How could he tell this hopeful father-to-be that the workload could feel crippling even on the best of days? No, he wouldn’t burst this man’s bubble. Everyone handled fatherhood differently, and Max approached everything with a hopefulness that Anthony envied. When had he gotten so jaded?
Sensing the other man’s hesitation, Max sipped from his own coffee. “I know it won’t be as much of a workload as you have. I f-feel like an idiot even asking you. But I want to take it seriously.”
Uncertain of how to answer, Anthony added, “Did you talk to Ginny about it?”
Max blinked, as if the question didn’t make sense. “Yeah, of course. She thinks I should go ahead with it. But then again, Gin is always spinning a lot of plates.”
Naturally Max had talked to Ginny about it. They were a healthy, normal couple. Anthony rubbed the back of his neck, feeling the muscles tensing under his fingers. He needed to calm down and figure out his own mess.
“It’ll be two meetings a month, tops. Sometimes, like during the holidays, there’s only one meeting a month. You’ll get emails with topics to discuss and approve, and very occasionally you’ll need to stop by town hall for an emergency session. I can’t see it taking up more than six or eight hours a month.”
