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CHAPTER THIRTEEN
ANYA
Ridiculous. I was being ridiculous.Anya Post, couldn’t you have hidden your frustrations better than that?Overreacting? Tick. Rude? Tick. All those things? Tick, tick, tick. But I couldn’t stop myself. My emotions were a runaway train, a dramatic ride I didn’t know how to stop.
My hand shook as I fumbled for my keys and slipped into my car. After starting it, I put the gear into reverse and willed to steady myself, for my breathing to return to normal. I knew I was being dramatic. Acting that way was one of the hallmarks of my personality.
You determine how you respond, and this is all up to you,I repeated a few times in my head as the music from the car stereo blared, and I drove the car down Front Street. A few months after moving home, I downloaded a mindfulness app that promised to help me keep my emotions, anxiety, and stress in check. After how things ended in Chicago, I needed help, and a full-blown therapist wasn’t in my budget. Three times a week, I pushed through exercises and meditation on the app, often followed by one of the yoga practices offered for premium subscribers.
But whatever training that was supposed to give me wasn’t working tonight. Instead, I was spiraling. The light changed ahead, and I slammed on the brakes, coming to a stop after a small skid. I was driving like a crazy person. What a rip-off. Mental note:I’m canceling my subscription tonight.
As the car idled, I pushed the call button on the steering wheel and prompted the system to call Morgan. She picked up on the third ring, her voice out of breath. “Hey there.”
“Hey.” Still jittery, I tapped the plastic wheel a few times. “I figured it out.”
“Figured what out?”
“Why I couldn’t get anyone to help make the float this year.” I swallowed my irritation. “It was Robert. He got them.”
“What?” She sounded confused, and I didn’t blame her. I’d unceremoniously dropped her into this conversation. “You mean the high school students?”
“Yep.” The light changed from red to green, and I sped through the intersection. Two more blocks, a left turn, then a right, and I’d be home. “He must have paid them to do it. That’s all I can guess. But they’re working for him.”
She made a swishing sound through her teeth. “How do youknowhe’s paying them?”
“We were having dinner, and he showed me what they’ve completed.”
“Dinner? With Robert?” She sounded like she was smiling. I, however, was not.
“Worst of all, he’s doing our theme,” I added. “Lady Liberty made out of books.”
Morgan groaned.
“This sucks,” I said.
“We can think of something else. We have time. I’m still stuck on the fact that you were having dinner with Robert.”
“I didn’t plan on it.” I navigated my car into my neighborhood, a little frustrated with her observation. Couldn’t she see the developing crisis? We were going to have to change tactics and fast. “I was driving by after making a quick run to the post office, and I saw he was there. I just, I thought I’d stop in and be friendly.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“I did. That’s all I wanted. He’s a local businessman too, and even if we’re enemies—”
“He’s hot, Anya.”
I recoiled.Well, yes, but...“I didn’t know you thought that.”
“He was cute in high school. Sort of aloof. I don’t think he ever looked my way.” She sighed. “But time’s been good to that guy.”
“Pfft.”
“I know you saw that magazine cover. Everybody did.”
Now, it was my turn to smile. “You’re aNew Burlington Livingreader?”
“Not usually, but the thing comes in the mail every month, no matter what. And that cover was exceptional.”
She was right. It was shrewd too—a guaranteed way to reach a captive audience and drum up support for Robert’s business. Most everyone had social media and phones they were never without, but there was still something important and vital about getting coverage in local media outlets likeLiving. A certain customer looked for that kind of thing as a sort of silent marker about how much effort someone was making to be part of the New Burlington community. Anyone could rent out a storefront and open a shop—but it took a special sort of person who cared to integrate into the community. Robert seemed to have learned that lesson too. Still, there was no reason to put the man on a pedestal.
