Page 43 of The Library of Second Chances
“Because you usually are. Out with it. You didn’t call because you’re bored. You only call when you’re worried about something.”
He sighed. “Tonight is the first of three community forums here. You know how much I love community forums.”
“Yes, I know you hate it when people don’t agree with you or defer to your expertise.”
He could practically hear her rolling her eyes through the phone.
“Well, thisiswhat I do for a living. Why does everyone always act like I’m the bad guy? The projects I help design provide jobs and increase tax revenue, not to mention the new housing, shopping, and dining opportunities.”
“You’re not a bad guy. You’re just the only guy on the planet who loves change. You know normal humans resist change, right?”
“So people just want to live like cavemen? I mean, why change what was working, right? Who needs wheels or electricity?” Logan slipped off his shoes as he reached the end of the sidewalk where it sloped down to meet the sandy beach. A woman in a wheelchair was sitting at the edge, her eyes closed and head tilted toward the sun. He made a mental note that any plan for this area had to include accessibility options. Everyone should be able to enjoy the beach.
She let out an exasperated breath. “I’m sure these people will let you include electricity in your plans.”
He remembered Lucy’s story about the dentist downtown and repeated it to Carly. “Isn’t that fascinating? I’d never thought about how dentists worked before electricity. See, innovation is good.”
“You mentioned a woman told you about this dentist. Anyone I should know about?”
She was always trying to marry him off, although she’d never thought Catherine was “the one,” despite never having met her. Carly said she wanted him to find someone and settle down because she loved her family so much she wanted him to have one. He wasn’t sure that was in the cards for him, not with his lifestyle. There was always another city to move to. Another project to finish.
“No, it’s not like that. Lucy is my competition. She owns the local bookstore and is the head of the Downtown Business Owners Council.” He didn’t need to mention he was helping her with something personal, knowing his sister would read too much into it.
“Is she single?”
“I have no idea, and it doesn’t matter.” He was fairly certain she was. He’d never heard her mention anyone. “Did you just hear me? She’s my opposition.”
“Okay, all right. I just think it wouldn’t kill you to go on a date and remember that not every woman is a self-obsessed cheater like Catherine. Have you tried to charm her into seeing things your way? Maybe you’re losing your touch.” His sister loved teasing him.
“We’ve”—he searched for the right way to describe the situation without having to divulge too much—“reached an understanding. She’s a worthy opponent, but I’ve gotten bigger projects than this approved.”
“Please tell me you’re not going to bulldoze this poor woman’s bookstore.”
“No, she’s actually in a gorgeous historic building. You know I wouldn’t touch that. The entire historic district here is beautiful. You’d love it.” He watched a family laughing together on several brightly colored towels spread out in the sand about thirty yards in front of him. The kids looked to be around Alexandria and Aidan’s ages, making him wonder if he should ask Carly to bring her family down like Lucy had suggested.
A gull cried out overhead.
“Are you at the beach?”
“Yeah, you basically walk right off the sidewalk downtown onto the beach. It’s a nice little town.” One long-weekend visit from family wasn’t going to derail his timeline here. “Hey, Carly.Why don’t you and Nick and the kids come down? I’m here for at least another month or two.”
“Gosh, that would be amazing. I’ll have to talk to Nick though. Not sure we can swing it right now. We just had to replace the refrigerator and the water heater in the same week.” Carly was a stay-at-home mom and Nick was a cop in Berlin. Logan was always trying to send them money, but they never accepted his help. Instead, he spoiled the kids on their birthdays and at Christmas.
“My treat.”
She began to protest, but he cut her off.
“What is the point in me making all this money if I can’t ever do anything with it? I don’t need a permanent residence, and I already get to travel and eat out. The one thing I can’t buy is time with my family, but I can buy you plane tickets. I’m not taking no for an answer. See if Nick can get a weekend off and, if not, you come down with the kids.”
“What has gotten into you?” His sister sounded skeptical. “It’s not like you ignore us or anything, but you’ve never pushed this hard to spend time with us. What’s happening down there?”
He knew Carly worried about him after what happened in San Diego.
“Nothing bad.” He assured her. “To be honest, it wasn’t entirely my idea. Lucy—the woman who owns the bookstore—doesn’t have any family, and she made me see the error of my ways.”
“I like this Lucy woman. Maybe I’ll come down just so I can meet her and ask her if she’s single.”
“Never mind. I’m revoking my invitation,” he grumbled, feigning irritation, but he didn’t really mean it.
