Page 36 of The Bossy One

Thomas worked fast. Four days after Olivia suggested we recruit other people into our fight to take Mark O’Rourke down a peg, I found myself sitting in Ballybeith’s only decent restaurant across from councilman John Kelly. He was eighty years old if he was a day, and he didn’t believe in talking about business until he’d had a chance to inquire about the health and well-being of my family, Thomas’s family, and anyone else he could think of.

Thomas, bless him, handled most of the small talk.

Finally, John leaned back in his chair. “So. Thomas mentioned you had some concerns about our plans to repeal the modern building rule.”

“We do.” I leaned forward, eager. Thomas had dug up an old law the town council had put on the books back in the seventies. In the wake of the success ofThe Deer and the Warrior—and the tourist money it brought—the council had passed a law making it harder to sell “modern buildings,” which in this case meant anything built after 1976. The goal had been to preserve the character of the town by making it harder for anyone to make a quick profit building and flipping tourist hotels, movie souvenir shops, et cetera.

The law was, frankly, unnecessary. The movie wasn’tthatpopular outside of this region. But most of the buildings the O’Rourkes owned had been built after 1976. That meant as long as that law was still on the books, Thomas could use it to tie the sales up in red tape…until O’Rourke had no choice but to put his mansion up for sale—a building that definitely predated the movie seeing as it wasinthe movie.

“You have to admit,” John said, “It’s a silly law. O’Rourke says it’s standing in the way of all sorts of progress.”

“The only thing it’s standing in the way of is O’Rourke taking advantage of this town,” I said. “He already hurts his tenants by constantly raising their rents. If you repeal this law, he can sell their homes out from under them, with no warning. This way at least, there’s time for people to prepare. And time for interested parties to consider the sale and make sure it’s in the best interest of the town.”

“Interested parties, hmm?” John said, eyes sharp. He was old, but he was no fool. “And how might this law benefit yourself? Your dislike of the O’Rourkes is…warranted. But we can’t make policy to punish a single man.”

Why not?I thought.

Luckily, Thomas jumped in then, listing a host of practical, fair reasons to keep the law on the books. I was watching John’s expression closely, trying to figure out how our arguments were landing, when a flash of red hair distracted me.

Olivia.

I knew it was her day off. Mum was watching Catie, and Olivia had mentioned that she’d be meeting up with Molly. I just hadn’t realized they were getting lunch here too.

I tried to ignore Olivia and focus on the conversation in front of me, but my eyes kept going back to her. She looked different. She’d swapped out her usual practical jeans and T-shirts for a light green sundress that nipped in at the waist and fluttered around her legs as she walked to her table. Dresses like that made you think of summer picnics and lazy days in the sun. Of playing with the skirt if you could get away with it, easing it up bit by bit to see what the woman wearing it had on underneath.

Her hair was different too, falling loose and lovely around her face instead of her normal practical ponytail or messy bun.

I thought that skimpy tank top she’d worn to movie night was distracting. But seeing her like this… She didn’t look like my nanny. She looked like a beautiful young woman on her day off. When she laughed at something the waiter said, I found myself clutching my fork tighter.

“And do you agree with Thomas’s assessment?” John asked.

What?

Thomas kicked me under the table.

“I do,” I said. “Absolutely.”

Thomas leaned forward. “We’re not saying keep the law on the books forever. We’re just saying, it’s worked well for us for all these years. Let’s not be hasty getting rid of it. Study it a bit. Hold a town listening session. Take your time on something that could impact our town in unpredictable ways for years to come.”

“O’Rourke wants it repealed at the next meeting,” John said. “He may have implied that having this law on the books makes it harder for him to commit to hosting the festival at his mansion every year.”

Bastard, I thought. The film’s most famous scenes had been filmed in and around the mansion, which made it the ideal location for the festival. Plus, it was one of the only spaces in town big enough for the event.

“If you let him pressure you like this, he’ll know it works,” I said bluntly. “And he’ll do it again.”

John sighed, clearly conceding that I was right. “He will at that.” He drummed his fingers on the table. “Well, boys, you’ve convinced me. But I can’t speak for the other two council members. We’ll see how the vote lands.”

“Of course,” Thomas said, exchanging a victorious look with me. We both knew the other council members always voted with John. We’d done it.

As we wrapped up the meeting with more mandatory small talk, I noticed an unwelcome figure by Olivia and Molly’s table.

I tensed. Seamus O’Rourke. He was chatting with them as he picked up his takeaway order.

There he stood, smiling and laughing guilelessly, as if his family wasn’t responsible for decades of problems in this town. Olivia casually adjusted the strap of her sundress as she smiled up at him, and I wanted to punch something.

Thomas nudged me, and I realized John was saying his goodbyes. After the old man had shuffled out of the restaurant, Thomas turned to me. “What’s with you?”

“Sorry,” I said. “Got distracted.”

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