A Tiara Under the Tree

Continuing her charade, Waverly extended her hand. “Have we met? I’m Waverly Leverve. What brings you to this Christmas Advisory Council meeting?”

“Not funny, Waverly,” said Dominic. “I promised you I’d be here.”

“And you always keep your promises,” Waverly mocked. She tried to understand Dominic still had a business to run, but she swore every time he couldn’t make an appearance with her, Anson came through, and spending time with the mayor was not something Waverly looked forward to.

“Damn straight,” Dominic huffed with a wink. “What’d I miss?”

“Nothing,” said Waverly. “I just got here myself.”

“What? Mr. Mayor didn’t accompany you?” Dominic leaned forward and looked around her at the empty seat. “Where is he hiding?”

Waverly elbowed Dominic in the ribs. Okay, so maybe she wasn’t the only one to notice. “Don’t be mad at Anson for showing me around. It’s not like you’ve been knocking on my door.”

“You wouldn’t know.” Dominic chuckled. “You’ve been away from your apartment.”

There was some truth to his words, but Waverly refused to cave so quickly. She gave Dominic a once-over, staring him up and down. “Stalker.”

“It’s only stalking if the other person doesn’t know you’re after them.”

At a loss for words at his irrational logic, Waverly smiled. “Okay, whatever. How have you been?”

“I am better now.”

“Busy at the shop?”

The corners of his lips turned down as he thought about his answer. Dominic nodded and rubbed the edges of his goatee. “Busy, but busy is good. I’ve got a Ford Model K in the shop right now.”

“Ah,” Waverly said with a nod. “Mr. Myers found you.”

“Well, look who is getting to know the townspeople,” Dominic said.

“Mr. Myers is a friendly old man,” Waverly informed him. “The ladies at the Southwood Elderly Care Community Center are crazy for him. You should see the way they gather at the window when he pulls up in his fancy car.”

Dominic nodded. “I imagine it must be like how I’ve been this week, waiting for you to stop by.”

“Anyway.” Waverly cleared her throat. What would people think if she just showed up at the garage? She didn’t even own a car. People might believe as Miss Crowne’s Garage she had work, but Waverly did not want anyone to guess the need she felt to see him. The pageant came first and alone time with Dominic threatened her goals. Given the fever pitch nature of her dreams over the last few nights, maybe it was best Dominic didn’t accompany her to events.

“Stalker level?” Dominic asked.

As Waverly nodded, she caught a glimpse of the ladies in front staring at them. “Don’t look now bu

t you are gathering a following like Mr. Myers.”

Dominic followed Waverly’s gaze, then shrugged. “I’ll pass. I don’t deal well with drama, and they scream it. Besides, I only have eyes for you.”

Not sure what to make of him, Waverly pressed her lips together and looked away. She recognized the stares, the eye rolls and the sighs in her direction. The woman in leopard was not a fan of Waverly’s. Waverly never thought she’d be glad to see Anson stroll into the room. The mayor commanded the podium, but when he laid eyes on Waverly he smiled kindly. That expression left at the sight of Dominic. Anson pounded his gavel against the wood.

“All right, may I have everyone’s attention?” Anson’s voice boomed across the conference room. A silver microphone poked out of the top of the podium, but Anson didn’t need it. “With this being the first meeting to kick off the start of the Christmas Countdown, we have no old business to take care of.”

“Excuse me.”

Waverly, along with everyone else in the room, turned in their seats. Kenzie Swayne, Lexi’s pageant replacement as director, came forward from the back of the room. Anson grimaced and Waverly smirked. The five-foot-three-inch former cheerleader dominated the attention of the room.

“Kenzie,” Anson said, acknowledging her with a nod.

“Thanks for inviting me up here,” said Kenzie, grabbing the microphone.

“Well, I didn’t but...” Anson’s voice trailed off when he realized the mic was on. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”