Can't Stop the Feeling (Whispering Bay Romance 6)

“I know I’m late to the party, but I’ve been going over the construction costs. Remind me again how all this is going down.”

“Pappas-Hernandez Construction is doing all the work pro-bono, which means Steve Pappas isn’t going to make a dime off this project. But, it’s still huge. It’s the biggest expense the city has had in years. It’ll definitely be worth it, though.”

Steve Pappas was Gus’s nephew and a great guy. He and his wife, Kitty, lived next door to Aunt Viola. Once again, she scanned the computer screen in front of her. “So all this was completely necessary? It just seems like some really high-end stuff was used.”

“We left that to Steve. Or rather, his company. They send a detailed report every month, which, I have to admit, I left to Doug to handle.” Mimi moaned. “Please tell me that Doug kept up with those.”

“Oh, he kept up with those all right. To the last little penny. It was like he was obsessed.”

“That’s good, right?”

“I suppose,” Jenna said.

“But something doesn’t look right to you?”

“We’re talking about the guy who robbed the ticket booth at the Spring into Summer festival.”

Mimi made a face. “Not only did he take off with all the money we’d made at the concert, but he and Bruce Bailey were in cahoots to make me look bad.”

Bruce Bailey was Whispering Bay’s former mayor and according to Aunt Viola he’d suffered a nervous breakdown after Mimi had beat him in the last election. Jenna had read all about it in back copies of The Whispering Bay Gazette when she’d been acclimating herself to local politics before taking the job as city manager.

“What’s good ol’ Bruce up these days?” Jenna asked.

“He and his wife are taking a cruise around the world. After he got some major psych help.”

“So all this building material that’s been paid for has been used in the construction?” Jenna persisted.

“If you’re wondering if anything suspicious has been going on, you can always contact the security company that monitors the construction site.”

“We Gotcha, Inc?”

Mimi grinned. “Cute name for a video surveillance company, huh?”

“And they’re on the clock twenty-four seven?”

“Yep. A couple of years ago when the old rec center was torn down there was some vandalism centering around an incident. After that Pappas-Hernandez Construction insisted on video security to protect their equipment.”

“That makes sense. Any problems?”

“Nope. Not even a missing hammer. Remember, this is Whispering Bay, the safest city in America. But if you have any questions you should ask the guy who owns the surveillance company. I think his name is Stuart Malloy. They do surveillance for all the city buildings, by the way.”

“I remember Aunt Viola mentioning this incident. Something about a ghost?”

“Don’t laugh. It caused a big ruckus in town. Poor Tom Donalan. You’ve met him? He’s married to my sister-in-law, Allie. Anyhow, he’s the construction supervisor on the project and before he could tear down the old building he had to basically prove to the town that the building wasn’t haunted.”

“How do you prove that?”

“You hold a séance,” Mimi said.

Jenna giggled.

“It was the Sunshine Ghost Society that created the most trouble for Tom, but the Gray Flamingos and even my Bunco group protested the demolition. Naturally, that was before I was elected mayor.” Mimi’s blue eyes lit up with mischief. “We even crashed the séance.”

“Where have I moved to again?” Jenna teased.

“Most people think small towns are boring but there’s never a dull moment in Whispering Bay.” Mimi watched her reaction carefully. “So, what do you think about the motion to contest Earl’s will? And this so-called compromise Ben Harrison has offered?”

As promised, first thing Monday morning Ben had filed the motion on behalf of his clients to contest the will on grounds of undue influence. Pilar had been angrier than a bull facing down a red flag. She’d stormed through city hall alternating between laughing and cursing Doug Wentworth and, as she’d put it, “his bold-faced lies.”