Famous in a Small Town

“I’m fine where I am.”

He frowned and gave me a long look.

“You want to run through your anticipated timeline for all of this?” I asked. “I’m expecting a lot of questions about traffic, when new stores will begin to open, and so on.”

“Sure.”

“Miss Therese told me you approached her about developing the riverfront land on her property. Building some cabins and such, like to rent?”

“Sooner or later, someone is going to come in and start building holiday rentals. Why shouldn’t Miss Therese get in first since she’s already set up for that and she’s got the space to expand?”

“True.”

“As for parking, I’ve asked the contractors to leave some area around any open current businesses,” he said. “Lupita and Claude are keen to have the diner open at the end of next month. All going well. Having to replace pipes in the old barber shop and haberdashery will slow us down a little. But the three storefronts across the road are in good repair. All they really need is some paint and polish. I’m hoping to have them opening in a couple of weeks.”

I raised my brows. “Okay.”

“Of course, we’ll see what can be done with offering overtime and bringing in extra crews to bring those dates forward.”

“What’s the rush?”

“I’m impatient, I know,” he said. “I could show you the rest of the plans if you like.”

“That’s all right. I think I have enough information to start with.”

“Okay,” he said, and held out his hand for shaking. “Nice doing business with you, Mayor.”

And I stood there and stared at his hand like a maniac. One with no social skills. Because us touching . . . that was a bad idea.

“Wasn’t it you just the other day who was telling me off for avoiding you?” he asked.

“I’m not avoiding you. I’m keeping a careful distance between us.”

“You think that’s necessary?”

“You think it’s not?”

He scratched at this stubble. “Are you worried I’m going to kiss you again? Because I can assure you that’s not going to happen. Ani, it was a—”

“Mistake. I know.” I smiled. “Thanks for making time for me, Garrett.”

“That’s your fake smile.”

“I’m not actually convinced you know me well enough to tell when I’m faking it.”

“And yet I’m right, aren’t I?”

I raised a hand. “Bye.”

“This doesn’t feel like friends.”

“Sure it does. Because there’re lots of types of friends. We just happen to be the kind now that give each other a little space. See you at the bar tonight?” I didn’t wait for an answer.

Friday night in the bar and grill was busy as per usual. My inauguration party had been in full swing for an hour or so. Though I could have done without my junior high school photo hanging up on the wall alongside an American flag. Pimples suck. But at least my dyed-blue hair still looked cool. It had taken many hours and countless packs of hair dye to get it just the right shade. Mom had been ready to pull out her own hair by the end.

Regardless of the questionable party decorations, the townsfolk were eating, drinking, and making merry. Some of the new-to-town contractors and others were also mingling, which was nice. For the first hour and a half, I’d shaken hands, passed on information gathered from my visit with Garrett, and danced with Harry, Claude, and Josh. Now it was time for me to rest and recuperate.

Garrett appeared at the end of the booth. “Mind if I sit down?”

“Go ahead.”

“Thanks.” He slid in opposite me and wasted no time in saying, “I hurt you when I said it was a mistake, didn’t I?”

Ugh. “No one likes to hear they were a mistake. But neither of us are actually looking for something to happen here either.”

“When you put it that way, giving each other some space sounds smart.”

I nodded.

But we looked at each other and neither of us made a move to separate. Feelings really are the worst. What you soon realize going through life is that there’s the smart thing to do and then there’s the other option. What the heart wants. And the heart is a foolish thing. I loved spending time with Garrett. It had long since gone beyond being a rock-star-and-fan thing. Because, once he gave you a chance to get to know the real him, you soon found out he was great. Grumpy, but great.

One day in the distant future, when I had my shit sorted, I would meet another man. One who was far less complicated, but looked just as good in an old black tee. Or I wouldn’t meet someone, but I would adopt a dog and a cat, and carry on just fine with my life with my furry housemates. With my friends, family, and town.

In the meantime, I sat opposite Garrett and did my best not to think of him standing in the rain, staring at me like I was both his curse and his salvation. Because a moment like that could really fuck with your head. And neither of us needed that. Nope. The truth was, denial was the true hero in this situation.