His onyx eyes delved deeply into hers. “Yes.”
Audra tapped his chest. “Zoey would be proud.”
“I’m considering withdrawing from the mayoral race.” Doreen had less trouble voicing the thought than seeing Megan and Ean’s shocked expressions.
They’d just finished the Sunday dinner Megan had cooked. Doreen sat on the plush red armchair, watching her son and his girlfriend, who sat together on the matching sofa to her left.
“Why?” Ean broke the stunned silence.
“You saw Leo at the party Friday with Yvette Bates.” The image still hurt two nights later. Doreen’s gaze drifted to Megan and Ean’s fingers intertwined and resting between them on the sofa. She felt a pinch of envy.
Megan inclined her head. “And we saw you dancing with the sheriff.”
Doreen dismissed the comment. “He was just being nice.”
Ean grunted. “If he’d wanted to be nice, he would’ve brought you a drink.”
“Don’t make more of it than it was, Ean.” Doreen had enough on her mind without dwelling on Alonzo’s dance—and her reaction to it. “I never intended for the campaign to come between Leo and me.”
“Why does it have to?” Ean’s question was softly spoken.
“It doesn’t.” Megan crossed her legs. “Leo’s the one putting it between you.”
“But I was the one who decided to run. Maybe I was wrong.” Doreen was afraid. Of what? Failure, being alone, the unknown? All of the above?
“Do you love him?” Megan’s question startled Doreen.
She hesitated. “I don’t know.”
Leonard had proposed to her in December. She’d asked him to wait. He’d agreed to give her time to consider his proposal, but she’d had other things on her mind. Ean had come home. She was campaigning for mayor. She hadn’t had the time to search her heart.
She hadn’t taken the time.
“Do you want to be mayor?” Ean asked.
“I do.” Doreen didn’t hesitate with that answer.
Megan frowned. “Why would you give up what you want for something you’re not certain of?”
Doreen pushed out of her chair and crossed the room. Sun poured into the living room through the sheer white curtains. The house was still fragrant with the scents of the pasta dinner they’d shared less than fifteen minutes before.
She stopped at the wall separating the living and dining rooms. “Suppose Simon wins? Then I would have lost Leo and the election.”
“Simon doesn’t even have enough names to be added to the ballot.” Ean’s voice carried from the sofa behind her.
“Yet.” Doreen turned to him. “Suppose he gets them?”
“How can you consider leaving the town to Simon Knight’s mercy?” Ean seemed incredulous.
Her son had a good point. Could she bow out of the race and leave the mayor’s office to Simon? Was her relationship with Leonard too high a price to pay?
Megan interrupted her thoughts. “Don’t misunderstand. It’s not a matter of your protecting us from having Simon for mayor. The fact is, you’re the leader we need now.”
The added pressure terrified her. “But what if I’m not fully committed to the office?”
Megan scooted forward on the sofa. “Are you making this decision for you or Leo?”
“I can’t put my career above the people I care about.” Can I?