“What do you mean?”
“You’re not going to do better than Willa. Not in Hume anyway.”
“I disagree.”
“So you just woke up and decided to implode your life.” Cy signed some document as if people in this town cared about his approval.
“If you like Willa so much, you date her.”
“Shit, she’s too much work.”
“But it’s okay for me to do the heavy lifting?”
“Willa needs a man who’s going to let her decorate their home in pink and ribbons and just be happy she knows his name.”
“And you think I fill that description?”
“How can I put this delicately? You’re a bit of a pushover.”
“Me?”
“I didn’t stutter motherfucker.”
Who needed enemies when you had siblings?
“I’m not a pushover. I just don’t like rocking boats.”
“You can’t make an everything scramble without breaking a few eggs.”
“I prefer hash browns and sausage.”
Cy shuffled papers into a folder and finally gave me his full attention. “Dial told me you ran into Francesca Palmer at the nursery the other day.”
I timidly confirmed his words. “Yeah.” I was still raw from Dial cussing me out. I was hoping Cyrus would offer a counter message.
“Eddy, what are you doing?”
“What do you mean?”
“Fancy’s a nice girl. I understand why you had a crush on her all through high school.”
“But, because your tone is definitely giving a pending but.”
“Unrequited crushes are supposed to eventually crumble.”
“We’re friends.
“Hmm.”
“I thought you liked Fancy.”
“I do. I just think you get a little loopy when she’s around. Her moving was probably the best thing to happen to you. You went to college, you learned what life was like outside of Hume. You had a fucking girlfriend.”
“It’s funny you and Dial are notorious for doling out relationship advice while not being in a relationship.”
“Being mayor, I know all and see all like the great and powerful Oz.”
“You do know in that story he was a fake … phony … grifter.”
