Page 8 of Call It Serendipity

Ellie and Sam exchange a confused glance, their youth showing. “Why is that bad?” Ellie asks.

“For starters, I don’t think the Carpenters have ever built anything less than towering, it will ruin the mountain view and stick out like a sore thumb amongst our two-story historical town.”

My father nods in agreement. “And consider how many guest rooms that would mean. All of the people in town that make a living with rental homes for the ski resort guests around here would be out of business.”

Like Alice.

And Parker’s son.

And everyone else I’ve come to know and appreciate growing up in Ellicottville.

“I hadn’t even considered that,” I murmur.

As if sensing the knot in my stomach, Bear presses his head against my leg. I reach down and lay my palm over his head. He’s the sweetest dog; I would have adopted him already, if Claire wasn’t allergic.

“Plus, they always have those lavish restaurants and coffee stations in their hotels, our dining industry here would dry up too.”

“Why do they want to come here?” Ellie asks. It’s a very good question.

Dad reaches up and rubs at his chin. “Well, that is one point we are going to raise at the public forum tomorrow.” Then he turns to look at me, and adds, “All of us.”

Apparently I’m going to a public forum.

6

“Are you truly considering this bid?” Jenny presses. She’s standing in the center aisle between the rows of folding chairs, her hands on her hips as she addresses the members of the village trustees at the front of the room. They’re seated behind a faux wood folding table, taking on the full force of their friends and neighbors.

“We have a responsibility to this town to consider every bid submitted,” Mitchell, a member of the board and owner of our local hardware store, replies. He uses his pointer finger to press the wire nose bridge of his glasses up into place. They only remain there for a second before slipping once more.

“You have a responsibility to protect this town from becoming a commercially run tourist trap,” someone in the crowd snaps back.

“The bulk of our business is already from tourists,” Garrison, another board member, says with a sigh. He was my high school principal and in those four years, I heard him use that sigh on classmates plenty.

I lean over in my chair, a faint creak coming from below me, and whisper to Claire, “But all of the tourists come expecting an authentic, quaint ski town. They don’t want it to feel like the city they’re escaping. Someone should point that out.”

She tips her head at me with a smirk. “Yeah, someone should.”

“Just go up for me.” I nudge her and nod towards the line formed behind Jenny.

“And what happens when they need a follow up to my thought?”

I bite my lip and shrug. “Answer however you feel.”

“If you’re going to consider this, we demand the proper studies are done before you start the re-zoning process.” That voice is Parker’s. I look up to find Jenny vacated her spot at the microphone and he’s stepped forward next. “I’m talking traffic studies, water and sewage, infrastructure, and environmental impact. The whole gambit.”

“Wow, Parker came to play,” Levi murmurs with respect from his seat on the other side of Claire.

Garrison straightens his shoulders proudly and announces, “We have already started the process for each study with the full cooperation from the Carpenter Collection’s representative.”

A murmur rustles through the crowd, the word representative repeated on a wave of chatter.

“Do you think this representative is here right now?” Claire asks, her eyebrows raising with curiosity.

I consider her question, turning and looking over my shoulder to scan the room for any unfamiliar faces. “They should be here, right? I mean if nothing else, they’d want to know any problems that could be coming up.”

“Do you see anyone that looks like they could be from the hotel?” She turns around as well.

“Like is there anyone in a super fancy suit with slick backed hair and talking on a mobile phone?”