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“I thought you said the committee was broke. How are you going to get the money to pay the band in advance?”
“We have enough for their advance and the rest we can negotiate.” So it was a tiny white lie, but Mimi already knew how Zeke felt about Doug. If he knew that Doug was helping her with the band money he probably wouldn’t think the whole thing was so brilliant after all. “And I’m completely doing away with the promotion budget. For one thing, the festival is already well known to everyone in the area, so we’re going to go with using social media and local newsprint. And maybe some free radio air time if I can convince the area DJs.”
He nodded. “That’s smart. What can I do to help?”
Mimi hadn’t thought that Zeke could help, but if he was offering… “Maybe we can tighten up the security budget? I think this band will draw a big crowd, but we really can’t afford to increase the number of off-duty cops we hire.”
Zeke munched on his sandwich thoughtfully. He finished it off and wiped the corner of his mouth with his napkin, then laid it on the table. “I can’t make any promises, but maybe since the festival is financially tight this year, I can convince some of the guys to do security for free. As a community service.”
“Really? For free?” Her head began to spin. Normally, the off-duty cops were paid after the festival, so it wasn’t an expense to worry about in advance, but if they could pocket that money into next year’s budget, it would go a long way to putting the festival back on top.
“Like I said, no promises,” he said carefully. “But I’m pretty sure I can swing it.”
Which meant, yes, he could do it. Zeke never hinted at promising anything he couldn’t deliver. It was one of the zillion things she loved about him.
Impulsively, she reached out and grabbed him into a hug. “I could kiss you right now.”
Amusement and heat glimmered in his eyes. “I think we have an audience.”
Mimi froze. She glanced to the left, and then to the right. A sea of cell phones filled the air as the restaurants’ patrons snapped photos or took video. “You’ve got to be kidding,” she muttered.
Zeke shrugged like he wasn’t bothered by it. She, on the other hand, was tired of this mess. First Burger World, then Mrs. Manley, and of course Cindy from police headquarters, and who could forget Bettina, or Shelby from the beauty salon whispering in Momma’s ear? And now this… She might be one half of Whispering Bay’s “power couple”, but she and Zeke deserved some privacy.
Mimi straightened in her seat, then stood to address the restaurant. “Hi, everyone,” she said, trying to be friendly. After all, she was mayor. She certainly didn’t want to come across as a shrew or anything. “Zeke and I sure do appreciate your interest in us, but despite the fact that we’re both civil servants of this community, we’re also a private couple and—”
“Are the two of you back together or not?” someone yelled.
Mimi thought it came from the back. She turned and an elderly gentleman, a friend of Gus and Viola’s from the Gray Flamingos whose name she couldn’t remember, waved at her. It left her no choice really, except to smile and wave back.
Zeke just shook his head.
“Um, so, back to your question. As I was saying—”
“Are you gonna answer or not? Because I have twenty bucks riding on this.” This time it was Joey Pappas, Gus’s son, who wanted to know.
People were making bets on whether she and Zeke were back together? What was wrong with this town?
“I’m afraid no, we’re not back together yet.”
The entire restaurant began to buzz. A low chorus of boos could be heard from the counter area.
“I’m sorry, we don’t mean to disappoint anyone but—”
“What was the point of calling 911 and gettin’ Zeke out there if not to get back together? I mean, didn’t the two of you do it?”
Okay, this was definitely out of bounds here. She didn’t need to explain herself to anyone, but on the other hand, she was mayor and her life should be an open book. Only there were chapters that were definitely off limits. As in, her and Zeke’s sex life.
“I only dialed 911 because I was genuinely frightened.”
“Of a couple of raccoons?” someone yelled.
“They were armadillos,” Mimi insisted. “It’s a totally different animal.”
Thankfully, Zeke decided to take over here. He stood and everyone instantly went quiet. It irked Mimi that he could do that just by standing up, but she was too frazzled to care much at the moment.
“I think that’s about it, people,” Zeke said in a friendly, but firm tone.
And with those simple words, everyone went back to their own business. Disappointed, yes, but it was clear they weren’t going to get much more than that with Zeke here.
