AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Are you okay?” she mouthed, causing him to wipe his face clear of all expression.
Now wasn’t the time.
He flashed her a reassuring smile and turned to face forward as Selectperson McCreary pounded her gavel with surprising strength for her age.
Let the show begin.
9
Vivian
This was not goingthe way Vivian had expected it to.
There were calls for an investigation. Shouts of culture ruined. Suggestions that perhaps it was time to just do away with the sleigh—the last one was met with outright horror from most of the crowd.
She’d expected the typical shenanigans, but once Jonathan Baines stepped on the stage, she felt herself—and most of the room—let out a deep groan.
He looked to Selectperson McCreary as if he expected a big introduction, but she just rolled her eyes and grumbled, “Jonathan, we all know who you are.”
“Well.” He glanced around as if this couldn’t be true in their town of 348 people. “As you know, I’m Jonathan Baines, Town Financial Officer—”
“Accountant,” the selectperson interjected to a room full of snickers.
“And as such,” he continued as if no one had spoken, “I’ve done some research on the cost of repairing the sled and bringing in the right people to do it.”
Cam growled under his breath and Vi wasn’t surprised to see the entire town turn to look at him.
“That was fast,” a muted complaint came from a few rows back.
“I've already gathered a list of acceptable candidates available through a program I partner with for the Maine Cultural Society." The accountant seemed far more smug than pleased. Vivian wasn’t sure she liked where this was going. "I've certified their résumés and they can come up as soon as we complete the call for interest on the project."
Before he even finished speaking, Cam was on his feet.
"You? You've decided who's qualified to work on our local art?" Cam crossed his arms, sticking his hands under his armpits. Vivian could see they were balled into tight fists.
"I'm sorry, Camden," Jonathan countered with a sneer. "Was there something that makes you think you’re more qualified than I am? Only one of us has a degree from Harvard."
If Cam was ever going to punch someone, she was pretty sure it was right now.
She glanced to the front of the room where Skye stood in her deputy’s outfit, arms crossed, looking resigned to arresting one of her best friends.
But she also wasn’t stepping in, so Vi was betting Cam would get at least one swing in.
Skye was fair like that.
"I don't know,accountant." Cam put as much warmth into the statement as Jonathan had. “Could it be my years of studying the artist, or the fact that I had an internship with his estate’s studio before I was even out of high school? Or maybe the three years running that Maine called me the premier wood artist of my generation… I meanourgeneration? You're the premier what?"
From across the aisle, Vivian was pretty sure she heard Jamie snort and mumble, "Premier jackass."
Around him, a couple people snickered, so she upped that to prettydarnsure.
“I”—Jonathan put way more emphasis on that pronoun than any normal person would—“am the person making the decisions here.”
Behind him, Selectperson McCreary dropped her head into her hands. She probably figured she’d let this play out, let Jonathan make a bigger ass of himself, then figure out how to move forward—hopefully without Cam wrecking one of the hands he needed to complete the job.
Or maybe Vivian was just projecting.
“Absolutely not.” Camden was practically vibrating next to her. “We’re not letting some hack who knows nothing about art or culture, and shockingly little about our town’s history, make decisions that will impact a living piece of antiquity that’s vital to our town and basically a historical touchstone for the entire state.”
