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“She’s lying.”
Her derisive snort hits me square in the chest. Her expression is pure disbelief. “Before she left, she made a point of letting us all know that she’d be making the rounds.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“She’s going to tell every goddamn business in this town the same thing.”
“And you believe her? Percy, you know me. I’m not lying.”
“I-I want to believe you, but how do you explain this?”
“What does Pop say?” I grasp at the hope that he will know better, have more faith in me.
“He wasn’t here. Thank goodness he’s in Helena visiting some of our suppliers. But when he hears?—”
“Percy, I have to go. I have to talk to Wren.”
Chapter23
Wren
The library door opens and in walks the mayor in his wool coat, hat, and gloves. “Good morning.”
While his words sound pleasant enough, he doesn’t smile. His expression is unreadable as he treks toward the front desk with purpose.
“Good morning, Mr. Mayor, how are you?” I hold out my hand to shake his, heart kicking against my rib cage.
This is it. Is he here to give me the town’s seal of approval for Bright Horizons? Are we finally going to be able to move forward with a public announcement? The funding and everything else that comes with that? I'm anxious to get started on formalizing the family sponsorships.
“I’ve been better.” He doesn’t take my hand, and my heartbeat stops. The vital organ sinks low in my chest. Something is wrong.
I square my shoulders and clasp my hands on the counter in front of me. The mayor removes his gloves and slaps the expensive leather onto the wooden surface. “I hate to be the one to say this, especially after our last conversation, but we’ve hit pause on evaluating your proposal.”
My breath shutters, heart plummeting to my toes as I grip the edge of the desk to prevent myself from falling to my knees. “Pardon? What does that mean?”
“I’m not one to beat around the bush. We’ll more than likely reject your proposal.”
“What?” I come around from behind the desk, cautious not to move too fast. Everything inside me trembles in disbelief. “You said approval of the program was pretty much a done deal. Only a formality.” I rush on, not daring to give him a second to walk out of here without an explanation. “What happened to the great potential you saw for the program? You said Bright Horizons was a great first start in making a difference.”
“Well, all of that is still true.” He picks up his gloves and whacks them against the palm of his other hand.
“Then what’s changed?”
“For now, the program isn’t going to happen. It’s unfortunate, but it doesn’t mean that at a future date…” His lips twist, eyes darting around the library as if searching for the best way to say whatever comes next. So much for getting to the point.
I wait patiently, willing my insides to stay where they belong.
“Perhaps someone else, someone with a different, er, better standing in the community could put forth the proposal.”
“Better standing in the community.” Why do I find myself parroting this man whenever we talk? “What does that even mean?”
“Miss Tyler, I don't know you very well.” Lips pursed, he dips his head, eyes falling to his shiny, Italian loafers.
I want to scream and cry, but with all my might, I keep my composure. I will only make things worse if I lose it.
His head lifts and his gaze stabs me. “Before today I had heard only good things about you. Great things even. And today’s news… What I learned, it’s quite upsetting.” He tsks and shakes his head in reproach, and on instinct, I blush. “As soon as I heard, I tried to call an emergency meeting of the city council, but it wasn’t to be. Instead I had to make phone calls to all the members. I spoke to as many as were available. They all echoed the same sentiment.”
I hang on his every word, feeling blindfolded and endlessly spun around, unable to make heads or tails of anything. “What sentiment?”
