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“She’s not just here for a visit this time. Did you know?”
“I did not.” He stared intently at the pages in front of him.
“She popped into the store just now, and it sounds like she might be around for a while.”
“Do you have a point you’re circling here?” He sighed.
“I invited her to Nick’s,” Audrey said in a sing-song voice.
He looked up at her then. “Why would you do that?”
“She’s my friend.” Audrey shrugged. “What am I supposed to do? Let her sit alone at home the entire time she’s here?”
“I doubt she’s interested in hanging out with any of us roughnecks. Did you see how she dresses now? She doesn’t exactly fit in.” he said. “Plus, why do you still consider her a friend? Have you even heard from her since graduation?”
“First of all,” she put her hands on her hips, “roughnecks? Speak for yourself! And secondly, I don’t stop being friends with someone because they’ve been a bonehead in the past. And for that you should count yourself lucky.”
She stood to go, and her tone softened. “How’s Taco doing?”
“About as good as hamsters can do, I’d imagine,” Derek said. Taco was the pet hamster he’d gifted to Charlie for Christmas. “Only escaped twice last week.”
“Well, that’s an improvement. See you later.” She started toward the door but turned back. “Oh, and Derek?”
“Yeah?”
“Kylie got pretty hot, right?” Audrey waggled her eyebrows at him.
“Get off it, Aud.”
“Whatever you say,” she sang as she floated out of the office.
Two hours later, Derek still sat at his desk, this time working on an online officer training course. The front door opened again, and Pete Wilson stuck his head around the corner.
“Hey Pete.”
“Hi, Derek. Is this a bad time?”
“Not at all. Come on in.” He gestured for Pete to take a seat. “What’s up?”
“I wanted to touch base with you about the water treatment plant.” Pete was the only other town councilor who agreed with Derek that the new plant should not be built. The council was meager as it was, only the mayor and five councilors, but they were still the minority.
“Ah yes. I went to talk to Bette McDonald yesterday.”
“How did that go?” Pete slumped in his chair, which was saying something as his round belly generally kept him propped upright.
“Exactly as you’d expect.” Derek ran his hands through his hair. “The problem is Bette holds too much sway in the council, and the other members aren’t feeling the pressure of the people in the village.”
“So how do we get the people of the village to understand what a bad idea it is to build a water treatment plant on the waterfront?” Pete asked.
It was a months-old problem, and it enraged both Derek and Pete, so much Derek had stormed out of the last council meeting and been fined.
“I don’t know.” He leaned back in his chair and dragged his hands down his face. “In a town that talks so much, you’d think getting information out would be easy.”
“But explaining the science behind not building a water treatment plant in a town that needs clean water is not as interesting conversation as the gossip about Randy’s latest drunken rant on the street corner.” Pete rubbed his forehead, defeated. The final approval was coming up in a few weeks, and they were running out of time.
“We’ll think of something.” Derek straightened, trying to cheer up the other man.
Pete nodded half-heartedly. “I’m sure we will.” He stood to leave. “Give my best to Cate and Charlie.”
“I will,” Derek said. “And please thank Claudia for the chicken casserole. It was delicious.”
He nodded and left.
Derek tried to refocus on the course work on his computer, but his thoughts kept wandering back to the water treatment plant. It was not the right decision for his town. He’d left Camden to become an O.P.P. officer and to start his career, but he’d never been as comfortable anywhere else as he was in Camden. The relief of getting a position back home had been so sweet, made even sweeter when he was able to provide a home for Cate and Charlie as well.
He didn’t want anything, this water treatment plant, or some big city version of Kylie Martin, invading his town.
