Ask Anyone. Sherryl Woods
his garage, just the same,” Bobby suggested. “And, Tucker…”
“What?”
“Do it fast. I’m serious—I want that woman out of town.”
A knowing expression spread across his brother’s face. “Oh, really? You mean before Daddy gets an eyeful and decides she’s a perfect candidate for his latest plot to marry you off?”
Bobby winced at Tucker’s quick grasp of one aspect of the problem. “Yes, there is that.”
In fact, in his gut he knew that the very last thing he wanted was for King and Jenna ever to cross paths. He could say goodbye to his placid existence if that should happen. Ever since Daisy and Walker’s wedding, King had been keeping a close eye on Bobby’s social life, asking too many questions, dropping too many less-than-subtle hints about every single female in a twenty-mile radius of Trinity Harbor. Bobby might as well have a target on his back that said, “To marry this man, call 555-6000.”
Bobby whirled around and headed for the locked file cabinet in his outer office.
“Where are you going?” Tucker called after him.
“To write her a check. She can name the figure and pay me back whenever she gets the horse back, or collects from the security company. I want her gone now. ”
Tucker’s annoying hoot of laughter followed him. “Don’t laugh too hard,” he warned his brother. “I can always remind Daddy that you’re his oldest son. You’re the one whose social life he really ought to be worrying about.”
Tucker headed straight for the door. “I’ll get right on this.”
Bobby gave a little nod of satisfaction. “I thought that might motivate you.”
Jenna’s meeting with Harvey Needham promised to be very enlightening. She had long since picked up on the fact that he and Bobby were sworn enemies, at least when it came to developing the waterfront. That made the mayor her enemy, too, but he didn’t have to know that just yet. So far, he hadn’t tried to pin her down about her exact reason for being in Trinity Harbor, and the longer she could keep it that way, the better off she was. He clearly hadn’t connected her to the commotion on Bobby’s lawn the day before. As long as she kept the attention focused on him, she could keep her own identity and stake in the town’s future cloaked in mystery.
She stared across the table and studied him. He was wearing a bright green polo shirt that did little for his washed-out complexion. His hairline was slipping, but his round face was virtually unlined, making it difficult to guess his age. He seemed fit enough, though, suggesting he was the kind of man who maintained a rigid control over his diet. She recognized the type. She had one at home just like him. Her father drank to excess when it suited him, but not a single indulgence crossed his lips when it came to food.
“What made you decide to run for mayor?” she asked Harvey.
His chest puffed up as he replied, “Young lady, it is the civic duty of every citizen to give something back to the community in which they live.” It sounded like the start of a campaign speech. “When I retired, I finally had the time to serve this town and bring some of my business skills to the operation of the town’s services.”
“That’s a very noble goal,” Jenna told him. “Where do you see Trinity Harbor ten years from now? What kind of a community will it be?”
“Quiet,” he said at once. “With a sound economic base. The way you accomplish that is to bring in folks with money, good middle-class residents looking for a place to retire. Folks like that want their lives to run smoothly. They want clean shops, good services and low taxes.”
“What about entertainment?”
“They’ve got Fredericksburg and Richmond just up the road for that,” he said dismissively. “The town doesn’t need to provide it.”
Jenna couldn’t believe such a shortsighted view, but she knew she was treading on thin ice. She had to be careful how far she pushed him, or he’d want to know why she cared.
“Don’t you think that people with time on their hands want leisure activities nearby?” she inquired cautiously. “A golf course, maybe. Tennis courts. A community center. Things for their grandchildren to do when they visit.”
Before he could reply, she added, “What do your grandchildren do when they come, Mr. Needham?”
He blinked at that, looking vaguely disconcerted. “Actually, they haven’t come here in some time. Our children prefer that we visit them.”
“Why is that?” Jenna asked innocently. She was pretty sure she knew. His children didn’t come because they didn’t want to listen to a nonstop refrain from his grandchildren about there being nothing to do here. It would be interesting to hear his take on it, though.
“They have their lives. It’s less of a disruption if we go to them,” he said. “My wife grumbles a bit about how rarely we see them, but I can see the sense of doing it this way.”
She decided to press the point. “But Trinity Harbor is such a lovely town. I would think they would absolutely jump at the chance to get away for a while. After all, that is what drew you here, isn’t it?”
The mayor frowned. “What’s your point, Ms. Kennedy?”
“It just occurs to me that if you want to attract the kind of residents you’re hoping to, just putting up places for them to live won’t entirely address the situation.”
His gaze narrowed. “Spencer put you up to saying that, didn’t he?” he asked suspiciously. “Sounds just like that hogwash he’s always spouting around town.”
“Bobby and I haven’t discussed that precise issue,” she said honestly. “Is that what he thinks?”
“You’re trying to tell me the two of you aren’t in cahoots?” he demanded. “I saw you in his office just now. Why else would you be there?”
“The same reason I’m with you right now,” Jenna insisted. “Just getting to know all I can about Trinity Harbor.”
“And why would you want to be doing that?” he asked, studying her with a narrowed gaze. “You’re a little young to be thinking about moving to an out-of-the-way place like this. There’s no nightlife here, Ms. Kennedy.”
“Nightlife’s not a big priority with me. And more and more people my age are making lifestyle choices, right along with career choices.”
He still didn’t look as if he believed her. “Where are you from, Ms. Kennedy?”
“Born and raised in Baltimore,” she said readily.
“But you want to leave?”
“I’m exploring my options,” she told him with complete sincerity. Though she hadn’t considered it before, she realized that a part of her had always wanted to live in a place just like Trinity Harbor. She’d always dismissed it as a romantic fantasy, but there was no real reason it had to be, especially if she could nab this job here.
“Well, Trinity Harbor would be glad to have you, I’m sure,” Harvey said, though he looked a little doubtful.
Jenna beamed at him. “You’ll be the first to know if things work out,” she told him. Whether she agreed with his vision for the town or not, she’d have to work with him if she got the contract for the boardwalk development. There was little point in alienating him at this stage.
“I’d better run along,” she told him. “Bobby promised me lunch and a tour of the town before I head back home this afternoon.”
“You watch yourself with him, young lady. The Spencers are held in high regard around here, but they’re a sneaky lot. Never know when one of ’em will stab you in the back.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,”