His voice was raw and his hand ached by the time the door finally opened. The mayor walked in, carrying a big shotgun. The sight of it coupled with the cold glitter in her eyes made his heart race. He swallowed hard and took a step back.
“I’m real sorry about this,” she’d said, “but it’ll only be for a few days. The store had cameras, and you and the roaches are on them.” That scared him almost as much as the shotgun.
“Once the stink dies down, I’ll get you a ticket to anywhere in the county, but you can’t come back here. Ever.”
He’d swallowed harder.
“Be grateful I’m keeping you out of jail.”
That said, she left, locking him in again. And that’s when he knew hooking up with her had to be the worst mistake he’d ever made in his life.
Trent sat at a long table at the front of the Dog as the residents filed in for the meeting. Smooth jazz floated from the sound-system speakers. He knew his neighbors weren’t going to be happy about Astrid’s news. He also knew they’d rally on behalf of themselves and the town, just as they’d done after last spring’s devastating fire and the destruction the rioters had caused a few weeks before. Her mean-spirited decision about the GED program and the library in no way equaled those incidents, but it would still be viewed as an attack on Henry Adams and what it stood for. A more serious issue was the dissolution of the fire pact. Lives could be affected if his town no longer had access to Franklin’s fire department—but that too would be taken care of, hopefully with all due haste.
The kids trooped in en masse and took their usual seats in the back booths. He noticed that Zoey made a point of not sitting beside Devon, preferring to sit and laugh with Wyatt instead. A reconciliation between her and Devon would go a long way toward getting his youngest son on track again, but apparently Zoey wasn’t having any—and in truth, Trent couldn’t blame her. Devon had been a pain in the butt to everyone who knew and loved him.
Bernadine and Lily joined him at the table. Lily functioned as meeting secretary, so she immediately opened up her laptop in preparation.
Most of the residents were now inside, filling their plates from the buffet provided by diner manager Rocky and her head chef, Siz. Bobby and Kelly hadn’t arrived yet, though. Wondering if they’d encountered some kind of difficulty, Trent took out his phone. Before he could begin a text to them, they walked in.
“Sorry we’re late,” Bobby gushed. “Had a time getting the twins’ carriers locked into the backseat.” Seeing Lily, he took a moment to introduce her to Kelly and the twins, and she and the smiling Bernadine leaned down to give the babies a welcome.
“Hold on a moment before you sit down,” Trent said to the couple, looking for his dad. As he and Mal had arranged previously, when Trent nodded, Mal paused the music. Everyone stopped and looked Trent’s way.
“Folks. Want you all to meet Bobby Douglas, his lady, Kelly Page, and their twins. They’re our newest citizens. Let’s give them a big Henry Adams welcome.”
Roof-shaking applause and yells followed the announcement. As wave after wave rolled over the young residents, the applauding Trent watched Bobby swallow emotionally and do his best to remain stoic and unmoved. He failed miserably. Everyone was on their feet. Kiki had tears in her eyes. The still-applauding Trent saw her and Bobby share a look that turned into a smile. The welcome continued, as did the cheering. Even the kids joined in. Finally Trent said into the mic, “Okay. Thanks everybody. Give them a few minutes to find a seat, and we’ll get the meeting started. You can welcome them personally after we’re done.”
Genevieve and school superintendent Marie Jefferson had the young couple sit with them at a table in the center of the room. A very pleased Gen was helping the babies out of their snowsuits when Trent announced, “I had a meeting with Mayor Wiggins over in Franklin this morning.”
Booing and hissing followed that. He used his gavel to quiet the room. “Hold on. You’ll get your chance to express yourselves once you hear what she’s done.”
When he finished telling them, the place erupted with angry denunciations, boos, and lots of hissing.
“Has she lost her mind?” schoolteacher Jack James barked. “Can we sue her for backing out of the fire department agreement?”
Bing Shepard yelled, “I vote we ship Her Horsiness to France and let them turn her into a roast!”
That was met with a chorus of sarcastic amens, laughter, and applause.
Trent used his gavel again. “Since the fire last spring, we’ve been talking about starting our own department, and now we’ll have to stop talking and get it done. We’ll need to get someone in to train us. I should have someone lined up soon. Being trained on hoses and the like in the middle of winter isn’t going to be a picnic, but it’s necessary.”
Trent turned to Bernadine. She took the floor. “Jack, I’ll need you to open up two unused rooms in the school that we can turn into a library, then get with Lily ASAP and let her know what we need to purchase so we can have it up and running. Marie?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Can you work with Jack on the GED program? I’m not letting Astrid wreck the students’ futures. Need you to find out who’s enrolled, what hoops we need to jump through to start our own program, and if we can do something to salvage the present term for the folks being impacted.”
“Gotcha!”
Tamar raised her hand. Trent gave her a nod, and she stood. “Don’t tell Astrid this, but her mean-spiritedness is a good thing. It’s forcing us make to lemonade out of her lemons. If we want this town to grow, we need our own services, and this will be the start.”
The applause shook the walls. Trent was pleased. She was right—their dream of Henry Adams expanding and thriving was now being jump-started. He just prayed there wouldn’t be any fires before they’d worked out the logistics of establishing their own fire department. He glanced at Bernadine. “Anything else you want to say?”
“No. It’s all been said, I think.”
Trent focused his attention back on the crowd. “On a side note, as soon as the weather breaks, the Henry Adams Hotel rehab will be up and running, which means spending the winter commissioning and reviewing blueprints, setting up construction schedules, hiring contractors, and the like. Bernadine wants new houses added to the subdivision so we can house new residents, and the rec center still needs work. It also looks like we’ll be building a new library and firehouse. I’m up to my hips coordinating all this, so I’m appointing an assistant. Bobby Douglas, you’re it.”
In the midst of the applause, Bobby shouted, “What?”
“Now, that’s all the new business. Anyone have anything else they want to talk about?” Trent chose to overlook Bobby’s stunned face. Kelly raised her hand. Thinking she had something negative to say about her husband’s surprising appointment, he acknowledged her warily. “Go ahead, Kelly.”
“Is there someplace in town I can start doing hair, so the ladies don’t have to leave town the way they do now?”
Before he could reply, Bernadine shouted happily, “Yes!” The women in the room hooted and applauded. “See me after the meeting.”
A shy smile crossed Kelly’s face, and she retook her seat.
“Anything else before we close?”
No one stepped up, so Trent gaveled the meeting closed.
Bobby was furious, but held it inside as he told Kiki, “I need to talk to Trent. Be right back.”
“What’re you so mad about?”
He didn’t reply. Instead he made his way through the crowd to where Trent stood talking with his wife. When he reached him, he said through his teeth, “Can I talk to you for a minute? Privately?”
Trent eyed him calmly. “Sure. Let’s use my dad’s office. I’m sure he won’t mind.”
Bobby had no idea who Trent’s dad was, but didn’t care.
&n
bsp; Trent led the way to a small room at the back of the diner and leaned against the desk. “What’s up?”
“Why did you say I was going to be your assistant?”
“Because you are.”
“No, I’m not. You think it’s funny, playing me in front of all those people?”
“I’m not playing you. Don’t you need a job?”
“Yeah, I do, but I need one I can do.”
“How do you know you can’t do this one?”
Bobby’s jaw tightened. He didn’t know what the hell was up with Trent, but there had to be some kind of a catch. “Look, let me ask you up front. You gay? Are you trying to hit on me? Is that what all this is about?”
Trent stared, and then laughed, hard. When he finally recovered, he said, “Oh, that’s funny. No, Bob. Not gay. I have all I can handle with Lily, and besides, you’re not that cute.”
Bobby stared off angrily. “Then tell me what it is, so I can understand.”
“It’s called H-E-L-P. Nothing more, nothing less. This is what we do here. Other places do it as well. We—meaning the people who live here—want you and Kelly to be all you can be. That’s it. Not trying to play you or get you in bed. I understand this is all new, but it’s the real deal.”
Bobby sighed. He was so out of his element, he was having difficulty determining up from down and front from back. “But all I want to do is start a detailing business.”
“Great goal, but you’re going to need workers. Can you set up a payroll system so they can get paid? You’re going to need suppliers. Do you know anything about inventory or invoices? What about small business taxes?”
Bobby’s lips tightened. Admittedly he knew nothing about any of those things.
“If you want that business of yours to be successful, you’ll need to know all of that and more. You’re what, nineteen?”
Bobby nodded.
“Perfect age to begin setting up for your dreams, and you start by learning all the things you need to bring to the table. Let us help you.”
Bobby met Trent’s gaze. Since the age of thirteen, he’d been in charge of his own life because he’d never had anyone in his corner—not parents, teachers, or social workers. Kiki had always been supportive, of course, but aside from her, the closest he’d ever had to someone having his back was during his gang years. The members functioned as the family he’d never had. But now Trent was proposing something totally new and foreign, and the way he broke it down made Bobby consider a different path and a different way of tackling his life. He wanted better—had he not, he wouldn’t have moved his family to this place in the middle of damn nowhere. Could he really achieve his dreams here? Trent was making him realize all the things he didn’t even know he didn’t know.
“Well?” Trent asked.
“What if I can’t do it?”
“What if you can?”
Bobby smiled and looked down at his feet for a moment. When his gaze rose, Trent was smiling, too. “You’re something. You know that?”
“My sons think I’m an okay guy.” Trent’s voice took on a serious tone. “I need you to try this, Bob. It can’t hurt. If you don’t want to, I suppose we can find something else. The school and the Dog are always in need of custodial help. It’s honorable work, but it won’t set you on the path you say you want to be on.”
“Can I think about it?” Bobby asked. He could tell by Trent’s posture that it was not the answer he wanted, but Bobby never liked being pressured.
Trent relented. “Sure. If the answer is yes, I need you at my office in the morning, eight sharp.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
On the drive back to their trailer, Bobby was silent.
“I’m really excited about being able to do hair again,” Kiki said happily.
Bobby, lost in thoughts about Trent’s offer, replied distractedly, “Yeah, baby. That’s great.”
“What’s up with you? Was Trent serious about making you his assistant?”
“Yes. Not sure I want to do it, though.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know anything about being a mayor’s assistant.”
“He’s going to teach you, though, right?”
“He said he would.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“Still trying to deal with how they roll here. Never had anybody want to do something for me with no agenda attached.”
“It’s different, but it’s a good different, don’t you think?”
“I suppose.”
“So if you don’t take the job, what’re you going to do?”
He turned onto July Road. “Custodial work for the diner and the school.”
She looked away, shaking her head in what appeared to be either disbelief or disgust, he wasn’t sure. “What?”
“Did we come here to get a better life or not?”
“Well—”
“Yes or no?”
“Yeah, but—”
“But, my ass. Come on, Bobby. Either we’re in, or we go back to Dallas. I’m just as scared as you. This seems way too good to be true to me, too, but what if it isn’t? What if you actually can get that business you’ve been dreaming about? What if we can really have a life that’s not paycheck-to-paycheck, and have a few dollars left over at the end of the month instead of having to borrow from your mom to buy diapers?”
He pulled in to the drive that led to the trailers, and when they reached their own, they sat with the engine running while the twins slept in the backseat. Bobby spoke earnestly. “All my life, people told me I’d never be nothing, and I’ve always wanted to prove them wrong, which is why I had that dream of owning a business and got my GED. So now I get here, I got some people who want to help me out, and I guess I’m scared, like you said.”
“When the babies were born, you took a beatdown to leave the gang that put you in the hospital for three days. You had four broken ribs, a busted collarbone, and your face looked like something out of Halloween. You’re the strongest, baddest man I know.”
That made him feel good. “I guess I’m so used to hustling and having that golden ticket just out of my reach, and now that I have the ticket in my hand . . . This is the next step, isn’t it? Why I took that beating and worked two jobs, and tried to do the right thing.”
“Yes, it is,” she agreed softly. “And you’ve made me incredibly proud.”
Her words filled his heart. “Then let’s do this. Let’s take this second step. Trent wants me there at eight sharp.”
“Then I’ll cook you a big breakfast and give you a kiss out the door like the women on TV do their men.”
He chuckled, and his voice turned serious. “You’re amazing.”
“Yes, I am,” she replied shamelessly. “And I have an amazing man. So let’s go in and put these kids to bed, and then you can give me some loving and get a good night’s sleep. You have to see a man about a job in the morning.”
Leaning over, he kissed her with all the love he felt. After turning off the engine, he gently picked up the sleeping Tiara, Kiki did the same with Bobby Jr., and they went inside.
After Trent and his family got home, he went up to talk to his sons, as he did each night before they turned out their lights. Devon was in his pajamas and in bed. “Hey, Dad.”
He sat down on the edge of the mattress. “Hey, son. Homework done?”
“Yes.”
“Saw Zoey sitting with Wyatt at the meeting. You two still haven’t worked things out.”
“No. She still doesn’t like me. I don’t like her, either.”
Trent sighed inwardly. “You haven’t been very nice lately, Dev.”
“No one’s been nice to me.”
“Why?”
He turned his eyes away.
“I don’t know.”
“I think you do, and if you take a real look at how you’ve been treating people, you might see your way out of this corner you’ve boxed yourself into. Growing up is tough. It was tough for me, your mom—for everybody we know—but being nice helps a lot.”
Devon looked chastened, but Trent wasn’t sure if it was a true reflection of remorse.
“Give me a hug, and you get some sleep.” Trent hugged him tight. He loved this little boy so much. “Love you a lot, buckaroo.”
“Love you too, Dad.”
As Trent exited, Devon turned out his light.
Trent stuck his head into Amari’s room. He too was in sleepwear, lying beneath his blankets, staring at the ceiling. “You okay?”
“Not sure.”
“Something you want to talk about?”
“Not sure about that, either.”
Trent walked in. “Should I press?”
“What makes you like girls?”
Trent paused and eyed him for a moment. “Science says it’s a biological need to propagate.”
“As in kids?”
Trent nodded.
“God!” said Amari, sounding anguished.
“Having girl issues?”
“Not sure. Hoping it’s just the flu, or maybe something Dr. Reg can give me a shot for.”
Trent held on to his smile. “Well, if and when you’re ready to talk about it, I’m your guy.”
“Okay. Thanks, Dad.”
“You’re welcome. Homework done?”
“Yeah,” he said, but Trent could tell he was distracted.
“I’ll see you in the morning. Good night.”
“Night, Dad.”
Downstairs, Lily was watching the news. “Our sons good?”
He sat beside her on the couch. “Devon is still in denial about why Zoey’s treating him like persona non grata, and I think Amari’s in love.”