CHAPTER31
Emalee
Rap. Rap. Rap.
The voices in the large oval-shaped room slowly came to a close as the gavel knocked three times again on the podium.
Squawk!“This meeting will now come to order.”
“Thank you, Sterling. Wel—”
“Hey, loser.MayorSterling.”Squawk!
Richard Bowen’s face turned pink. “Er, yes, thank you,MayorSterling. Welcome to tonight’s town hall meeting.”
Zach leaned over to whisper in my ear. “That bird doesn’t lack for confidence, does it? Why doesn’t Bowen just leave the bird at home?”
I snickered. “And leave out one of the funniest things that’s ever happened in our small town? The good citizens of Sterling Mill would revolt.”
He grunted softly, but I saw a smile play around the corners of his lips. “And what would that look like? Would they vote in a horse for sheriff to control the anarchy?”
“Oh, no. We like our sheriff,” I said with a straight face but giggled when I saw him roll his eyes. Iain’s gesture was catching.
I continued to explain quietly while the secretary highlighted the minutes of the last meeting. “Poor Rich. His mother laughed when he lost the mayoral race to Sterling. I think she called him a loser one time, but Sterling picked up on it. The whole thing is funny to the rest of us, but Rich is so serious all the time. He doesn’t see the humor at all. Then again, he’s never seen the humor in anything. He was the high school principal here for years, and he didn’t make a lot of friends with the students. Students, I might add, who grew up into voters. But he’s a good guy. He loves this town, and everyone knows it.”
“Thank you, Alicia,” Rich said as the secretary finished. “Now, on to new business. Congratulations to Merle Cooper on celebrating the seventy-seventh anniversary of Cooper’s Hardware being in business. Your daddy and granddaddy would be proud.”
Everyone applauded as Merle stood and waved.
“Now, as I’m sure everyone knows, Doctor Harold Claypool suffered a stroke a few weeks ago. I talked to Wanda this morning, and you should know he’s doing well and is expected to return home soon. He still has a little way to go, but doctors are pleased with his progress and say he should be back to business as usual faster than they first anticipated.”
I froze and felt Zach do the same beside me. The clock we knew was ticking in the background suddenly grew louder. Zach reached for my hand and squeezed. When I looked at him, he tried to smile reassuringly at me, but knowing him as well as I did, I didn’t miss the lines of worry that crinkled in the corners of his eyes.
“Of course, we are grateful that Doctor Zachary Abbott came to temporarily fill in for him, and we already know how much he’s helped our community.” He gestured for Zach to stand.
“Doc Zach’s bringing sexy back,” squawked Sterling. He bobbed his head as if hearing the Justin Timberlake song in his head, then fluttered his wings and whistled a cat call. Zach froze mid-stand, his cheeks sporting a reddish hue. The crowd roared with laughter while Mayor Bowen looked at Sterling with incredulous eyes. I noticed several nods of agreement from other women, including some who were grandmothers.
Zach quickly sat and covered his eyes with one hand. “Crazy damn bird.”
From the other side of me, Cam leaned across to whisper to Zach. “Aw. Sterling has a crush on you.”
Megan, who sat behind us, leaned forward. “Looks like you’ve got some competition, girl.”
Rap. Rap. Rap.
Rich Bowen held the gavel in his hand, looking as if he’d like to use it on Sterling. “Um, sorry, Doc,” he mumbled. “Don’t know where he heard that.” He cleared his throat. “Speaking of our new vet, our town would like to thank him for all that he’s done for us in the short time he’s been here. For those of you who don’t know, he helped Sergeant Harrison Connelly get a seeing-eye dog named Sam.” The crowd whistled and cheered. “So, to honor Doctor Zach Abbott, the council has nominated and approved the recommendation that he be our grand marshal for Derby Day.” He motioned for Zach to stand. Zach smiled and waved and thanked the crowd. Sterling whistled another catcall.
“What does that even mean?” he asked me after he sat down.
I couldn’t help but be amused by the worry in his voice. I patted his hand. “Don’t worry. It means you get a seat of honor and get to help judge the hats.”
“Hats?”
“You know, the fancy hats that get worn for the Kentucky Derby? We do it our own way here. You’ll see.”
His guarded expression suggested he wasn’t sure it was that innocent. It was, but not in the traditional way. I decided to let that be a surprise.
The meeting eventually continued. I spoke a little about plans for the derby celebration the following month. Others brought up concerns or suggestions, and the meeting was over. I smiled as Zach was pulled into different circles with people congratulating and talking to him. He might think our town was a little crazy, but he never let it show as he smiled and made conversation with dozens of people. He’d make a great politician should he ever choose to.
