“Force of habit.” Cade shrugged. “She’s cute.”
“Beautiful, you mean.” Linc snorted.
“Okay, I’m uncomfortable with where this conversation is heading.” Noah pulled a rag from his back pocket and wiped sweat off his forehead.
“You mean, where you and Elisa are heading?” Linc grinned, a genuine one for once.
Noah threw the rag at Linc, who easily caught it. “Can we get back to the Magnolia Days conversation?”
“Everything’s going exactly as planned, especially now that my secret weapon agreed to participate.” Cade checked his palms for dust, shoved his hands into his pockets. Hopefully that would hide the telltale shaking that always seemed to strike when he was nervous and didn’t have a snack. “Hey, you guys hungry?”
“Is itreallygoing fine?” Noah headed toward the stairs. “Or are you doing that thing where you change the subject because you’re trying to deny reality?”
“You know me being hungry is always a reality.” Cade followed Linc out of the room. They took the stairs down much faster than they’d come up.
At the bottom, Noah paused. “Seriously, what do you need? We’re here to help. This is a town affair.”
“Yeah, we can bring the muscle.” Linc turned on the stairwell and arched a pointed brow at Cade. “Some of us more than others.”
“I’ll remember that.” Cade shuffled after them. “But I got it.” He would find a way to pull this off and show Dad he had what it took to represent the Landry name.
But he also couldn’t lie.
Cade hesitated on the last stair. He couldn’t mention he still had to finish lining up the booths, create more promo materials, and confirm about a dozen other details like porta-potties and dancing poodles. But he had to give themsomething. “I’m worried Magnolia Days, even with the circus, might not be enough to bring in the revenue we need.”
His friends turned to face him on the bottom floor. “What do you mean?” Noah’s brow furrowed.
“Well, for starters, it seems like for every dollar I anticipate getting, another pothole pops up on Village Lane.”
“Say what?” Linc crossed his corded arms over his chest. Did the guy ever skip arm day?
“Long story.” Cade shook his head. “My point is, the fundraiser is set to be a hit, but I’m wondering if we need a second hit at the same time.” Or a third. Or a tenth.
“You’re only one person.” Noah’s gaze sobered. “Don’t forget that.”
“I also only haveonejob, and it’s this.” Cade straightened his shoulders. “I’m a Landry—it’ll work out. I’m glad Rosalyn came to help, because that expands our reach.”
They headed across the lobby, the faint hint of woodsy air freshener lingering in the air. Rosalyn was a life saver. There was the one hitch with her knee, but she’d assured him it’d be okay to perform in three weeks.
And he had no other choice than to believe her.
“I know we were joking about the movie thing earlier, but seriously—what about getting the crew to come back?” Noah rested one arm on the front desk, where a tiny potted plant struggled to bloom in mid-summer heat. “Consider Magnolia Bay for another movie? That would get tourist attention for a long time to come.”
“Not a bad idea.” Cade tilted his head. “I still know the producer. We send each other social media reels sometimes.”
“There’s a solid relationship for your generation,” Linc muttered.
Noah raised his eyebrows. “Might be worth asking them to scout post-hurricane and see.”
The idea wilted like the plant next to Noah’s elbow. “But Magnolia Bay is still sort of a disaster.”
Noah shrugged. “Then ask them to come during the circus.”
The idea blossomed again.
“That’ll be a fun distraction—a way to show them what decor and the right lighting can do.” Noah grinned. “And wouldn’t hurt to remind the guy that Louisiana still offers big tax breaks for movies.”
Valid points.
