Page 31 of That Kind of Guy

I nodded at her. “Oh, yeah. I paddled over as fast as I could on my board. Avery was nowhere to be found.” I shook my head. “I saw her board floating, but she wasn’t there. At this point, I was so scared. The tie strap around her ankle must have come loose when the wave knocked her off. I had to find her.”

“Where was she?” Miri urged.

“I was heartbroken, thinking she had drowned. Just then, she surfaced beside my board, gasping for air,” I told them.

“Thank god,” Scott said, shaking his head.

“She looked up at me, coughing and gagging up water—”

“Okay,” Avery interrupted, finally having enough, but I cut her off.

“She grabbed my board and said—”

Miri’s eyes were bugging out of her head. “What? What did she say?”

“She said, ‘Is that you, Henry Cavill?’”

Out of the corner of my eye, Avery turned to stare at me dead on. I didn’t dare look at her. I would either start laughing and never stop, or immediately burst into flames from the intensity of her gaze.

I took a deep breath and let it out, rubbing my hand on her back again, still not looking at her. “And that’s when I knew I was in love with her.”

Miri pressed her lips together and clasped her hands over her necklace. “You are so brave. What a story! Isn’t that an incredible story, Scott?”

Scott shook his head in amazement. “It sure is.” He held up the margarita in front of him. “Let’s do a toast. To love.”

“To love,” Miri and I chorused after him.

Beside me, Avery chugged her drink until only the ice remained.

The food arrived, and between Avery and I, we managed to steer the conversation away from us and to the town, and eventually, the power outages.

Scott shook his head. “It’s tough on the older folks when the power goes out, especially in the winter when it’s damp and cold as hell.”

I nodded. “Exactly. It’s really disruptive, and I think a lot of people in town have just gotten used to it and accepted it.” I sat back. “Anytime discussion about upgrades would come up at town hall meetings, they’re shrugged off as too expensive, too much work.” I squeezed my napkin in my hand, frowning. “That doesn’t feel good enough to me, so I’m doing something about it.” Scott was listening intently, and I could see that he was trying to stay neutral. “I know you’re in a position where you feel that you can’t get involved with the election, and I’m not asking you to. I don’t know your relationship with Isaac. All I know is that any work on our electrical grid will be using your tradespeople. These won’t be short employment stints where they’re back looking for work in a couple weeks. Some of this work will take years.”

Scott nodded and looked at his plate, thinking.

Miri shrugged. “I’m not head of the union, and I can do whatever I want. I’m voting for you, Emmett.”

I gave her my most winning smile. “Miri, I do adore you, I hope you know that.”

She grinned and blushed.

“You’re right that it’s usually recommended that I don’t get involved in local politics,” Scott said, crossing his arms over his chest.

I raised my hands in surrender. “That’s fine, and however you vote, it won’t affect our friendship or working relationship. Rhodes Construction is committed to using high-quality labor through your union, regardless of the outcome of the election.”

Scott shifted in his chair. “I usually abide by that recommendation, but you’re right.” He shook his head at all of us. “I’m sick of these problems. I tell our guys every morning,see a problem, fix a problem. It’s irresponsible to just sit by and watch this happen to our town and not do anything about it.” He looked between Avery and me. “I used to think you were just out to have fun and make some cash, but I’ve always thought Avery has a good head on her shoulders, so if you’re good enough for her—” He reached across the table to shake my hand. “Emmett, you’ve got my vote.”

Pride swelled in my chest, and I tried to stay calm. This was big. This was an enormous win for me and the campaign. Winning the election was one step closer.

I accepted Scott’s crushing handshake with my most modest, bashful smile. “Scott, you have no idea how much I appreciate that. I really look up to you, how you manage your guys and how they respect you. I hope I can make you proud as mayor.”

“I bet you will.” The server started clearing our plates and Scott looked around the table. “How about dessert to celebrate the happy couple?”

“That would be great. Sweetheart, would you like to split some cheesecake?” I asked Avery. Splitting dessert, what could be more romantic than that?

She shook her head. “I’m lactose intolerant.”

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