Page 19 of Grit

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He dropped his voice to a whisper. “I only got As in shop class. Drove my parents crazy.”

“You and my brother,” she whispered. “What’s JPR Holdings?”

“What?” He hadn’t been paying attention. He’d been looking at her legs, which were nicely encased in a pair of worn jeans.

Cary really loved Melissa’s legs. He had plans for those legs.

She nodded toward the front of Veterans’ Hall, and Cary turned to his attention back to Bud Rogers, the current council president.

“…followed up their presentation last month with a representative coming to visit tonight, and we thank them for that. Some of my fellow council had a few questions—”

“You could say that.” The interruption came from Les Arthur, one of the oldest and most successful orange growers Cary knew. “I appreciate you all showing up tonight. I don’t appreciate your pressing for a vote this early.”

Cary sat up straight and turned his attention toward the table in front. Les was notoriously quiet, so for him to interrupt meant something needed attention. He was on the council as a favor to the town. At nearly eighty, he was a well-respected member of the community and a local philanthropist. When he spoke, people listened.

“What did I miss last month?” Melissa asked. “What presentation?”

“I don’t remember. I was talking with George after the meeting. I remember something about a handout, but I lost track of time and…”Shit. More muttering at the head table.

“The very brief introduction we were given to this project last month doesn’t even begin to touch on the realities.” Tammy Barber, the only woman on the council, raised her voice to speak. “No one mentioned how many houses this developer wants to build. I read every page of this proposal, and I’m concerned—”

“How many houses?”—a shout from the back of the room—“What kind of development are we talking about here?”

Normally Cary hated when people interrupted, but he had the same question.

“Development?” Melissa hissed. “What kind of development?”

“I don’t know. It sounded like they were just going to subdivide the old Allen ranch and turn it into a few play ranches, that type of thing. No one even mentioned the worddevelopment.” Cary was really wishing he’d grabbed that handout.

Melissa wasn’t shy. She raised her hand a second before she spoke. “I missed the meeting last month, Tammy. Do we still have copies of this handout?”

“How many houses?” The question was asked again. “Just answer that.”

Tammy Barber leaned forward. “Twothousandhouses.”

“What thefuck?” Cary cleared his throat. “Pardon me, but what?”

“Two thousand?” Melissa was as shocked as he was. “That’s ridiculous.”

“Well, everyone hold their horses here.” Bud raised his hands. “That’s why we’re talking about it. And that’s why JPR Holdings sent one of their top people here to answer your questions. But let’s not forget about our budget shortfall last year. This kind of development would be a huge boost for the local economy.”

“Bud,” Cary said. “Be reasonable. Two thousand houses would nearly double the size of this town. You want to approve something like that?”

Bud raised his chin. “I have to think of the good of the town,” he said. “We need to increase our tax base, and I think we all know what the other options would be. No one wants that.”

“Are you talking about the marijuana dispensary again?” Melissa asked. “Because not everyone has your hang-ups about weed, Bud.”

A few laughs sprinkled the room, but Cary sent Melissa a warning look. Bud could be a blowhard, and his ego was paper thin. The last thing Oakville needed was a bureaucrat on a power trip trying to prove what a big man he was.

“Beyond what anyone thinks about a marijuana dispensary”—Tammy Barber was speaking again—“the fact of the matter is, Cary is right. Two thousand new houses in Oakville would fundamentally change the town.”

Myra Dean, the owner of the Main Street Mercantile, raised her hand. “Well yes… but wouldn’t that be a lot more people in the shops?”

A more positive murmur made its way through the crowd.

“Yes,” Bud said. “That would be a much bigger customer base for all our businesses. Your shop. The hardware store.” Bud pointed to the Trujillo brothers, who ran the only remaining hardware and lumber yard in Oakville. “That’s thousands more people visiting our stores and shopping. Thousands more going to our restaurants. Staying at the inn.” He pointed to Marilou and Walter Fagundes, who ran the Oakville Inn. “Let’s face it. We got more young people leaving than moving in. We need to build more housing.”

“There’s empty houses in town already,” Melissa said. “What are you doing to sell those?”