Page 127 of Everything Has Changed
“So far, so good. But then again I haven’t reached out to the mayor yet.”
I rub my sweaty palms on my jeans. “Is it safe to assume this work trip has to do with the town takeover? How did you even know about it? You’ve been here for weeks.” Questions bubble within me and I’m trying hard to decide what more I need to know.
Mitch holds his hand up gently to slow my interrogation. “I think I’ll keep my sources secured for now, if you don’t mind. Just rest assured it’s someone in your corner. I am here to help spread the word about what Triton is trying to do to Willow Grove. Between you and I, I have been on the hunt for a piece to knock the lid off their scamming ways and I think this might be the one.”
My eyes grow big. “Really? Our little town?”
“Oh, your ‘little town’ has been the talk of the state and the surrounding area for weeks, ever since your ads went viral for your Harvest Festival. You really put this place bigger on the map, which I have to wonder if that was part of the plan.”
“I didn’t know anything.” The words rush out of me. A deep worry settles within that he would think I would toss my home under the bus the way it has been.
“Not you, Gwen. I know you had no malicious intent. You can see your love for Willow Grove and its people from a mile away. Clearly, so can everyone else, because any time I have asked for information since the news became public, everyone pointed me in your direction.”
I can feel my cheeks heat up with the recognition.
“I still don’t understand how you just happened to be in the right place at the right time.”
Mitch flips open his notepad, a shit-eating grin on his face telling me there’s more than even we know right now.
“I promise to make it all make sense eventually. But first, let’s start with Triton and your mayor. This is your chance, and mine, to bring awareness to the predatory ways these major companies can be withsmall towns. If we aren’t careful, we could have these ‘luxury’ resorts taking over all of the quirky small towns America has to offer. And I promise you, no one wants that. So, what do you say? Want to make the front page of the paper and stop these greedy old men?”
Nibbling on my lip, I take a moment to think. To double check that a target on my back is something I need right now.
A quick glance at my fellow townspeople living life all around me. Eying around us silently, at the cafe I built with the help of family and friends. My gaze tracks out the window to see the neighbors strolling down the sidewalk and tourists leaving other stores with big smiles on their faces.
This isn’t fair to any of them. It isn’t fair to me. We deserve to have our home be what we want it to be. We don’t deserve to have greedy people swoop in and change our whole lives to make them richer or more powerful. Not when we are already powerful just from the love we have for each other.
I take a deep breath, easing the tension in my shoulders to look my new partner-in-justice head on.
“Let’s do this.”
44
Logan
“What the hell is this?”
My father slams his fist on his mahogany desk, rattling the Tiffany lamp in the corner. I worried for a moment that it might take a dive right off the edge, shattering the work of art all over the floor. But then I thought of how poetic it would be as everything falls apart even more around my father and decided he deserved whatever happened within the walls he built for himself.
“It’s a request for a meeting, Richard. Honestly, it’s the least you could do.”
My mother sits on the edge of his chair, leaning over his shoulder to read the letter he’s fuming over.
He scoffs as if that’s the most absurd thing he’s ever heard.
Meanwhile, my chest warms with pride knowing who sent the request. I relax my face to make sure the smirk that is pulling on my cheeks doesn’t come out to make the moment worse.
Father pushes his desk chair back, forgetting Mom is perched there and sending her foot stomping to the floor to make sure she doesn’t fall over. The glare she sends the side of his head might incinerate him where he sits, but it’s gone before we can test the theory.
She comes around the desk, her expression neutral until she glances out the window. A bubble of laughter spills out until she slaps a hand over her mouth. Her eyes go round and meet mine with a nod of her head.
My father is still muttering under his breath about how ungrateful and simple minded the people are being as I get to my feet and quickly make my way to my mom’s side. When I see what caught her attention, I can’t hold the smirk in anymore.
“As if they could make a difference,” he chuckles darkly. “They are nothing in the grand scheme of things.”
“I don’t know about that,” I murmur.
“What are you two doing over there?”
