by Debbie Mason
“Nothing. Nothing at all, son.” Avoiding Connor’s gaze, he glanced out the windshield. “Oh ho, would you look at that? There’s Arianna and Helen coming around the corner. Come on, I want to congratulate them.”
While Connor knew his dad cared about them and had been genuinely happy to learn Helen had scored well on the Folstein test and Arianna was attending physical therapy, he sensed there was something else going on here. But he didn’t get a chance to question his father further because he was already out of the car.
Connor had almost caught up to him when his dad reached Arianna and Helen with his arms wide, the bottom of his black coat flapping in the cool November breeze. “Hello, my two favorite ladies. I wanted to congratulate you both on your good news.”
“What, your son dropped out of the race? Or did your brother drop dead?”
“Glamma,” Arianna said in an exasperated tone that reminded Connor of how many times he’d heard her use that voice before they were on opposite sides. He smiled, but her gaze flitted past him to his dad. “Thank you, Sean.”
“Why are you thanking him? He’s a…” Helen frowned and turned around. “I’ve felt like someone’s been following us all morning…Do you…? There! I’d know that head of hair anywhere. Maura Gallagher, you get out from behind that bush this minute!”
Arianna gasped, turning on Connor. “You have your mother spying on me?”
Chapter Eighteen
By the time election night rolled around and Arianna walked into the town hall, Connor and his family were still in her bad books. Due to how divisive their campaigns had become, the current mayor and the town council had decided that the announcement would be made in the town hall to avoid rioting in the streets when either Arianna or Connor was declared the winner. She thought they were being a tad dramatic.
But Hazel Winters, the current mayor, had overridden her objections on the conference call with Connor this morning. Connor had agreed easily to the woman’s every request, of course.
“I can’t wait until this is over,” Arianna murmured to her grandmother, who merely grunted her agreement. She’d been acting strangely today. Actually, Arianna supposed it wasn’t so strange really. Helen had been born to campaign. At least for someone else. And now the everyday excitement would be over.
A tightness built in Arianna’s chest at the thought. She pressed her fingers against the ice-blue cape she wore over a winter-white cashmere sweater and wide-leg pants in an effort to rub away her panic.
“Just breathe,” she whispered to herself through the clenched-teeth smile she offered her supporters in the right-hand rows of seats. Several of them held up signs, quickly hiding them before security took them away. The town council had banned campaign signs in hopes of starting the healing. Arianna thought they were being a little idealistic and overly optimistic.
And speaking of overly optimistic, supremely confident, and obnoxiously gorgeous, Connor stood as she approached the row of reserved seats at the front of the room.
Okay, so maybe supremely confident was pushing it. His smile seemed tentative, his “You look beautiful” quiet and a little gruff. He’d apologized to her before the conference call with Hazel ended. Even though her sister had explained why he’d made Arianna look like an idiot in front of nearly all of New England, she couldn’t bring herself to forgive him.
“Of course she does, and you’re not the only one who thinks so. Ask her where she got the cape. Come on, ask,” her grandmother challenged him.
“Glamma, stop it and take a seat.” Arianna looked around. “Do you know where I’m supposed to sit?” she asked him, even though she was afraid she already knew.
His mouth crooked at the corner, and just like she’d thought, he gestured to the empty seat beside him. “In an effort to promote unity instead of division,” he said, repeating what Hazel had told them that morning.
Arianna sighed and took a seat. He sat beside her, then leaned in to her, his broad shoulder crowding her, his spicy, masculine scent enveloping her, his breath tickling her cheek and warming her ear. “So, where did you get the cape?”
“Turns out she has a secret admirer. He left it for her on the front porch this morning. It’s a good-luck present. Not that she needs it.”
Arianna pursed her lips at her grandmother. “It’s amazing what you can hear when you put your mind to it.”
Glamma shrugged. “Just a good guess.”
“Whoever your secret admirer is, they have great taste. The cape matches your eyes.”
She wished he hadn’t mentioned her eyes because it brought her gaze to his. Her eyes were ordinary blue; Connor’s weren’t. His were a deep cobalt, framed by black lashes that were thick and long. It should be illegal for a man to have eyes as beautiful as his. But right then it wasn’t the color that captured her attention. Some people wore their hearts on their sleeves, but Connor expressed his deepest emotions with his eyes.
“Do you remember exactly how friendly Hazel wanted us to be?” he asked, his gaze dropping to her mouth.
“Not that friendly,” she said, forcing her lips into a straight line. It wasn’t as easy as it should have been. She should be ticked he asked. Did he seriously expect her to forget that his mother had posted a highly inflammatory video of Arianna online yesterday?
There seemed to be an unwritten rule that politicians were supposed to kiss every baby handed to them. No one seemed to care if said child had a snotty nose or a dirty face and grubby hands. Still, she had tried to do it a couple times, on the top of their heads, of course. If it weren’t for Connor’s mom, no one would have seen the face Arianna had made. She hadn’t known she’d made one.
She found it easier not to be around children. It wasn’t that she didn’t like them per se. She just didn’t like to be reminded of what she’d lost. What she’d never have. She didn’t like to be around dogs either. Like children, they seemed to sense that. Unlike children, dogs could kill you or maim you with their sharp canine teeth. It wasn’t her fault that when the dog jumped on her, she’d assumed he was going to attack and she pushed him away. Perhaps a little more forcefully than was necessary, which made the mother of the dog angry and her children cry.
She felt the weight of Connor’s gaze and glanced at him. He smiled. Once again she had to remind herself she was mad at him and didn’t want to kiss him. Apparently, her lips disagreed.
“You’re right. We’re supposed to wait until the announcement is made to kiss.” His voice was low, sexy, his eyes back on her mouth.
“You obviously heard an entirely different conversation than I did. But in case I blocked it out, I’ll agree to kiss your cheek when Hazel announces that I won.” Until that moment, she hadn’t realized how hard it was to hold a smug smile when you felt like you were going to throw up. Her reaction to both winning and losing the mayoral race was similar, though losing took the prize for almost sending her into a panic attack.
“No cheek kiss from me when I win. I’ll kiss you on the mouth.” He lifted his hand, holding her gaze as he gently rubbed her bottom lip with his thumb. “You have the most beautiful mouth.”
She reached up with her good hand to remove his fingers from her chin. “Thank you, but a cheek kiss is fine.”
“I’m sure Hazel said we’re to do whatever we can to eliminate any doubt that we’re really good friends. Close friends.”
“That hardly constitutes making out in the middle of the town hall.”
“I don’t know. Making out works for me.” Before she could disabuse him of the idea, he frowned and leaned in to her again. “Is there something wrong with Glamma? She’s not reacting to me flirting with you.”
So, he hadn’t been flirting with her because he wanted to. He was doing it to get a rise out of her grandmother. Which should fill her with relief, not frustration and disappointment. At least relief on her own behalf. Glamma was a different story.
“She’s been acting strange all day,” she told him, glad to be able to unburd
en herself to someone who cared about her grandmother. Because despite everything, she knew both Connor and his father did. “I think she’s worried that life will go back to the way it was before. She’s always preferred to be busy and involved. And we’ve been that times ten these past several weeks. As soon as we wake up in the morning, we’re off and running. You wouldn’t believe the number of breakfasts, luncheons, and potlucks we’ve attended.”
“I don’t know. I got the impression she was pretty busy before she entered the mayoral race. Wasn’t she involved in a bunch of clubs with Mrs. Ranger?”
Maybe he was right and Arianna was projecting. Still… “Yes, but this was different.”
He linked his fingers through hers and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Because you were with her. She adores you. She was relieved, happy to see you putting yourself out there again.”
Hazel took the stage. The sixtysomething woman wore her signature power suit in the same color as her brown hair and eyes. Around them, the low hum of conversation ended as everyone went quiet.
Except Connor, who whispered, “Whatever happens, we’ll make it work. Glamma will have a job and so will you.”
She wanted to groan her frustration. This time she leaned in to him, willing her brain not to think about how hard and muscular his arm felt or how good he smelled. “No more trying to fix my life. Look what happened the last time you did,” she whispered back.
“From where I’m sitting, it’s looking pretty damn good.”
“Oh, be quiet,” she muttered. “And stop acting like you’ve won.”
Hazel bent toward the standing mic. “Ladies and gentlemen, I’ll now read the election results. Please hold your applause until the end,” the mayor said, and then began to read off the names of the winners for councilor at large, ward councilors, and the school board. She cleared her throat. “Arianna Bell and Connor Gallagher are tied for mayor.”
Over the smattering of applause and boos, people yelled that either Arianna or Connor had been robbed.
“All right, settle down,” Hazel demanded as Glamma and Daniel Gallagher shouted for a recount, which spurred pretty much everyone in the hall to call for the same.
“We already have one under way,” Hazel reassured the crowd. “That being said, we won’t have the results until morning. In the event that we have another tie, the town council and I had a brief meeting before I shared this evening’s results with you. If Arianna and Connor remain tied after the recount, they’ll begin their tenure immediately and will serve jointly as mayor until December twenty-fourth. This will give the town council ample time to observe their abilities and conduct while in office and allow us to choose the perfect candidate for mayor in time for the inauguration on January first. We’ll render our decision here on Monday, December twenty-fourth at three p.m.” When people started to yell their dissatisfaction, Hazel raised a hand and her voice. “Arianna, Connor, do you have any objections to how we plan to proceed in the event of a tie?”
Almost positive the recount would yield a clear winner, even if by only a small margin, Arianna rose to her feet. “No. I agree with how you’ve chosen to declare a winner in the event of a tie.”
“So do I,” Connor said, standing beside her. He turned to give his muttering uncle Daniel a look.
“Excellent,” Hazel said, clearly relieved at their support. “We’ll announce the final results of the election tomorrow at ten a.m. If you can’t make it to the town hall, the results will be published in a special online edition of the Gazette at noon. As well, I’ve been told that, thanks to one of our candidates’ ties to the former governor of our fair state, several media outlets will be airing the results. Thank you all for coming and for your patience.”
“That was somewhat anticlimactic, wasn’t it?” Connor’s father said before offering Arianna and her grandmother a smile. “We’re having a small gathering at the manor, and we’d love for you both to join us.”
“Thank you. We appreciate—” Arianna was about to politely refuse before her grandmother abruptly cut her off.
“We can’t. We’re taking my Beemer out for a cruise. They just delivered her today, and the only place we’ve driven her so far is here. I want to feel the wind on my face and blast some Buddy Holly and Elvis.”
“It’s a little cold to have the top down, Glamma.” Arianna didn’t add that she doubted they’d find Buddy Holly and Elvis on the radio.
Her grandmother didn’t respond. She was already on her way out of the town hall.
“She bought a BMW?” Connor asked.
“Technically, I bought it. We needed a car, and I made the mistake of not saying an outright no when she started talking about getting a BMW. She loved her old car so much and was so excited about it, I didn’t have the heart to say no. We got a pretty good deal on a used one.” She would have liked a better deal, not that she’d share that with Connor, who looked concerned. “Glamma is paying half. She insisted.” And she’d called Arianna’s mother when they’d gotten back from the dealership late Saturday afternoon to tell her to send the check. Arianna wasn’t entirely sure how the conversation had gone because Glamma hadn’t been herself after the call. Like now.
Connor frowned. “What’s going on? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, thanks.” Arianna forced a smile, having a difficult time shutting down the voice in her head that said everything might not be fine, especially if she wasn’t reimbursed for half the cost of the car. There was no way she’d be able to convince her grandmother to get rid of her beloved Beemer. Arianna had a feeling she’d better start praying she ended up the winner after the recount, because it was looking like she’d need a job sooner rather than later.
* * *
Her grandmother was possessed. Arianna didn’t know exactly what she was possessed by, but she was acting manic. And it was scaring Arianna to the point she was tempted to call Connor.
“Okay, Glamma, it’s time to go home. You’re turning blue, and my teeth are chattering,” Arianna said from where she was huddled down on the passenger seat of the emerald-green Beemer. She’d agreed to cruise with the top down for five minutes, only now they couldn’t get it up.
“Not yet. I want to cruise to my heart’s content. I don’t have much time left.” Glamma grimaced like she’d said too much.
Arianna straightened in the seat to stare at her grandmother, barely noticing the bitter wind whipping her hair around her face. “What are you talking about? Ava said your heart and blood pressure were fine at your physical. Is that not true? Did you tell her to lie to me?” Arianna had to practically shout to be heard.
Her grandmother stared straight ahead. “I’m healthy as a horse, just like she said.”
“Then what is it? You’ve been acting strange all night. Are you upset the campaign is over? Are you worried we won’t win?”
Glamma shook her head. “I knew my time was up long before tonight. I just didn’t want to say anything.” She glanced at Arianna, her cheeks and nose red, her eyes glassy. Whether from the cold or unshed tears, Arianna couldn’t be sure. “Just let me enjoy a few more minutes of freedom, will you, darling?”
“Of course, Glamma.” Oh God, please don’t let her be dying, Arianna prayed. She should text Connor. He’d tell her Glamma was fine. That it was the stress of having to wait until tomorrow for the results. But it was more than that, and Arianna knew it.
Ten minutes later Glamma turned off Ivy onto Holly Road. Arianna could tell she’d done so reluctantly. The cold had finally gotten to her.
Arianna shivered. “It feels like it might snow. I think there’s a tarp we can cover Annabelle with tonight,” she said, referring to the car. Glamma had named her. “Mrs. Ranger is pretty handy with cars. We’ll ask her to have a look in the morning.”
“It won’t matter,” Glamma said, her voice a monotone as she got out of the car.
“Stop it. I can’t take this anymore. I need to know what’s going on,” Arianna said as she joined Helen at
the front gate.
Her grandmother reached up, placing her cold palm against Arianna’s cheek. “Just remember, when the day comes that my brain forgets you, my heart never will. I love you, my darling. I don’t want to go, but I made her a promise.”
She covered Glamma’s hand with hers, fighting back tears, forcing the words past her clogged throat. “It’ll be okay. We have an appointment with the memory specialist next week. We’ll—”
The front door swung open to reveal Arianna’s mother standing there. She wore her blond hair in a messy topknot, her blue eyes bright in her tanned face. Outfitted in a long-sleeve white T-shirt and skinny jeans, she looked more like the daughter and Arianna the mother. “Where have you been? I was about to call the police.”
“What’s going on? Why are you here?” Arianna snapped, because she knew…She knew without really knowing that her mother was the reason Glamma was acting this way.
“It’ll always be like this, won’t it? You’ll never forgive me. I’ll always be the evil witch in your eyes.” Beverly crossed her arms, moving aside to let them into the house. “Aren’t you the lucky one, Mother? You got off scot-free. Then again, she always loved you more, didn’t she?”
“What do you expect? You stole my son. You told me he’d died and had me sign the adoption papers when I was still groggy from anesthetic, when I believed what I was signing were papers to have him cremated. I wore a necklace with what I thought were his ashes up until the day I discovered they weren’t.”
“I’ve heard it all before, Arianna. It’s been years, remember? Most daughters would have forgiven their mother by now. I did what I thought was best for you. You were seventeen. Seventeen, Arianna. You could barely look after yourself, let alone a child.”