Chapter 13
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Audrey’s heels clicked wildly against the wooden floorboards of city hall, the sound of her crisp footfalls echoing off the ceiling of the hallway she was running down.
She glanced at her watch again, biting her lip.
Technically, the mayor’s office had closed two minutes ago.
But didn’t his secretary say that he always stayed after work for hours?
If he was planning on staying there for a while, surely her arriving a few minutes late wouldn’t actually make any difference to him?
She pushed open the door to his office, and found his secretary in the entryway, just slinging her purse onto her shoulder.
“Audrey!” the secretary said pleasantly. “Did you have an appointment?”
“Well, no sorry,” Audrey panted. “But I mean—well, look, he’s still in there.
” Through the glass of the inner office door, she could see Evan typing away at his computer with a determined expression on his face, as if he intended to remain parked at his desk like a defiant bulldog for several more hours.
“I’m sorry, I know you’re technically closed, but I was wondering if you could make an exception for me and let me in anyway.
” She blinked her best pleading eyes at the other woman, who hesitated for a second and then laughed.
“Okay. You do you. You’ve got a good point—if he’s still working, technically the office is still open, right? Have a good night, I’ll see you around.”
“You too! Have a good night. See you around.”
The two women exchanged a friendly smile, and then Audrey took a deep breath and pushed open the door to Evan’s office.
He looked up from his desk the second he heard the door opening, his mouth parting as if he was about to form the words to a sentence he’d been expecting to say. As soon as he saw Audrey, however, his lips clamped shut as if he was doing his best clam impression.
He must have thought I was his secretary, she thought, holding back a chuckle. Gosh, he looks perturbed to see me. I didn’t think I was that scary.
“Hi,” she said.
He blinked at her, an annoyed expression on his face.
The more she watched him, however, the more she got the impression that his annoyance was forced and that he was actually feeling a little amused by her.
Behind his gruff scowl, she thought she could see his eyes dancing. Or was it just her imagination?
“I wanted to know,” she said, trying not to pant too much but still feeling out of breath from running, “if you received any news about what will be required for us to expand our front porch back to its former glory?”
“Ah, yes.” Evan cleared his throat and began to rummage in a well-organized file folder that was resting on his desk.
“I have the paperwork right here.” He handed her a couple of crisp, clean documents—no coffee stains on these.
“It turns out that you don’t need any kind of a permit to expand the deck. ”
“Really?” she gasped, feeling thrilled. “Oh, that’s wonderful news! Are you sure?”
“I’m very sure. I’m always sure about this kind of thing.”
Her mouth popped open, and she was ready to retort that he probably shouldn’t be, since he’d been sure the wrap-around porch wouldn’t be allowed even though it was, but she decided against it. After all, the man was helping her out after his scheduled work hours.
“Well, that’s wonderful,” she said, feeling a thrill that she didn’t bother to conceal. She clasped her hands together eagerly. “I’m going to order the lumber right away.”
Evan blinked at her. “You seem awfully ambitious,” he told her. “How did someone so determined end up in Coral Sands, I wonder?” His eyes narrowed at her slightly, as if she was some kind of mystery that he wondered if he would ever solve.
His remark brought back her recent trauma in a rush. She felt suddenly tense, and she could feel herself stiffen as she swallowed.
“When a woman’s husband disappears for days without a word and then turns up alive and well but in the arms of another woman—well, it causes a person to seek out a change. Coming back home here to Coral Sands seemed like a great option.”
Evan immediately grew pale, a reaction which endeared him to Audrey a little.
There’s some compassion under that gruff exterior of his, that’s for sure, she thought.
“I’m sorry,” he stammered, and cleared his throat loudly. “I apologize for being insensitive—I should have realized that you might have come here to get away from something else.”
She shrugged. “Coral Sands is a great place to be, and I think it can absolutely be a destination in its own right. I just happen to also be leaving someplace bad.”
Evan blinked at her, seeming to be wondering what to say. She was just opening her mouth to thank him for the documents when her stomach growled loudly. Her face flushed with heat a second later, since the sound had been embarrassingly loud in the small office.
“Well, your stomach seems to be reminding us that it’s dinner time,” he said, and she laughed, delighted that he’d swept in to her rescue with a joke to keep things from getting awkward. “I should eat as well. Would you be interested in grabbing a bite to eat with me at Crossroads Bar and Grill?”
She had to stop herself from letting her jaw drop all the way to the floor.
Is he asking me out? her brain gasped, but she did her best to keep her expression neutral.
Even more shocking to her was the realization that she would have liked to say yes.
She wondered wildly if she just loved the idea of going out to eat while she was feeling so hungry or if she actually liked the idea of going on a date with the grumpy mayor.
“I—oh, I wish I could, but I have to get home. Thanks,” she stammered, wondering if she was blushing again.
“Of course,” Evan said, his tone even—although his eyes flickered away from her face as if he was suddenly having trouble with eye contact.
“Thanks again,” she said, opening the door and slipping through it. Her heels sounded like a herd of elephants in her ears as she walked through the entryway of the office and out into the hallway.
Once she was back outside in the cool night air, she took a couple of deep breaths, feeling her jittery nerves smooth themselves out a little.
What on earth was that? she wondered, glancing back at the charming old building behind her. He really just asked me out? I bet he was only asking me out to dinner out of pity after I spilled my guts about my past to him.
She shook her head as she walked, squaring her shoulders. Well, he could think whatever he wanted, but she was a strong woman who was shaping the next chapter of her life. She didn’t need any pity from anyone, especially not from Evan McBride!