Page 26 of A Hard Habit to Break

The grant, right.The one he’d read all fifty-seven pages of before sunrise, and again this afternoon, skimming it during his lunch. Night construction had delayed their drive over the mountain into Whynot last night. Add another fifty-five minutes of waiting after Rachel’s hand examination and X-ray results. She’d kept quiet, but he’d relaxed in her company. Too much, if this meeting was any indication of the work he shouldhave focused on last night. Yet he couldn’t bring himself to regret the time alone with her.

“We’re exploring options and several locations,” Noah bluffed, feeling the first crack in his confident facade.

Before Mrs. Perkins could respond, Hank Gardner, owner of the Fresh Pick & Pay, rose to his feet. “What about the farmers market expansion? We need covered stalls that meet health code requirements if we want to compete with Whynot’s fancy food hub.”

Noah’s mouth went as dry as kindling. “Farmers market. Well, absolutely. Vital to our community. Covered stalls are”—he searched for a word, any word—“coverable. Count on me.”

From his periphery, Noah caught Captain Novak pinching the bridge of his nose. Not good.

“And the watershed protection measures?” called out Heath Leighton, the retired survivalist who lived up on Eagle’s Peak. “The grant explicitly requires green infrastructure components. What’s your plan for stormwater management around the creek?”

Stormwater?Noah’s brain started to overheat as the wall began to close in.

“Well, Heath, water management is outside of my wheelhouse.” Noah cleared his throat, feeling heat creep up his neck. Sweat trickled down his spine like gasoline headed straight for an unattended campfire. “But, but”—he held up one hand—“it’s important. Vital. We’ll make sure to look into it.”

A collective groan rippled through the audience. Tobias, his middle brother, hoisted his EMT medical kit like he was seconds away from administering CPR to Noah’s dignity. In case he missed the first hint, his nutty brother did an exaggerated eye roll with a bobblehead gesture before letting his big head flop on his chest. His feigned fainting drew more attentionthan the red bag floating in the air. Their mama leaned over the empty chair that separated the two and swatted him on the hand with an audiblethwack. For anyone looking, his brother appeared to be in need of assistance, and Mama was administering punishments for bad behavior. People stared at both, but the expression on her face said,There’s more where that came from. Anyone who’d been on the business end of a mama’s spanking averted their gaze.

Noah wanted to disappear. Instead, he straightened his shoulders like they still belonged to a man who had things under control

Pete gave him a thumbs-up, motioning with his hand for Noah to keep going.Get it together, Calvary.Noah took in the crowd, the people who’d known him all his life. They were on his side. Or so he thought.

“Look, everybody,” he sighed, “it’s my first hour in the seat—”

“What about my Ferris wheel?” Tucker Willoughby shouted without bothering to stand. The town’s self-appointed fall festival director had been lobbying for carnival rides since Noah was in the Boy Scouts. “Every respectable town has a Ferris wheel. It’s in the Constitution.”

“It most certainly is not,” Mrs. Perkins huffed. More groans echoed around the room.

Noah latched on to the absurdity like a life preserver in a choppy sea. “Tucker, I don’t think the founding fathers had carnival rides in mind when they drafted the Constitution.”

“Not that one. The town’s constitution. Service needs attractions.” Tucker continued, undeterred. “Look at Whynot. It’s booming. We need something to put us on the map besides the Landing waterfall. We need to go big or go home, people. Am I right? Or am I right?”

As the questions kept coming, Noah found himself wishing ClamClam would barrel through the double doors. The chaos of aMRAAAAOW-ing feline terrorizing the villagers could improve this meeting. At least then, everyone would be too busy leaping onto chairs and protecting body parts to notice he was one question away from spontaneous combustion.

“No one’s voting for a Ferris wheel for people to fall off of, Tucker,” Pete injected.

“Nobody’s voting to give you money for a mayoral mansion or luxury condos on the water, either, Petey. We’ve all heard about you getting cozy with them resort developers,” Tucker countered. “No carnival. No peace!”

The room erupted into a cacophony of voices, each with their own agenda. Noah felt sweat pooling in places he didn’t know had pits. His rough draft PowerPoint presentation, a single slide withSERVICE STRONGin bold letters and clip art of a firefighter in a construction hat, seemed laughably inadequate now.

“What about the medical clinic? When will you add it to the agenda? To the grant allocations?” Bethany Walker stood, her voice cutting through the chaos like a fire ax through drywall. “We’re a community consisting of growing families, aging adults, and hardworking men and women. The school closed. Then the clinic. The nearest hospital is thirty-five minutes away, fifty in winter weather.”

“You tell ’em, sunshine,” Matt cheered his lady on, while Noah’s imagined parade got rained out.

All eyes turned expectantly to Noah, whose brain had torched half a thousand cells since the start of the meeting.Geezuz, just say five hundred.See, he’d already dumbed down his math skills. Incoherent speech and cognitive decline were infirst and second place.Recover the ball, Calvary. He could win, if he kept his head in the game.

Bethany made valid points, but he had important objectives, too. Firefighter training in rural areas saved lives, land, and livestock. Unlike the city, rural firefighters had to navigate diverse terrain, limited water supply, and extensive distances. Well-trained firefighters worked hoses with skill, understood fire behavior, and carried out search and rescue operations in a safe and effective manner that preserved lives—their own and those of others. Of course, the town’s history and watershed moments impacted the community as a whole. Everyone wanted something vital to Service’s longevity… except Tucker. Pete’s mansion, though unessential, could remain a monument to Service’s excellence. The previous mayor, Mayor Austin, had worked tirelessly to improve the lives of all residents. Pete would get there, too. Only six months in the role, the demands on his time continued to grow. That was why Noah had volunteered as redevelopment committee chair.

“Medical care is important,” he began, then stopped, then started again. “We’re going to make every effort for the town.”

“What does that mean?” demanded Lois Kline, a longtime patron of the Calvary Vet Clinic, her snowdrift white hair twisted into a top knot, her pet companion, Adele, in her lap.

“It means I’ll do my best to consider your suggestions and update the plan—if necessary.” The last part triggered grumblings about Noah working for the mayor instead of them. His legendary confidence evaporated like morning dew under a blowtorch.

Captain Novak’s warning echoed in his ears.If this goes sideways, your job is at risk.Noah’s plan to establish himself as a community leader before the next fire chief selection board seemed as remote as a distant galaxy.

“Perhaps,” came a sultry voice that hit Noah with a wave of cold water followed by a blast of heat, “the committee needs time to evaluate all these important concerns within the framework of the grant requirements.”

Rachel stood, and the air in Noah’s lungs heated several degrees. Her copper curls caught the fluorescent light, revealing subtle golden highlights he’d never noticed before. Poised and professional in a crisp emerald blazer, the shy girl who’d once tucked herself against his side at football parties, content to let him dominate conversations, had vanished. In her place stood a striking woman who commanded attention without demanding it. She moved to the microphone, which no one else had bothered to use, with an athletic grace—elegant, measured, assured—as if the room had been designed around her movements rather than the other way around. Unlike Noah, she looked completely unaffected by the sauna-like conditions of the room. Unnoticed before, but this place was drab, uninviting, and uncomfortable for the number of people occupying the space. Service deserved better. Rachel tapped the mic with one finger; she kept her bandaged hand at her side before speaking into it. The muscle in his jaw ticked, remembering her fall and the injury. He should’ve reacted faster.