“Hey,” he said as she drew closer.
“Hey.” She stopped a couple of feet away from him. The clipboards she’d been carrying earlier were gone, leaving her hands empty. She nervously interweaved her fingers, drawing his attention to the light coating of lavender polish on her nails.
“You ready for the spotlight?”
“Not really.” She blew out a breath and met his gaze. “I’ve never been much for public speaking.”
“Could have fooled me the other night at the town hall meeting.”
Moira winced, but her hazel eyes were smiling. “Sorry. I was a bit passionate. I am passionate,” she corrected.
“Can’t fault someone for that. My dad always told Doug and me to never apologize about fighting for something we believe in. There are so few things that inspire a person to break out of their comfort zone.”
“Speaking at the town hall was definitely out of my comfort zone.” Moira laughed.
“If I remember correctly, you were front and center a lot when we were growing up. Band. Journalism. Student treasurer.”
“I can’t believe you remember all my extracurricular activities,” Moira said with a disbelieving voice.
Gil suddenly felt self-conscious. He threw one out that wasn’t true just so he didn’t look like he’d been keeping tabs on her since grade school. “Cheerleading.”
Moira narrowed her eyes. “I was never in cheer.”
“You weren’t?” He scratched his chin. “Huh. I could have sworn you were.”
The look Moira gave him told him she wasn’t buying his act. Then she eyed the stage. “So you’re going to give me the award and then what? Do I get to address the crowd?”
Gil rocked back and forth on his feet. “If you want to.”
“I do,” she said quickly.
He was surprised, considering how nervous she looked right now. She hadn’t looked nearly this nervous at the town hall meeting, but there, there were fewer people and she hadn’t been standing on a stage. “Okay. Wonderful. I’m sure everyone here will be happy about that. They all seemed to enjoy listening to you the other night.”
Moira narrowed her eyes. “Did that upset you?”
Gil shook his head. “Why would I be mad at you for speaking up about something you believe in?”
“Because it isn’t what you believe in,” she said quietly.
Gil wished things were different, but she was right. They were on opposing sides right now. “I believe in you.” He noticed how Moira’s eyes narrowed just slightly. Had he said too much? He always seemed to wear his feelings on his sleeve where Moira was concerned.
“Gil! It’s time.” Doug stepped up to Gil and looked at Moira. “Hi, Moira,” he said with a large smile.
“Hi, Doug. I like your shirt.” She wrung her hands in front of her as she spoke. Gil hoped he hadn’t made her even more nervous than she already was.
“Do you want a shirt? I can get you one too,” Doug offered.
Moira grinned. “That’s sweet, but, um, it’s okay. I don’t want you to go to any trouble for me.”
“It’s no trouble,” Doug said. “I know how much Gil likes you. He’d love for you to wear his shirt.”
Gil avoided Moira’s sideward glance. He’d have to thank his brother for that later. “So, uh, I’ll go onstage first and talk for a few minutes before inviting you up. Sound good?”
She nodded, looking flushed and beautiful. “Yep.”
“Great. I’ll see you soon,” he said. Then he turned toward the stage and headed up the steps. He didn’t typically mind public speaking, but he was a little gun-shy after all the hate mail he’d gotten this week. And since Denise Berger had put in a bid for mayor.
The crowd clapped as he took the stage. Was it less applause than usual? Were there folks who weren’t smiling in the audience? Maybe even some who were frowning?
Where is this paranoia coming from?
He stopped behind the microphone and glanced out on dozens of familiar faces. “Hello, Somersetters!” he said, forcing more enthusiasm than he was feeling right now. “It’s a beautiful day to celebrate spring at Somerset Lake. It’s also a good day to make a very important announcement to you-all.” Gil spotted his parents in the crowd. “I don’t think this will come as a shock to any of you, but I thought at this happy occasion, I’d take the time to make my decision to run for another term as mayor official. The last four years have been amazing, and I am so fortunate to have such wonderful support from this town,” Gil said, scanning the faces.
“We support you, but you don’t support us!” a man’s voice shouted from the crowd.
Gil’s stomach dropped. He pretended not to have heard that comment and continued with what he had planned to say. “It has been an honor to represent Somerset Lake, and it would be an honor if the good people here were to vote me into office again this fall.”
“What about Sweetie’s Bakeshop?” a woman’s voice called out.
Gil tried to locate the source of the voice, but there were too many faces. He took a breath and turned to see Moira waiting on the side of the stage. She offered a reassuring smile, which told him she had heard the comments. Then he gestured toward her. “I have some more great news for you-all. I’m sure you’ve all heard about our local hero, Moira Green, and how she went above and beyond the call of duty last week. In fact, I have something special to present to Ms. Green today.” Gil held out his arm to Moira. “Moira, will you please join me up here onstage?”
Moira headed up the steps, her smile deepening as she approached him in the middle of the stage. She turned to the crowd and waved as the applause grew.
Were the cheers louder than what he’d just gotten? Was he losing ground with his supporters over this parking lot issue?
“No one owes Moira more gratitude than me because the person she helped is my brother Doug. As you-all may have heard, Doug called the emergency dispatch last week. He had fallen and twisted his ankle. He told me that he doesn’t mind if I tell you that he’s also recently discovered that he’s diabetic. He was struggling on the day he called Moira, and as luck would have it, bad luck at least, several drivers and passengers in a three-car pileup on Hannigan Street were also having a difficult afternoon.” Gil cleared his throat. “Long story short, all of the available emergency personnel were sent to the accident, and no one was immediately available to check on Doug, including me. So Moira went above and beyond her job description and drove over to where Doug was and helped him herself.”
More claps resounded from the crowd.
“My family owes her a debt of gratitude, and that’s one reason I was extremely pleased when Sheriff Ronnie told me that he wanted to present Moira with an award today. A hero is someone who helps another without any concern for themselves. They are sacrificial, honest, generous, and capable. All the qualities that I believe Moira Green portrays.” Gil connected gazes with Moira, and his heartbeat quickened. She was definitely more beautiful every time he laid eyes on her.
“Then why are you tearing down her family’s business?” someone called from the front row.