“You already thanked me. Are you going to tell me this Benny story over dinner tonight?”
Moira walked around the counter and headed back in his direction. “Benny talked about the resale value of my car for half of dinner and offered to take me to his used car lot in Magnolia Falls to do a trade-in afterward.”
Gil opened the front door for her. They stepped out onto the porch, and Moira turned back to lock up behind them. “If memory serves me, you’ve been driving that same car for a long time now.”
She nodded. “I turned down Benny’s offer and politely declined another date.”
They walked to Gil’s truck.
“I’m going to open your door for you because, in my mind, this is what a date does.”
Moira gave him a strange look.
He held up his hands. “I just don’t want you to think I’m being old-fashioned or a brute somehow. I know that you are perfectly capable of opening your own door.”
“I’m not looking for a reason to end this date, Gil,” she said as he opened the door. She stepped past him and got inside. “I’m glad this date is happening. I’m excited about it, actually.”
He looked at her. “Yeah? Me too.” After closing the door, he took his time walking around to the driver’s side, breathing deeply and willing his heart to slow down. He’d known Moira for his entire life. They were friends until they weren’t quite friends. Now they were friends again, even though they were also rivals. It was complicated, but also simple. This was Moira, and more than anything, he wanted to spend the evening with her.
He got in his truck, reversed out of the driveway, and headed down the road.
“Where are we going?” she finally asked.
Gil glanced over. “I guess it would be nice if I told you, huh?”
“I wasn’t sure if it was supposed to be a surprise.”
He shook his head. “Not at all. I’m taking you to my place.”
When Moira didn’t immediately respond, he glanced over. Her face was suddenly pale, and her lips parted.
“That came out wrong. Let me rephrase. I’ve cooked you dinner and prepared us a table outside by the lake. It’s waterfront dining without the nosy onlookers.” He dared another glance at Moira, who seemed to have relaxed again. “I figured I could come off cheap or romantic. One or the other.”
“Romantic,” she said decidedly.
* * *
Moira wasn’t sure if she’d ever had a more romantic evening. The moon was full, the stars were out, and the air was crisp against her skin. Gil had tried to light a candle at the center of the table, but the wind kept blowing it out. They had wine. Moira had shied away from having alcohol on dates since Felix. She trusted Gil though. The lake also added to the ambiance of the evening.
“I had no idea you could cook like this.” Moira scooped another bite of her eggplant Parmesan.
Gil shrugged. “I live alone. I cook all my own meals by necessity.”
She tilted her head. “You live next door to your parents. I kind of imagined that you went to their house every evening for dinner.”
Gil laughed. “No. I value my independence. Doug values his independence as well. When he wants to get away from Mom and Dad, all he has to do is cross the lawn and come here. Which he often does.”
“You are a great brother,” Moira said with a growing smile.
Gil reached for his wineglass and took a sip. “So is Doug. He’s the one who first suggested I become mayor, you know. He was reading a sign that said Bryce Malsop for Mayor, and he replaced the name with mine. Gilly for Mayor. That’s what he calls me. He was joking, of course, but it resonated so deeply that I just knew. It was like a lightbulb went off in my head, and I thought, Yeah, that’s what I want to do with my life.”
Moira looked down at her plate, feeling a tiny pang of guilt. She was going after a title that belonged to Gil. He was passionate about what he did, and he was good at it. She moved her fork around her plate, chewing on her thoughts momentarily.
“What’s on your mind?” Gil asked, picking up his own fork.
She looked up. “I know it’s not your fault that my mom’s bakery is on the chopping block. I also know that you have a lot of pull in this town. You could change the council’s mind. You could find an alternate location. You could do more than you are.”
Gil rolled some noodles around his fork as he listened.
“Sorry. I know this isn’t date-worthy conversation.”
“If it’s weighing on your mind, it is.” His lips set in a small frown. “Moira, you should talk to your mom about this.”
“My mom? Why?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. She mentioned retiring when we were in the jail. I believe everything happens for a reason. If the new parking lot does go in the place of Sweetie’s, maybe it’s a good thing for your mom too. Maybe retiring right now isn’t so far-fetched.”
Moira stiffened. “Nonsense. She’s only fifty-five, Gil. And no one wants to see their life’s work demolished.”
“Is that why you’re running for mayor? Because of the bakery and the parking lot?”
Moira hesitated. “Maybe that was my reason at first. Now it’s about something more though. I don’t know.” She searched for the right words to describe this raw excitement accumulating inside her. “I feel like a lightbulb kind of went off in my head too. I want to make a difference. I want to be a vehicle for change.”
“But you do make a difference. You save lives,” Gil said gently.
Moira shook her head. “No. I take calls for the people who do the lifesaving.”
“Doug thinks differently.”
“Well, I left my post, risked getting fired, and crawled through a doggie door to give him an ice pack and a glass of juice. That’s not exactly heroic behavior.”
“It is in my opinion.” Gil smiled sweetly at her. “And the rest of the town agrees. That’s why you were given the Hero Among Us award.”
Moira reached for her glass of wine and took a sip. “We said no discussion about the campaign tonight, and that’s one of the first topics I brought up. Sorry.” She mimed zipping her lips. “I’m done discussing it. I promise.”
They stared at each other for a moment.
“Maybe that leaves nothing else to discuss,” Moira finally mused.
Gil shook his head. “There’s plenty to talk about.” He cleared his throat. “Speaking of Doug, he’s been talking about moving out of my parents’ house and into his own place.”
Moira found this topic interesting. “Wow. Good for him.”
Gil watched her. “You think so?”
“Yeah. Why wouldn’t I?”
Gil shrugged. “It’s just, my mom wants me to talk him out of this idea. She doesn’t like it. But Doug wants me to talk her into it. I feel a little torn, I guess.”
“Doug is fully capable of living alone, right?” Moira hesitated before expanding on that. “I mean, I know he has Down syndrome, and you said he was recently diagnosed with diabetes. That’s a lot. Would it be safe for him?”
Gil leaned back in his chair. “My brother takes care of himself. When he was injured the other day, he called emergency services. That’s exactly what I would have done in the situation. I just don’t know why he would want to move out of Mom and Dad’s. It’s a pretty nice setup if you ask me.”