Winning Over Skylar. Julianna Morris

looked around. “What’s going on? I was told to arrive at seven since you had a full agenda and that I would come last. Surely the meeting didn’t end early.”

      “Nope, we’re on a break. Have some coffee. It’s okay, it won’t poison you—I didn’t make it,” she said innocently.

      * * *

      THERE WAS SOMETHING in Skylar’s tone that made Aaron suspicious, and when he tasted the coffee, he knew why. It was god-awful. Dishwater would have tasted better. Nevertheless, he pretended to enjoy the evil brew; he wouldn’t make friends by complaining about something so trivial.

      The meeting was called to order again, and Aaron waited, surreptitiously looking around—the room was in good condition, but there were no signs of audio-visual equipment. Fortunately, he’d brought a computer and equipment of his own for the presentation. All he needed was an electrical outlet and a blank wall to project images onto.

      The mayor droned on about various issues. Comments were invited and votes were taken. Over half the seats were filled with “interested” citizens, most of whom seemed bored by the business being handled. More drifted in until the room was full, though the chairs on either side of him remained empty.

      Aaron mentally ran through his speech. He’d considered using a folksy approach, but had realized he would be lousy at it. Straightforward was best, though he didn’t want to paint too bleak a picture of how Cooper Industries was doing. That wouldn’t help the situation, either.

      “Mr. Hollister is the final item on the agenda, Mr. Mayor,” announced Micki Jo. Apparently she acted as secretary for the city council, as well as the mayor’s office, though she didn’t look old enough to be out of high school.

      A rumble came from the assembly, and there was a general shifting of chairs as people sat forward. An ominous sensation went through Aaron.

      All of these people had come for his presentation?

      How had it gotten around Cooperton so quickly? Even though it was to everyone’s benefit for Cooper Industries to expand, there were bound to be a few folks who didn’t understand, or had environmental concerns, or another ax to grind. He’d hoped to convince the city council before the public heard much about it.

      Aaron glanced about and saw an array of unfriendly expressions. Not an auspicious beginning. He stood up. “Mr. Mayor, I just need a moment to set up my equipment,” he said. “I have graphics and other visuals to demonstrate what I want to accomplish.”

      The mayor held up a hand. “That won’t be necessary, Mr. Hollister. During the break we decided that Mrs. Gibson is the best council member to determine whether your expansion plans should be approved.”

      Skylar jerked upright. “Mr. Mayor, I wasn’t part of any such discussion.”

      “We had a sidebar while you were greeting Mr. Hollister.”

      “Chet, I’m not—”

      “You’ll have a chance to vote on the motion, Skylar.”

      “But—”

      “I move that Mrs. Gibson handle the matter before us, regarding the approval or rejection of plans to expand Cooper Industries,” interrupted one of the other men.

      “I second the motion,” another councilman said hastily.

      “Being moved and seconded, all in favor say ‘aye,’” announced the mayor.

      A chorus of “ayes” followed, accompanied by an emphatic “no” from Skylar.

      “The motion has passed. Mr. Hollister, Mrs. Gibson will be contacting you to discuss your proposal. All business now concluded, I adjourn this meeting.” The mayor rapidly gathered the papers in front of him and smiled genially at the assembled citizens. “Thank you to everyone for coming. It is important for the civic process to have the participation of its citizens.”

      A weak round of applause went through the room.

      Skylar looked as if she was in shock, and Aaron wasn’t far behind. This was even worse than having an elected council making the decision rather than a professional city planner—Skylar was that “wild Naples girl,” a high-school dropout. She didn’t have the education or background to make such a decision, and she was already pissed at him for telling Melanie he didn’t approve of her going to the hamburger stand. Granted, Skylar was running a successful business now, but that didn’t mean he wanted her having the say over his plans to restore Cooper Industries.

      * * *

      SKYLAR BOLTED FROM her chair and caught up with Chet and the other councilmen before they’d gotten to the exit.

      “Oh, no. You’re not going anywhere,” she warned.

      “It’s late, Skylar,” Hector protested. “My dog needs to be walked.”

      “And I have a kid at home. Move,” she ordered, pointing toward the back chamber, a windowless room that was mostly used for storing the building’s holiday decorations.

      Dragging their feet, they trudged through the door. She flipped the light switch and planted her hands on her hips, staring them down the way she’d stare down a troop of Girl Scouts who’d eaten too much sugar. “All right, I should have known something was up when you put your heads together during the break, but I never suspected this. I don’t have time to deal with Hollister’s expansion plans, or whatever they might be.”

      “Whatever they might be? Then you don’t think expanding is what he really wants?” Doug asked uneasily.

      “I have no idea, and I have no idea why you threw it in my lap,” Skylar snapped.

      “Come on, Skylar, don’t be that way,” Chet placated. “You know him. Besides, you’re the only council member who doesn’t care about getting reelected. You saw how many people showed up to hear Hollister’s presentation—nobody attends our meetings, and look at tonight’s turnout.”

      “That’s because you had Micki Jo call around with the news that Aaron Hollister was coming and what he wanted. You were trying to see if it was a political hot potato.”

      Chet gave her a duh look he must have learned from his three children. “He’s really unpopular. If we give him what he wants and the town is mad about it, we’ll never get reelected.”

      “And if I do it, nobody will eat at the Nibble Nook any longer,” Skylar said furiously. She didn’t actually think it was true, though she might lose a few customers.

      “Nobody will stop going to the Nook,” Hector assured. “Your business largely depends on Cooper Industries, so everyone will understand what you decide is based on keeping the company healthy. The town will respect that, but they’ll think the rest of us are getting paid off, especially if jobs are lost. Come on, Skylar, everybody knows you’re not a politician.”

      “Guys, surely you don’t believe anyone else will run against you?” she asked as a last-ditch effort. Aside from everything else, she believed the town’s big decisions should be made by more than one person. “Jimmie ran unopposed for his position in both elections. Nobody wants to be on the city council.”

      Doug looked at her, shocked. “That isn’t true. Our families have always been on the council. It’s a...a civic duty, but we want voter support. It was when the population increased and we needed another member under the town charter that we added a slot. You have to handle Hollister for us, Skylar. Things are getting tense with what he’s been doing.”

      “Yeah, city hall gets daily calls,” Chet muttered. “Everyone thinks he’s violated labor laws or some other regulation with his new policies. They don’t like it when we say another government office handles those questions or suggest they talk to the union.”

      A shiver ran up Skylar’s spine. It wouldn’t be so bad if she wasn’t concerned about Karin. She might... Oh, who was she kidding? Anything to do with Aaron would be a pain. He’d gone from being