Mitch leaned over the map to see the distance. He took the Van Meter proposal and showed Maggie the clause where it stated the reasons for wanting the Greenlee property.

"The Pelt Company thinks this would be a great place to add the four lane by-pa.s.s and plop the mall there so travelers will stop and help the economy." He handed her the by-pa.s.s proposal. "And that is what has divided the community."

They both looked around at the new faces walking in the door. The Fatted Pig was a place where people pa.s.sing through stopped to eat. This was what kept Grandberry Falls running and the quaint city it had become. And if they allow the eminent domain on the Greenlee farm, the town would become a ghost town, putting more people out of work.

"This just doesn"t make sense." Maggie pointed to the west side of town. "Who owns this land?"

Mitch took a good look.

"You can go to the planning and zoning to see, right?" Maggie knew that if they could find out who it belonged to, they might be able to use that land. "It"s much closer to the interstate. They wouldn"t have to completely by-pa.s.s all of Grandberry Falls."

She made a mental note to go and check out the property. She didn"t want to put anyone out of business, but if she remembered correctly, that was a lot of woods, not a working farm like Hazel"s.

Think, Maggie closed her eyes. Mitch"s cologne was wrapping around her, and she needed to keep her head straight. There was no way she was falling for him. Or was she? She jumped when she felt Mitch"s fingers touch her.

"Maggie, are you okay?" A faint light twinkled in the depths of his brown eyes.

"I"m. . . I"m fine."Maggie shook her head back and forth, and shrugged to hide her confusion.

She"d heard about rebound relationships, and Mitch would be the logical choice, but these were feelings that she had never had. Not even for Grady.

Get it together! She chalked it up to confusion and his love for the Greenelee farm.

"Anyway, we know the new stores would help boost the economy. Are the farm hands all of a sudden going to know what pant looks best with the latest high-heel?" Ridiculous. She knew the outlet would bring a lot of business to Grandberry Falls. But what about the workers that worked at the Greenlee farm? Where were they going to find jobs? She had to get back to business.

"Wait." Mitch jumped up and looked at the map again. He snapped his fingers. He took a set of keys out of his pocket and dropped them on the table. "I have to go check something out. Let yourself in my office."

He ran out of the diner. Maggie fumbled the keys wondering what he was up to. Her phone vibrated in the bottom of her briefcase, but stopped. She didn"t answer it.

Grady.

Chapter 31.

A man is not where he lives, but where he loves. ~ Latin Proverb The old truck groaned around every bend and curve in the road as Mitch headed toward Lexington. He hadn"t visited with his family attorney since the reading of his mother"s will. Mitch didn"t have any reason to go to the biggest city closest to Grandberry Falls.

There was something that struck a chord in him when Maggie pointed to the west end of town. He vaguely remembered something about property in his mom"s will, but he was so distraught from her sudden death, that he didn"t really listen. His family didn"t have anything more than what was under the roof of their family home. The place that Mitch lived in.

His thoughts turned back to Maggie. Was he reading into it, or was she turning back into the Maggie Greenlee that he knew and . . .loved?

It was hard to keep himself from smiling when he saw her in her *big girl" suit. She looked good. Too good.

Man, he smacked the steering wheel. If his feelings were that transparent to Wendy, could Maggie see through his tough guy act?

The last thing he needed or wanted was to go back to following Maggie around like a puppy.

No way, he repeated over and over. There was no way he was going to allow himself to fall for her again. Eventually, he was going to have to tell her about Wendy, but not now.

The big gla.s.s building towered up in the sky, casting a shadow on the vast parking lot. A few cars were scattered, but not many.

The old dash clock hands read eight o"clock, but he was sure Bob was in the office. At least he was going to take his chances.

The elevator zipped up to the twelfth floor. It was hard for him to imagine Maggie Greenlee going to a big building like this in New York.

He saw Gunkel and Gunkel engraved on the plaque outside of the double gla.s.s doors, as soon as he stepped out of the elevator.

Mitch tried to push the door open, but it was locked. He strained to see if he could see anything. There was a light down the hall. He tapped on the door, hoping someone was there. He tapped a little louder.

A shadowy figure walked into the hall, and came toward the door. It was a younger version of Bob Gunkel.

He unlocked the door and pushed it open.

"How can I help you?" He looked at Mitch.

"I was wondering if Bob was in." Mitch wondered if this was the other Gunkel from the sign.

"It"s a little too early for dad, unless you had an appointment." The guy looked at his watch.

"I didn"t." Mitch stuck his hand out. "I"m Mitch Dozier, the mayor of Grandberry Falls."

"Nice to meet you, Mayor." He shook Mitch"s hand. "I"m Bob jr. Is there something I can help you with?"

Mitch stepped into the office when Bob Jr. opened the door a little wider.

"Bob was my mom"s attorney and he had mentioned something about property in her will." Mitch ran his hands through his spiky hair. "I . . . was so taken by surprise with my mom"s sudden death that I really didn"t listen to the will and I have a copy of it in the safety deposit box at the bank, unfortunately it"s closed right now too."

That was one of Mitch"s downfalls. If he wanted something, he got it; just not in Maggie"s case, which drove him crazy.

"There must be something really important in that will." Bob Jr."s eyes narrowed.

"If it"s what I think, I really need the information now. Is there any way you can look up the will?" Mitch asked.

Mitch followed Bob into one of the rooms off the hallway, hoping Bob Jr. would be able to help him.

Chapter 32.

A friend knows the song in my heart and sings it to me when my memory fails. ~ Donna Roberts There was only one thing for Maggie to do before she headed to finish off a little paperwork at Mitch"s office, and then head to Grandberry Falls Park. She did promise Wendy and the gals that she would help decorate for the big Grandberry Falls Jubilee this weekend.

Just thinking about being in Grandberry Falls during the festival sent excited b.u.t.terflies in her stomach. She had so many fond memories of not only Mitch, but also her friends.

How simple life was, she sighed.

Traffic had picked up on Main Street. Maggie looked both ways before crossing. She rubbed the quarter from the change Mamie had given her after she paid the bill.

The Trembling Cup already had a small line out the door. Maggie waved through the coffee shop window at Jenna and Liz. She admired how her Aunt and her friend met every Friday for girl talk and coffee.

She hoped that once she got settled and figured out what she wanted to do with her life, that she would be sitting around with her friends shooting the breeze.

The smell of fresh water and spring air filled her lungs. There was a sense of renewal in her life. Working on Hazel"s case felt like she was truly giving back everything she had always wanted with her career. When Van Meter dangled the big salary in front of her, she caved.

Regret settled in the base of her stomach.

Please, please let me help Granny. Maggie closed her eyes, and inhaled deeply. There wasn"t anything in the world she wanted more, then to help Hazel.

The breeze felt good on her face. Slowly she opened her eyes, curled on her tiptoes, and lifted her arm in the air.

"Seriously?" The male voice asked.

Maggie jumped around, clutching the quarter in her fist.

"Grady?" She didn"t know whether to hug him or just stand there. She blinked a few times to make sure her eyes weren"t playing tricks on her. She was confused, but not nuts.

He stood with his hands in the pockets of his khakis, as if he were protecting himself. His baby blue shirt was a little wrinkled, probably from the trip to Grandberry Falls.

"You need a haircut." Maggie knew she should say something different, but she couldn"t.

I have no feelings for you. She tried to control her thoughts as she looked at him, but she was surprised. She didn"t care that he was there. Oh my G.o.d. I really have no feelings for him. She searched for the attraction she once had for Grady, but it was nowhere to be found.

Be angry, be angry, she thought.

"That is all you have to say to me?" Grady laughed, shuffling his Sperry"s along the pavement. "I bet you hate me."

Maggie put her hands in her pocket, along with the quarter. She wasn"t sure what he wanted her to say. She wasn"t sure why he was here.

"Of course I don"t hate you." She knew there were a lot of unanswered questions, but what good would the answers be now?

In fact, he had done her a favor.

"You know what? This is where I need to be right now." Maggie nodded. "I"m not sure why you did what you did, but those questions can be answered in time."

Grady looked at his watch. "Well, I don"t have any appointments today. What about now?" He asked, pointing to the Trembling Cup.

Maggie glanced over to the coffee shop. Jenna and Liz had their faces planted on the window, staring at Maggie and Grady.

Maggie didn"t owe anything to Grady, but in order to figure out her feelings for Mitch, maybe she did need to put the entire Grady situation behind her.

Plus Mitch was nowhere to be found, and she did have a while before she needed to help set up the decorations.

"Sure, you can buy me a cup of coffee." Maggie held her head high and walked to the Trembling Cup.

She tried not to make eye contact with anyone. It was a matter of minutes before the entire town found out that Grady was here.

"Isn"t that your Aunt over there?" Grady raised his hand, giving a slight wave.

Maggie glanced at Jenna, and waved her way.

"Yes." Maggie was relieved to see that the line had died down. "I"ll get a table, and you can order me a black coffee."

He had no power here. She could tell he was trying hard to keep the peace. Little did he know, she wasn"t going to even fight with him.

Nervously, she looked out the window toward the courthouse. The mayor"s parking s.p.a.ce was still empty. She didn"t want Mitch seeing Grady, even though she was certain he"d hear about it. Seeing was different than hearing in her book.

Maggie"s phone beeped. She pulled it out of her briefcase.

What is he doing here???? Jenna message read.

Maggie quickly texted back, I have no idea. AND I DON"T CARE! She noticed he had their coffee and moving toward her. She typed quickly; I have no feelings for him!!

Maggie glanced over Grady"s shoulder to see Jenna read her text. Jenna looked up, a smile planted across her face.

Maggie looked at her watch. Wherever Mitch went, he had to be back soon.

"Do you have to be somewhere?" Grady asked. He set the two mugs down on the table.

"Yes, I do. But why don"t you tell me why you are here." Maggie peeled back the creamer foil, poured it in her cup, and stirred it. She gave a wave to some people standing near the counter.

Yes, everyone in Grandberry Falls was going to find out that Grady Cohen had come back to town.

"I couldn"t continue to live my life in New York when you were here. I had to tell you why I called off the wedding." He sat back in the chair, and played with his napkin.

He was nervous. He deserved to be nervous, so Maggie let him sweat it out.

"Go on." She picked up the mug and took a sip. "I"m all ears."

"Maggie, I do love you." He took her hands in his. "And I could"ve lived with all the superst.i.tion you seem to believe in, but I can never compete with Grandberry Falls."

Maggie looked away. She couldn"t bear to hear this. Her heart stopped. Mitch"s car was parked in the mayor"s parking s.p.a.ce.

"Keep going." She pulled her hands out from under Grady"s. She prayed Mitch didn"t see them through the window, though it would be hard not to notice since it was a straight shot from the courthouse.

"Whenever you came to visit or when I came to visit, you became this girl I didn"t know. You were more relaxed, and just. . .just. . .happy." He paused, and then continued, "It is a happiness that I couldn"t give you. There is no way I"d ever move here, and eventually you would want to come back."

She couldn"t believe what she was hearing. He was right. No matter how hard she tried to distance herself from Grandberry Falls, the more she was pulled to come back.

"Being here at Christmas made me realize how much your family means to you. I was raised with a nanny. Even though I had a mother, she was that in name only." He leaned in and whispered, "You have Hazel, who may be your grandmother, but she raised you as if she was your mom."

That was the truest statement Grady had ever said to her, and the nicest compliment he had ever given Hazel. Despite their differences, Grady had finally realized the importance Hazel had played in her life.