Enemies on Tap (18 page)

“Oh yes.” Tyrell nodded. “I talked to her boss, Patrick Bason, at DeBoer Financial. The only reason Miranda Sweet ever set foot back in Salvation was to advance her own career. She never planned to stay in Salvation, and she sure doesn’t care about what happens to the people here. She has no real, deep commitment to Sweet Salvation Brewery, and it’s only a matter of time before she abandons the brewery. Ladies and gentlemen of the council, you must vote to end alcohol production in Hamilton County and close the doors of Sweet Salvation Brewery.”

A few people clapped their support. Stuck in her seat at the front of the room, a lump clogged Miranda’s throat as she watched Logan turn, push his way through the crowd, and walk out the door, leaving her to face the town alone again.

Chapter
Twenty

Logan stomped down the deserted hall. The sound of his boots hitting the tile floor echoed off the high ceiling as loud as thunder, but the sound couldn’t drown out the words he kept hearing repeate
d in his mind.

She never planned to stay.

She was leaving. Miranda would abandon Salvation—
him
—as soon as the brewery turned profitable. She’d confessed as much during their first truce by the Hamilton River, but hearing the words announced to the world with a sneer by Tyrell? That hurt. Bad. He felt like an orange traffic cone after it had been run over by a city bus, leaving him squashed, dented, and tossed over to the side of the road. But that didn’t mean he’d given up.

He slammed open the county council’s front door and stormed out into the crisp evening air. He hooked a right as soon as he hit the sidewalk and hustled across the street.

Being a shrewd asshole, Tyrell Hawson had hit every concern point anyone on the county council would have about the Sweet Salvation Brewery. He ran up the county courthouse steps, taking them two at a time, and hurried to the clerk’s office. The clerk’s secretary, Ione Pike, worked late almost every night, and he hoped like hell tonight wouldn’t be the exception.

The clerk’s office doorknob wouldn’t turn, but through the glass he spotted Ione sitting at her desk. She had a pencil stuck behind one ear and a mammoth World’s Best Grammy coffee cup within easy reach.

Logan tapped on the glass, and she jumped in her seat, her startled gaze searching her surroundings before settling on him. Her shoulders relaxed, and she shook her head as she pushed away from her desk, then walked to the door and opened it.

“If you weren’t my godson, I’d have the sheriff arrest you for scaring the bejesus out of me like that.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you.” He stepped inside the office, relieved no one else was there. There wasn’t enough time for the normal chit chat small town living required. Not if he was going to enact his plan before the county council voted. He had to show them that it was past time to stop blaming the Sweets for everything that went wrong in town. And to do that, he needed backup.

Crossing her arms over her chest, Ione gave him a once-over. “You aren’t here for more bail money are you?”

From someone else, those would be fighting words. From Ione, it was a love tap. “You’re always busting my chops.”

“Why do you think your mother picked me to be your godmother?”

“Because you’re the only sucker willing to take the job.” He squeezed her narrow shoulders. “I need a favor.”

“I’m listening.”

“I need the city’s founding charter and a copy of
The History of Salvation.
” A university history professor with an affection for digging up old dirt had written the book ten years ago. Its contents had scandalized the town, and they’d disavowed the tome even as they’d devoured it behind closed doors.

She didn’t even blink. “Does this have anything to do with that Sweet girl and the fool meeting going on down the street?”

“It does.” And his last ditch effort to get her to stay. He figured he had a fifteen percent chance of success, but he was done with sure bets. He cared about this. About her. Making things right with Miranda was worth risking a loss. Hell, it was worth everything.

Ione narrowed her eyes, but she went back to her desk and spent a minute typing on her computer. She clicked the mouse, and the printer buzzed to life. Next, she pulled a thick book out of the bottom drawer. By the time she strolled over to the printer, a piece of paper sat in the out tray.

“You know that stuff in the paper was just the opening salvo. If you tick him off any more, Tyrell will have a lot more bile to spew before he’s done with you.” She handed the printout of the charter along with the book over to Logan. “She worth it?”

“Without a doubt.” He grabbed a handful of the polished oval worry stones in a decorative dish on her desk and dropped them into a pocket. “Thank you for this.”

He was halfway through the door when Ione’s voice stopped him. “Your mother would be proud of you for this.”

“You think?” His breath hitched.

“Without a doubt.”

“Are there any other citizens who’d like to speak in favor of this vote?” Sheldon Monroe asked into the microphone.

The county council chambers fell silent. Everyone looked at each other to see who would be the next to step f
orward. Miranda forced her jiggling knee to stop bouncing. There wasn’t a damn thing she could do to change some folks’ minds. She only had to concern herself with the six voting members.

“Anyone?” Sheldon scanned the murmuring, but seated, crowd. “Well, in that case, is there anyone else who’d like to speak?”

Inhaling a deep breath, she knocked her shoulders back and raised her chin to face the firing squad. Giving Natalie a wink that was more bravado than confidence, she stood up.

“If you don’t mind, I’d like to address the council.” Logan’s deep voice carried across the room from the back and hushed the chattering mass. They all turned to watch him walk to the podium.

Surprise knocked Miranda off her feet, and she
thunked
down into her chair. Her belly fluttered like the moment at the top of a roller coaster’s first big loop-de-loop. A stillness fell in the room. She could practically hear people’s minds wondering what Logan was going to say. Miranda was right there with them.

For his part, he looked as cocky and sure of himself as he had the first time she’d walked into his office. All brass balls and confident swagger. He didn’t look at her or acknowledge her presence in any way as he strutted by the front row. Laying a thick book and a piece of paper on the podium, he cleared his throat and gave the council a hard look.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to share with you the Salvation city charter.” He held up the printed page. “As you can see, there are two signatures here, one from Benjamin Martin and one from Matthew Sweet. With this document, they agreed to combine some of their land to found Salvation. If it wasn’t for the Sweets, there wouldn’t be a Salvation.”

Hope bubbled up inside her, making her limbs lighter. She snuck a glance at Natalie, who couldn’t hide her slack-jawed shock.

As Logan walked around the podium, the room was as silent as a man five minutes past dead. The six council members straightened in their chairs as he approached the dais. Miranda had been clasping her hands together so tight her fingers had gone numb. She loosened her grip and extended her fingers, allowing the blood to return to the tips.

Reaching into his pocket, he stopped in front of Sheldon’s place at the far end of the dais and pulled a handful of small oval rocks from his pocket. He laid one stone in front of each council member’s name placard, then returned to the podium, where he flipped open the book.

“I know just about everyone here has read
The History of Salvation
, even those of you who won’t ever admit to it. There’s just too much good stuff in here for a gossipy little town like ours not to have pored over. Let’s see, your family is in here, Sheldon, for the time your great grandfather threw a man out of a bar window for insulting his horse. And your family practically has its own page in the index, Tyrell. Hell, practically everyone who’s ever set foot in Salvation is in this book with a lurid tale attached to their name.” He slammed the book shut hard enough that Miranda jumped in her seat. “So before you vote based on nothing more than one man’s personal vendetta, you need to think about the fact that the Sweets are a part of Salvation. As an employer and a taxpayer, the Sweet Salvation Brewery is an important part of our community. Sure, they’re a little bit wild.” The crowd chuckled. “But you’re all armed with rocks, and I say, let those who are without sin cast the first stone.”

He paused, giving the council members time to eyeball the shiny ovals at their disposal. Miranda couldn’t help but tense. She didn’t really think they’d stone her, but it piqued her sense of self-preservation, honed as it was to a sharp edge by growing up in a town that had given her the side-eye since she’d been born.

When no one made a move to swing the rocks, Logan continued. “If we can all stop our knee-jerk reaction of hating the Sweets, maybe we’d all finally see everything they bring to Salvation.” He turned and, for the first time since he marched up the aisle, looked straight into Miranda’s eyes. “The fun. The hope. The never knowing what she’s going to do next. The everything. If we did, then maybe she’d stay. I know I hope she will, because I love her.”

Every thought in her head scattered to the edge of the universe, except for one. He loved her and wanted her to stay. In Salvation. With him. The whole idea was so farcical that she should be rolling her eyes. Instead, she couldn’t keep the grin off her face. But it felt right. Somehow, in all the madness, Salvation had become home again.

Before she had a chance to make sense of it all, Logan strode over and hauled her up from her seat. His lips were on hers in the next heartbeat, rocking her world in all the right ways. The kiss was both a declaration of intent and a plea for agreement, and she neither had the will nor the want to say no to either. When he released her a second later, she had to grab hold of his arm in case her knees gave out.

“Go get ‘em,” he whispered in her ear before giving her a push toward the front of the room and stealing her seat.

Miranda wobbled a bit, but she made her way to the podium. Once there, she realized she had no idea what to say, and winging it was not her game. “Wow.” She raised her fingers to her kiss-swollen lips. “Watch out, it looks like the Sweet family crazy is catching.”

Laughter filled the room, and even Sheldon cracked a smile at the joke, but the noise died down before her jumbled thoughts fell back into order.

“I had a whole speech planned out, but…” The words dried up in her mouth. She sucked in a deep breath and steadied her nerves. “For most of my life, I’ve hated being a Sweet in Salvation. I’ve done almost everything in my power to distance myself from this town and nearly everyone in it. But over the past few weeks, I’ve realized that you can’t ever really run away from home.” She covered her heart. “Because it’s always here. Just like your family, it doesn’t always make sense, but there’s nothing in the world like it.”

Firming her resolve, she turned her attention back to the council. “The Sweet Salvation Brewery is an important part of the community. If you vote to keep the Brewery open, I promise you, we’ll do more to support the town and its citizens. But know this. No matter how you vote, I’m staying. You can’t get rid of the Sweets that easily.” Her gaze locked on Logan and in an instant everything fell into place. “You can bet on that.”

Floating on hope and high expectations, Miranda returned to her seat and squeezed in between Logan and Natalie.

“Thank you, Miss Sweet.” Sheldon shuffled the papers in front of him. “I think we’re ready for a vote. Can I get a motion?”

“I make a motion that we outlaw alcohol production in Hamilton County,” said a councilwoman.

“Seconded,” said another.

Miranda threaded her fingers between Logan’s. His thumb brushed her skin, calming the nerves threatening to jump right out of her body.

“All in favor?” Sheldon asked, his gaze firmly on his hands.

Her lungs ached as she held her breath in anticipation, and she leaned forward in her seat. One Mississippi. Two Mississippi. Three Mississippi. Nothing. It was so quiet in the council chambers, if it had been summer, the croaking of frogs would have carried in from the river. Every muscle in her body tightened as she strained to hear the slightest sound.

“All those opposed?”

Four voices called “Aye.”

Miranda jumped up from her seat and let go of it all. The air trapped in her lungs. The resentment toward her family. The frustrations about Salvation’s citizens. And, most of all, her second thoughts about her future with Logan. It didn’t fit into her ten-year-plan, but she didn’t give a damn.

“Motion fails. Meeting adjourned.” Sheldon banged his gavel and sprinted from his seat faster than a jackrabbit on speed.

A few hours and several celebratory beers later, she and Logan were tucked into the porch swing at Uncle Julian’s house. A blanket and Logan’s strong arms kept the fall chill at bay as they watched the stars twinkle above. The rest of the party had dispersed thirty minutes
ago, and Natalie had scurried upstairs to start working on plans for reorganizing the brewery for prime efficiency.

As she sat with her back to his chest and her ass firmly against the growing bulge in his pants, he had the perfect angle to torment her, while she couldn’t reach him at all. His fingers danced up her inner thigh, coming so close to the juncture but always stopping short. The man had her strung high and tight. If he didn’t touch her soon, she was going to file a formal protest.

“You scared me there, you know.” She squirmed against his hard cock as his fingers made their way up her leg again.

He nuzzled her neck, right at the sweet spot where her shoulder met her throat. “How’s that?” He nipped her sensitive flesh, and her nipples tightened in response.

“When you left during the meeting. I thought you were gone for good.” Saying the words out loud pinched her heart.

“Sweetling, I’m not going anywhere except upstairs, where I’m going to make love to you until you pass out happy.”

“On a bed?” She couldn’t keep the giggle out of her voice.

He scooped her up in his arms and carried her inside. “First time for everything.”

While he bounded up the stairs, she started unbuttoning his shirt, relishing each inch of skin revealed. They reached the landing and crossed into her room.

“And hopefully a second, and a third, and a—”

Hungry for Logan, Miranda silenced his words with her lips. Her pulse thundered in her ears as pleasure jolted through her, electrifying every nerve until she could focus only on his touch.

A groan vibrated his chest, and he tossed her onto the center of the bed. “You make me crazy.”