He drew their attention to a slide projected on the wall. “In the Whelk’s Island location, we already have fourteen retired military working dogs going through rehabilitation. The twelve-week program will prepare these dogs to be reunited with their original military handlers. There are over twenty-five hundred active military working dogs in our armed forces currently. They serve our country as soldiers, and upon return, like our men and women, they need special handling to address issues like PTSD or injuries sustained while working in combat zones. We’re proud to be part of that solution.”
He took in a breath and spread his stance. “We currently have thirty veterans working in different roles at this location. Without the hard work of this town council and committee, we would’ve never been able to accomplish the four cornerstones of our mission: to reunite military working dogs with their handlers; to support our veterans, both human and canine; to self-fund these efforts; and to give back to the community. It’s an honor to be able to do this here on Whelk’s Island, which I now call home.”
The mayor smiled. “You certainly came through on all fronts, Mr. Grant. Your tenacity was hard to ignore.”
Paul had been accused of that before. Heat rose to his cheeks. “We’ve put new discounts in place for locals, and tourists can reduce their kennel bills by simply visiting their animals during their stay. Hopefully, that will make this feel like a pet-friendly town and even more appealing to travelers.”
The assistant town manager said, “The business has great eye appeal as tourists come into town too.”
“Thank you.” Paul twisted his papers in his hands. “Your support has given us a wonderful template to help expedite these efforts in other cities across the nation.”
With nothing else on the agenda, a motion to adjourn followed and everyone made their way to the exit.
Maeve shortcut across the room to catch up with Paul. “Sir? Excuse me. Paul?”
“Yes ma’am.” He turned.
He looked even kinder up close, but he still had that tough Marine appearance. Strong and capable.
“Hi. I’m Maeve Lindsay. I wanted to congratulate you. Your hard work is really admirable, and I’m glad you picked this town to set up shop.”
“Thank you, ma’am.” His smile was easy, genuine. “I appreciate you standing up for the plans in the early zoning meetings. I remember you.”
“To take a tired and decaying building on the outskirts of town and transform it into a beautiful and functioning part of the community is appreciated, Mr. Grant. But doing so to fund good works—sir, that is a gift.” She placed her palm on his heart. “Truly a gift. I hope to come out and see Paws Town Square in person one day. It’s a little farther than I walk, but I’ll get a friend to take me.”
“Thank you. Believe me, it’s not only a pleasure but a dream come true.” His heavy brows tilted. “It’s very dear to my heart. You let me know when you come. I’ll drop everything and give you a personal tour. You rarely miss a meeting, do you?”
“Can’t leave everything in their hands. Sometimes they need an old lady’s advice.”
His laugh was nice.
“Well, thank you,” he said. “I’d be happy to arrange transportation when you come visit if you need it.” He reached into his pocket and handed her a card. “Call me.”
She took the card. “Careful, now. I might take you up on that.”
“It would truly make my day if you did.” The words came across as sincere. “Please do.”
“That’s very kind,” she said. “I know it doesn’t mean much, but I’m very proud of you. I wanted to meet you and thank you personally for helping bring something positive to Whelk’s Island. I was born and raised here. I love this town, and that old shopping center was just a mess.”
“Hopefully, other businesses will be inspired to consider ghost boxes now.”
“Wouldn’t that be great? Honey, I won’t keep you. Thanks for giving an old gal a minute of your time. You have a nice day.” When she squeezed his arm, his bicep was as solid as a coconut.
Maeve walked out of the building satisfied for doing her part. She did love these meetings. It was way better than sitting in front of a television, watching something that meant absolutely nothing. Why didn’t more people care about what happened in their town?
Walking home, she thought about how Paul must feel knowing he was responsible for helping two groups—animals and veterans—who’d served our country and fought for our freedom.
Only a very special man would recognize that need and be able to find so many ways to contribute.
4
As Amanda went over the dune, it made her happy to finally see the outside of her house shaping up. The overgrown yard had been wrangled into something close to order. Goodness knows they’d had enough barrel fires to get rid of the debris. So many that the kids considered gathering brush a precursor to hot dogs and s’mores for dinner…again.
The freshly painted front door, the same color as the geraniums she’d planted, added life to the place.
“Doesn’t our home look pretty today?” Amanda said out loud.
Hailey gave a halfhearted “yep” as she tried to catch up.
The day the real estate agent showed them this house, Hailey and Jesse had been hesitant to go inside. She couldn’t blame them, but she’d felt an immediate kinship to the place. Like her, it had seen better days but now seemed sad. Unloved. Unwanted. Uncared for. The sellers hadn’t even tried to put lipstick on the pig, but a Marine sticker on a surfboard and a dirty old postcard of Mount McKinley in Denali National Park on the closet floor were all the signs Amanda needed to know this was where she was meant to be. She and the house would take the journey to restore their futures together, and they were off to a good start.
The kids took turns dancing under the cool water from the spigot before going inside.
“Mom, it’s hotter in here than it is at the beach,” Hailey complained.
And she was right.
“Everyone put on shorts and sneakers,” Amanda said. “I’ve got a plan.”
She changed too and then piled Hailey and Jesse into the car. As she drove down the old beach road, she noticed a whole display of fans blowing red streamers in the hardware-store window. “What do you think about that?”
Hailey and Jesse perked up. “That looks cool!”
Cool was exactly what she had in mind. The kids hadn’t complained one bit up until today, but summer was showing its strength. Amanda had underestimated how miserable it could be with no central air in North Carolina. This was nothing like the lake in Ohio when she was a kid. Not having AC had been no problem back then. She couldn’t afford air-conditioning with the price she’d paid for the house, and she’d thought they could get through one summer without it. That clearly wasn’t going to work.